Samsung PN50A650 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV with RED Touch of Color

Product Description
Touch of Color high-gloss "rose black" finish * built-in digital (ATSC) and analog (NTSC) tuners for over-the-air TV broadcasts (antenna required) * built-in QAM cable TV tuner receives unscrambled programs without a set-top box (cable service required) * 1920 x 1080 pixels * 30,000:1 contrast ratio (1,000,000:1 dynamic) *

Best Bang For Your Buck For A Plasma 1080P HDTV (A Canadian Perspective)
I just bought the Samsung PN50A650 and I am loving it, it is simply stunning. I will admit it was a challenge going from CRT - the million dollar questions is whether to go Plasma or LCD. I personally felt the Plasma was the way to go - better blacks and fast motion is clean (no blur) and the latest Plasmas have come a long way to over come some past issues experienced on earlier generation models. You really have to go to some stores and see for yourself and when you do, ensure you watch some fast motion video - this will tell the story even compared to the latest LCD 120 Hz sets. The stores are always showing slow motion, bright video which does not tell the whole story. Also keep in mind, LCD's are cheaper to manufacture so that is the higher margin product retailers want to push.

I did a ton of research and do want to thank all the other reviewers here at Amazon.com for their feedback, this reinforced my decision to get the Samsung. I will admit I think the Pioneer Kuro is the best Plasma going but the pricing is too high to justify the small difference (almost double the price of the Samsung here in Canada). I was initially set on buying a Panasonic Plasma (Panasonic Viera TH-50PZ800U (top choice) or TH-50PZ85U or TH-50PZ80U) as I also loved these sets. But at the end of the day, the Samsung was clearly the better choice. The Samsung PN50A650 was definitely on par with the Panasonics in terms of performance but the Samsung offered more features that made it more attractive (more picture adjustment options, ethernet connection, USB) and the Samsung was less money to boot. Make sure you consider the 650 model (Samsungs top tier Plasma) since I found it strange that the 550/530 series with less features was actually selling for more money in many cases.

I picked my set up here in Canada (Oakville, ON) at 2001 Audio Video (a demo off the wall - 4 months of use) for $1699 (sorry Amazon, the Amazon.ca site does not have this product listed). I was very pleased that Samsung offers a very generous 2 year warranty (all other plasmas I've seen are only 1 year).

I have been watching over-the-air HDTV (1080i or 720p depending on the network) and it is simply stunning. Standard def 480i also looks good - this on some sets can look a bit rough but not on the Samsung. The built in digital ATSC tuner does well to pick up channels - I will admit I wish I could manually add channels not found by the auto tuning because here in Canada some channels are not broadcasting full power and so I need to swivel my antenna - the problem is when you move the antenna to get the other stations, you need to run the full auto tuning again and so you may loss other channels you had saved from the last tuning. This is a mood point since it is really an issue of the canadian networks not yet broadcasting in full power like the USA networks are. HDTV also often broadcasts audio in 5.1 surround sound so make sure you connect the TOSLINK optical cable from the TV to a receiver if you got one - it makes watching TV so much better.

I have a full surround sound system but my receiver lacks HDMI inputs. Fortunately, this TV does something I was previously advised was not possible. When I hooked up my laptop via HDMI to the TV, ensured the laptop sound card was setup for digital output (Windows Media Centre configured for 5.1 sound via TOSLINK - no HDMI choice), with an Optical cable going from the TV to the receiver (no HDMI), I was shocked to see my receiver identified a 5.1 surround dolby digital signal (not 2 channel stereo) when playing a DVD on the laptop (using Windows Media Centre). Essentially sending/converting the HDMI audio stream to TOSLINK optical digital cable was amazing to me. I seem to recall the manual mentioning otherwise. So for those out there with this dilemma, no need to upgrade the old receiver, this TV has you covered.

The USB is a cool feature, I hooked up the IPOD and USB key with pictures and it is simple.

In terms of some reviewers negative feedback on glare or lack of brightness from Plasmas - my old Sony 36-inch CRT showed more glare, in fact I experience less glare and can see the Plasma screen better during the day. I have my Plasma in a living room with many windows and during the day, I see the screen just fine.

