Urgent 40-42 inch TV

[da_grudge]

I need to buy a new tv urgently.

I was going for the new pana 42g20 but reviews are confusing me. Some say good things, others not so great.

What about the Sony KDL-40EX503? 5 stars here.

i really donºt care for the price, altough it has to be on the 1000 pound mark. But i can get the new pana for 700 pounds now..

Other suggestions?

thanks

 

[Anonymous]

The panny is a good tv and so is the sony. I would go to the shop and view both sets and see which one you like the best. When I viewed them both i thought the panny had the better picture but thats my view, others would say the sony has the better picture. its all down to what you think is the better tv. If you can get the g20 for £700 i would go with that and save £300.

 

[Anonymous]

depends if you rather a good plasma or a good lcd really , contrary to what some people would like to lead you to believe , they differ because of their respective tech , the usual plasma strengths of , more natural picture , better motion , better blacks and shadow detail , no viewing angle issues vs the more vivid picture of the lcd , brighter , slightly better for viewing in a bright envoirement , perhaps a touch sharper .. what traits suits you more ??

 

[Anonymous]

Wait until after England get knocked out of World Cup as prices will be much lower! But that is why you think it is urgent - to watch it no?

Think about 3D if you intend to keep it for ten years, otherwise buy Sony LCD but you should be able to buy 40inch for much less than 1000 quid! I bought my 37 inch for 650 euros but that was in January when they had announced the new range and the woirld cup was still 6 months away!

 

[19mad69]

Hi da_grudge,

Could you tell me were you can get the TX-P42G20B for £700, cheapest I have found is £800.

I was thinking about the Sony, then saw the SD picture quality, not great. So I am back to the Panasonic.

Thanks

Martin

 

[Anonymous]

There are still people who care about SD quality when buying such a TV? Wow.

 

[rymidd]

how about samsung led tv UE40B6000 i paid 1000 quid at christmas but will be cheaper now. its very thin with a great picture. Also low power comsumption runs cool so it should last a long time.

 

[da_grudge]

well. i like natural colours , good blacks and great motion.

For sports, is the sony a good choice? or the pana beats it?

Also, actually I live in Portugal and will watch a lot of regular sd tv. Also dvds and blu-ray, but I would like the best quality for sd.

So, the sony or pana?

tx

 

[Anonymous]

if you like good blacks , a more natural looking picture , and better motion , then get the panny ...

 

[rymidd]

panna has very warm colours good motion sony is more crisp with good motion

 

[Clare Newsome]

maxflinn:if you like good blacks , a more natural looking picture , and better motion , then get the panny ...

Max, your loyalty to Panasonic remains incredibly touching but have you ACTUALLY seen any in serious action yet, properly set up alongside the Sony and others?

The Pana is a superb set, but so are several sets at this price point....

Other factors to consider: plasmas have more reflective screens, so aren't great if you intend to put them near, say, a picture window. LCDs, conversely, are great in brighter rooms, but rarely match the best plasmas for blacks/contrast in darker rooms.

How you watch, and what you watch, on TV (and from what distance) are FAR more important than blind brand partiality

 

[Anonymous]

blind brand loyalty ?

the g20 has excellent black levels , better than the sony , or any other lcd tv for that matter , with the possible exception of the lg8500 model ..

the g20 has better shadow detail than any lcd , past or present..

the g20 , has , because its a plasma , a very good plasma , a more natural picture than any lcd ..

the g20 , handles motion better than any lcd tv , its a plasma ..

the g20 has no viewing angle issues..

the g20 has a faster response time than the sony..

i have not compared either tv , but all of the above info , is gleaned from reading other forums , reviews , and just a general understanding of the traits of the respective technologies ..

oh , and i asked the op his preferances , what aspects of a tvs performance that he personally values more , he gave his answer , black levels , motion , and a more natural picture , i think the g20 beats the sony on these three points , dont you ?

 

[chris hollands]

i know beauty is in the eye of the beholder , but it is a shame the panny is so ugly, that could also influence. shame it doesnt look like the sammy on a wall or a sony on a monolithic !!!!!

