Q. My wife and I were looking to get a top-quality 40- to 42-inch flat panel HDTV. Given the changed economy I was deeply hurt by the drop in my retirement account and we are unsure if we can afford it now. Can we get a great 40- or 42-inch flat panel for under $1,500?
--Name withheld
A. Let's do better and drop the limit to $1,000! If you shop smart you can get a great 42-inch HDTV in this price range, wonderful news for consumers in today's challenging times.
My top recommendation in this category is a Panasonic plasma. Plasma provides better picture quality than LCD with natural contrast, realistic color and the ability to handle motion without the band-aid of 120 Hz processing or other hit-or-miss enhancement techniques. Panasonic's industry-leading technology prevents burn in and their 720p sets are rated to last 60,000 hours until half brightness, or 25 years at 6.5 hours of use per day. Their 1080p plasma sets are rated to last an amazing100,000 hours, or 42 years! Given the top reliability ratings from Consumer Reports, this is a TV you can buy, enjoy and not worry about.
Panasonic's 42-inch 720p TH-42PX80U provides Panasonic plasma quality for street prices of only $799-$899. If you would like a bigger screen with some real impact, the 50-inch TH-50PX80U version is widely available for $999. With its beautiful 50-inch picture, this set provides tremendous impact in small rooms and satisfies in bigger rooms. Both are unbeatable values given the picture quality, reliability, advanced technology and the Panasonic name.
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Rounding out my plasma suggestions is the 1080p Panasonic TH-42PZ80U. As longtime readers know I have been dismissive of the need for 1080p at this size because at normal viewing distances with a 42-inch screen, the human eye cannot resolve the difference between 720p and 1080p. However, the TH-42PZ80U has a picture that is clearly better than its 720p counterpart. The difference is more than resolution given its solid, deep, incredibly sharp image and its beautiful, wide-ranging color palette and excellent shadow detail. Blu-ray and HDTV broadcasts are simply stunning and standard definition TV looks pretty good too, which isn't the case with many HDTVs. This is what they call a "reference quality" TV, good enough to be used as a standard by which others are judged. It's better than many much more expensive TVs and at its current $899-$999 street price, this is a videophile's delight and the finest picture you can get for anywhere close to the money. If killer picture quality is what you want, this is your television.
Many consumers still prefer the idea of LCD, and there are some great buys in sub-$1,000 LCD sets as well. Toshiba has two great 1080p LCD HDTVs for under $1,000, the 40-inch 40RV525U for $799 and the 42-inch 42RV535U for $999. Also consider a model from Insignia, the Best Buy house brand that has produced winners such as their $169 NS-BRDVD Blu-ray player and $89 NS-B2111 bookshelf speakers. The $799 42-inch Insignia NS-LCD42HD-09 continues this streak with a natural, sharp and colorful picture that has reached wide acceptance from videophiles on a tight budget.
Whichever one you buy, be sure to set the color temperature to the warm setting, then adjust picture and brightness to taste.
