IamLegend

I was set on buying the Kuro and then got excited about the Panasonic as it is more than a thousand dollars cheaper and seems "almost as good" as Kuro.
But I keep reading about "flicker" in 24 fps modea and since I want to watch blu ray more then anything on the tv I now tend to be leaning back to the Kuro even though I hate to spend so much money..
Anyone actually have the Panasonic and can attest to "flicker".

Brian Shannon

I have a Panasonic 720p set and do not have any "flicker". Then again I am not watching blu ray on it.

beebs

The flicker appears to differ among people, not among sets. The low refresh rate and it's blank screen time appears to be the issue -- though I don't know for sure what the 24P refresh rate or the screen blank time. You could purchase the set locally and see if it's a problem. By far most people don't see, some see it a little and can live with it. A group of folks can't stand it.

Seems like a problem akin to DLP rainbows. Unlike Rainbows, though, you can opt for 3:2 pulldown and 60P and the flicker goes away (but the benefit of having 24P capability is lost).

-beebs

Spiky

I haven't read about this, is this just the flicker inherent in watching such a slow refresh rate? Film flickers.

IamLegend

what bothers me is if you pay for this feature (24p) should not be an issue in this premium price point...

DVD Polizei

Ehhh, not really. 24p is inherently problematic for some, so even the most expensive display panel, when properly displaying 24p, will still irritate some users. Personally, I don't worry about it. Crank the fucker up to 60p or whatever the highest number "p" is these days.

cajun_junky

I just bought the 58PZ800U about a week ago and love it. I do not have a bluray player yet so I can not test the flicker but from the numerous reviews I have read it is user dependent. Some notice the flicker some do not.


The THX setting on the panny is very good and was a huge selling point for me. At avsforum there are several posts decscribing how to optimize some of the settings. Regardless, out of the box the picture is stunning. For what its worth, do not judge any TV from what you see in the store. I hated the 58PZ800U in the store but bought it based on the vast number of reviews. When I got home it was like looking at a different tv.

IamLegend

Hi Cajun,
Can you report back after watching some 24p Blu Ray movies on 48Hz mode for any flicker?
Thanks

JimRochester

I have the Panasonic and have never noticed any flicker. I have it wall mounted and use digital cable, a Bluray and HD DVD players. Everything but standard cable looks great. I too was originally going to get the Pioneer. When I got laid off at the beginning of the year that killed my budget. The general consensus is the Pioneer is better but at what price? If you have extra money and will not be satisfied unless you have the absolute best then go for it. If you want a great TV for the money get the Panny. Remember, people coming over to your house will not have seen both sets side by side.

Duh Vuh Duh

Cajun, where did you buy it? and How much did you pay? If you don't mind me asking, just curious as I am seriously considering this tv right now except in the 50" version.

cajun_junky

I don't think discussing prices is allowed here but I bought mine at HHGregg. Yesterday my parents bought the same exact TV at Bestbuy and they agreed to BEAT amazons price so that should give you a good indication. A sign of the economic times when Bestbuy will pricematch an online competitor....

Actually they got a better price than I did so I got their receipt and plan to use HHGregg's 110% price guarantee this evening.

Duh Vuh Duh

Cajun, thanks for the info and after about a week or so, how would you review it?

cajun_junky

I bought mine on Nov 2 so I have had it about 3 weeks now and I love everything about it. I spent countless hrs reviewing various brands, plasma vs LCD, etc. The THX setting was a real selling point for me. I did increase the brightness a tad on the THX setting but that was it. To my untrained eye, the fleshtones look realistic and the colors look accurate. The blacks look black. For normal television shows I use the custom setting which I tweaked based on recommended settings at avsforum.com. I finally dialed in the settings that both my wife and I agree on (we kind of met in the middle). Keep in mind that out of the box the picture was awesome!!!!

I don't have a bluray player yet (hopefully for Christmas) so I can't comment on that....but based on the excellent picture quality of standard def dvds it will be fantastic.

If I had to pick 1 thing I don't like about the panny it would be the bezel around the screen. It seems to be a little wider than I would like but that may be out of necessity. I only notice it when the panny is turned OFF so its not really an issue.

If you are on the fence trying to decide about the panny...buy it. In my opinion this is a excellent plasma and I have zero regrets. My parents were so impressed they bought the same panny.

Sorry if I was not specific enough. If you have any specific questions let me know.

Duh Vuh Duh

That was great, and I was really wondering about the THX setting since I was debating between the 800U and the 85U or 80U, so it seems like it gives quite a difference? Am still on the fence if the TXH and swivel base was worth the extra money.

cajun_junky

The last time I checked the 58PZ850U was more than the 58PZ800U. However for the 50in it looks like the 800U is more than the 850U....weird. The 800U has the THX but no swivel base. I don't know what the difference (aside from price) is between the 850U and 85U or 800U and 80U. I am very surprised that the 50in 800U and 850U are not that much cheaper than the 58in versions.

As far as if the THX is worth the price difference only you can answer that question. Do my untrained eye notice a difference? Yes. Would I pay an extra $1,000 for it? Probably not but I would pay a little more for it.

As far as the swivel base....I would not pay extra for it. My panny is sitting on a table and I have no need to swivel it. You going to mount it or sit on a table? How often do you swivel your current tv?

Duh Vuh Duh

Thanks, I meant the TH-50PZ85U not the 850, anyway, difference is about $450 and w/ the 800 you get THX cert, 24p, one sheet of glass design, and swivel base. Good point about swivel base.

JimRochester

I just used a Home Theater set-up disc for all the settings. Mine looks pretty tame but I only view in the dark. For people who like more brighly lit rooms or have less control over ambient light, the settings can get jacked way up (moving to adult forum )

Superman07

And here I was ready to make a joke only to have you add one in at the last moment!

Geofferson

Looking at pulling the trigger on a 50" Viera this week...

Still not clear on what the key differences are between the 50PZ800U & 50PZ85U models (swivel-base not a factor since I plan on mounting it)...anyone know?

Trying to decide if either are worth the extra $$ from the 50PZ80U model.

Duh Vuh Duh

Amazon.com, has a nice grid when you look at the product description for each tv, I would paste it here, but I think the formatting would be off, basically I think the main differences are the 800U has THX, 24p, 4 speakers (instead of 2), an extra hdmi input, swivel base and one sheet of glass design. I waited to and will pull the trigger soon, let me know if you find a good deal on one.

dick_grayson

do you need the speakers? if not, you should go with one of the industrial models from visualapex.com you'll need to get a hdmi card though, but the price should be right.

Geofferson

Thanks for the fyi on the grid -- clears everything up.

Geofferson

I'll check it out -- thanks for the link.

Geofferson

After researching a little more, I think I am leaning towards the 800U model. THX & 24p are the key factors for me.

dick_grayson

the visualapex prices don't seem all that great at the moment. I'd go with a speaker model. the old ones had gray bezeling and the only way to get black bezel was the industrial model.