Panasonic TH-50PX50U 50-Inch Flat-Panel HD-Ready Plasma TV
Amazing TV, Great Shipping
This TV is totally amazing!  Hi-Def programming looks like you are really there.  I didn't change any settings on the TV and the quality is excellent.  The TV automatically detects which type of signal (hi-def or standard) and switches input when you change channels.  This is a nice feature. I've seen other Plasma TV's that didn't do that and you had to manually switch it to 1080i when you flipped to a hi-def channel.  Even my wife can channel surf without any problems.   <br /> <br />Standard channels look entirely adequate using the 4:3 justified setting.  Only the edges are stretched while the center of the picture is correctly portioned.  This can sometimes give you a fish-eye lens effect when the camera is panning around quickly, but it's never a problem with normal viewing.   <br /> <br />A note about DVDs:  DVD quality is not Hi-Definition so don't expect them to look that good.  I have a DVD player which up converts the signal to 1080i and that produces a very clean sharp image but it does not compare to a hi-def image.  One more thing, most DVD movies have an aspect ratio of 2.35 to 1 and the TV is 16 to 9.  This means that a widescreen DVD movie is not going to completely fill the screen unless you stretch it or zoom in.  It's too bad the movie studios don't start shooting movies in hi-def, maybe it'll happen soon. <br /> <br />The unit is very stable on its stand and I think it would take a serious effort to tip it over.  I have a 3 year old in the house so these things concern me.  My son would need to get behind the TV and push to knock it down, and \\"that ain't happenin', baby\\".   <br /> <br />I looked long and hard for this TV, or the industrial model Panasonic offers, since Christmas.  I needed it for the Super Bowl (Go Seahawks!) and I found Amazon had 1 in stock.  I ordered it on January 17th and it was shipped on January 18th.  Amazon provided an estimated delivery date of January 25-27.  They also provided a tracking number, but the name of the shipping company was not provided and the tracking number was therefore, of no use.  I was really worried that the TV wouldn't make it in time for the Super Bowl (Go Seahawks!) on February 5th.  When January 27th came around and the TV had not arrived I called Amazon's customer support.  They were able to tell me the name of the shipping company: Enroute.  I was then able to find tracking info on Enroute's website and discovered that the TV had been delivered to a local company called Firebird Moving and Storage.  The phone number I had on file with Amazon was years out of date and so the local storage company wasn't able to contact me.  I called them and they delivered the TV one business day after the 27th.  The delivery guys unboxed the TV, mounted it on its stand and put it in place in the entertainment center.  They plugged it in and it worked.  They even took the box away with them.  This was all done while I was at work and my wife didn't have to do anything but sign the delivery notice.  Excellent!