Panasonic - VIERA - 55" Class (55-1/8" Diag.) - Plasma - 1080p - 600Hz - Smart - 3D - HDTV

After about three months of research and numerous trips to Best Buy, I finally decided on the VT50. I was a little cautious about getting a plasma because I have two windows, and a large sliding glass door in my living room. I am happy to tell you that the glare issue is almost non existant! This pannel does a great job of defusing natural light. I wish I could give a n/a for sound bc I am not relying on the sound of the TV as I am using a home theather setup. FYI I also bought a rocketfish tilting wallmount and within 2.5 hours I had the wires run through the wall, and the TV mounted. The Rocketfish mount is a perfect match! If you're looking for the best overall plasma pannel without spending a fortune I wound encourage you to look no further.

This TV right out of the box was very awesome! Working at Best Buy allows you to see the quality of a lot of TVs out there and I did a lot of research online about the best TVs on the market before I made this purchase. The picture quality on this TV is unbelievable. I feel like I am actually there; it is so amazing! The colors are sharp and true. (Soon I will be getting the TV calibrated so the colors will be even better) Blurays in 3D are stunning. Connecting to the internet (using Netflix, Hulu+, Pandora, and CinemaNow) was super easy, the TV didn't lag with the connection at all, and the interface on all apps is very easy to use. Also, this TV has plenty of inputs to connect all your devices so you don't necessarily need a receiver for your home theater set-up. The only two things that aren't 100% perfect are that the TV doesn't come with any glasses included, so that is an extra cost; and if you watch TV shows/movies with a lot of light (natural or electrical) there is a slight reflection. The glare isn't terrible, but it is there. This isn't a problem for me because I watch the TV in the dark anyways. The one aspect I can't truly comment on (and why I didn't rate it with any stars) is the audio quality of the TV. Being an audiophile, when I purchased this TV, I also bought a MartinLogan sound system so I haven't used the TV speakers at all. However I did return this TV back to Best Buy. Not for any negative reasons, but I decided I loved this TV model so much, instead of just having 55" of amazing-ness, I upgraded to the 65" version of this same TV!

I went to the Best Buy store just to look at the Tv in person and see how it looked and worked in the store. I also had heard that Panasonic was going to stop making the plasma series of tv's. So I wanted to get a new Panasonic Plasma to replace the one I had from 5 years ago. I was looking to get into 3d movies and bluray play back and wanted the best picture I could get for the money. When I saw the tv I was very much impressed with the look and picture. It didn't take long for a sales woman to approach me and inquire what I was there for. She showed me all the features of the tv and it was just as awesome as I expected it to be. Before I knew it I was purchasing the tv and had Geek squad install it for me, only because one it upped the ship date and delivery and two because I did not have a lot of time to mess with all the wonderful features and setup. Now that the tv is setup in my home I can say this is the best tv i've ever owned and I love the Panasonic plasma brand, I hope that if they do stop making plasma tv's i'll hopefully get many years out of this tv before upgrading again. I've done plenty of research before selecting the tv and I can say it all payed off. I would recommend this tv to anyone who enjoys watching movies because this tv makes them look even better than when they where at the show. So do yourself a favor and get to the store and see the difference your missing. As for all the apps it comes with well they are cool but my computer works just the same and when I sit down to watch movies thats what I want to do not surf the internet. But I do like the You tube app for the trailers and clips in full high def 55" screen, just awesome!

Excellent picture quality. Great contrast, deep blacks, rich colors (when appropriate). No artifacts that aren't attributable to the video source, as far as I can tell. I was worried about plasma in a "bright room," but this model is better than my old CRT was. Definitely use the THX Cinema setting when viewing in a near-dark room at night. In the day time, I find that I prefer a Custom setting to the THX Bright Room one. (See recommendations on cnet.com.) I also got an adaptor at Apple to allow me to hook up my computer so I could watch videos from there. Works great, although needed to max out the contrast. Good news is that you can customize the settings independently for each video input source. TV sound is a bit muddled because, like most flat, modern TVs, the speaker is on the back. Kind of like the actors aren't enunciating as much as they should. I bought a digital-to-analog audio converter at radio shack to hook up to my old stereo, which'll tide me over until I'm ready to buy a new sound system. With that, the sound is great, although now I have to use a separate remote for volume control. Probably will make sense to eventually buy a programmable universal remote. Also note: unlike most 3D TVs, the VT50 doesn't come with 3D glasses, so be sure to consider the added price of these (e.g. TY-ER3D4MU) when you're comparing various models' prices. I'm happy with the purchase -- just wish I had had the space and budget for the 65" screen!

