[jassi]

^^ dude i have the exact same scenario - i use an hdmi netbook (hp mini 311) and watch HD movies and serials (house md, etc). It works great on my panny 42pv80d (720p). I watch from 5+ feet and its excellent PQ.

edit - i also do a lot of office work, like webex conferences, etc on the 720p and its all good!

[NetfreakBombay]

Great...

Is there a Panasonic plasma (50 inch) in 70k range?

[jassi]

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

Great...

Is there a Panasonic plasma (50 inch) in 70k range?

i think so - check these models
VIERA Plasma TV | Digital AV | Panasonic India

[gendarmee]

Originally Posted by smnrock

Any solutions for this issue? i too have same horizontal bands with hathway and its really irritating. This problem is not there if i connect hathway composite to sony crt.

Had this problem on the LCD for a week, static noise and lot of horizontal banding while using the AV input. Didn't happen whilst using the RF input. Also, didn't happen when the set top box was configured to work over RF on a TV channel.

A week later the cable guy installed some sort of insulator on the input cable of the set-top box. 'said that it were an earthing issue and it happens only with LCDs. Since, the picture has been fine and the noise disappeared.

[smnrock]

Originally Posted by gendarmee

Had this problem on the LCD for a week, static noise and lot of horizontal banding while using the AV input. Didn't happen whilst using the RF input. Also, didn't happen when the set top box was configured to work over RF on a TV channel.

A week later the cable guy installed some sort of insulator on the input cable of the set-top box. 'said that it were an earthing issue and it happens only with LCDs. Since, the picture has been fine and the noise disappeared.

Exactly same issue, its not happening when connected through RF and my cable guy knows this is earthing issue, but he doesn't know how to solve it. Can you please give me some info on the insulator? It will be great if you can upload picture on that?

[smnrock]

I got a solution for this from other forum. STB doesn't have 3-pin plug(no earthing) and TV has 3-pin plug. So unbalanced(?) earthing causing this and i tested it successfully by just plugging 2 pin from my TV. Now my question is, Is it safe to run PV80D without earthing pin?

[Sn1p3r]

Originally Posted by vasudeva

For my Pioneer 42 Plasma, no need for any service in 20 mths of use. Only first installation and set up visit was required.

Bro, I have always had excellent luck with Sony sets (highend CRTs) but the best of sets needs repair/components time to time. With the new Gen TVs there are far too many electronics to make situation worst.

Also yours is a Pioneer that is amongst the best Plasmas ever produced. I think Pioneer Kuros series is the best plasma, however they have stopped production of the same.

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

I am looking for a plasma (50 inch). Don't think 1080p (Full HD) is in my price range (Under 80k).

usage is almost 100% movies + photographs. my PC has HDMI/Component/Composite out, it will go to TV. I think for 720p, Component should be good enough.

Bro, IMHO you should look at the set as one time investment and PC/other inputs as regular change component. I think if you are investing why not invest in the TV that you can enjoy BD content. I think you should opt for a smaller screen but with 1080p note: less than 42 is not 1080p. Also the viewing distance will make a difference. Farther away the better also the PQ depends on the ambient light condition. Few stores have a bunk where in you can create a resemblance to your daily viewing conditions. This will be best place to choose, dont go with CNET review, the products in US are not the once in India. I used to like their reviews till such time I got to the store and saw the difference. Also a noted point is that we do not change or configure TVs too often and thus the flexibility that the reviews rave about is of no point for a regular consumer.

[vasudeva]

Originally Posted by Sn1p3r

Also yours is a Pioneer that is amongst the best Plasmas ever produced. I think Pioneer Kuros series is the best plasma, however they have stopped production of the same.

Good to know this (reign of chaos advised me on this purchase). The issue was not about Pioneer plasmas but about the outrageous amount demanded by LG for extended warranties.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by Sn1p3r

Bro, IMHO you should look at the set as one time investment and PC/other inputs as regular change component. I think if you are investing why not invest in the TV that you can enjoy BD content. I think you should opt for a smaller screen but with 1080p

Do you know of some smaller plasma that is under 70k and has 1080p?

I will try comparing a 720p and 1080p TVs side by side next week. Have a 4 GB pen drive full of 480, 720 and 1080 HD trailers.

