Team-BHP - The TV Thread

I was killing time at Croma yesterday while waiting for a friend. I asked them generally if Panasonic ST50 and GT50 are back in stock, and if not, when are they expected.

He showed me their warehouse inventory listing. St50 is marked as discontinued and unavailable. GT50 was still in production but stocks unavailable.

He said all brands are expected to launch new models in plasma soon, maybe next month.

Can someone confirm if St50 is indeed discontinued then what is its equivalent replacement?

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Originally Posted by nishantgandhi (Post 3056306)

Can someone confirm if St50 is indeed discontinued then what is its equivalent replacement?

Your location shows Mumbai as location. Looks like you missed last few pages. The ST50 and GT50 (50 inch) are available in Mumbai at Panasonic Brandshop in Ghatkopar East. But he is selling it at premium pricing.

The equivalent of ST50 this year, is ST60. It is officially launched in the US but not in India.

Was just reading about Panasonic Plasma and came across a nice article. http://www.techradar.com/news/televi...nology-1131021

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Originally Posted by shipnil (Post 3056399)

Yes I did miss the last few pages because my purchase decision which was to happen in December got postponed to March.

Overcharging by panasonic brand shop, although unethical, is a sign of delayed or phased out stock. As it is dealers are known to pass off display pieces to innocent customers. Now we have to deal with inflated prices too?

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Originally Posted by nishantgandhi (Post 3056463)

... Overcharging by panasonic brand shop, although unethical, ...

Panasonic Brand Shops (or for that matter Brand Shops of any brand) are not owned by Panasonic. They only sell Panasonic and no other brand. They are usually owned and run by the same guy who perhaps is running a Samsung or Sony brand shop, or even a multi-brand outlet, nearby. There are no Panasonic employees employed at these locations.

The price that you get there is sometimes moderated by Panasonic, but ONLY WHEN one does real hard bargaining, with an intent to buy. Then, the shop guy calls up Panasonic Sales (each major city has an office) and tries to get a better price. Soft bargaining here is just the same as doing bargaining in a multi-brand outlet, including Reliance or Croma.

^Here it is a typical case of "demand and supply". Demand is far greater than supply.
All stock in the state is going to a single dealer since the dealer is booking the pieces in advance. The other dealers are not ready to even take a booking since they do not know when stock will arrive.

So, with stock in hand, and knowing the fact that no other options exist for the buyers, the dealer is going to make money. :(

I sent a message to the MD of Panasonic India a few days ago informing him about this, hoping that he would perhaps put this across to the right people in his team. So far I have not heard anything back.

Took a plunge and got ourselves a Samsung LED 46ES6220, a grey Thailand import last Friday. (In fact bitten by the Plasma bug, few days back I did order a Panasonic 42ST50 in infibeam, but cancelled the order within 24 hours thinking not able to with stand the waiting period and a possible hassle in delivery.. Mind is so volatile!)

So far, great going with the Sammy, powered by the d2h HD Platinum annual pack- hoping the days remain good all along :). In search of a good VFM low slung tv stand now, since I may think of moving it around at times; u see, volatile! ;)

If i use Tata Sky HD Set-Top box, should my TV (LCD/LED) be Full HD or can HD Ready also be ok to get real good clarity. I am out to buy a 32 Inch LCD or LED TV. Was thinking of a Sony. If someone can clear my doubt, it would be really great. I would accordingly scout for the related models.

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Originally Posted by Desmosedici (Post 3057579)

You should ideally be looking at a full hd led model to take full advantage of the HD stb. For a HD ready TV, your regular stb should be good enough. The price difference between lcd and led has reduced considerably. Unless you are on a tight budget, go for LED.

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Originally Posted by longhorn (Post 3057619)

Thanks Mate. I was keep both LCD and LED in the choice list but will now go for LED and Full HD to take advantage for the HD Set-top box.

Thanks so much.:thumbs up

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Originally Posted by Desmosedici (Post 3057579)

Just wondering. Why not a plasma?

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Originally Posted by nishantgandhi (Post 3057858)

Just wondering. Why not a plasma?

My know how is less hence please pardon my limited knowledge. I thought LED is the latest technology and plasma is very old or outdated hence never thought of it.

I have budgeted around 30k plus minus a few for the 32 inch TV. But since you ask why not a plasma, I would now try to search for the difference between all these. Tks Nish.

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Originally Posted by Desmosedici (Post 3058162)

I dont think there are any good plasmas that are on the lower side of 50K. Since your budget is around 30K i would suggest you go with a LED.

^While the concept is very good (and perhaps the sound too), the price is 'just' too high.
A nice 55 inch LED should cost around Rs. 2 lac.
e.g. 55LM8600 is available at Rs. 2.1 lac in Delhi.

So the remaining 3 lac go towards the audio and the absence of wiring and clutter.