On top of many positive reviews that I won't repeat, my comments after owning this TV for 2 months: 1) All plasma vs. LED preference and technical spec debates aside; the crowning achievement of this TV is it gives you the most "REALISTIC" picture quality. IMHO, this measurement is not very subjective (when compared to others). This measurement can be done by asking yourself, how does the TV picture look (for example an athlete, Union Square in the afternoon, morning sky with clouds) compare to what you see with your very own eyes? I watched a baseball game at the stadium, then another game at home the following day. The visual experience between live & at home has never been that close for any prior HDTV's I owned. 2) After much sports watching (statistic bars, station logo's), or blu ray with black bars on top and bottom, ABSOLUTELY no plasma image retention to report. 3) THX picture modes will give you a reference quality picture right out of the box. No calibration required. 4) Both 2D and 3D picture quality best in class. Small recommendation for 3D. The model defaults to 3D depth perception setting of -2. If you would like to see more 3D image pop, can adjust to 0 or higher. Panasonic continues to impress. This model is truly deserving of both flagship and reference grade designations.

I was not really in the market for a new TV, but wanted to treat myself to a current model with todays technology. I am replacing a Sony 36" XBR CRT that has been working flawlessly, so the picture quality of the new TV would need to be superb! After viewing numerous TV's, I was on the fence deciding between the 55" 8000 Series Samsung LED or the Panasonic VT series Plasma. I know comparing these 2 models was like comparing 2 completely different animals, but they were the 2 I liked with the best picture quality anytime I looked at any stores display (excluding the newer pricey 4K TV's). I ended up deciding on the Panasonic, ONLY because of the refresh rate (Hockey games needed to be clear) and after friends suggestion of Plasmas generally having more true color levels. I really liked the brightness of the Samsung and was worried of how dark the picture on the Panasonic would be when in my home. This was truly my only major concern with the Panasonic. I did end up getting a great deal, with the store matching a web price of $1400!! They also said if I were to be unhappy with the picture, they would exchange with the Samsung at no charge within the first 15 days. Once delivered, I was like a kid with a new toy! General set-up was a piece of cake, but getting the colors similar to the old CRT took quite some time. The Smart features are lack luster compared to the Samsung or a PC, and the web browser is lame, but that is not why I bought the TV anyway. I would say a QWERTY keyboard on a remote would be helpful. I also wish a couple 3D glasses were included as with the Samsung. After 2 weeks of having the TV, I am very happy with the picture, and it will only be better after a calibration is complete. I was really impressed with the sound for a thin TV!! I wish I could get rid of the little advertisements when the TV powers up and during volume adjustments. Kinda lame if you ask me! Hockey games look awesome and blue-ray is phenomenal!! If you can still get a great deal on this TV, don't look back!!

This is my second plasma from Panasonic and the picture is great. My first panasonic was purchased in 2007 and it is still up and going strong. I loved the picture of my 2007 42 inch and when I finished my basement I didn't even think about another brand. My new 55 inch VT has even better picture quality....Wow .....didn't think that would happen because my 42 still impress people who view it. One last item, this plasma is just as thin as a LED, much more slim than my 2007 Panasonic 42 inch.

This TV is a curse! The picture is so good, we find ourselves not wanting to leave the house. We watch programs we never would have before due to the sheer beauty of the picture. It is the best picture we have ever had, and we're not sorry we spent the big bucks on it. I can't imagine how the next generation of televisions can be any better. We watch a lot of basketball and this television is beyond our expectations. We took Consumer Reports rating (#1), and we're not sorry we did. Oh, and we had a free calibration done, and though we doubted it would make a difference, it would have been worth the price tag if we hadn't gotten it for free. The entire picture was enhanced and even better.