OK! Your Plasma! You Tell Me! Got a new one? post it here - Page 6

Troyman.......I also went the Best Buy route too. Had them price match CC plus 10%. With the rebates and reward points, what a deal!!!!! I also got the 50px50u. Bought the Direct TV with the discount too. I'm also thinking of the extended warranty. Having it delivered Saturday, and the satellite hookup Saturday too.

Well....my 42PX50U arrived yesterday and it is.....phenomenal! I had a sammy dlp-HLN507W(exchanged after multiple repairs-thanks CC advantage) that was actually a little too big for my apartment living room.Now,the sammy had great HD PQ on bright content,but no matter how much tweaking in the SM I did,I could never get any shadow detail,and like most DLP's,the colors gave off an almost cartoonish feel at times.My new Panny gives a much more realistic/colorful picture.
DVDs look great,even with my sammy DVDHD841.The panny even managed to make
movies on HBO-HD from my HDTivo look great.The yanks/A's ass whpping on INHD last night looked absolutely amazing,best looking HD baseball game I have ever seen.I do not have any hint of green push,and no buzzing from the pdp as others have reported.
My viewing distance after rearranging my living room is about 7-8 feet,perfect.I was worried that it would look too small,coming down from a 50",but at my new viewing distance that was no problem.My old living room setup actually looked kinda ridiculous,for me to get far enough back from the Sammy,one of my sofas was practically in the dining room-haha.
Another satisfied PANNY owner!

I just wanted to take a moment to thank ALL you AVS forum members for all the great info that helped in my latest purchase, the 50" 50U Panasonic plasma.
Had it not been for so many on this forum I would have not know about Panasonic slashing their MSRP's on Aug. 28th. I purchased my Panny plasma at C.C. on Aug. 13th with that knowlege I made sure that I and them were clear on the 30 day price guarantee. I have never really bothered that much with price guarantee's and chances are I might not have ever known about Pannys price slash had it not been for the info on this forum. C.C. honored the lower MSRP and refunded me Pannys $1000.00 MSRP price cut plus their standard %10 and that does not even include the rebate I also got, (I wont talk dollar amounts as I don't wish to break any forum rules). Other info that helped me on this forum is about the new 65" 1080 Panny plasma coming out in Nov. , I was originally going to get the 7th gen. 65" last month but now the new plan is to sell the 50" in November and get the 65" 8th gen Panny come Nov. Anyhow, I just wanted to thank my fellow AVS members for saving me a ton of cash and always being their to help me make good choices on all A/V gear I have purchased over the years (mostly projectors and screens purchased ONLY from AVS sponsors, TVA and V. Apex, they both rock).

Thank you very much EVERYBODY !!!!!!!!!

Davyo

Daveyo,
This forum is a great place to call home. Myself as well ,have learned alot from lurking and recently starting to post and help others.

thanks to all the regulars here.

Purchased the Panny 50px50u at cc last night. Bought Sony's new 50" rplcd(kdf-e50a10) about three weeks ago, but it never looked right to me. With the price drop and price match of a local chain(BrandsMart) it was in the price range I could justify. I couldn't be happier!!

All of the elements that I didn't like about the Sony have now disappeared. The Sony to me, had too much sse and I felt that I was always looking through the screen to the picture, instead of at it.

The Panny has that, looking through a window picture I was searching for.

I wish it had one more cable input and its atsc tuner isn't quite as good as the Sony's

Just got my Panasonic TH-42PWD8UK a couple of days ago from Visual Apex, so far, it looks and works great. I was able to pick it up from their warehouse near Seattle to avoid the $195 S/H fee. It looks great, and the whole thing was less than 2K. In terms of bang for HDTV buck, I think it's a great deal (although it is ED).

Two minor issues. I didn't get the optional speakers, since I have a DVD player with 5 speakers. However, I have not been able to figure out how to hook it up so that the sound comes through all 5 speakers for both TV watching (through the Comcast tuner), and DVD watching. So I've hooked two of the speakers up directly to the TV, and the other three work when the DVD player is functioning. A temporary solution, but it will work until I can figure it out. Any tips?