 

[strapped for cash]

So you're expressing a personal preference for a particular technology rather brand, perhaps...

I haven't seen any of the latest gen LED televisions in action, but if they dramatically reduce what I feel is the most annoying problem with LCD or LED (picture noise) then I could be sold.

The age-old LCD vs. plasma debate refuses to go away!

 

[Anonymous]

From what I know LED will not help with picture noise. Actually, I don't know where you're coming from seeing a lot of picture noise on LCDs in the first place.

Noise is common on Plasmas when very close to the screen (but not an issue in normal viewing). LCDs do not have any issues with picture noise. In fact, the noise reduction feature on LCDs is best left off.

 

[strapped for cash]

OK, perhaps put more clearly, more blocking and a less stable picture -- at least this was my conclusion after testing a wide-spectrum of televisions toward the end of last year. I'm talking primarily about SD performance here, which, like it or not, is still how many of us watch a lot of TV programmes.

Of course noise reduction is best left off in the majority of instances, but on some poor channels on certain televisions it can occasionally prove effective.

 

[Anonymous]

Frankly I don't think there will ever be an effective solution to combat a poor signal. If it's a decent SD signal then you shouldn't get any noise.

I don't have the problem with watching TV programs in SD as I don't watch TV programs 😉

 

[bigboss]

jandlecack:

Noise is common on Plasmas when very close to the screen (but not an issue in normal viewing). LCDs do not have any issues with picture noise. In fact, the noise reduction feature on LCDs is best left off.

Oh really? Why would manufacturers bother to include a noise reduction feature (even though it's best left off) if LCDs don't suffer from noise at all? How would you define noise?

 

[bigboss]

jandlecack:There are still people who care about SD quality when buying such a TV? Wow.

There are only 40+ HD channels & hundreds of SD channels. You can't base your TV buying decision just on the 40-odd channels.

 

[bigboss]

jandlecack:

I don't have the problem with watching TV programs in SD as I don't watch TV programs 😉

Oh, that explains why you're surprised at people's consideration for SD channels, & why you don't see any picture noise.

 

[TKratz]

da_grudge:

well. i like natural colours , good blacks and great motion.

In this case Maxflinn has already provided the perfect answer for you

 

[Anonymous]

TKratz:da_grudge:

well. i like natural colours , good blacks and great motion.

In this case Maxflinn has already provided the perfect answer for you

be careful tkratz , clare will read your post you know

.................

 

[da_grudge]

well, still very confused...

i really didnt understand which will handle better sd channels.

also which is best for sports and fast scenes.

thank you all guys!

 

[TKratz]

For SD channels on these specific models I really can't say, as I haven't made a comparison on this parameter.

The WhatHifi group or supertest might provide the answer however. I can't find the right issue of the magazin. Think it was in the one from May?

It is not easy to say anything about this in general either. I don't know if you use analog or digital signal for the SD channels? It really can't be recommended to feed a flatscreen TV with an analog signal, but if you do plasma screen generally handles this much better than LCD sreens in my opinion.

 

[Clare Newsome]

maxflinn:
i have not compared either tv , but all of the above info , is gleaned from reading other forums , reviews , and just a general understanding of the traits of the respective technologies ..

Glad we clarified that; we of course have experienced the sets (and many others) in action.

I'd also be very wary of generalising about plasma vs LCD in ways that are - largely - increasingly irrelevant. As I mention in my post earlier in this thread, what/where people choose to watch is a better starting place for picking a TV.

Every single TV needs to be judged on its individual performance, not its base technology (nor brand).

maxflinn:

black levels , motion , and a more natural picture , i think the g20 beats the sony on these three points , dont you ?

If you read our review, no - it's only black levels the Panasonic G20 can claim to lead its size/price class at. We found colours - and , yes, motion - better on rival sets.

But as I say, it's still an excellent set, made even more tempting by the offers that are around. Just want the OP and others to get a balanced view...