With stunning picture quality, outstanding service, and effortless connectivity, Panasonic makes HDTV ownership a truly enjoyable and entertaining experience.Network Your AV Devices, Quickly and EasilyWith VIERA LinkTM, you can control your compatible Panasonic DVD recorder, Blu-ray Disc® player, home theater sound system and HD camcorder all with a single remote. HDMI cables make set-up quick and easy; VIERA Link even automatically sets your DVD recorder via an Auto Preset Download function.Share HD Videos on the Big ScreenThe built-in SD memory card slot allows you to instantly display your digital photos, either in random order or as a slide show. You can also watch videos that were recorded on your Panasonic HD camcorder.........................................TH-C50FD18 50" Class (49.9 " Diagonal) Widescreen VIERA Plasma 1080p HDTV with New Anti-Reflective Filter, Deep Color Technology, PC Input, Game Mode, Built-In SD Card Slot, 3 HDMI Inputs and VIERA Link® HDAVI ControlChoosing an HDTV can be tricky. You can't just go into Circuit City or Best Buy for 20 minutes and come out with a plug n play HDTV. Several things need to be noted: First, resolutions: 1920 x 1080 pixels (1080i and 1080p) or 1280 x 720 pixels otherwise known as 720p. You probably won't be able to tell a whole lot of difference between a 1080 or 720 . Both have excellent picture quality. These numbers refer to how many rows of picture elements or pixels there are.
Just like a puzzle, each pixel is like a very small piece of your picture. Regular ol TVs only display 330 rows of pixels so when you move up to HDTV, you're going to notice a big improvement in the clarity of your picture. The 'p' in 1080p or 720p is short for 'progressive'. 'Progressive' means the whole picture on the screen is refreshed all at the same time in 1/30th of a second. The 'i' as in 1080i or 720i is short for 'interlaced'. Regular TVs are interlaced too. 'Interlaced' Screens are refreshed too but it's done in two stages - first the odd rows of pixels are refreshed and then the even rows are refreshed.
Naturally, a one-pass screen refresh would create a much cleaner, clearer, sharper picture than an interlaced screen. This helps when you're watching sports events or fast-action events. Otherwise, you probably won't notice much difference in the pictures.
HD signals from your service provider are broadcast in 1080i. Some broadcast in 720p. As of April, 2007, there are no 1080p broadcast signals commercially available. Your HDTV will convert the signals received from your service provider to match the resolution of your HDTV.
Most HDTV screens measure 16 inches horizontally to every 9 inches vertically. Standard TV screens measure 4 inches horizontally for every 3 inches measured vertically. This affects your picture. HD broadcasts usually are 16 to 9 but most TV broadcasts are still 4 to 3. That's why many TV shows seen on a HDTV screen will have bar lines on either side of the screen.
To receive HD broadcasts, you may need an HDTV Tuner. Most sets include tuners, but if you have an HDTV 'Monitor', there won't be a tuner built-in. The good news for 'monitor' buyers is that if you have cable or satellite service, they will provide or rent you the tuner. This saves money. To receive over-the-air signals, you'll need a set with a tuner. You'll also need to buy an antenna.
HD sets come in various flavors: projection set, plasma, LCD and CRT. They're all pretty good but each has disadvantages. For example, Projection TVs are bulkier and heavier than plasma and LCDs and you can't mount projection sets on the wall like you can with plasma or LCD screens. However, projection sets are usually less expensive than the others. DLP or Digital Light Processing are the most common projection sets. There are also LCOS (liquid crystal on silicon), LCD (liquid crystal display) and CRT (cathode ray tubes). With DLP, you may notice a rainbow effect.
Most people in the know get Plasma or LCD sets because they're lighter and can be mounted on a wall. It used to be that LCD screens were hard to see at some angles. Those problems have been largely eliminated or improved. LCDs in particular use less power which is a plus for energy-conscious consumers. LCDs also used to have problems with blurry pictures. If you decide to get an LCD set, get one that has a fast refresh rate or response time - something like 8ms (milliseconds) or faster if you can. That way, you'll eliminate blurry pictures. LCDs are popular and smaller LCDs sell for less than $1,000. Larger LCDs are generally more expensive than plasma sets. Plasma sets have beautiful picture quality but the smallest set is 37 inches. If you need something smaller, go for an LCD.
Reflections are the main problem with plasma sets. If you get one, put it in a low-light room. The other problem with plasmas is 'burn-in' . The picture or a reflection of the picture tends to stay on the screen so for example if you pause or freeze and image, you'll find that it kind of burns into your screen and you'll see it there for some time afterward.
CRT sets can offer the best picture quality of all but they are huge and heavy, bulky and unwieldy. Who wants to carry a two-hundred pound behemoth up two flights of stairs or even 100 feet from a driveway. If you go with a CRT, make sure you have the space and get someone to help you move it around. CRT technology is fast disappearing. CRTs use a lot of energy.
Prices for HDTVs are falling month to month it seems. As they become more popular, you'll be able to get them for cheaper prices. It might be two or three years before the prices stabilize at lower levels though. By then, manufacturers will begin putting all kinds of value-added bells and whistles on the newer sets in an attempt to keep prices high.
To learn more about HDTVs and to read reviews of various HDTVs including articles, books, current news and various hdtv services, visit and bookmark HDTV Reviews
Panasonic Plasma TV 103 inch
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