Second, I see an occasional tiny green line flash on the screen for a millisecond every now and then. Anyone know what would cause that?

Thanks to everyone in this forum for the valuable posts and input.

SJ

Unless your 5-speaker DVD player has inputs for your Comcast cable box and is capable of outputting it to the plasma either through the same output that the DVD signal goes through or has a separate Video output you can use, then you're probably stuck with using separate speakers when watching cable TV if you plan to keep your DVD setup.

You can connect a pair of inexpensive bookshelf speakers to the plasma's speaker jacks and it will sound pretty good, while leaving all 5 speakers available for DVD watching. Tell us the exact brand/model number of your DVD setup, or post a link to the owners manual and i'll have a look at the jack pack in case there's a way around this.

Is your Comcast box an HD unit? Which brand/model number is it?

With a commercial plasma, one really should use it with some sort of A/V reciever with suitable inputs and outputs for all your particular video components. That's a topic for it's own thread . . .

1. The "Model" you have.
TH-42PD50U
2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
I felt it looked similar enough to the HD version Panny and it is so highly spoke of here I figured this many people must be right.
3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Size (over a 32) and great clarity all around with SD.
4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
Chance of burn-in with network logos and with Xbox360 play.
5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
PIP , cable card, and SD reader.
6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacturer" about your Plasma.
Offer an all black version.
7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
The weight was very nice.
8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
None so far.
9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Definitely, the new price drop from Panny is amazing.
10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.

Thanks for the help Randy.
The DVD player is a Panasonic SC-HT690. I know it's a good one, since I got it at Costco and Panasonic doesn't even list the owners manual on their website:-). It's very close to the SC-HT680.

Our new Comcast box is an HD unit, Motorola, #GI1524TC105.

Here are some pics of the DVD and Comcast box if it will help:
scottjohnston (dot) com/inputs1.JPG
scottjohnston (dot) com/inputs2.JPG
scottjohnston (dot) com/inputs3.JPG

If I can't have all the speakers working with both the DVD player and TV, I guess I'll have to live with the 3/2 speaker setup until I can upgrade my DVD player.

I just added a Panny PX-50U to my house and my three year old Gateway (Sampo) went down to the basement theater behind my pull down screen. I can't say any more than all olf the others that chose Panasonic- to me "head and shoulders" above the rest...

42" HD model.

1) PQ, price, features

2) Why? My local dealer made a godfather offer. lol

3) Like best; the amazing picture. What else. Also has great specs, build quality and enhancements. (like 13 bit color, dnie)

4) I wish it was all black, but has black bezel. The 4272 looks perfect.
$400 more for black and a CCard input , no thanks.

5) Needs another HDMI input. only has one

6) no complaints.

7) Surprise? The PQ and the deal I got.

8) No probs .

9) No they are high still but I feel like an early adopter so thats the breaks.

Build date on my set is July. So not alot of them have sold but the dozen reviews I found are all very high. The panny 42phd8uk with blade, stand and shipping was 25 % more $$. Big Buck Bang here.

1. The "Model" you have.
Panasonic 50PX50U

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
PQ, features, resolution, and Panny reputation for top quality plasmas. Also the advice of many forum regulars here. Particularly the gamers. They convinced me that burn-in was over-hyped, and they were right. Much thanks To Juice Rocket and others here - gaming on plasma RULES!!

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
EVERYTHING!! PQ is amazing for HD broadcast/DVDs/Games. Smooth, rich and brilliant colors, great contrast, and razor sharp image.


4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
Nothing really. I suppose a front input would be nice, and the remote has to be aimed directly at the TV, and the sound could be a bit better, but those are minor, quibbling issues. Overall I'm thrilled.

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
See above. An extra HDMI input would be nice, but I can always use a splitter if need be.

6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
Nothing

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
How insanely stunning HD broadcasts with the cable card are. The Tonight Show looks like a friggin' carnival! Beautiful PQ...

