Customer Reviews

LG 50PJ350 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

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.

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.

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!

Just wanted to post a short review, to say a few things that havent been said up to this point with this TV.

1. The value is GREAT. Cant beat the price for the size and working thru Amazon is great as far as customer service, delivery, etc. Second to none right now at 50 inches.

2. That being said, the picture quality really isnt there. If you dig deep online you will see reviews placing this TV in an "average" catagory. I think that is a bit of an overstatement. I have owned several HDTVs and this one is likely the least satisfying from a picture standpoint. Its not the color, which can be adjusted. Its really a "crispness" issue, not really sharpness or brightness, just something lost at the color transitions and edges. It is likely a software issue more than anything - IMHO. I wont be sending it back tho - it still looks good enough for me and the family - but I wont be using it for a formal Theatre setup

Bought this tv from local competitor paid 625. Debated going for the 1080p version but couldnt justify the extra 300. The picture on this tv is awesome even on SD channels. I use this tv to play xbox 360 and I leave the orbiter on with contrast and brightness down and the picture is still amazing. Couldnt ask for a better tv.

I was evaluating plasma tvs for about a month on amazon befor i finally settled on this one. Price was one of my biggest concern as i got an entire home theater system consisting of the sherwood rd7503 reciver and a polk audio 5.1 speaker system with this. The other concern was shipping. I live in Sri Lanka and amazon doesnt ship here. So i had to get amazon to ship to a local addy in the US and then get it shipped to Sri Lanka through an international shipper. By the time the tv would reach SL the return policy would have expired so i wouldnt have had any solution if the tv was broken or had dead pixels. But im glad to say that except for a loose side of the frame nothing seems to be visibally wrong with the tv so far. 10 Points for amazon and srilak shipping for handling this!

On the upside, the picture quality is just nothing less than excellent. Most of the time i watch blue ray movies on a 50 inch panasonic 1080p at a friends place. Though im yet to watch a blue ray on the tv im quite satified with the quality. I dont notice the resolution difference at all. So if you are thinking twice about the resolution difference, please dont (though you have to give the tv the recomended distance from the screen). The remote is very easy to handle. No hang ups. The base is also very sturdy.

On the down side, im yet to get input though the componant cables working. HDMI port and RCG port seems to be working fine. But the input given through the componants cables come out in black and white and the image is distorted. The audio is fine. I will keep you guys updated once i figure this out. I inqiured about this from the online help desk. Though the LG tech help was very polite he couldnt sort it out and asked me to get a tech to have a look at the unit but gurenteed that there was nothing wrong with the tv. The biggest complaint i have is about the authorized reseller of LG here in Sri Lanka. I send the tv to them to take a look and they told me it was broken. I was told to give them the tv and they will give me a 10% rebale on a new one!!!! A new 50 inch LG costs close to $6000 here!! I think its time LG takes another look at service levels of their resellers. Im getting the tv network guys to come over the weekend and have a look at it now as i'm sure its a settings and issue and nothing else.

Anyway, the review seems to be mostly about my experience rather than about the tv :) sorry about that. I totally recommend this tv to anybody who is interested in a value for money buy.

Come on folks...what do you expect for the near $700 price point in a plasma! I bought this set for one reason, and one reason only...it's size. I have an old cabinet that was custom made for a 50" Rear Projection set many years ago. Well, it finally died and I did not want to scrap that piece of furniture. In looking for a set to fit in the opening here, anything that was 46" would fit, but there would be a ton of space around it. Most 50" sets made today were about half an inch too wide to make it. This one, fit with about a quarter inch to spare, so I bought it. Heck, for the price, I figured I could not go wrong...and I was right. Yes, it is not the most crisp picture, but it is very good. If you want the best picture, spend a few grand and go LED. This thing has been fine in the three months I have had it...and the picture shatters my old standard def 50" rear projection that was in there before....oh yeah, and I paid over $2000 for that monster in early 1990's. If I can get 18 year longevity out of this one, too, that would be great! GREAT BARGAIN....enjoy it!

Let me start by saying I got this TV for at a great discount before Christmas. I already owned a 40" toshiba 120hz lcd tv which I like a lot. This 50" plasma though is something else. The picture on this was absolutely amazing! I was a little scared at first because it was only 720p, but if you really know your tv's 720p and 1080p arent too big a difference right now. This is many because hd broadcasted television from cable and satelite providers do not broadcast in 1080p just yet. They only broadcast in 720p and 1080i, which this TV handles beautifully. I also attached a blu-ray player to this and to be honest I couldn't tell the difference between my 1080p and my 720 plasma at 8 feet away from the TV. You will only be able to see the difference if you are 1-2 feet from the TV and that is mainly because the 720p plasma is a 50"er. Keep in mind that Blu-ray still looks amazing on this TV.

Summary

Best bang for you buck. Why spend $1000 on a 50" that will be outdated in a year anyways?

After attempting to buy a Samsung 42 inch plasma TV in 2006 for $1500, I have to say this TV is the best BANG FOT THE BUCK!!!!

50 inches, 720P, 3 Million to 1 Dynamic contrast ratio, Smart Energy saving sensor, for $650.00!!!! Free shipping, No tax and no interest 24 months financing with the Amazon Store Card. A steal!!!!!

Why 720p and not 1080p? I have no HD service, HD has not much to offer for my taste (movies and documentaries), I have no Blue Ray player, I rather have a recorder up-converter, that way, I can record from my DVR and camcorder to DVDs, I have a Samsung DVD recorder Up-converter that works wonders with my regular movies when used with an HDMI cable.

Menu options are simple enough to achieve the best picture quality considering having non-HD channels. At 60 pounds I was able to hang it on the wall (wood studs) with a $30 Sheetah wall-mount in less than 2 hours. The smart energy sensor, when in use, adjust the screen brightness to the environment, the screen gets brighter if the room is bright and it gets darker if the room is dark, this helps to save energy consumption, the sensor has three levels (high, medium, low) and can be turned off to have a permanent bright picture.

The slim TV frame and the barely noticeable touch buttons (power, volume +/-, channel +/-, input) really makes it look like a picture hanging on the wall, no distractions here, just a thin frame and huge screen.

Sound is never good enough on flat screen TVs, mine is loud enough for my bedroom, I have never increase the volume more than 10, but in case I want more, I have it connected to my Altec Lansing M602 iPod dock. The only problem is that the only audio output the TV has is an optical output and not regular RCAs, it may be an issue to some users. The set has three HDMI inputs enough for the average user (cable box, DVD player and a game console).

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I bought this tv for my parents for Christmas. They were really excited to receive the tv and have been enjoying it ever since. The picture qaulity is great and the tv set up was quick and simple. They are considering a surround sound system because with the hidden speakers you really have to pump the volume up at times. Overall the tv has a great picture and looks really nice for the price. Highly reccommend for those that are not looking for all the fills of picture in a picture etc. but just looking for a good qaulity tv for a great price.