Samsung LCD (LA40A50) V/S Panasonic Plasma PV8

Shantanu

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Hi everyone, my 1st post here. I have shortlisted these 2 models.
I have been following a few websites, including this one from the past week. Inspite of reading a lot, i still find it difficult to decide.
If i didnt visit showrooms much, i would have gone ahead with the PV8 without any doubt in my mind. I have compared them 4 times till now, with a different showroom each time. This is my current state of mind -

1) The main issue is that i just havn't seen anything bad in PQ of the Samsung 40A450. Things are not matching well what majority people are saying. HD content is, and was always going to be better in the Samsung, but talking about SD, i didnt see any problem either. Picture was definitely brighter, and more clearer compared with PV8. I tried watching fast movements in sports channels. Panasonic seemed to give out a stable picture with lesser pixelations, but it was a small difference. It was quite rare too. My girlfriend was never able spot it. If you ask me which TV i'll prefer for such channles, i'll still go with Samsung LCD even though i think many people are favouring the PV8.

2) Price of Panasonic = 45K, Samsung = 56K. Discounts of upto 1K or 2K more are possible in each of the models if i manage to bargain them properly at buying time. Price tag advantage of Panasonic is the only reason i've considered it till now, because i'm a bit tight on the budget. I can buy a home theatre very soon, along with PV8. If i go with Samsung, i'll have to wait.

3) I'll be using the TV in my living room. Lots of light here. And there will be more, falling right on the screen during day time. These reflections are very annoying already in my CRT. I found that PV8 has simliar glass on the outside. Will this be an issue?

Opinions please.
 
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well u have answered ur own questions,if can afford the samsung Lcd u can go for it,no doubt HD will be better then panasonic plasma,the samsung also has the contrast advantage.
well contrary to ur statement that majority favour the plasma may be only in this forum,but the plasma sales very less compared to lcd even though lcd is more expensive.
also since u have a well lit room more reasons to go for a lcd,like the samsung series 5 or a sony S or V series since all these tv have a NON glossy screen.
 
You mean Series 5 over my current series 4?

sorry i taught u were talking about series 5 ,but the series 4 still has the slight contrast edge over panasonic.
also if u look at prices of samsung series 5 in compareindia.in.com it costs around 57400.
 
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I have never seen it in person but the LG 42LG80FR seems to have good specs on paper. I found the mention of S-IPS panel intriguing. Don't know what "Mark Levinson-tuned" means though. Also it seems to be selling in the high 60s:
Compare India - Televisions - LG-42LG80FR

Favourable review here:
LG 42LG80FR (42-inch LCD) Review - TVs - CNET Asia

well the LG is good,but it has a contrast less then half of what samsung has.so shadow details or detail in dark scenes will be less.
 
also if u look at prices of samsung series 5 in compareindia.in.com it costs around 57400.

Best deal i could find for 5 Series is 61K. This website is showing up a great price. Just curious, if i think about buying from this website later on, is it a good option?

@particleman - Thnx, but LG didnt really look so appealing to me as the Samsungs.
 
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This website is showing up a great price. Just curious, if i think about buying from this website later on, is it a good option?

well if they give it for that price its certainly a good option considering u get the same samsung warranty all over india.
 
Shantanu the Lcd is good to view in bright areas where there is lot of light plasma is good for home theater use, if you are going to use the Tv in a very brightly lit area most of the time, then go for lcd, otherwise plasma is the best option and produces real life pictures.

Lcd does have slow response rate though it has improved over the years, also has a shorter viewing angle range.

All plasma's these days have anti glare reflective screens on them.

Buy what suits your eye , for open areas where there is lot of light, you are better of buying a LCD, but keep this in mind SD won't look good on it.
 
^slow response time of lcd is past,todays lcd are as good as a plasma and some lcds are even better .
 
Dushie said:
but keep this in mind SD won't look good on it

That's what the issue is. Just not able to understand this when i see it practically. Every aspect of PQ looks better in LCD's for all 4 visits i made till now. Am i the only one who saw this way?
 
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BTW, just got information about Panasonic LCD's. They have their display panel (or may be fully) manufactured in Japan.
Any one using Panasonic LCD's? I read here that they are a good choice in 32" market. I'm after 40"-42".
 
That's what the issue is. Just not able to understand this when i see it practically. Every aspect of PQ looks better in LCD's for all 4 visits i made till now. Am i the only one who saw this way?
well the plasma are better is SD because they have a low resolution if u look at FHD plasma they are no better the lcds even the pioneer kuro is bad in displaying SD,as far as ur observation about lcds having a better picture quality it varies from company to company,like samsung and sony models have a contrast advantage compared to PV8 plasmas,also image processing techs,and also motion trail or afterglow is slightly worse in the panasonic plasma.


BTW, just got information about Panasonic LCD's. They have their display panel (or may be fully) manufactured in Japan.
Any one using Panasonic LCD's? I read here that they are a good choice in 32" market. I'm after 40"-42".

doesnt make a difference has companies keep the quality standards the same whether is manufactured in japan,thailand,malayasia etc.
 
he he, the LCD/Plasma battle again :). Both technologies are very very good.....pictures these days are comparable.

plasma has certain advantages which are undeniable, such as viewing angle (not even the latest LED backlit LCDs can dream of coming close to the plasmas in this department). At the budget end plasmas will have decidedly superior black levels and motion tracking. Yes, there are some LCDs that have very good black levels and motion tracking, but these are about 3 or 4 times the budget level we are talking about, so no point even thinking about that.

