What is the best 58" HDTV to buy?

Question

What is the best 58" HDTV to buy?

Answer 1

If you were to limit yourself to direct-view HDTVs the top mainstream contenders for the best HDTV in the 56- to 64-inch size range are the Panasonic *TH-58PZ850U, TH-58PZ800U and the Pioneer PRO-150FD, PRO-151FD, PDP-6010FD, and PDP-6020FD 1080p flat panel HDTVs. The smaller 50-inch Panasonic TH-50PZ800U received a very positive review¹ from CNET. As is often the case, the larger 58-inch PZ800U model should have nearly identical performance to its smaller sibling. *(The 58-inch PZ850U is expected to begin shipping in the fall.)



In addition to the Pioneer and the Panasonic PDPs it would also be worth a look at the new Samsung PN58A650 Plasma TV. There are a few other PDP models, such as Hitachi’s P60X901 and LG Electronics’ 60PG60 HDTVs, which may also be worth a look. It must be noted however that PDPs from Samsung, Hitachi or LG are consistently unable match the overall performance of the top models from Panasonic or Pioneer. That said Panasonic’s TH-58PZ800U is likely to be one of the best values among all high performance plasma HDTVs for 2008-2009.



¹(Note: for those who purchase any of the Panasonic PZ800U series PDPs, avoid using the 48 Hz “24p Direct in” option intended for optimum playback of film-based movies on Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD. Hopefully, with the release of a firmware fix, Panasonic will be able to eliminate or greatly reduce the significant flicker problem that occurs when using the “24p Direct in” option on the PZ800U series.)



At the present time (other than the older Sharp AQUOS LC-57D90U, Samsung LN-T5781F, Runco CX-57HD and Vidikron DView VL-57 LCD models) I’m not aware of any NEW, high performance, direct-view LCD HDTV models from Sony, Samsung, Sharp, LG, Toshiba, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, JVC, Philips, et cetera, that threaten the dominance of PDPs in this size range. Currently, with the exception of a few specialty models, the overwhelming majority of the top-of-the-line LCD HDTV models from mainstream manufacturers are topping-out at roughly 52 inches (diagonal screen size.)



############ RESOURCES ############



Panasonic Incorporates THX® Certification in its 2008 PZ800 Viera Plasma TV Series

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/sto...

Panasonic Announces Re-Branding of the Viera® Line

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/sto...



Panasonic 2008 Plasma Lineup - AVS Forum Discussion

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthrea...

Panasonic’s PZ850U Web-Enabled Plasmas Coming - AVS Forum Discussion

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthrea...



CNET Review: Panasonic Viera TH-50PZ800U

http://reviews.cnet.com/flat-panel-tvs/p...



Pioneer PRO-151FD 60" (59.58" diag.) 1080p Elite® KURO HDTV

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/P...

Pioneer PRO-150FD 60" (59.58" diag.) 1080p Elite® KURO HDTV

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/P...

Pioneer PDP-6010FD 60" (59.58" diag.) 1080p KURO HDTV

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/P...

Pioneer PDP-6020FD 60" (59.58" diag.) 1080p KURO HDTV

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/P...



The Official 9G Pioneer General Discussion Thread - AVS Forum Discussion

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthrea...



58PZ800U vs. 6020FD - AVS Forum Discussion

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthrea...



Samsung PN58A650 Plasma TV

http://www.samsung.com/us/consumer/detai...