Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal)

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

Great TV, HD is crisp. Hung hte tv on my wall and it looks great. the tv does heat up a bit but its got about 8 fans on the back.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

I did a lot of research and finally decided on the Panasonic TH-50PZ85U. I did get to see it a little in a local box store. They were already out except for the display model and who knows what that unit has seen. I wasn't going to mess with it. I did some other checking and the pricing on the display was higher than B&H?! I've purchased through B&H before and everything was flawless....This purchase was the same. [...] The guys were very good, we set it up, plugged in, no problems. Once set up and made some color adjustments, the set came alive and I'm amazed everytime I turn it on. Hooked up a Sony BDP-S350 and even DVDs are amazing. I have only one question/comment and it has nothing to do with the tv....should I have gone bigger?

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

[...]product was as awesome as expected great picture,

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

I replaced a 46" Sharp Aquos LCD with this Panasonic plasma. It isn't as bright and the non-HD programming looks a little softer. Plus I found the glare during the daytime a little annoying, but what it made up for with the depth of color and speed, was worth the upgrade. If your room has a lot of windows and you watch a lot of daytime TV, I would stick with a LCD, if you are mostly a night time movie watcher, or have few to no windows, you won't find a better TV for close to this price.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

50" is bigger than I expected when I got it set up. So many input choices for this TV made setting it up easy. We have the PlayStation,Wii,DVD,VHS,and cable going in and easy to manage all. Panasonic knows plasma!!!!!

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

Full Disclosure: This TV was purchased for home use by two people who enjoy movies, a few programs, looking at really big digipics and because one of us wanted a near lifelike rendering of Rodney Yee during morning yoga. Though one spousal unit is an avowed, lifelong A/V geek, he received absolutely no remuneration from Panasonic for the review.

Fuller Disclosure: This TV was purchased to replace a two-year-old Sony 46" rear-projection LCD HDTV and many of the observations are comparative.

The Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA (50") Plasma TV makes a strong first impression.

Descriptors like bold, bright, crisp and punchy are at the forefront when first viewing the TV. In many ways, some positive, it shows that plasma peeping is antithetical to what is seen on rear-projection LCD sets.

The TV is framed in high-gloss black plastic that looks modern and formal and also shows smudges. The gloss finish is highly reflective, more so than the screen.

Set up: Assembly was easy but does necessitate two bodies due to its 85-pound weight. You may, if you choose, mount the TV to the supplied base, a cabinet or wall brackets.
First power on reveals the set-up screen -- language, time, date, cable or antenna reception, and let the set hunt for the available channels. Easy.

We receive over-the-air (OTA) HD signals and the tuner locked and loaded 23 digital signals in under three minutes. I suspect a weaker tuner than what is in the Sony as we no longer receive three channels and during windy or types of inclement weather the tuner struggles to stay locked on to some stations.

The TV comes to life in about half the time it took the Sony. Station-to-station changes are still slow. Off is instant, no dim screen and waiting for the cooling fan.

Even though the TV comes with an exhaustive owners manual, operating the remote and navigating menus is easy and mostly intuitive. So much so I surmise even the population of inbred rednecks where we live in rural Missouri could get the TV up and running with a minimum of expletives.

A first look at the picture indicated a lot of fiddling with adjustments was going to be necessary -- color saturation was rich and brightness and contrast were so high the picture was blown out on bright scenes. TVs are factory set to grab attention in showrooms, not look good in living rooms. To adjust the TV I used the Avia "Guide to Home Theater" DVD which has been a stellar tool for adjusting CRT sets. Per Avias recommended settings, the picture was still highly saturated, too bright and the contrast was heavy enough to make edges look as though etched in cut glass. After hours of twiddling I tossed Avia and settled for the following settings:
Picture mode: Standard.
White level (Contrast): 32.
Black level (Brightness): 30.
Sharpness: 44.
Color (Saturation): 30.
Hue (Tint): +1, green push.

