42" Plasma Recommendations

For Digital TV program watching Now..... TV source Programing is probably split 25% 480i, 25% 480p, 25% 720p & 25% 1080i.

Some digital sets have trouble with the fuzzy 480i analog picture quality.

720p sets are cheaper than the newer 1080p HDTVs now available.

A good 720p or 1080i set will save you some $$$ today. With HD-DVDs arriving, a 1080p set will be a little bit more future proofing IF that 1080p set Deinterlaces correctly & that 1080p set has HDMI 1.3a.

The better brand name 42" 1024x768p plasmas are going for less than that, around $1200 to $1400. For plasmas, I would stick with Panasonic (the best of the price competitive brands), Samsung, or Pioneer. Pioneer has the best plasmas now, but they have adopted a higher pricing strategy. Checking Best Buy, they are currently selling the Panasonic TH-42PX75U (1024x768 resolution) for only $1150.

Personally, I still rank plasmas ahead of LCDs for overall display quality. The gap has narrowed considerably over the past several years, but the better brand name plasmas still win on black level, viewing angle, and color accuracy. If you are into heavy computer gaming use or your TV room is very bright in the daytime, then the LCD would be way to go.

Most HD channels are 1080i. ABC, Fox, MNT, ESPN-HD, ESPN2-HD, National Geographic are 720p. Any current HD TV model will accept 720p and 1080i inputs via component or HDMI. Because plasmas and LCD flat panels are inherently progressive, they are 768p or 1080p panels. The one exception are the Hitachi plasmas which are 1080i (sort of).

At 42", you really only need a 720p or 768p resolution screen, be it LCD or plasma, unless you sit 5 or 6 feet from the screen. However, at

40" and up, the LCD TVs are all moving towards all 1080p models. Panasonic does have a 1080p 42" plasma, the TH-42PZ700U, which is currently $1900 at Best Buy.

The new DirecTV HD satellite is now reported to be going live Wednesday morning. DirecTV will have a lot of HD channels - provided you get the 5 LNB dish and new STB or DVR - by October.

But while waiting to upgrade DirecTV, don't forget the free over the air option for HD channels. Depends on where you live, but in most major cities, the major broadcast networks - ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, CW, PBS, MNT (ok, not a major net) may be available in HD with a TV antenna. I get 17 digital stations OTA, 13 of them with a HD sub-channel, with an ATSC tuner using a Channel Master 4221 4 bay bowtie antenna in my attic.

I own a Panasonic 42" TH-42PHD7UY commercial plasma I got over 2.5 years ago for HD viewing, which incidentally replaced a then 10 year 27" Trinitron. I have been very happy with it. If I has to replace it today, I would go for a 50" (or bigger) Panasonic or Pioneer plasma. Warning: the picture quality of HD wants you to get a bigger TV. 42" tends to look small, especially for letterboxed widescreen 2.39:1 cinemascope movies.

For LCDs, check the Samsungs, Sharps, and Sonys. Whether you would be happy with an LCD or plasma is not a question I can answer. Go to the stores (not just one) and take a look. But the key to looking is to stand at your normal viewing distance and look for details and lack of black crush in dark scenes.

If you want to do some serious research, go to

and check the LCD and plasma flat panel forums there. Check the HDTV Programming forum for info and threads on HD programs.

Good luck, Alan F

Let's not kid ourselves. Your TV broke when you pushed it off the stand and it hit the floor hard, so you could go out and buy a Plasma TV.

First off, a 42 inch plasma isn't big enough for you.

Get a 50 inch. I sit 6 feet away when I am on my computer and it is fine. When I sit on the couch, it's 10 1/2 feet and the 42 is too small.

You can get the Samsung 5064 for about $1875-$1900 on sale.

Unless you want to "future-proof" yourself and get a 1080p plasma, that one will work great. If ou really want 1080p, figure about $2600-2700 for the Samsung 5084 or the Panasonic Z700U.

LOL Oopsey! ;-)

Thanks for all the responses so far. Lots of good info here.

While I would love to go for a 50", I still think it would be too big in my living room (not to mention my wallet).

As for plasmas, I have it narrowed down to these three Panasonic models (I'm thinking good, better, best)...

TH-42PX77U TH-42PZ77U TH-42PZ700U

But after reading all of your comments and doing additional research, I will be considering LCD as well because of the glare issues with plasma that I've read about. How bad can the glare be on the plasma sets? Our living room gets good light during the day if that makes a difference.

My wife and I will be going on a field trip to Best Buy this afternoon. I know, I know...but since this is an unplanned purchase, I'm going to need their interest-free financing. I am a big believer in online purchasing, but we just can't swing it this time. That's why I'm trying to gather as much info as I can before we go so I don't have to rely on their salespeople.

One more question...Will I need to calibrate my new set (plasma or LCD)? I remember my using my old Video Essentials Laser Disc with the little blue filter. Do these new sets need that kind of tweaking or are they ready out of the box?