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
Nothing.

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Yes. Well worth it.

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
If you're a gamer, disregard all the hysterical ******** you hear about burn-in. It's over-hyped, and not nearly the issue that many make it out to be. Use common sense, don't abuse your display, and you'll be fine. I would have hated to miss out on this awesome display had I bought into inflated burn-in woes....

1. Panasonic 50PX50U

2. Bought the Panny because of all the great reviews re: PQ. The new Hitachi made me think twice, but 42 was too small and 55 too big (I sound like Goldilocks!)

3. The PQ and widescreen format for HD sports broadcasts is great! No more "bandaid" screen when we watch widescreen DVDs. Very cool.

4. The speakers are pretty lame for a TV that costs > $3k but, like most others buying these units, I have surround sound when I want it.

5. I wish I had a second HDMI input and a set of front inputs for a camera or PC slide show. I could have had that with the LG or Hitachi, but I was willing to give them up in favor of Panny's reputation (vs the LG 50) and the larger screen size (vs Hitachi 42), so I can't really complain because I made the choice.

6. A two-year warranty (LG now offers) would REALLY be nice! I thought long and hard about purchasing an extended warranty ($600!!!) and, so far, have decided against it (have only had TV for two weeks so have another two weeks to change my mind, but I doubt I will).

7. My biggest surprise was cost of component and HDMI cables. I needed 4 meter cables. Good thing my son worked at Frye's for the summer -- he got them at cost!

8. No problems.
Nothing.

9. The recent price drop did it for me. I think they are worth it -- even tho the same unit will probably cost $500 less next year.

10. My advice is to not get too hung up on specs -- contrast ratios, etc. Go with your eyes and mfr rep. If I did not "need" a 50 for my large family room I would have DEFINITELY gone with the Panny 42" EDTV. It's PQ was every bit as good as the HD -- just a bit too small for my application.

DJB64, you can get those HDMI cables from most online places for about $30-$40 with fedex included.

Just got a 42" PD50 from CC few days ago.

1. The "Model" you have.
TH-42PD50U
2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
I have been using a 42" 6UY for a year now. Love the panny. I was going to get a 36XD50U for the basement for games and/or guest, but CC was out of stock. I wanted it quite urgently, so just settled for a 42PD50U instead.
3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Big enough. Panny quality!
4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
The "JUST" mode sucks big time now! It just look like "FULL" mode. The speakers sounds quite poor. It's kinda expected for any buildin speakers. The control of the screen is almost non-existance. I really wish I would have time to get the commercial model instead.
5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
Real service menu like the commercial model!
6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacturer" about your Plasma.
Offer an all black version and give me a real "JUST" mode.
7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
disappointed by the "JUST" mode. The silver color looks very cheap.
8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
No menu can adjust the screen sizes.
9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Yes.
10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
Will add later when I think of something.

1. The "Model" you have.
Sharp LC-45GX6U
2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
Separate AVC box, picture quality, clean appearance, largest size from leading mfg.
3. What you like best
Separate AVC box, HD picture quality, clean appearance
4. What you don't like about your display.
SD quality, only one digital RF input. Can not use both OTA & cable card
5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your display had.
Additional inputs especially digital
6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacturer" about your display.
Offer more inputs including digital RF
7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your display.
Could not use both cable card and OTA antenna
8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
None so far.
9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
No
10. Thanks to all on the forum who shared there comments and experiences and provided input for the decision.

I too got the Panasonic 50PX50U and for just about all the reasons listed above.
BB matched CC internet price. Coupled with 10% off coupon was enough for me. Extended warranty cost me $400 but was told it's worth it. "Add ons" jack the cost way up. My connection at best buy told me to get a color calibration DVD to adjust the color. I didn't like it (TV) out of the box but my HD won't come till next week.

