Sony W5500 v Panasonic TXP-42S10

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

[TW]Fox

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Hi guys,

Spent the day looking at TV's following my previous thread and I'm pretty sure the shortlist is now down to two sets. The 40 inch Sony W5500 or the 42" Panasonic TXP-42S10.

Everyone recommends the X10 but it seemed inferior to the S10 when viewed side by side so not sure why the S10 gets no mentions?

Has anyone got any thoughts on these two TV's? I realise one is Plasma and one is LCD. The LCD looked better in all the shops I viewed it in but I am aware Plasma always looks poor in the bright shop lighting.

Which would you buy and why?

They both come in at around £750. I have however noticed the G10 @ £770. Worth the extra?
 
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Ive been TV shopping today, even though i couldnt find the two models i was after today i did have a look at what other sets are on the market. I could help but notice the S10 seems to flicker quiet a bit which i found annoying. However, that said i did produce a good picture.

Comet had the Panny and Sony side by side, IMO the Sony gave the most natural picture. However, they are prone to blacklight problems.

Andy
 
Although I've not seen these two side by side I'd put my money on the Panny, mainly because I've yet to seen an LCD that can match a decent Plasma as an all round package.

Picking a TV is entirely subjective so you can only choose on the quality of the image and for me, in the absence of Pioneer, Panasonic plasmas offer the most natural and pleasing image.
 
The problem is that its so hard to chose because every time I view the sets the Sony looks miles better, the Panasonic looks dull. I am told this is because Plasmas do not look great under the ridiculously bright lighting in TV shops. Whilst I am sure this is the case, it means dropping 700 quid on the say so of others :(

Is the Sony any good?
 
In my opinion the G10 is the best set out of the three as close to a Pioneer Kuro as you can get.

The best place to demo TVs is a hifi/home cinema shop, they will be set up in a proper demo room with house like lighting and will be properly calibrated only then can you get a good idea of what set is best for you.
 
Personally, I'd get the G10 over the X10 or S10. If you can push the boat out a bit budget wise, you may want to consider the P42V10B - which I've just bought. It has a native THX mode, and the newer NeoPDP screen ( the G10 has this too - but not THX ). You do end up paying for internet connectivity though - which may be something you don't require.
 
Hah I have been looking at sets today, after spending a couple of weeks trawling reviews, nothing like seeing them in the flesh so as to speak but its a shame they are all not using the same feeds to get a real world view.

I too was looking at the W5500 but read so much about the back light bleed reports which has put me off a bit - even though it looked great. I was originally looking at the Samsung B650 but today got to see the B750 - awesome LCD (or so it looked) which has lost the Samsung penchant for red and gone with a nice charcoal black frame. Sparse reviews look good but its a little pricey at 999 but had reports of it being offered at 799 a while back when the price was dropped for promotional reasons.

Im after a good LCD so I can generally watch sky HD, and use my yet to be purchased PS3 slim ( :) ); Have to be a little careful with lag on some models although this can be usually worked around with game mode. I can see myself going back to the shops to keep browsing, and for me spending this amount I need to get the right 'set' !
Take at look at the B750, it really looked very good - let us know what you eventually go with, id be interested to hear your thoughts

Am
 
I have the Sony W5500, 40" version if you have any questions.

It's a very good set and you can tweak the picture no end, the sound through the TV's speakers is also quite good, obviously doesn't apply if you use speakers though :).
 
[TW]Fox;14787295 said:
So whats the best way of buying a TV?
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Obeying us lot ;)

Even I haven't been able to see all sets in the perfect environment and calibrated perfectly, but after viewing the various brands over the years you get a good idea of what they can offer, even from viewing them in a number of stores.

The sony may look better for your train of thought, but your mind may naturally be telling you that the brighter colours are better, the plasma is dull and rubbish etc etc, and you may not have ever seen a well setup tv to actually see what an accurate picture is. to be frank tv shopping is a pain and involves a bit of a leap of faith. I personally would never touch a sony, mainly because of the backlight bleed and screen uniformity problems which I have seen on everyone of their sets to a varying degree, with some being pretty rubbish and others not being as bad.

Whereas I haven't ever seen any major issues with panasonic sets. Not saying they don't have their quirks, but once in your room, a quick 30mins of fiddling with the settings can get you a wonderful picture that will make you realise everytime you see a friends badly setup LCD, why you went for the panny.
 
-Ad- said:
once in your room, a quick 30mins of fiddling with the settings can get you a wonderful picture that will make you realise everytime you see a friends badly setup LCD, why you went for the panny.
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Exactly this.
 
-Ad- said:
Whereas I haven't ever seen any major issues with panasonic sets. Not saying they don't have their quirks, but once in your room, a quick 30mins of fiddling with the settings can get you a wonderful picture that will make you realise everytime you see a friends badly setup LCD, why you went for the panny.
Click to expand...

I am still not completely sold on this idea. Each technology has there pro's and con's.

Andy
 
[TW]Fox;14787295 said:
So whats the best way of buying a TV?
Click to expand...

Can always go to an AV shop and have a demo in their environment. They usually have typical living room setups where they can show you a tv in normal kind of setup rather than on the shelf of a shop.

Although don't bother with that, just buy the panasonic :) The G10 uses the NeoDP panel which is supposed to be better than the 'lower' model panels.
 
When i get home from work i will give you my findings on the differences with these two sets.

I work in the trade and im constantly messing about with settings etc.
 
-Ad- said:
NO WAI !!!!

Care to share your views and experiences.
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I’ve have both a Sony LCD (40W2000 that I am currently looking to replace) and a Pioneer 5090 downstairs.

However, you can’t even begin to compare these two as one is a lot older then the other. Also the Sony was the first 1080P screen out on the market the time. Yes you do get motion blur on with games and large panning areas.

The point I am trying to make all TVs have problems and NONE are perfect (unless its a Pioneer:p) Plasma does suffer from screen burning, even with the new Panasonic models. Phosphor lag is another down fall of the Plasma sets. I would also have side black level are normally better on the plasma but now with the current crop of LCDs this argument is pretty much void. Now the LCD, depending on the make for example lets pick Sony. The Sony sets seem to suffer from back light bleeding. Colour reproduction used to be another down fall from a LCD set now with the current gen they are good, but not as good as the Pioneers. Now the big one every one seems to moan about motion blur. With the cheaper range of LCD yes i agree motion blur is quite a common problem. Now that we have 100Hz / 200 Hz LCD this more less fixes this problem.

I am looking for a new TV myself to replace my Sony. I’ve personally short listed them down to ether a Panny 42V10 or a Sony 40Z5500 and both are not perfect. I am trying to find the one that best suits my needs. As i have been looking over the weekend, even though i could find the two models in question i did find the two lower models G10/15 and the W5500. Both gave excellent pictures. However, imo the G10 does flicker which i found annoying and i noticed it did have a very small amount of phosphor lag. As I am going to be playing games on 60% this is quite a important area for me. Now to the Sony, even though this looked impressive there was a very small amount of black light bleed on the shop display model. However, the image motion of the TV was very good.

It's horses for courses IMO.

Andy
 
Another thing to think about is the amount of light in the room. If its a bat cave I would recommend the Panny. However, if the room is light the Panny may struggle some what. That said the lumens on the new NeoDPD screens are twice that of latest years models. The LCD screen will 99% give a much bright picture in a light room due to the way the brightness is adjusted on a LCD set.

Andy
 
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