So in summary, you will not be disappointed with the Samsung PN50A650 - it is the best bang for the buck for a Plasma 1080P 50-inch HDTV. At least be sure to have this one on you list when you shop around.

PROS:
- BEST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK
- On par with equivalent high end Panasonic Viera's but for less money
- Lots of picture adjustment options - a videophile would be pleased with this
- Lots of inputs/outputs
- USB interface (pictures/music)
- Included swivel stand is a nice touch - I find it handy to have
- Thorough Screen burn-in protection
- 2 Year Warranty (versus most are only 1 year)
- Ethernet connection (nothing special but a nice feature - for my fellow canadians, I have not yet found canadian content yet - I entered a Buffalo ZIP code for now) - Also a wireless ethernet adapter is available - see "Samsung WIS08BG2X LinkStick Wireless LAN Adapter for select 2008 Samsung HDTVs")

CONS:
- ATSC tuning does not allow manual entries not detected in the auto tuning - a mood point
- You might not like the red "touch of color" of the frame - might be a CON to some people - depends on your decor/taste
- PIP is not the greatest (limited functonality) but who really cares - maybe it is just me not figuring it out properly

Samsung, keep up the good work - you got a top quality product here.

Outstanding Plasma TV - Highly Recommended.
I purchased this unit approximately 5 weeks ago. To date, I could not be more pleased with this TV. Forget about buyers remorse - this TV is incredible.

The picture quality is outstanding and you will not notice any glare. I intentionally placed a bright lamp in front of this TV to determine if there would be noticeable glare. There was not. Unless the TV is off or at commerical (black screen), you will not see glare unless you are actively looking for it.

The only thing I would mention is that the TV gives off significant heat when the power save option is not on. Per my conversation with Samsung Customer Support, this is normal and has no adverse impact on the life of the TV.

I highly recommend this TV - you will not be dissappointed.

Great TV for the Price
This is a Great TV. The styling is great. The TOC is very nice with a Wood TV stand. Picture quality is very nice. controls seem pretty straight forward. I have had the TV for about a month now. Did have a color issue when i turned it on one day but may have been caused by my reciever as one i turned everything off then back on, cleared right up. The PN50A650 was less then 1700 and it came with a free blu ray and 24 months no interest financing, cant beat that.

Awesome TV
I decided to upgrade from my 4-5 year old Sony 42" LCD. I wanted something newer with HDMI inputs and wanted a BluRay to go along with it. So I bought the package on Amazon on the Thanksgiving weekend sale (great price with a free Samsung BluRay player) and could not be happier. This tv rocks. Crystal clear and the color is great. There are tons of color settings that I have not bothered with- I put the picture on "Dynamic" and leave it alone. The sound is ok, but I have it hooked up to a Bose 321 GS (dont buy one!) and it sounds much better. My next purchase will be a Samsung home theater surround system. The only minor complaints are 1: the tv remote is not a "universal" remote, so I cant use it for the DISH satellite or the Bose, and 2: this baby does throw off some heat. My living room is 5-8 degrees warmer at night than anywhere else in the house- you can put your hand on the back grate and it feels like a warm heater blowing at a very low speed. The living room is large enough, so I don't expect it to be a problem in the summer. My other tv's include a 32" Vizio plasma in the bedroom and a 26" Sharp lcd in the RV They are both nice sets, but nothing compared to this Samsung. I would highly recommend this set to anyone.

Accessories:

Zircon 61962/61963 Multiscanner i700 Onestep, Multifunction Wall Scanner, Yellow

Belkin PureAV AV21000-06 6-Foot Component Video Cable

Belkin AM22302-06 6-Foot HDMI-toHDMI Cable

Belkin PureAV AV22300-12 12-Foot HDMI-to-HDMI Audio Video Cable

Zircon 58430 DMS50L 50 Ultrasonic Measure with Laser Targeting

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Samsung PN50A650 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV with RED Touch of Color & More...

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