Thursday 7 June 2012

No Worries With Plasmas If You Have The Panasonic TC-P50G25 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV


No Worries With Plasmas If You Have The Panasonic TC-P50G25 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV
 
  A lot of people are worried about buying Plasma TVs. However those worries can be unnecessary especially with the Panasonic TC-P50G25 Plasma HDTV, as an owner of the TC-P50G25 shares with you on his experience. Read on... 
By Ryan Schaefer

I picked up the Panasonic TC-P50G20 at Best Buy as it was on sale. The Panasonic Viera TC-P50G20 and the Panasonic TC-P50G25 are identical units except the G20 is sold exclusively through Best Buy.

I did tons of research on TVs and of course, it always came down to plasma vs. LCD. It is getting harder to find plasmas anymore but Panasonic is the best of them, at least since the Pioneers went off the market. Anyway, it comes down to what you want.

Plasmas: excellent realistic color, motion depiction and off-center viewing. The Panasonic TC-P50G25 plasma TV is also heavier than LCD TVs because the screen is glass. The glass causes some glare. There are some concerns about burn-in.

LCD's: Brighter screen, less glare, depending on model, can be less expensive, and no worries about burn-in.

I hate standing in front of a LCD and doing the head bob and weave to get to the "sweet spot" where color and brightness is optimal. If you sit in the exact same spot all the time and that spot is in the sweet spot, you won't notice this, otherwise the image quality is significantly diminished. The higher end sets are getting better but I can sit almost to the side of the Panasonic TC-P50G25 and it looks exactly the same as if I was sitting right in front. I also am picky about seeing a blur across the screen when something fast goes-by. It always reminds me of when they put those special effects on the hockey puck to make it look like a lightning bolt or something silly when it was hit hard. Anyway, I get none of that with the Panasonic TC-P50G25.

I have yet to get my
Panasonic Viera TC-P50G25 TV professionally calibrated as it should be used for a few hundred hours first. Truthfully, I doubt that I ever will. I set the color mode to "THX" and everything looks amazing. Reading magazine reviews on the Panasonic TC-P50G25, this is the setting that they used also.

The depth is simply incredible and I can't say enough about the deep colors, especially the blacks. If you can, take a blu-ray copy of  The Dark Knight to the TV store and have them play it on a LCD and then a plasma and you will see a huge difference. The detail in the shadows is very deep and I saw things that I never say before. Home Theater magazine just did a follow-up test on black-levels on this set after someone said that they decreased over time. Basically, their test showed no decrease in black levels after 1000 hours, and this was using equipment to monitor these things. You would never notice a change with the naked eye, especially if it were gradual over many years.

Lastly, about  burn-in. Some people really freak out about it. Yes, it is mentioned in the Panasonic TC-P50G25 owner’s manual and it says that burn-in is possible if you watch a static image for an "extended period of time". I have no idea how much time that is. They also say that the first 200 hours is the most important. I can't see into the future but I have about that many hours on the set and have seen no effects.

I do a fair amount of gaming where there is a little map or something constantly in the corner. After playing for many hours at a stretch, I don't think it is going to happen. I think if you turn on your tv to CNN and leave it there for days straight, you might get a burn-in of the ticker across the bottom, but who does that? Seriously, don't worry about it. Panasonic uses a pixel shift technology that shifts pixels by 1 every few seconds to prevent this problem. You can't notice it but 1 pixel is enough.

Some reviews I read didn't like the glare from the glass screen. Sure, if the sun is shining directly onto it, the image gets washed out. On the other hand, you don't need to sit in a dark room either-although all TVs look better if you do. I have 2 large windows in my living room and I can watch the Panasonic TC-P50G25 TV without pulling the blinds with no problems. If you can think back to the old TVs, it isn't any worse than that.

If you have a lamp right behind you, you will see a reflection but it is far from looking into a mirror. The "G" series uses a light filter to help in this regard so maybe the lesser models are worse. All I know is that it isn't a problem for me.

I sit rather close to the set (8 ft) and still get blown away when watching even the most boring program. Watching a blu ray or HD sporting event still gives me the open mouth wow feeling.

There are a ton of connection possibilities and there are 3 HDMI ports on the Panasonic TC-P50G25. I don't use any of the Viera Cast options as the satellite does all of this stuff. The remote is well laid-out and easy to use but I purchased a Harmony One and can use all of the factory functions with it.

I am VERY pleased with my purchase and would highly recommend it. I sometimes find myself watching the Panasonic Viera TC-P50G25 TV, instead of the program, if you follow me. Maybe this will wear off over time but I really can't imagine how it can get much better-especially at this price.


Click on the image or link below to buy the Panasonic TC-P50G25 at one of the best price in the market.

No comments:

Post a Comment