Question: I keep reading in forums about a break in period but saw nothing in owners manual or Panny web site. What is it, is it needed, how to do it? Thanks

After a year of lurking and a solid 5 months of reading and asking questions. I bought the Panasonic 50PX500U today , Along with a Denon 2910 DVD player and the Denon 2805 Reciever.
I had left a deposit on the Plasma last week,to hold it while I made up my mind on the components. I didn't get back to the store until today. This weekend they are running the "employee discount" program. So the quoted price on the plasma from last week,which I was very happy with was even lower . As well as the 2 components that I didn't really want to spend that much for, both were considerably less than the regular pricing.
I think the salesman was a bit unhappy when I told him my alarm/AV guy was getting me the cables,mount,universal remote, and surge console.All items that he would have made a huge profit on. OH WELL .
All in all a very happy experience.
I'm building my own version of the BDI Avion, tweaking it to my needs.Should be done by next week.
Hopefully everything will be set up in about 2 weeks.

Thanks again to all , I'm sure glad I found this place.

OK , could someone please direct me to a thread with the "break-in" settings .

Rather than just an announcement of a purchase (I believe there is a sticky for announcements only), the thread would become interesting and helpful if you'd describe the process you went through that brought you to the decision to get the Panasonic. What other sets did you consider? What were the pluses and minuses of each set you considered? What was the final overriding factor that make the Panasonic your choice?

Jerry, agreed .
just a bit excited. I actually and easily narrowed it down to the 50U the 500U and the 5050(Pio). I'm not at all interested in the technical aspects of these 'toys". I just want a great product. I promise I will tweak my set though.
The Pio was ruled out based on price. I still needed the two components so I would have been way over what I wanted to spend if I went with the Pio.
My original intention was the 50U, but I liked the better speaker set-up on the 500U and the PIP feature would be neat as well. The plasma will be used for every day viewing as well as DVD's.So using the stereo speakers for the news seemed silly.

I did a bit of reading on the components,I wanted Denon from the get go, It was just a matter of which one.



I got some great advice from one of the forum members who's been very gracious to answer ALL of my stupid questions.

I'll post some pix of the cabinet when it's finished and the plasma hanging in all it's glory.

1. The "Model" you have.
Panasonic 42PX50U

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
Great price for the size and quality.

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Amazing picture quality (especially in HD).

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
The silver speakers at the bottom, wish they could be removed.

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
PC input as well as CF card input.

6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
Not sure.

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
1) How light it is, it's heavy yes, but compared to the size of it as well as some normal TV's we have in our house, it's much easier to transport and set up.
2) The beauty of the picture once we got it all set up.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
None so far.

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Yes yes yes. We paid 3100 for the unit and it's well worth the price.

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
This is the first actual NICE TV my family has ever bought and we're so happy to have it. It's not that we couldn't afford one before, we just never decided to get one, until now.

Sounds like you actually want the commercial model that cost even less.

1. The "Model" you have.
LG 50PX4DR

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
I just liked it more than the other ones. It also had a built in DVR and the others didnt.

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Its the nicest TV Ive ever owned... which isnt saying too much. But its the first really nice thing Ive ever been able to buy for myself.

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
The possibilty of burn-in...

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
Im pretty satisfied with it. I dont like how the TVGuide on Screen doesnt display the channels in their numerical order though... so I really do wish it had that.

6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
To get rid of the little lighted symbols on the right side displaying what device youre using according to what video mode you have on... I dont even own a VCR, and I wouldnt use it as a computer monitor.

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
That the guy who sold it to me was a total liar when he said its perfect for video games... then I find out that plasmas are prone to burn-in.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
Ive only owned it a little over a week... so nothings really come up yet. Other than the fact that Im totally paranoid about burn-in now... and that when I switch to an all black screen, you can see the difference in picture from watching 4:3 with gray bars.

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
I didnt have too much problem with the price. I do however think that a TV you cant play video games on shouldnt cost so much. (I know, I keep going back to the video game/burn in thing... its just a big deal to me).

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
None comes to mind.

1. The "Model" you have.
Panasonic 42" 8U

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
features/price

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
fits my exact need. EDTV in my office under $2k

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
it's not HD and i own an HD set and can tell the difference

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
can't think of any
6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
can't think of any

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
how heavy it is. and how high quality the mount is.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
none. it's awesome.