Impressions: The color is bold, punchy detailed and liquid. Analagous to 35mm film, I compare the color to Fuji Reala or Provia, whereas our Sony rendered color that reminded me of Agfa 200 print film -- natural browns and reds, not so much contrast, always easy on the eyes. Now that the settings are on the money I see good shadow, shades of black and color delineation.

Both horizontal and vertical angles are generous. Viewing from 120-degrees of dead center results in minimal loss of picture quality, a definite advantage over the Sony which had little to show viewers who were more than 30-degrees from dead center.

The remote is, um, okay. It is a long, unlit wand. Power and selection buttons are at the top, menu and adjustments upper middle, the number pad and component controls below. Oddly, the "LAST" button that allows you to jump back and forth between two stations is located near the bottom of the remote, below the "7" on the number pad, not in the center with the menu selections where the thumb would naturally sit for better ergonomics and easy access. Maybe this is Panasonics way of attracting more female buyers.

As for audio, well, it's a TV and the speakers sound like little TV speakers no matter how much bass or treble one adds/subtracts. The "Surround" option in the audio menu spreads the audio, adds disconcerting placement effects and also gives the sound a hollow, tin can quality. Read Ye: If you want good sound and real stereo out of your TV connect it to your stereo system.

The TH-50PZ85U has a built-in SD card slot, rear right, which allows you to turn the TV into a giant picture frame. Card access is very slow and the best viewing is for horizontal, 16:9 aspect ratio images which look sensational in 1080p. Vertical images get less than a fifth of the screen which makes them look as scrawny as a 98-pound weakling at muscle beach.

As for the rear connections, we use one set of component inputs, one set of stereo audio outputs and the antenna connector. We have not used the HDMI or computer monitor connections.

Via the RGB component jacks, movies are displayed with the same descriptors that apply to OTA programming.

One more thing. Plasma TVs are current hungry. This set continuously drinks 750 watts of 120 volt socket juice. Compare that with the same size LCD TV which sips a paltry 265 watts. Owning a plasma TV will bloat your electric bill.

Conclusion: Other than a poorly designed remote, bog slow SD card access, puny tuner and reflective surfaces it's a pretty good TV. The picture is always vivid, can be seen from nearly any angle and the size and overall quality of the image means no more having to go to the wallet-siphoning, poorly lit and way too loud moving picture show. Finally, thanks to the low B&H price, it's a lot of TV for the money. And since we can't return it, it's a keeper.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

Can't tell you how much I LOVE this TV. If you can't afford the Pioneer then this is the plasma to buy. I love the black levels. No competition vs LCD. Surprised how 'decent' standard def looks.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

My first plasma. Great for families with kids. The glass screen can clean up well from toddler finger and food prints. (We decide not to do LCD because of our toddler)

Easy to set up, great , reliable images, very crispy.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

This is a great TV and a great price. It arrived in perfect condition and I am very pleased with the quality of the product.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

I install Tons of LCD's and Plasma's every year. Year after year Panasonic out performs all others hands down. For example i have two 50 inch Panasonic plasmas that run 24 hrs a day 7 days weak displaying security cameras. The picture on those displays still look the same as when i installed them. So when it came time to replace my old tube I knew what i was going with. You may save a hundred bucks with another brand but give it a year or so that hundred will be the deposit at the local repair shop. Trust me i see it all the time.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

The TV has a fantastic picture. It was very easy to set up. It does a great job of displaying HD channels. SD channels look pretty good as well (this can be a problem for many HD TVs). I selected this one because it has true 1080 resolution.

One of the big complaints about Plasma is its lack of brightness and the glare problem. THis TV seems to have solved both of these problems. It is in a room with lots of windows, and neither of these things seems to be a problem.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

This was for our bedroom, and now the best TV in our house is in the bedroom (not the living or media room... go figure).

