- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 20 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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4 out of 5 people found this review helpful
3.5 stars
"Great value spoiled by some quality issues"
Pros: Great picture and size of the money
Cons: Some small quality issues
Summary: I've own my TH-50PZ05U for about 2 weeks as I am writing this.
I got it from a local store and I am glad I did (rather than buying online) because I had to return the first unit because it was buzzing very loudly to my taste. The second unit was a lot quieter but there is still a noticeable buzz when the room is really quiet and picture very bright. But it's acceptable. I am very picky. My wife doesn't even hear it. Also this 50in unit has cooling fans which no matter what will produce some noise.
The other small issue is that the upper left corner had what I believed was a dead pixel but is in fact a small piece of dust stuck between the glass and the screen. It's only visible from less than 3 feet away so that's absolutely not an issue. But this and the first unit loud buzzing are signs that Panasonic has quality control issues. I didn't buy the extended waranty at the store but now I might consider it.
However I do think this plasma TV is a GREAT deal for the money (paid $1900 for it). The picture contrast and colors are fantastic. I've been watching several Bluray movies, HD TV program and played GT5 on my PS3 and the performance in all cases was great. I found that the best picture setting were "movie" and "standard". Other settings ("game" and "vivid") give an artificial look to the images (saturated colors). I didn't bother calibrating because I'm really satisfied with the "movie" setting.
The connectivity is good. Total of 8 different inputs (3 HDMI) and switching input is very easy. The menu system is sober (no fancy visual effects) yet easy to use: so far I didn't have to open the user guide. The SD card reader and PC input are nice to have but if you intend to mainly use this TV with a computer or for watching photos an LCD is probably a better choice.
Finally, I was a bit worried about plasma being power hungry (the spec says 700Watts) but because plasma only use their peak power when picture is totally white I found that this unit barely uses more electricty than my former Sony 27in CRT TV. LCDs use their nominal power all the time so in real usage the difference with a plasma probably not huge.
So would I recommend this TV? I am still over the fence. I am a very picky person. If you like the looks and picture of this TV, go for it: it's a great deal. All manufactures have quality issues and that's what warranties are for. But if you want total perfection and can afford it go for the high end 800 series. I do think that Panasonic may have cut some corners to come up with a 1080 50in plasma for this price.
- 1 reply to this review
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Hi
Can you advise how is the quality of SD channels? Do you see any ghost or distortion if you see within 10 ft distance?
Thanks
