I have a smaller Samsung LCD and it has been terrific on HD and standard broadcasts, DVDs and XBOX. We got the PRO1130 Elite plasma for a wall-mount application, and I must say, to my eyes the 1130 is simply jaw-dropping. Of the three different TV technologies in the house (LCD, RPTV, PDP), the plasma is by far the coolest and best looking to MY eyes (and is the most costly per inch). I have to agree with LeMans, Fujitsu makes great panels. Panny, Pio, and Fuj seems to be held in the highest regard in the plasma market right now. Unfortunately the Panny's are out of stock everywhere due to the goofs in forecasting the demand for well-priced 50" plasmas TV's and display-only models. The 'ED' 43" models seem to be in most stores though, and they look really good for the money.

Well, a few days with our 60 Inch SXRD, Sony,NoBaloney LCoS TV:
-Out of the box, it has shown none of the glitches or gripes as detailed by the "your TV sucks" obsessives found on the AVS forum.
-When the sig is HD and that sig is "good", the pic is UnFookinBelievable!

-The 100 pages+ "instruction" manual is not hugely instructive; some of the steps and adjustments are quite vague and not result oriented or results "answered"...my guess is this was a fairly quick translation from Nihongo to English. And, it is difficult to effect some adjustments vis a vis the Scientific Atlanta HD/DVR Comcrap Cable Box and the TV...some of the adj's seem to be "in conflict" with each other. (Could be my low tech quotient? )

-We skipped the stock Sony stand, (cosmetic dec. by theCEO) and went with a very reasonably priced wood "side board" looking cabinet that has shelves and back wall cut outs for A/V stuff. Glass doors allow for the HD/DVR box to be controlled by that flipper. We put cheapazz black fabric placemats under the "foot" of the big Sony, and no marring, no sliding and very sturdy. It, the cabinet, is 66 long, (TV does not hang off), 36 high and 20" wide: that width is poifect for the Sony footprint width. Allowing for 4" off the back wall for breathing, the cabinet w/TV juts out just 24" from wall. There are a plethora of cabinets and stands on the web, to pick from; we got ours, at a fire sale at RoomsToGo, of all places. A $400 piece from the give away section. Looks like a grand.

-DVDs look the best I've ever seen; using a semi-mid grade Sammy with up- conversion, fwiw. It is a dedicated DVD player, not recorder.

-As mentioned by many, prepare to spend some dough on cables, a multiple plug in, surge protector, et al. You can buy cable ranging from Monster-type up to stuff that looks like catch wires on an aircraft carrier. I don't have a dog or hawk, so I went with Monster HDMIs. Measure carefully and then add a foot or two, in your setup, before you buy.

-Pic Qual: as mentioned, it ranges from Amazing to jes' OK...most of the diff, I believe, is the huge variance in the qual of HD feed via diff channels, diff camera work within a channel, (eg golf), ads, etc. Some consternation over pic "size" and why/when it "varies" from wide to full wide to 4:3...I'm still learning on this. Our 4 1/2 yr old Toshiba 57" RP TV back on the mtn is much simpler to operate/fiddle with/set up.

-Sound is just ok, and I am no audiophile or collie dog...we are listening to the "in-TV" speakers. Haven't bought a new receiver and ext speakers, yet. Am used to mid-grade receiver and speakers, inc. a center channel. This thing def. needs a center channel speaker.

-Wish we had more HD stations: our current ComCrap lineup is the usual suspects: ESPN, ABC,NBC,CBS, one PBS of two, TNT, DiscoveryHD, (an amazing channel if you like to dive or enjoy nature/geology,etc.), ESPN, some Comcast stuff called INHD 1 and 2, (very good snippets), and of course whatever HBO and/or Showtime, CineMax rip pkg you sign up for. Curiously, FOX is Not HD here. Also, the "cable card" pitch is nice, but Comcast here does not use it...one has to rent their fooking box. The DVR portion of their box is intuitive to use, though HD really sucks up the disc space. Box came with zero instructions, however and its menus are less than "adjustable".

No pump on the Sony,NoBaloney...there are nearly a dozen quality brands with umptyseven sizes and 2 or 3 "species" methods of spraying the electrons around the screen...you pick 'em. I have no dog in this fight...buy whatchalike!

Technically, I can answer nothing. This was my long opin on getting a new for us, leading edge, big HD TV. We remain agog at the higher qual. HD feeds; it makes you bite your knuckles when you go back to STD broadcasting, in comparo, however. Also, the quality of this Sony seems to exaggerate or make more noticeable, the crummy Std feeds, I think. All in all, a leading edge, kick ass, HD set. Pricey, big and complex. This thing will we 3Gs or less a year from now. This first adopter thing is new for us and pricey. We are living until the money runs out, I remind my adult Kidz.

My Dollar's Worth.
GL, hunting.
BR,md

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Ol'UncleMotor
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MD, that was terrific, thanks for doing that. You should do real-life reviews for the non-geek-freaks over at AVS. It would be a refreshing change and I am sure the common guy looking to buy a TV without investing 1700 hours in the research would appreciate it. Great job!

Get the Pioneer Elite 1120 ..nothing comes close.... i have it, let me tell you this TV its amazing!!!!

I am a 'horses for courses' kind of person and agree with a number of other opinions here.....

We have bought a Pioneer 52 inch plasma, as our research found that over 30 inches, plasma is better price/technology, and under 30 inches LCD wins.

The other thing we found in back to back comparisons is that LCD in the larger sizes does not have the refresh rate required to adequately display motion..... There is nothing worse IMO than seeing pixelation around a moving object or person in the middle of a movie.

Go into your store and watch MI2 or Matrix (car chase) or something side by side with an LCD and a plasma......

We have selected an LCD panel for the bedroom (24 Inch), the plasma for the daily Foxtel/television/ and a DLP projector with fixed screen for the home theatre......

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No one seems to mentioned viewing angle. I think the plasma's have a better viewing angle also if you're watching dead on as opposed to the LCD's. While the Sharp Aquos look damm good, I've always preferred the PQ of plasma's.

Personal brands aside -

Panasonic for good $ to value ratio
If ya got xmas bonus to spend, Pioneer Elite or Fujitsus.

Don't forget that your PQ is only as good as your source equipment !

I've been in several different AV stores in the past six months or so, and they have all told me about the same thing regarding Samsung being at the top due to its software (LCD screens all come from the same handful of plants, so it's what drives them that's most important). I was looking primarily at LCD's and not plasmas, so it's always worth asking next time you're at a store that carries a number of competing brands.

Plasma technology is on the way out and will be fullt replaced by LCD within the next two to three years - certainly in Europe where we are now about to go through the High Definition revolution over the next couple of years. In the UK we go from 578 lines (PAL625) up to the new 720p and 1080i standards used elsewhere in the world (about time too!!)

LCD will in turn be replaced by a new technology coming along called SED which promises even higher resolution and longer life. LCD's have approx twice the life of an equivalent plasma and cost less to run.

See here for what SED's are: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surface...itter_Displays

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I read the same thing in an EE's periodical. Samsung and Sony just inked a deal to build a new plant and jointly manufacture somewhere in Malaysia.

JV

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JV

What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know...it's what we know for sure that just ain't so