Newbie to LCD and Plasma needs advice (Panasonic)

[admin_exported]

Hello All,

I am a newbie to the whole world of LCD and Plasma TVs and am looking for some good advice.

I currently own a panasonic 32" quintrix CRT TV and have done for many years, it has served me well but I have decided to treat myself to a new set.

I don't have sky hd and don't intend to get it untill they drop the £10 per month price tag! So I mainly watch standard freeview / DVDs and Wii.

Originally I was going to buy the Panasonic TX-37LZD80 but then I read some reviews saying the picture quality is not that great on LCDs with non-hd devices. So I looked at its plasma alternative TH-37PX80 which seems really good value for money. But then I spotted that this plasma is not FULL HD, I would need to buy the bigger TH42PZ85B if I wanted full hd.

Do I really need Full HD? I am concerned that I will be paying for something I will never use, but I do want the new set to last me another 7-10 years or so (I am also thinking of attaching a media centre PC to it)

Are my concerns about LCD screens vrs Plasma true?

Any comments welcome

MackeyUK

 

[Anonymous]

i've shared some of your concerns & can only say what i have done

i've ordered the 37px80 plasma (for £549 from JL, price-match fans). one reason for this choice of telly was the price! a demo in a local panasonic dealer was superb so i knew it was a great telly. also, i've got V+ (that is, no sky hd or ps3 or any blu-ray type stuff) so i'm primarily looking at SD broadcasts which this telly deals with superbly

twas a no-brainer. from what i understand, if you're a big gamer &/or watch loads of HD stuff then that's when full HD tellys come into play, however, on a 37inch screen it doesn't really make much of a difference anyway - if any

i hope this is of some help (the telly hasn't arrived yet so can't say how it's fitted into my home)

 

[Anonymous]

With a 37" panel the benefits of full HD are not great, and only observable if you sit quite close to the screen.

So a HD Ready 37" 37PX80 will be fine. It will accept a 1080p signal (eg PS3, BluRay) and scale it down to 720p. It will also be lighter on your pocket, available for around £600 now. SD quality is excellent.

If you want a full HD plasma there is the 42PZ80 around £840 or the PZ85, around £950.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the advise people!

I rang around a few stores yesterday and found both the TH-37PZ80B and TH42PZ80B in my local John Lewis, so I went down to check them out for size.

I decided on the 37" its way big enough for my lounge, the best bit is my local JL had it on a price match for the next few days, so I managed to bag it for £549.00 inc del and 5 year warrently!! Bargain.

Can't wait till Wed for delivery!!