Panasonic TH-50PX500U 50-Inch Flat Panel HD-Ready Plasma TV
My first Plasma
Three years ago, I bought my first big screen (sony 57\\" rear projection HDTV).  A 34\\" plasma at the time was probably worth the same price, so plasmas were never an option.  But now comparing the two types of technologies, plasma has improved so much and prices have dropped considerably. <br /> <br />From what the salesman told me, this model runs off the 8th generation of plasma televisions, which is currently the latest technology.  Panasonic also slightly increases its blue pixels, which supposedly gives certain images a better feeling.  Also, when comparing multiple plasmas in the store, the black levels came out darker than on other tvs, such as while we comparing the letterboxes off the same source.  The only reason I did not buy from him was because they did not carry the 500U model, just the 50U. <br /> <br />There was one store that had a 42\\" and a 50\\" 50U model side by side.  There I couldn't tell a difference in size, so if price was a factor I think a 42\\" would have suited me just fine. <br /> <br />The first thing I fired up on this TV was my Xbox with the component connections.  Of course the TV was set to vivid initially, but the colors were just awesome.   <br /> <br />Second was a Toshiba DVD player with up conversion through the HDMI interface.  Looks great but I can't wait for HD-DVD or Blu-ray to make its way to the market. <br /> <br />I'm still trying to get a strong OTA signal but have many obstacles in my way.  I'll probably defer to Directv's HD service. <br /> <br />I've also been looking up wall mounts for this 120 lbs monster (which by the way took two people take out of the box and secure on top of my table).  Sanus is currently my front runner on wall mounts, but considering its overall weight I might reconsider just a decent tabletop. <br /> <br />I'd recommend this TV for the plasma users out there.