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.

the competitive prices of the 8U can't be touched. i waited a year for it instead of the 7U and i got a great price, so yes.
10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.

1. The "Model" you have.
Panasonic 50PX500U

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
Picture quality intersected nicely with price following MSRP drop. It's an easy decision when the least expensive tier 1 manufacturer produces the best picture IMHO. The desire to use CableCard to maximize SD picture quality moved me to the 500U, to get a TV Guide.

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Absolutely stunning picture when fed a good HD signal.

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
The sound quality is passable, but for a premium model it should have better low-end response. I wouldn't want to use it for home theater sound.

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
Ability to change aspect ratio on HD signal, better individual color tuning outside of the service menu, 2 tuner PIP (rather than 1).

6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
See above on features.

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
A) Analog cable stations (Time Warner Cable Houston and using CableCard) are surprisingly watchable.
B) The 50" picture doesn't dominate my room (6' - 12' viewing distance). I was apprehensive, but now I'm glad I went big!
C) DVDs played on a non-progressive scan player with composite connections is surprisingly good...close to HD. Must be a good internal scaler.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
CableCard setup has been painful...still not correctly configured after 6 days and a couple of hours on hold. Maybe tomorrow!

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Not really, but after 1 1/2 years since my 32" XBR died I finally had to pull the trigger. This November I'll kick myself for not waiting for $500 in further savings, but I'll enjoy every day to that point!

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
I studied RPTVs for over a year, waiting for manufacturers to resolve some fairly significant problems with picture quality, and they never did. This plasma is greatly superior in my opinion, and I'm completely happy with the TV.

1. Model: 43" Pioneer 4304

2. Why did I buy? PQ. Was saving up all year via Costco rebate to buy this monitor, then at the moment of purchase was swayed by the bigger is better mentality and bought a 50" Akai. After being thoroughly disappointed with the Akai, I returned it and got the Pioneer.

3. Best attribute of this monitor is the PQ. Mostly watching SD D*TV and DVDs. No line of sight for HD satellite. For the price the PQ blew most others away.

4. Biggest draw back is the lack of digital inputs: 1 HDMI, 1 Component, and 1 RGB/D-Sub. The remote is a little lacking as well.

5. Being a monitor with no tuner, there's no audio out.

6. I'd tell Pioneer to include instructions in the manual on how to access the service panel to tweak settings. It is an advantage over many of their competitors that avid tweakers would appreciate.

7. Not having an audio out was the biggest surprise. I was so engrossed into specs and video inputs that it never dawned on me to check to see if the unit had audio outputs.

8. So far, so good. No problems or issues.

9. Are today's prices worth it? It all depends on what's your addiction. Under $3K for a 43" TV with an outstanding picture is just as good as a trip to the Caribbean (only because I will hopefully get year-round enjoyment from the TV)

I'll be sure to add to my post once I get HD - C'mon D*TV get the ka band on-line.

I promised to post some pictures of my 614mx install and it took me a little longer than expected. I couldn't sort them, but you'll get the idea:

Here...

