25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Value, May 17, 2010
This review is from: LG 50PJ350 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV (Electronics)
12/11 UPDATE: I've had this set now for about 16 months and I'm still very happy with it. I managed to buy a replacement remote control that works perfectly so switching inputs is less of a chore.
I eventually sprang for a Sony receiver so I could hook up the sound to it, but it's passthru HD signal doesn't offer a resolution my Mini Computer can use. Not the TV's fault, but frustrating all the same. I managed to work around it with a different sound input so I now have a good sound system hooked up and am happy with it.
The ElGato EyeTV is working really well to record over the air High Def local channels. It's the only way to go if you have a Mac running your video. Unlike TiVO you can jump ahead any number of seconds you want without having to fastforward and guess. HiDef is spoiling me to the point where I can't watch SD anymore. Gonna have to get a dish eventually for the cable channels I guess. . .
Bottom line is that I wouldn't hesitate to buy this again. My sister's 1080 picture is about 15% crisper than the LG at about a 30$ higher price I'm more than content with 720. Football and basketball games look fantastic on this set.
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- Well, it's October 2010 and I've had it for a few months so am offering some updates.
#1 Overall, I like it a lot. I use it for my standard def ancient Replay DVR, Wii, PS3 and computer.
- Still like it a lot. The Replay DVR is history, replaced by a newer EyeTV that records HiDef over air channels. The standard def picture is growing more and more quaint. Where I have the option I'll watch the better HiDef picture. I use it via my computer almost exclusively with a browser window open and a TV window playing.
- Video game picture quality is ridiculously awesome. No pixel blur that I can detect. When I had my Sony DLP set I would get headaches playing certain 1st person shooters, that hasn't happened with this tv.
#2 The remote is a lot better than I'd hoped for. It could be heftier with a better balance, but LG has taken pains not to put more on it than you need.
- I take it back. The arrow buttons (">", "<") are awful and fussy. Press and maybe something will happen. Have a Harmony that I'm going to use instead.
#3 I like the menu system a lot. No deep sub-menus to dig thru and a very useful Input button on the remote makes switching sources painless.
#4 The screen is very very very shiny. I have floor to wall south facing windows at a 90 degree angle to the set and during the day the reflection of my back wall on the screen is distracting. I'm gradually getting used to it, but I wish it weren't as prominent. Of course, at night, no problem.
- The screen is still very very very shiny, but I've gotten used to it. Doesn't bug me as much anymore.
#5 The picture wizard for adjusting the picture is very cool. You get two custom settings that can be saved and assigned to individual imputs. Nice.
- I adjusted the picture once and have left it, so I don't have much reason to go fiddling with it. I don't like neon reds and greens so I've cut back on that.
#6 The only sound output is an optical plug. No headphone, RCA or anything analog. Bummer, cause I have no way of getting the sound out to my current stereo where I'd rather have it. The speakers on it aren't bad, but not much bass to speak of. Big thumbs down here, I thought I'd read that it had analog output.
- Still an issue. The least expensive receiver I've found with a digital imput was a Sony for about $200.
#7 Anyone thinking of hooking up a Mac Mini, by all means do it! The Mac Mini will output HDMI via monitor converter plug plus audio from the headphone jack and you've got one heck of a HiDef Mac monitor. Umpteen screen resolutions to pick from (1920 x 1080 down to 800 x 600) and Netflix streaming looks fantastic! Just be sure to manage your screensaver and desktop so you don't burn in the menu bar and icons.
- I have the Mac Mini headphone going to an older receiver which is good enough for sound. Having a 50" computer monitor is still very cool. Have seen no sign of burn-in of any kind. The TV has a setting that will shift the picture slightly from time to time.
#8 I get quite a few local HDTV channels via antenna and the picture is pretty amazing. However coming from a Sony DLP set the standard picture settings have far too cartoon-like over-saturated colors for my taste, but the contrast and sharpness is much better than my old DLP. There are "Expert Settings" in the menu that seem quite comprehensive so I imagine eventually I'll get it adjusted more to my liking.
- I've adjusted out the over-saturated colors and am very happy with the picture quality. So much so that I've upgraded my old ElGato EyeTv to be able to record over the air HD programing from the local stations. It works great.
So to recap, thumbs down on the shiny glass and lack of sound outputs, but price, features, menu and picture are great.
- No regrets with price, quality or picture. I'd buy it again even with the cranky remote and lack of digital output.
- One really good feature I've found that surprises me is that when viewing thru the computer's output, if I don't have a tv window playing, after about 20 minutes the TV will shut itself off.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
My first plasma, amazing!, April 11, 2010
This review is from: LG 50PJ350 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV (Electronics)
It was finally time to upgrade from my old 32" 720p lcd and I, for the first time, began considering plasma. I found an amazing deal on this set for $610 after tax and jumped at the opportunity. So far I am very pleased.
VIDEO:
Picture quality absolutely destroys my old lcd. The colors are vibrant while watching HD content and the black levels are so much more redeemable. SD content looks noticeably more pixelated at close distances than the smaller set but that is to be expected.
AUDIO:
I haven't given the speakers much of a test as I use a 5.1 audio system but they sounded adequate for the first few minutes I heard them.
APPEARANCE:
Set will produce noticeable glare if in a well-lit room but that is to be expected. The bezels are sleek and very thin which I love, the stand is easy to assemble, swivels and works as expected. The set is super thin!
OVERALL:
While I am still in the break-in period, I am thus far impressed by this set. It was a huge, affordable upgrade for me and I can't wait to give it a run with some games and blu rays.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great value and great picture, May 12, 2010
This review is from: LG 50PJ350 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV (Electronics)
Ordered this on Monday, and it had an estimated delivery of next Monday, but it arrived in 2 days which was a very pleasant surprise. I must commend the shipping company, Pilot, on their courteousness and efficiency. 2 guys brought this tv in, unboxed it for me, and attached the stand upon my request. They asked a couple times if I needed help hooking up all my devices, but I knew what I was doing so I politely declined. Good job Pilot!
I have yet to do any in depth calibration, but as soon as I got that sucker plugged in I had my xbox connected through HDMI and set the TV on game mode. Picture was amazing right off the bat and there was zero lag on CoD MW2 which is a huge plus for me. Everything looked very crisp and smooth and with 50" I could actually see many details on the other side of the map without a problem.
Once I finished that I switched to Movie mode and put in a Blu Ray of District 9. Wow. I upgraded from a 32" 60hz LCD, and once I saw the video on this new TV my jaw dropped. I was halfway tempted to get a 1080p version of a 50" plasma, but at an extra $300-$400 it was not worth it. I set up my parents 1080p TV right next to mine and from about 8 feet away you cannot tell which is 1080 or 720. Very happy I made the decision of 720p, but any larger than 50" 1080p would be worth it.
This TV is also incredibly thin, at a inch or so around the edges then gets slightly thicker to 1.5 or 2 in the middle. It definitely looks like a $1000+ television, but at $702 this was a steal.
Very happy customer!
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