Advice on 42-50" TV on a budget

wicker_man

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Hi, I am looking for advice on which 42-50" TV to go for (preferably 50" but wouldn't mind a 42" if it is significantly better) and I'm hoping to spend around £450-500.

I am a bit out of touch with the current market, back in the days the Pioneer Kuro was king if you could afford it, otherwise you couldn't really go wrong with a Panasonic plasma. But nowadays it seems as if plasmas are dying out. Are Panasonic still considered the best nowadays? Or are other brands as good/better?

I'm not really fussed on fancy smart features or 3D, it will mostly be used for streaming movies/HD content (via an Apple TV or connected to my Mac mini) and PS3/blu ray.

I've seen a couple that look good but just wondering what opinions people have:
  • Panasonic TX-L50B6B (£450 refurb) - from what I can gather this is a budget one?
  • Panasonic TX-P50U30B (£466 refurb) - is this an old model? It is a plasma, is it better?
  • Panasonic TX-L42E6B (£479 new) - obviously smaller but looks like a newer/higher model and has a 5 year warranty. Not bothered about the smart features though. (EDIT: I have found a refurb with 1yr warranty for £400, maybe a better bet unless a warranty is really needed?)

Any advice/suggestions appreciated, thanks!
 
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I'd go with a 50" plasma. I had the Samsung PS51F4500 for awhile and the picture quality blew me away. Espeically watching action movies like Transformers and pacific Rim on blu ray. The new model is the PS51H4500 though I'm not sure if it is an improvement on last years model. It is 768p though and has quite a reflective screen. The 42" E6B will be sharper but motion resolution will not be as good and contrast probably about the same on two sets. 42" is a bit small though.
 
Thanks for the advice, I was mainly wondering whether LCD/LED technology had advanced so much in the past few years as most manufacturers (even Panasonic) seem to be focussing on it.

Is it worth checking out other brands? I am planning on looking at some TVs in shops, but am aware that many of them may be set up poorly and in different conditions to home. And as the Panasonic plasma mentioned earlier is an older model, I doubt anybody will have it on display.

I'm also thinking is it too much of a risk going for a second hand Panasonic plasma?
 
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I had a browse around my local Currys and the only Panasonic plasmas they had was a 50" 720p model (I think P50X60) and an expensive higher end 55" one which I can't remember the model).

Looking at the LED ones, the picture did seem quite good (and very bright!) but of course I am aware shops generally aren't the best locations for judging PQ, especially as they will most likely be on out-of-box setting. But saying that, they had a TX-L50E6B which is LED, but it did look very nice (and I have just seen Richer Sounds have it for £599 with a 5 year warranty) which certainly is a tempting offer!

Otherwise there is a refurb P50ST30 plasma for £499 with 1 year warranty I have seen from a different retailer.

Hmm, dilemmas!
 
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I had a browse around my local Currys and the only Panasonic plasmas they had was a 50" 720p model (I think P50X60) and an expensive higher end 55" one which I can't remember the model).

Looking at the LED ones, the picture did seem quite good (and very bright!) but of course I am aware shops generally aren't the best locations for judging PQ, especially as they will most likely be on out-of-box setting. But saying that, they had a TX-L50E6B which is LED, but it did look very nice (and I have just seen Richer Sounds have it for £599 with a 5 year warranty) which certainly is a tempting offer!

Otherwise there is a refurb P50ST30 plasma for £499 with 1 year warranty I have seen from a different retailer.

Hmm, dilemmas!

I'll decide for you. Get the 50" E6B. Its an absolute no brainer. Brand new and with 5 year guarantee for £599. Incredible. Best bargain I have seen on all 2013 TV's. Will try and pick one up myself!
 
PS. I phoned my local RS the other day to see how many they had left in stock and the salesman confessed that the deal is so good that they are losing money on it!
 
OK awesome, thanks! I have just been reading reviews and did see a few mentions of judder/motion blur, but it does seem like a well reviewed TV (obviously I am not bothered with 3D, and have a decent surround system to counter the poor built in speakers).

I'll have to pop down to RS next week, or maybe see if John Lewis will price match (need to see who is best in regards to the 5 year warranties).
 
I think for £599 you can overlook a bit of motion blur! The performance of the TV otherwise is very, very good. Accurate colours, very deep blacks (for an LED), excellent contrast, very good processing (Netflix material looks AWESOME), fantastic design etc, etc...Viewing angles aren't the best so that might be a consideration.
I wouldn't even bother trying to get JL to price match. By the time they get back to you RS might be sold out.
 
Also, there shouldn't be any judder whatsoever. The E6 handles 24p very well.
 
Well the good news is I've managed to get an L50E6B!

I called Richer Sounds yesterday but an unhelpful sounding guy said they don't have any and advised me to go for a higher model as the E6B isn't very good. So today I was in town and tried John Lewis but they didn't stock it, and on the off chance popped in to Richer Sounds and they did have one in stock!

I've only given it a quick test connected to my MacBook and it seems fine, but I should have a chance to give it a proper workout next week (I move into a new flat on the weekend). Thanks again for your advice, Ossie77 :)
 
Only too happy to help! A lot of AVForums members are snapping up this offer. With good reason!
Strange advice you received though. Maybe he tried steering you towards the ET60 for a higher refresh rate? Stick with AVForums...its good for you!
 

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