Thanks again

The Hitachi 42 inch plasmas are not true 1080 displays. Yes, they have

1080 lines of vertical resolution, but the horizontal resolution is not 1920 but only 1024, creating very rectangular pixels that are almost twice as wide as they are high. Hitachi's marketing of these sets as "HD1080" is akin to false advertising.

If you could watch the 13 year old CRT TV in the daytime, you should be ok with the plasma. The plasma screen is bigger, but matches, if not exceeds, the old CRT for screen brightness. The more recent Panasonics & Pioneers have anti-reflection coating while the TH-42PX77U has the more expensive coating. The LCD flat panels can be cranked up to a high enough brightness that they can be used in places with sunlight shining through the window where the CRT TVs would have been seriously washed out.

It can be very tricky to gauge picture quality at the Best Buys and Circuit Cities. For one, they are not above running a crappy feed to some of the TVs while setting the models they want to sell this week to look better.

I suggest you take a long look at the 50" sets. More expensive, but once you get HD, you will want the larger picture.

Also, be prepared to be disappointed by the SD picture quality on DirecTV if you step up from a 27" to a 42" or 50" screen. The heavy compression that D* uses is more apparent at the bigger screen sizes. The good news is that DVDs with a component hookup and set to a 16:9 screen will look impressive. You should budget in the cost of upgrading to the new HD satellite service from DirecTV or check to see what your cable system has to offer. Or/and put up an antenna if digital HD stations are available in your area. Getting a HD TV without getting a HD signal source is like buying a high performance sports car and only driving it on dirt roads.

First step with the LCD or plasma is to take it out of over saturated color mode. The updated Digital Video Essentials is available as a DVD and is useful to get the picture & sound settings tweaked.

Good luck, Alan F

What might eventually happen is that we will move the 42" to our bedroom and then go for a 50" for the living room if we think the room can handle it, so this will not be a "wasted" purchase long term.

Is that an HD disc? Because, for now, I have no plans to upgrade my DVD player to HD or Blu-Ray until they figure out the format.

Thanks again!!!

The picture speaks for itself. Who cares about minutiae. Looks as good or better than most sets that cost more $$$ . Multiple HDMI for expandability. Cant be beat. Panasonics are fine but for less money the hitachi has higher resolution

Sounds like a plan!

If you want help with antenna selection, I can help if you provide your zip code to look up approx how far you are from the Philadelphia stations. All of the stations in Philly are currently digitally broadcasting on UHF. However WHYY-DT PBS 12 is well known to be difficult to get in some areas because the station had to move off of UHF 55 last year for a lower power signal on UHF 50. The big issue in Philadelphia is that WPVI-DT ABC 6, which is currently broadcasting on UHF 64, will be moving it's digital signal to low VHF 6 after the analog shutdown. The problem with low VHF 2 to 6 is that it requires bigger antennas to get at range than whereas the vast majority of digital stations have opted to use VHF 7 to 13, UHF 14 to 51 after the analog shutdown. WHYY-DT is moving to VHF 12 after the shutdown.

useful website for antenna basics:

The DVE disk is available in DVD format. There are now HD-DVD and Blu-Ray versions, but I don't know how much they really added to support HD setup. Amazon has the DVD version for $18.

Alan F

Ok, as I suspected this was a total waste of time other than being able to see the sets in person. When I asked the "salesperson" what the difference was between 2 sets, she basically looked at the tags in front and read off of them. I used to work for Radio Shack (before all they wanted to sell was cell phones) so I know the bluff when I hear it.

But surprisingly, my wife agreed with many of you that we could go with a larger set. The problem is that we both know that we can't afford it so I think it will be the 42". But like I said before, this one might go to the bedroom and a 50" could be in my (somewhat distant) future.

I did see the difference between the Plasma and LCD regarding glare. But I felt that the Plasma sets had more detail in their pictures and the LCD picture seemed to be a bit "noisier". I know that these TVs were not all calibrated properly, but that was my first impression.

As for antenna selection, my zip code is 19148 (right in Philadelphia proper). The OTA antenna would be a short term solution until I can get DirecTv HD situated, so I'm not too worried about channels moving to VHF in the future.

is a site for looking up digital and analog TV stations you can get for a location. antennaweb is very conservative for digital reception, so the trick is to enter an antenna height of 100' or more for a location. Not that you have to put an antenna tower in, this just shows more digital stations. All that said, plugging your zip code into antennaweb shows the following digital stations, all from the same antenna farm:

• yellow - uhf WUVP-DT 65.1 UNI VINELAND NJ 139° 21.0 66

• yellow - uhf KYW-DT 3.1 CBS PHILADELPHIA PA 344° 9.7 26

• yellow - uhf WCAU-DT 10.1 NBC PHILADELPHIA PA 346° 9.5 67

• yellow - uhf WGTW-DT 48.1 TBN BURLINGTON NJ 346° 9.5 27

• yellow - uhf WPPX-DT 61.1 ION WILMINGTON DE 346° 9.5 31

• yellow - uhf WPSG-DT 57.1 CW PHILADELPHIA PA 346° 9.5 32

• yellow - uhf WPVI-DT 6.1 ABC PHILADELPHIA PA 344° 9.7 64

• yellow - uhf WHYY-DT 12.1 PBS WILMINGTON DE 345° 9.6 50

• yellow - uhf WPHL-DT 17.1 MNT PHILADELPHIA PA 346° 9.5 54

• yellow - uhf WYBE-DT 34.1 PBS PHILADELPHIA PA 346° 9.5 34

The last three numbers on each row are the compass direction, range in miles (from the center of your zip code), and the actual broadcast channel number. Digital broadcasting is currently done on a different channel from the analog, but the digital data provides mapping information to display the familiar channel number for the station. You may know this, but just in case you didn't.

Now having written all this, you are around 9 miles away. Should not be that much of a challenge. A good indoor UHF antenna is the Silver Sensor, sold under Philips, Zenith, Terk brand names for around $25 if you get the unamplified version. See

for info. The old table top VHF rabbit ear and UHF loop antenna may do just fine as well. Another good antenna type that can be used indoors or tucked up somewhere out of the way are the 2 bay bowties such as the Channel Master 4220, AntennasDirect DB-2. But these are used when people need more performance, but don't have attic or roof access.

You may have to experiment with a good location or placing the antenna in the window to cut down on obstruction and multipath.

One thing to remember about the broadcast networks is that they do not put out true HD programming all day long. The prime time scripted shows and most high profile sport events are HD; many of the cheap reality primetime game and reality shows are shot in SD. There are several stations in Philly that have local news in HD now.

Alan F

Ok now this is weird. I'm looking at the specs on Panasonic's website and this is what I see for Contrast Ratio...

TH-42PZ77U - 10,000:1 TH-42PZ700U - 5,000:1

The higher the first number the better, correct? But the 700U is supposed to be the better set. So what gives?

The 1080p plasmas use smaller pixel elements and thus are not able to achieve the same minimum black levels of the 768p models, especially at the smaller screen sizes. Lower contrast is one the drawbacks of the 42" and 50" 1080p models for this year along with higher power consumption. Keep in mind that the contrast ratios put out by all the manufacturers are not real world numbers. They usually cook the books by comparing the minimum black level with the brightness turned down to the maximum white level with the brightness cranked all the way up.

There are standard methods to measure contrast such as a checkerboard pattern of white tiles with minimum IRE black tiles. Several of the review magazines such a Home Theater Magazine use these tests. In those the typical ANSI contrast ratio ranges from 400:1 to 1200:1 for the LCD and plasmas flat panels and the Rear Projection TVs. A ANSI contrast ratio of 800:1 to 1200:1 is considered very good. It was not all that long ago that the high end LCD flat panels were getting ANSI contrast ratios of 250:1.

If you are buying the 42" Panasonic with plans to move it to the bedroom in the not too distant future and are on a budget, I recommend you get the TH-42PZ77U. Yes, it has lower pixel resolution, but at 10' you will be hard pressed to see the difference. The real benefit to

1920x1080 resolution comes with big screens of >= 60" or sitting rather close to a 50" screen. The human eye has an angular resolution of ~ 1 arc minute for 20/20 vision. Trig using the seating distance over the height or width of the screen will get you the angle of a given screen size in arc minutes.

The 2008 model 1080p 50" plasmas from Panasonic and Pioneer will be cheaper (ok, not a bold prediction), use less power (more integrated electronics), and will have better spec and real contrast ratios. The normal pattern with Panasonic in recent years is to release the latest technology plasmas in Japan in the fall and then in the US the following March/April once they get the production lines converted over. So people have already gotten a preview of the 2008 US Panasonics in Japan.

Alan F

|177931| The above link is a side-by-side comparison of the 77U and the 700U from Panasonic's website. The only real differences are the speakers and some of the connections. The video part of the spec list is (practically) identical, including the pixel resolution. That's why I was wondering about the diff in contrast ratio.

Agree with Alan on the picture setup -- every set I've seen has defaults set for the spectacular.

By all means give OTA a shot.

Just replaced our three-year old ED panel with a larger screen HD. Outside antenna outlet wasn't pulled into the room yet so hung an 8" piece of wire from a picture hook behind the new set.

Pulled in a dozen stations--all solid picture, from as far away as 22 miles.

So far, I'm enjoying the picture instead of working to pull the lead-in through the walls. (:-)

-- pete#2

I can not say enough good things about my new Panasonic 50 inch plasma.

Vizios are cheaper, and also get good reviews, but I worry about long term reliability on those.