Akai, Gateway, and other 42" plasmas under 2500 are simply not worth the effort or your money.
If you intend to get a plasma, then spend a little extra for the ,"real deal".
I researched plasmas for 2 months before deciding on this unit. Pretty easy decision as all of the reviews I came across on this plasma TV was very positive. They were not misleading.
Keep in mind that this unit is the corporate multimedia version of the consumer model TH-42PD25U/P. The differences between these units are:
1) This unit does not come with speakers. Not a problem for me as my (and most) audio system produce considerably better sound that all plasma TV’s.
2) No built in tuner. Another so what. All consumers that have satellite or cable do not need a built in tuner. You already have it in your box. Now the benefit on a built in tuner would be TV picture in picture. Me, I prefer to watch one show at a time. You can still have PIP TV if you add 2 tuners instead of the one in your cable/satellite box.
3) No stand. No issue as I purchased a overpriced though very high quality wall mount from Circuit City. Why buy a plasma if you are not going to put it on the wall?
Consumer version is silver. This unit is black. This unit is lighter and also sleeker w/o the speakers IMO.
I went to several retail outlets and compared the picture of the Panasonic to other brands as well as HDTV plasma's and walked away very impressed. I agree with others that say this unit produces pictures that are just as good as HDTV. In fact this unit produced a BETTER PICTURE THAN 3 of the competing plasma brands I compared it to! Others have reached the same conclusion.
Item is packaged very very well from Panasonic. DO NOT lay this unit(box) on it's side. This is all over the outside of the box. Why? I have no idea. But I was not about to tempt fate by laying a 3k TV on it's side. I am actually going to following directions on this one.
Unit is shipped in a box within a box. Pop out the 4 white handles on the outside and slide the outer box up and over the inner box. Two large sturdy handles are located on top of the TV to pull it out. These stay connected to the tv. Do not remove these as you will need them to move the TV around for mounting.
A remote is supplied that provides the usual stuff. Remote is easy to use for changing inputs and picture in picture which is the most advanced that I have come across in a tv, though not something I use.
Instructions are clear and come in a variety of languages though I only need English and tossed the rest. Input/Output diagrams are clear and leave nothing to guess work.
Setup is very easy. I was able to wall mount this myself. Keep in mind that it is a solid unit weighing in at 65lbs so 2 people for wall mounting is highly recommended. I do recommend a solid mount.
Many plasmas require a sort of setup to get the picture correct. I found that the best picture is straight out of the box. No fumbling as Panasonic got it right. Each input has a ,"JUST" mode that Panasonic implements into their sets. This expands pictures to fill the entire screen for those DVD's that would otherwise produce black lines up top and bottom.
TV:
For TV use I am utilizing it's component inputs from a DishNetwork HDTV receiver for the best picture. Folks, this thing is amazing in HDTV mode. Why pay an extra grand on a HDTV plasma to get nothing that the eye can see? This unit is that good.
Audio:
I have a Cambridge SoundWorks Megatheater 5.1 530 home theater for the DVD use. Progressive scan DVD's are simply mind boggling on this unit. This unit has speaker outputs and can also accommodate Panasonic speakers that attach to the side of this for a clean look. However they are expensive and for the money you can get much better audio.
PC:
I have a MSI Mega 180 mini pc (which I also highly recommend) for the PC side of things. When I need to jump on the internet or play some MP3's, or even view movies or stills from my camcorder, digital camera, this TV displays all of them with crispness better than my higher resolution Samsung 21" LCD monitor. A wireless keyboard with integrated mouse pointer makes computing simple from the couch. I connected the PC using the plasma VGA input connector. Now for those that want to connect their PC to this, I recommend a program called Powerstrip that allows custom resolutions as this unit has a native 852x480 resolution. You can use Windows 800x600, but the image will not be as sharp. Set Powerstrip to that setting using the horizontal and vertical timings located in the Panasonic manual for best results. 1280x1024 also looks good but not as crisp and the text is too small from the couch. If you want even more crispness, then use your computer video cards DVI output along with a $30 ATI HDTV converter to component adapter for really clean computing. DO NOT USE s-video for computing. ATI AIW boards have this option. Use the VGA or DVI connector on your video card.
There is nothing sweeter than SURFING THE INTERNET ON A 42" PLASMA!!!
I highly recommend that you do not use S-video inputs for anything. Panasonics are not known for good s-video inputs. However, if you are contemplating a plasma, S-video is NOT what you want when component and VGA is available which offers a much better picture. The s-video on this set is not that great. OK at best.
All plasmas suffer from burnin which means an image can BURN onto the screen if left on for an extended period of time. This TV has screen shift which shifts the screen around 1-2 pixels every few minutes to limit burn in as well as a built in screensaver. Screen shift is not noticeable when viewing movies or TV.
Wall mounting:
Any universal wall mount will work. I have an Omni mount from Circuit City that cost me 270.00. Super sturdy with holes for padlocks on both sides. The bolts are 6 inches long and 1/2 thick!!! Nobody is stealing this set. I swear I can hang my car on it. You can easily use the less expensive mounts from EBay for 99.00. They do the job. Also an FYI, make sure your home insurance is adequate to cover this unit along with your other electronic items.
Cables: No cables are supplied. TV's do not come with cables anyhow. Use some high quality cables. Monster brand is known for quality stuff. $$$ but worth it.
Inputs:
Another area worth mentioning is expandability:
3 boards that can be removed and replaced with other input boards!!! Nice.
What comes with it: 1 set of composite in, SVGA in, component in, S-video in. I would have preferred 2 composite in and junk the S-video as who in their right mind would use s-video on this or any plasma? Come on, you want the best picture, don't you?
Also, because this unit is the professional corporate version, it uses BNC connectors instead of RCA connectors. BNC is more professional with more contact area for a better signal but a tad more money. I bought 3 BNC to RCA adapters for $4.00 each from Radio Shack. You WILL NEED these adapters to connect this to standard home theater equipment and satellite/cable boxes. Just aks for BNC/RCA adapters.
Quality: Very sturdy and well made. Reminds me of a Lexus. Just solid. 1 year warranty standard. I would have preferred a 2 or 3 year like Samsung plasma’s. I recommend an extended warranty from those that offer them. They range from 159.00-300.00 for a 1 year extension.
Shopping for Plasmas:
Why is this unit so good?
Plasmas have a very tough time producing true blacks. All of the cheap plasmas such as Pioneer, Akai, Sampo, Gateway (same as Sampo), BenQ, etc... produce grey or washed out blacks. The black on Panasonics are legendary and true black and the only plasmas able to produce true black as of this writing. NEC comes close, but their colors are washed out a bit placing NEC in 2nd place behind Panasonic.
Purchase:
Stay away from the dealers in New York and other areas with those low prices. Call them and they will try the bait and switch on you or sell you options you do not need. I ordered one from one of them and they called back and said that they are now out, however if I ordered a input card (it comes with three but they said none), I could get a package which they have in stock! Folks, there are no Panasonic packages! They make money on the accessories. Some will try to sell you a Sanyo unit and claim they are the same. THEY ARE NOT THE SAME!!! Stay away from them. Buy from TigerDirect or Dell. A little higher but trustworthy and no games. I don't know about you, but when I am about to drop 3G's on something, I do not want someone playing games with me. Stick with what works.
Hope this helps you in your plasma buying decision.
Lee Dye
Fontana, CA
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