[aknauer]

Hi,


As I got such great advice when I bought my Samsung DLP, I thought I would ask for help again, this time for a plasma. I am interested in buying the Panasonic 42" EDTV Plasma TH-42PA20U/P and had the following questions:


1) What is your opinion of the TH-42PA20U/P?


2) I'm thinking of ordering online but am a little nervous about ordering such a large item etc... I saw a good deal on avdeals.com and was wondering if anyone has anything to say about them or can recommend any other sites.


3) Should I buy the extended warranty and where should I get it from? (Panasonic, Repair Master, etc...)


Thanks in advance for any help.


aknauer

 

[thebishman]

I hope this helps:

I have the TH-37PA20; (the 37" version of the above set). We are extremely pleased with its performance. I 'feed' it a diet of basic cable; Directv, (both HD and SD), and OTA ATSC. All HD looks incredible. Most SD also looks very good. Some basic cable looks like hell, but that's just Cox for you, (GIGO). Progressive DVD looks almost HD.

I decided on the 37" version since we sit very close to this set, (approximately 6-8 feet), as it resides in our hearth room. There is no screen door effect noticeable.


I did buy it on-line as at the time of purchase no one local had it in stock. If I was buying now, I would ONLY buy from an on-line dealer who had a no questions asked return policy, (my first set was defective), but the vast majority of 'cheap' online dealers will make it extremely difficult to return even a defective unit out of the box. Personally I would only buy locally now from either a Panny dealer, (and negotiate a discount from MSRP), or would look for a 10% off sale from Best Buy, Circuit City, etc., and take advantage of their usual no interest financing.


This set has a one year in home warranty. If you were to buy with Amex, that would get you another year for $75 per service visit. If you can purchase an extended warranty for $2-300 for say three years, I believe it would be worth it.

 

[elvisdoc]

I bought mine from a B & M shop cuz none were available online and not sorry...got a good price and hey, those guys gotta eat too. Researched the PA2OU vs all available and am very happy with it...wanted a plasma that would do alot of things well and it does....SD, digital cable and HD look awesome. At 6 feet or beyond, no difference from the PX version. Only cons are the manual sucks. But that hasn't been a big problem. Extended warranty? Don't believe in 'em myself, just a way for them to scam ya. Panny has a good reputation, doubt you will ever use it.


YMMV,


elvis

 

[gregor010]

I just ordered mine from ABT. They are mainly B&M but sell online. They were the only place I was able to find one in stock right now and negotiated $300 off MSRP. Not the best of deals but I don't feel like waiting. I did a lot of research and the set gets great reviews from everyone that owns it from novice to expert. I'll post my own review once it arrives which should be in a few days.

 

[JimSD]

>1) What is your opinion of the TH-42PA20U/P?


We have one and think it is a tremendous set. It has an excellent picture quality and a lot of features for the price. I consider it a great value. Since I'm pretty sure all the pre-Sept built sets have been sold by now, I wouldn't worry about the shutdown issue you may have heard about. The in-home service during warranty is quite handy too if you ever need it. I had a guy come out for a very minor DVI issue this week - something I may have ignored if I had to take the set in myself.


>2) I'm thinking of ordering online but am a little nervous about ordering

>such a large item etc... I saw a good deal on avdeals.com and was

>wondering if anyone has anything to say about them or can recommend

>any other sites.


I ordered my online and am glad I did because the set would have been unobtainable for me at the B&M prices. I would have had to settle for my 2nd choice. See if you can get Sears or some local B&M to pricematch, but if not go with a reputable online store that you can find many references about on this forum. Here's a good starting point: Vendor experiences thread


>3) Should I buy the extended warranty and where should I get it from?

>(Panasonic, Repair Master, etc...)


As someone else suggested, start by using a credit card that will extend your warranty by a year.

 

[inthepark]

I'm deciding between the Panny TH-42PA20U and a Sony LCD-RP (KF-50WE610). I'm wondering if anyone else was deciding between the two and why you chose the panny?


Neither seems to be available anywhere so I have more time to consider the two.

 

[rootkid]

I originally had the 50" GWIII and returned it to get the 42" Panny ED plasma.


Problems with color in the blacks (half the screen was green, other half blue) and poor geometry made the decision for me. Very happy that I chose the plasma over the RPTV.