LCDs are brighter, therefore if you're going to keep it in a brightly lit room, the LCD will be superior. The screens are also much less reflective, in spite of the anti-reflective technologies incorporated in the plasmas. Another issue is image retention. Whereas the problem of burn-in has more or less been done away with, temporary image retention does take place. Nothing that 5 minutes of white-screen can't take care of, but still, the LCDs have no such issues. So if you're a gamer, you should look at LCDs.

At the end of the day, all of the above are broad issues. You have to see what appeals to you. Remember one thing though, in a brightly lit shop a bright LCD can seem better than a plasma, which might be entirely the reverse when you bring it to your normally lit home.

Whatever you pick you're unlikely to go wrong. Enjoy the big-screen experience :)

Oh ya....the plasma is 10k cheaper? Then unless the LCD's picture is decidedly superior, don't even think about it.
 
BTW, just got information about Panasonic LCD's. They have their display panel (or may be fully) manufactured in Japan.
Any one using Panasonic LCD's? I read here that they are a good choice in 32" market. I'm after 40"-42".

I have a 32" LCD from Panasonic and its PQ is just about the best in the 32" segment with only Philips on par with it and Sharp Aquos slightly ahead in terms of PQ. Note all 3 are LCD and 32".

Coming to 42" again I have a PV8 from Panasonic and its just about the very best out there in terms of PQ at least to my eyes. I never saw any LCD that came close to plasma in terms of PQ and I auditioned for nearly 3 months. Only Samsung plasmas in 410 and 450 were on par or near to the Panasonic PV8. Like I said I auditioned for nearly 3 months before going with the PV8. The reasons for this were that I was a firm believer in LCD being better than plasma having read tons of articles/reviews on the internet and so on. I ended up eating humble pie when I saw/auditioned plasmas next to LCDs. The only area where LCDs even came close was with Full HD TVs playing HD content like Blu-Ray and that too via a HDMI cable, but these were nearly 3 times the cost of the Panasonic PV8 and these LCD Full HD TVs were from Sony mainly the X series. For everything else i.e. standard DVD, TV (both cable and DTH), even Divx rips that I carried on a USB stick the plasmas were way ahead and the PV8 just about the best especially in terms of VFM. Like I said Samsung plasmas 410 & 450 were as good as the PV8, but the PV8 was more VFM since it was around 53-54K and also I am not much of a fan of Korean brands/manufacturers.

Take your time and audition till you are satisfied and don't make your decision when in confusion. I took a good 3 months for the 42" PV8 and even for the 32" LCD I took a good couple of weeks of auditioning and took along my wife, my sister and my cousin too. Also, visit as many places as you can (don't decide based on just one place/seller) and also throw as much different content as you can at the TVs. Some places I went to did not have option of playing via USB so I carried my own DVDP and component and HDMI cables. I mean I threw just about everything I could at all the TVs and only when I was personally satisfied that plasmas and especially the PV8 was the best deal out there I went for it. Ditto for the Panasonic 32" too. I only did not go for the Sharp Aquos since I was not sure about their after sales service, otherwise their PQ was ahead of the Panasonic 32" LCD.

Hope this helps.
 
Thnx all, for spending time. It has helped me to move a step further. I'm going with LCD's, i don't want to miss the brightness of LCD's for my brightly lit living room.
Samsung series 5, 40LA550 model, looks cool. But my girl friend is a big Sony fan. She's adding some confusion now :mad:
Seems like, 40KLV-s400 (s-series 40") is the one which i should be comparing the samsung with.
I'm going to Vijay Sales now, i'll compare both and get back :)
 
Thnx all, for spending time. It has helped me to move a step further. I'm going with LCD's, i don't want to miss the brightness of LCD's for my brightly lit living room.
Samsung series 5, 40LA550 model, looks cool. But my girl friend is a big Sony fan. She's adding some confusion now :mad:
Seems like, 40KLV-s400 (s-series 40") is the one which i should be comparing the samsung with.
I'm going to Vijay Sales now, i'll compare both and get back :)

Shantanu, since you seem to be online right now: I got a SMS from Sumaria earlier today stating they are having 10-26% discounts on selected LCDs tomorrow and day after (25, 26). Just thought you should know. Unfortunately their site sumaria.co.in is not up to date.
 
Thnx particleman. I'll check it out.

Btw, i just compared the above mentioned Sony and Samsung models. Couldn't really find a difference. And by specs, samsung leads. And i love the extra USB feature in samsung.
Thank you hifivision and thanks each one of you who helped me get to the best thing. I'm giving a green light to Samsung :) :)
 
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Thnx all, for spending time. It has helped me to move a step further. I'm going with LCD's, i don't want to miss the brightness of LCD's for my brightly lit living room.
Samsung series 5, 40LA550 model, looks cool. But my girl friend is a big Sony fan. She's adding some confusion now :mad:
Seems like, 40KLV-s400 (s-series 40") is the one which i should be comparing the samsung with.
I'm going to Vijay Sales now, i'll compare both and get back :)


even i am confused between the two now. i think the sony comes for 61-63k and samsung for 56-58k in delhi here. I prefer samsung over sony but my family says sony(biased against samsung as the samsung refrigerator has given many problems).

some suggestions would really help. in the long run, i plan to connect it with a htpc(i have some HD movies atm).

i asked a shop 2day and the were giving sammy 40a610 for 61k today? between these three, i still dont know :(
 
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