Samsung PN50A450 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV

I have been saving and doing research for the last year for a flat panel TV and I could not be happier. I have read all about 1080p vs 720p and plama vs LCD and I am completly satisfied with this TV. You can not beat the price and the picture looks great. From the naked eye I could tell no difference between this TV and the 1080p version. I have had no issues and I do not think you need to spend $500 or more for a differnt TV. If you are looking for 50" or glorious TV, you have found it.

Here's the deal, I spent days upon painful days researching the best TV for the money. I researched on-line, in-store, read reviews, watched all sorts of TV's and noticed and came up with a few points everyone should know:

1) If your buying a 50 inch or smaller flat screen TV - 720p will give you as good a picture as 1080p. In fact all signal sources, except BluRay aren't 1080p anyway. You can not tell the difference.
2) Get a TV with at least 3 HDMI inputs. This will cover your cable, BluRay, and gaming system.
3) The new Plasma TV's last just as long as a new LCD - Don't believe the hype.
4) Call your credit card before you buy a service plan. Most credit cards will double what the manufacturer offers you for FREE.

As far as this TV, for the price, the picture is awesome. Dark blacks, crisp lines, the picture is great. In fact it is just as good as my 50" Sony DLP that costs way more.....(BTW - I have now sold the Sony)

I have this hooked up to a home theater, so I never use the TV's speakers so I can't comment on that. The remote is fine, it is easy to unpack, easy to set up, and easy to pay for. If you are looking for a great Flat Screen 50" or under. This is it. Order it, and enjoy!

I looked at all the TV's, both plasma and LCD in the $1,500 or less price range. The Samsung PN-50A450 is the best TV for the money. I would have to give Panasonic Viera plasma the number 2 spot, but I have yet to find it in a 50" for $999 with free shipping and no tax. The Samsung's picture was better than the Panasonic Viera's when looking at them side by side. The Vizio is not even an option anymore since you can get the Samsung for less than $1000. I am extremely satisified with my purchase and my friends can't believe I got a TV this size with a picture this good for what I paid for it. Also, pay the extra $$ and get the HD package from your cable company. It makes night and day difference. I don't even watch the non-HD channels anymore.

Big TV, low price, great color, great blacks... if you want to save some money and hold off on getting the 1080p television, you can't go wrong with this 720p monster. And the white glove delivery service was 10 times better than hauling it home from the local electronics store.

Coming from the graphics industry I've always known the spec wars are total ego feeders. At 50 inches 720P is fantastic. 65 inches in the same room and you would be able to see the difference of a 1080P. But not at this size.

If you want amazing HD that is so sharp it will make your eyes bleed... this is your set ! :)

If you want a TV that displays the free HD Cable channels your cable provider provides WITHOUT a cable box... this is the set.

If you want a set not too big to still watch your SD DVD collection... this is the set.

If you buy products based on proper spec for the format rather than EGO... this is your set.

If you don't already own a surround system and want a reasonable cost system... Buy at least a nice self powered computer speaker system though cause the speakers on this set stink. I recommend the Logitech THX rated 5500 series DOLBY/DTS surround with optical input. In a small living room this will rock the couch at $200.

Amazon's delivery was 2 days early... called for an appointment... showed up on time.

UPDATE (10/31/2008): I almost want to remove a star. I want to keep my system simple. Have a PC Media Center and a DVD player connected via HDMI. TV has an Optical Out so a single connection for my sound from TV to Surround system seems to be indicated for TV, DVD or PC watching.

WRONG... This TV will pass my Cable TV 5.1 digital sound to the Surround system. But it limits DVD & PC to 2 channel stereo only. I am now forced to have independent sound connections to audio system. Every time you change a source you need to do it twice. This just should not be the case. The HDMI should carry sound to the TV and TV should pass it through the optical interface that I paid for.

WORK AROUNDS... Buy a HDMI switcher that I should not need to buy. Or buy a programmable remote and spend two days setting it up to run all my devices and teach it to change video source on TV and Audio source on Audio system simultaneously.

BOTTOMLINE... The TV should allow digital sound to pass through the HDMI to the Optical Output on the TV. Why they thought passing through 5.1 for a cable TV channel matters more than passing through digital audio for our HD & DVD sources is beyond my understanding. I'm disappointed.