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs...00000000005702

They delivered the set yesterday at 8AM I had to leave right after they where done, I could stay....... I returned home @5PM later that day and began to unpack..... alot heavier than I thought, needed my 20 yr sons help, had to lay it on the kitchen table to put the stand on..... that boy is heavy too ! Connected a new panasonic S97 upconvert dvd player thru HDMI, connected a sony 300 DVD progressive to component, connect XBOX to component, connect VCR to composit and B&K 317 to SVID and connect my analog CABLEVISION cable to the RF input and the optical digitial output ...... dropped in NEMO and TOY STORY 2 into the DVD players a HALO 2 into the XBOX and turn it all on and off we go ..... WOW ...... AMAZING .... this is my first plasma and I was very nervous ..... going thru setup set the TV GUIDE info more on this later ..... set the CABLE seach and waited ..... I got all the free analog channels and to my surprize 150 digital channels where found .... now I had to go through the channels and manual delete the ones that where not showing a picture .... that is not an easy task ..... when I was done 30 channels and out of them CBS, NBC, FOX and WB in HD for free ! I have a small 26" crt samsunf with a DH tuner that did not pick these up, I'll have to call samsung ...... I quickly set each input from VIVID to CINEMA and dropped the pic & bright setting ....... the was all the tweaking I did and it was still a WOW ...... the DVD's looked 3D ..... I know I have more tweaking to do after break in, but I'm sold on plasma's ....... my son was interested in XBOX games, he talks and reads a lot of problems other have and he could not see and could not fine any of these problems with several games they where all 480P some WS and other not ....... can't wait to see the XBOX360 with it's native 720P WS formats ....... This Sunday should be a great football day ..... hope it rains all day ......

dukealexan,

Try using the enter key. One press can replace many dots

- Rich

1. The "Model" you have.
Just got the Panasonic 42PX500U two days ago.

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
I have been really researching since February of this year (casual researching since July 2004). Before this site, I had trouble getting straight answers from sales reps at CC and BB. Maybe because I was a girl or they weren't informed. The reviews and chats from some members of this site along with other sites like CNET helped a great deal. The Panny ED was within my budget of $2500 at the time I was looking. I wanted to buy the plasma before this fall season started. I was going to buy the 42PX50U after I came back from vacation in mid-August. Had to wait for my custom made cabinet first. Luckily, I heard about the price drop on 9/1. So, through my friend's company which get a Panasonic discount, I bought the later model in my price range.

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
The picture! Since I don't have cable (because I only watch programs on broadcast channels), just a rooftop antenna, the analog broadcast channels actually look very smooth. At first, I thought the picture looked awful but after adjusting the settings, it's actually not that bad at all. I have to research why I'm not getting digital channels (possibly because my condo rooftop antenna doesn't have a UHF antenna attached).

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
a) That settings for my TIVO viewing and TV viewing can not be saved separately. Maybe I haven't figured it out yet.
b) There is a SD memory card slot to view photos. What about people who have Sony digital cameras? It would be nice to accomodate the Memory Stick...

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
The pedestal stand to have a hole/slot for center speaker wires if a person (like myself) wanted to be a center speaker in front of the tv. Just an option.

6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
Have the buzzing noise from the fan go away.

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
a) How big and heavy (88 lbs) it actually is. When I had my father help me bring it in and place on my cabinet, it was huge...but I got used it as my viewing distance is 8-9 feet.
b) The picture quality for SD channels. Better than I expected. Just hope to get HD broadcast channels without subscribing to cable.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
None so far.


9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
Yes, especially with my friend's discount.

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.
Must go to the stores to check out the tv's. Although the 500U wasn't available at CC or BB yet, I trusted that the built was the same as the 50U...just more features. I like the PC input feature but I have to get a D-sub 15p to connect since my Powerbook didn't come with one.

That's it for now...

1. The "Model" you have.
Panasonic 42PX50U... a pair of them, in fact

2. What convinced you to purchase this particular "Model".
forward compatible as (hopefully) HDTV programming availability increases, HDMI in, good user reviews.

3. What you like best about your Plasma.
Picture Quality

4. What you don't like about your Plasma.
Won't allow me to change aspect when watching HDMI source. Fortunately, both the DishNetwork, Oppo and Samsung DVDs have good zoom features.

5. What "Feature(s)" you wish your Plasma had.
oops, see #4.
6. What advice or suggestion would you make to the "Manufacture" about your Plasma.
can't think of any

7. What was your biggest "Surprise" after you received your Plasma.
The handle grips in the back surface. My daufgter pointed them out.

8. What "Problems or Issues" have you had with your Plasma.
none.

9. Do you really think that todays "Prices" are worth it.
I paid $2500 each, including shipping. Pretty pricey, but worth it to me in the space savings in my house.

10. Any additional information that you want to add is encouraged.