Need Recommendations for a stop-gap TV

[88MVP]

My 6 year-old 42" Panasonic plasma just died, and I need to buy a new TV for the living room. Down the road when I have some extra disposable income, I plan to buy another Panny plasma - 60" or larger. For the time being, however, that's out of my price range. I'd like to buy something that will suit my needs as a primary living room TV for 6 months, at which point I'll upgrade and move this tv to the bedroom.

I'd like something around 42 inches, ideally for $600 or less. I would estimate my usage to be about 60% sports and other tv, 20% movies, 20% gaming. I don't care if it's plasma/lcd/led, but I plan to buy one of the major brands - Panasonic, Samsung, Sony, etc... not interested in a Westinghouse or anything like that.

So... what's the best bang for my buck within those parameters?

 

[nsafreak]

Well I've done some digging around amazon and I would say the best bang for your buck in that price range with those specifications would be the Panasonic Viera TC-L42U5 http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-VIER...227986&sr=1-19 Currently runs about $540 and shipped at no charge if you have Prime. Not sure what to recommend if you want to purchase in a store near you since I'm not sure what's near you.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

Just find an LG on sale at Fry's or some online retailer. I got a 42" 3D LG with 2 pairs of glasses like 2 years ago for $500+tax out the door from Fry's.

 

[sdifox]

or check how much it costs to fix? May just be the power module.

 

[slashbinslashbash]

I would do a little research on some of the non-name brands. A couple of years ago I bought an Insignia (Best Buy house brand) 42" Plasma for $400 that was made by Samsung. The remote, back connection panel, OSD, etc. all looked 100% like the Samsung models did, with minor variations (e.g. remote was solid black instead of having color added -- but the mold, buttons etc. were all the same; and I think mine only had one HDMI input instead of 2 on the Samsung). The Insignia came with a 2-year warranty (bumped to 3 years using my Amex to buy it) instead of the 1-year that came with the Samsung, which was $100 more expensive. It served me well until I got rid of it due to downsizing to a smaller space.

 

[kornphlake]

Between costco and wal-mart you can probably find a visio that cost around $400. Keep in mind that what's on the website isn't always the same as what's in the store.