Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Outstanding

I have had the Panasonic TH-50PZ850U for about 6 months. I spent about $2100 with extended warranty. So far, I have been impressed. The resolution was top notch. I used "Finding Nemo" to test the colors. On the vivid setting it was fantastic... Probably a bit exaggerated. The Studio ref mode offers more accurate colors. The THX settings on the 800U may be more accurate, but I would love to have a little bit of oomph to the colors even if it is not accurate. Don't we all like "exaggerated fake ones"!
Clearly this TV is a winner. It comes close to the blacks in a pioneer and the THX accuracy of the 800U. It matches the Brilliant colors of a Samsung or probably even better. It has improved energy savings, better anti glare screen, wider viewing angle, and a web interface via viera cast. I am going to set up the viera cast soon. I cannot find another TV that packs more.
The speakers are great. I moved to a smaller home and had to keep the surround speakers in storage, but I don't feel the need for them.
It is easy to assemble and set up. You won't need a professional. I bought an upconverting DVD player to watch all my old DVDs and the difference is obvious. I am yet to watch Blu-ray movies. I am waiting for a good blu ray player that can also play movies stored on an external hard drive through a USB connection.
Like others have mentioned, the only bug - if a player is connected through a HDMI port it will switch out another that is connected via component cables.

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Great TV

We searched long and hard before this purchase. I spent several months comparing Samsung, Sony and Panasonic HDTVs and deciding between a plasma or LCD. One feature that truly sold me on this television was the built in surround sound with sub-wof built in. The picture is stunning, there is no glare that is noticeable and it is located in a room that had a tremendous amount of natural light. I would highly recommend this product. The price was great and the delivery service was excellent.

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U For the Price...No Match!

We spent quite a bit of time doing our research on the 50-inch Plasmas. I looked at almost every brand (Pioneer, Panasonic, Samsung, LG, Sony, etc) The performance and quality of the Pioneer Elites was hard to deny...but the price dictated our decision. Many reviewers (Cnet, independents, etc.) all had a hard time justifying the money as well and recommended this unit. We had a TH-50PZ800U that we lost due to a lightning strike. And when I went out to replace that unit, the 800U and 850U were the same price on Amazon. So it was a no-brainer....

The image quality is the same as the 800U, however the sound is so much better (we do not have any surround system, so this was a plus). The upgraded remote is a plus as well (lighted and runs our DirecTV DVR flawlessly). We currently have HD DirecTV DVR, Sony BD-S550 Blu-Ray, and a Nintendo Wii system hooked up to this TV. No doubt the Blu-Ray player really makes this unit dance and shine! And, the added Viera-cast features are nice also.

There is only one feature of this TV that annoys me and that is when it senses a signal come in on an HDMI port, the TV selects that port as the active input (ie: turn on the Blu-Ray player and it switches to that input). But, given the performance of this TV...we can live with it!

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Big TV

Got this a couple days ago and have been loving it. The internet connection isn't the best only YouTube and some picture site was hoping for NetFlix to be on it but it's not. Oh well still big and looks nice.

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Best Big Screen TV For Movies Period!

Like most of my electronics purchases, I researched this for over a month. Waited for price to settle and got a great deal with Amazon. I already own 40" and 46" Samsung 7 series 1080p LCDs, Sharp Aquos 1080p 32"LCD and Toshiba 1080p 32" LCD. This TV is exceptional for watching movies in particular. The color reproduction is unrivaled. The picture is a bit softer than the LCDs. The LCDs have sharper contrast, but almost too stark and colors not as natural. Paid extra for the Sammy anti-motion blur 100 mHz feature. Works ok sometimes. But nice thing about the Panasonic is no motion blur b/c smooth high speed images inherent in plasma technology. Front drop down access panel for power, vol, ch controls and inputs for RCA, SD card, and HDMI convenient feature. No fumbling around the dark back of the set to plug in dig camera, SD card, Sony PS, etc. Hooked up to ethernet and able to surf the web and display images and video from PC-a real kick to see Windows desktop on 50" screen. Movies on studio reference setting like being in the theater. Only other TV considered was Pioneer Kuro. Head-to-head similar reviews. Panny half the price. A no brainer. We never go to the movies anymore! Buy it you won't regret it!

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Impressive picture & easy setup

I spent a bunch of time researching, reading reviews, visiting local electronic stores to compare picture quality for myself. Bottom line, getting this Panasonic Plasma through Amazon has been a smooth experience. The picture quality is great. To my eye, only the Pioneer Kuro was "slightly" better but at twice the price, not worth it in terms of value. I also purchased a Panasonic BD55 Blu-ray player at the same time. The link feature which allows the same manufacturer device to be automatically recognized and operated by the same remote works great. I find the remote from the Blu Ray a better option to control both. I do have this in a room with alot of natural light. Depending upon where you are sitting, you will have some reflection from background light. I do not find it a significant issue because I had the same issue with the prior TV. This plasma's color and picture brightness blows the previous TV away and therefore the background reflections are actually less noticeable. I must have picked this TV up at the "right time" because the price went up $30 a few days after I bought it and has not come back down. yes, I know this model has been updated but I did not want to wait until May or June to get the latest and greatest.

Panasonic TH-50PZ850U Excellent

Excellent price/delivery from Vanns/Yellow freight. Great TV, games and movies via PS3 amazing, sound is so good that I won't be buying a theater system anytime soon. Standard TV is ok too, better then I expected eventhough I'm less then 8ft away. Glare is somewhat of an issue during the day and night viewing with lights on, but it's ok and I will get used to it. Viera cast is easy to setup and have been using it to check the weather and look at u-tube videos. All in all perfect so far.

I also want to comment on Vanns excellent customer service. I placed the order on 09/02/08 and it was delivered on the 8th. During that time Vanns dropped the price a couple of times, a quick email to them and they promptly credited my amazon CC. I thought that was pretty classy.