We have a Panasonic display at work to conduct studies on the transmission of HDTV over wireless links at high frequencies. We had very little room for a large projection unit, and we needed something that can be seen by a group of people. Seeing we had a year-end budget surplus, we soon had a wonderful plasma display on our hands.

The first reaction everyone had was: I want one of those for home! That is until they saw the price tag of around 9000$US...

But the image quality is the best I have ever seen. Whether it is watching a DVD is 16:9 format (which is quite impressive on a 42" screen) or displaying a PowerPoint presentation from a computer, the display is just gorgeous.

The image is sharp from edge to edge, and can be adjusted until the cows come home. The defaults are quite acceptable though. Brightness and contrast are amazing. Everything just stands out on this display.

The unit can display regular 4:3 images in various modes including stretch, zoom and regular (which will leave vertical black bars on both sides of the picture)

The unit had a lot of different inputs, from BNC RGB, to SVGA to standard Composite RCA, not to mention S-VIDEO. Be aware that you will need a BNC to RCA adapter to connect composite sources in some instances.

The only disappointing thing is that the display lacks an integrated tuner. I guess that for most people, this will not be a problem, as this display will most certainly be used with a digital satellite system or digital cable TV.

The included speakers are also disappointing, but I assume that if you pay this much for a TV, you'll also have a decent home theater sound system.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 9000