I hesitated to get a Plasma (own 2 LCD panels and one projection), and now I think I'm sold on Plasma. The picture is soooo much deeper. True blacks mean a lot. The only down side to this TV is if you put it in a brightly lit room, there may be glare issues which is true for all plasma TV's.

I highly recommend for a Theater room or any darker room.

It's easy to configure and provides good documentation along with intuitive menus.

I also knew that I wouldn't be plugging in any external audio , so I wanted the best on-board speakers I could find without spending a ton of money. This TV has about as good as you can get for on-board speakers, but I'm now re-thinking my plan and shopping simple external systems from Panasonic, Bose, etc.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

great picture.easy set up,no glare screen in daylight, good audio, i would buy it again. owners manual is the weakest point but not that bad.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

Panasonic TH-50PZ85U Plasma 50" is being used by adults as well as children. We have a Blu Ray player and HD cable box connected to it with excellent clarity from all angles. 3D movies are fantastic on this TV. Children easily access TV by side USB for gaming system. Looking forward to connecting the computer to it and camera.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

This TV is used in a Home Theater environment for HD cable, Xbox 360 games and photo viewing.

The design is pretty standard for Plasmas but is quite pleasing. The good...HD channels and DVD's look outstanding with extremely deep, dark blacks and vivid colorful images. My Xbox games are absolutely engrossing at this size and detail. Taking photos and then immediately being able to view them via the SD slot is a big bonus for me. It's great for showing your latest adventures to friends and family in a comfortable environment.

I looked for months before finally choosing this TV and I can't be happier. Setup was simple. The remote provides easy adjustments and just enough control for my applications. Panasonic is THE company for Plasmas and personally I still prefer their image to comparable LCD's. Sure they use more energy and have glare issues, but to me, they just appear more "natural" and smooth yet crisp when required.

The bad...as can be expected, SD broadcasts don't look that good and there is glare. However, this isn't an issue in a Home Theater situation where you can easily tone down your lighting.

At this size and price, I don't think a better TV can be found.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

First off, this TV is HUGE! Make sure you have enough space for it. Setup was a breeze. I've got it hooked up to a TiVO HD Home Theatre (very simple with one HDMI cable connection), and the picture is phenomenal. Black is really black on this TV. I find that there's glare, so we just make sure no lights are reflected on the surface when we watch.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

I use it to watch blu-ray and DVD; excellent pictures; nice complement with home theater system; sound from the Plasma TV itself is horrible.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

I recently purchased a Panasonic Plasma TH-50PZ85U TV. After much research I came to the decision to purchase this model and have not been disappointed. Although I am not a TV "freak", I watch a minimum of the tube. My reaction to this new set can be raelated to the time in 1951 when my parents purchased our first TV. It is a very similar experience! I find myself looking for things to watch. The HD picture is comparable to movie quality!! I couldn't be more satisfied.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

This TV lives up to other reviews I read before purchasing it. Sharp picture with excellent colors and contrast. No negatives that I can find.

Comments about Panasonic TH-50PZ85U VIERA Plasma TV 50" (49.9" diagonal):

Even though I am on the cutting edge with may tech gadgets, I held off for years on buying a big screen because I have always been a huge fan of my 35" tube television, was concerned that LCD or DLP would disappoint, and worried about the issues with plasma (cost, burn-in, reflections, etc.). After reading the reviews of this television (indicating that burn is on regular viewing is a thing of the past), and considering the great price, I decided to take a leap.

I am thrilled with my decision. The picture is outstanding. My television is located is a room with lots of windows and lights behind the viewing position. While you can see the light reflections in the bezel, they are barely noticeable in the picture. The blacks are very dark and the colors vivid.

I did have one issue. About 10 minutes after I turned on the television for the first time, two thick black lines appeared running from top to bottom. I called the Panasonic plasma hotline who sent out a tech within 48 hours. The tech discovered a loose connection and fixed the problem in 15 minutes. Great response by Panasonic.

I highly recommend this television.