Panasonic Viera TH-50PZ800U

The good: Reproduces deep black levels and highly accurate color; excellent uniformity with little false contouring; THX mode obviates in-depth calibration; relatively effective antireflective screen; solid connectivity with four HDMI and one PC input; handsome styling with single-pane design.

The bad: Expensive; blacks not quite as deep as the best plasmas; optional 24p mode introduces flicker; fewer picture controls than most HDTVs.

The bottom line: With the accuracy of its THX mode and great black-level performance, the Panasonic TH-50PZ800U is one of the best-performing HDTVs available.

Read full review

Description: The Panasonic TH-50PZ800U is a 50-inch, plasma television. Compared to other plasma TVs on the market, it is relatively expensive at around $3,200. In general, a liquid plasma display can recreate more realistic black-levels than an LCD display can.

Pros: Has a 3D-Y/C digital comb filter. This is more favorable than the average TV on the market today, but is to be expected for a TV of this price. (A 3D filter is one of the best types available, and is "motion adaptive," meaning it utilizes a special method for clearing up the moving parts of the picture, as opposed to the static parts.) Also, this TV 1080p (FullHD), which is than some similarly priced TVs. With built-in HDTV compatibility, this TV set can display images that are significantly sharper and more realistic than regular television, as long as the source is high definition. (It can easily render standard-resolution digital TV broadcasts and also depict the full resolution of widescreen DVD video.) The 3:2 pulldown feature of this unit reduces artifacts that can occur when motion pictures are transferred to a digital format such as DVD.

Cons: None noted, given available product data.

Suitability: Designed for those who are looking for a stylish, compact TV.

Value: Overall, this TV's price seems a bit steep, with respect to its features. For example, when it comes to viewable screen size, the average price of plasma televisions with comparable viewable size is considerably less -- in fact around $2,115.

Suggestions: (1) For assistance in shopping for a new HDTV, read CNET editors' <ref type="link" url="http://cnet.com/hdtv-world/?tag=arw">Ultimate HDTV Buying Guide. </ref> (2) If donating or repurposing your old TV is not a viable option, CNET encourages households to recycle their electronics. Please explore the following website to find a recycling center in your area Electronics Take Back Coalition .