Right now, fixated on LG 50PQ70 because its 50 inch and comes for 58k. Showroom has a 47 inch Full HD LCD (Samsung) next to it. Will see if my eyes can see any difference from 6 - 7 feet.

[jassi]

both bluray discs from PS3 and 1080/720p files from PC play perfectly fine on my 720p plasma - i personally have not been able to tell the difference on a 1080p samsung!

[ampere]

Folks,

I have a basic fundamental question.

• How long do you think will 1080P become order of the day? I don't think it has become one yet, although we talk about it, but this to become a standard in India, is still a long way. For this to happen 1080P content pricing has to come down to a regular DVD levels, if not a tad bit higher.

• In my opinion there is a base price for a technology, which one has to pay to procure it for use. The basic 32 inch 1080P models with 2 or more HDMI inputs still hover in the range of 40K and higher. It may be a Bravia, Viera, Jazz or for that matter any other model. This is a price, which I think is still on the higher side. How much further can this come down and how soon?

• But on the other hand the 720P models have hit sub 30K (32 inch), with decent feature support. Are these models worth or one needs to have 1080P, as in the accelerated future, it would be 1080P as the base technology?

• I have also noticed there are many advances which happen on the audio front, which increases the price of the TV set. The point is if, one wants to view, a good movie, I presume, most folks invest in a good home theater. For such cases, it does not make sense to put money on a set which is costly because of its superior audio performance. So what can be a decent TV set which would provide a good display alone, audio not being a concern. That would also reduce the cost of the set. I am OK to compromise on audio, for the regular cable viewing, when most people turn off the home theater and use the regular TV audio system.

Does my point of view make sense? Comments welcome.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by jassi

both bluray discs from PS3 and 1080/720p files from PC play perfectly fine on my 720p plasma - i personally have not been able to tell the difference on a 1080p samsung!

How do you play files on TV? Do you connect it to PC via hdmi/tv out? Or do oyu play it via USB?

Originally Posted by ampere

• How long do you think will 1080P become order of the day? I don't think it has become one yet, although we talk about it, but this to become a standard in India, is still a long way. For this to happen 1080P content pricing has to come down to a regular DVD levels, if not a tad bit higher.

That will take a long time.

1080p basically mean Megapixels. Just like digital cameras, it is more of a marketing ploy at the moment.

1. Films :

Films are shot on High quality stock that is WAY higher than 1080p. BUT to transfer it to digital in HD is expensive and takes time.

So, unless you primarily watch Hollywood videos, don't expect proper 1080p releases in next few years.

2. TV:
Even in advanced markets, 1080i is just beginning to get mainstream. 1080p broadcast does not exist as of now.

So, it will not be in India in next few years.

OTOH:

If you are looking at LCD, other factors like refresh rate are more important then resolution.

In a showroom ask TV to be switched to NTDV Profit or CNBC.

Look at stock ticker at bottom. If you read stock names/prices, older LCDs will induce headache in no time (with jerky text). Newer LCDs will have much smooth movement, quite close to old CRTs.

[jassi]

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

How do you play files on TV? Do you connect it to PC via hdmi/tv out? Or do oyu play it via USB?

panny plasmas don't have a usb feature, i have an hp mini 311 netbook, which has an nvidia ion gpu and hdmi out. It can play 1080p files as well as the online 1080p videos (youtube, hulu, fox, etc. with the new flash 10.1).

My take on usb on tv - its a frill to get people to buy stuff - never seen it on japanese displays like sony, pioneer, panasonic. Makes sense if you play divx avi files mostly, but it will certainly not play the 1080p avi/mkv/mpg/m2ts files. So its pretty pointless feature for me - and certainly not a deciding criteria for buying a display! This is purely my opinion though and I have more than often taken flak for it

[mukeshgoel]

One should see Blu-Ray on 1080P LCDs to know what is it all about.

Have few Blu-Ray Rips on my hard disk which I play through Xtreamer and the result is out of this world. Have watched all those many times and if a friend comes over and like to see the quality, we normally do not move before watching it at least an hour.

[jassi]

^^ have you tried it on 720p looks the same - better actually if its a plasma :-)
anyways as long as we all have fun with our HD content its all good :-D