New TV time (Panasonic TC-P60ST30 vs Sharp LC60LE632U )

[boomhower]

I need a new TV for my new house and had narrowed it down to these two. Same size, essentially the same price, but completely different tech. The room has a lot of windows so a downside for the plasma is glare. The other downsides are slower response time in gaming and more power usage. Pros on the Sharp is better gaming and lower power use. I've heard of complaints of the Panny being dim but the Sharp has clouding issues. It's really a toss up and I just can't make up my mind. Thoughts?

 

[Anubis]

does the ST 30 really have worse imput lag? Plasmas generally destroy LCDs on imput lag
the GT series from a few years ago was the set to get for this exact reason if you gamed.

Personally I like plasma, but that sharp is a good set and if you have lots of windows which you cant blackout it is prob the better choice

 

[cherrytwist]

I recently purchased the 50" S30 and there is no gaming lag whatsoever, FWIW. I likely would have gotten the ST30 if it wasn't for budget constraints, simply for the better (supposedly) panel. However, I am very pleased with my set.

Back OT, Previously I had a Samsung DLP and never had lag with that set, either.

 

[boomhower]

I recently purchased the 50" S30 and there is no gaming lag whatsoever, FWIW. I likely would have gotten the ST30 if it wasn't for budget constraints, simply for the better (supposedly) panel. However, I am very pleased with my set.

Back OT, Previously I had a Samsung DLP and never had lag with that set, either.

I actually wanted to get a DLP but the model I wanted has had the price jacked up to where it's not worth it.

I'm leaning towards the Sharp due to potential glare issues and power usage. Still undecided though.

 

[fralexandr]

just an fyi on power usage
plasma's can use less power than led tvs on a purely black screen, and power usage is proportional to the overall brightness of a scene

led and lcd's on the other hand will usually use a more constant amount regardless of what's being displayed
i suppose that issue might be resolved leaving auto backlight dimming on, but sometimes that can have issues with output quality
an example of an auto-dimming issue http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1331872
they'll still use less power overall though

 

[velillen]

I have the ST30 and havent had to much issues with glare. I do have blinds on all my windows though (that are almost always closed) and it is only on dark scenes its even an issue really. There is a point where it doesnt matter if its plasma or lcd on the glare too. i know on bright sunny mornings when the sun is going through the window at my parents house they cant really use their lcd in the upstairs but can use the plasma in the basement just due to their positioning.

 

[Number1]

Funny I just purchased the Sharp TV 2 weeks ago. Here is my quick review of it.

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/prod...spx?path=7db6769b23cf0de251166e3982d74224en02

"Wow, this is an upgrade from my 42", 5 years old plasma TV. The size difference is unbelievable. Once I got the color adjusted to my liking the picture looks fantastic. There is some significant lag when displaying fast moving pictures but I am willing to live with it.
Netflix on WiFi looks quite pixelated due to the TV size. Not watchable in full screen mode.
I mounted the TV on the wall using one of their $100 wall mount. Be aware that the bottom of the TV is thicker then the top and will restrict how much you can tilt the TV down. Also the convectors on the back of the TV became very hard to reach. Don't plan on using a USB stick.

Overall I am satisfied with this TV and hi def movies look absolutely fantastic."

I don't game so I can't give you an opinion on that.

I am liking the TV more and more.

 

[boomhower]

just an fyi on power usage
plasma's can use less power than led tvs on a purely black screen, and power usage is proportional to the overall brightness of a scene
led and lcd's on the other hand will usually use a more constant amount regardless of what's being displayed
i suppose that issue might be resolved leaving auto backlight dimming on, but sometimes that can have issues with output quality
an example of an auto-dimming issue http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1331872
they'll still use less power overall though

The difference isn't massive. The little govt tags $28 vs $20 a year. With the kids in the house it'll be used more than average but even then it's not a tremendous amount of money. How is the heat output? I've got an older Vizio plasma I'm giving to my father in law and that damn thing is a furnace with the heat it puts out, a really big turnoff. I've seen a lot of complaints of backlight flickering on the panny's but it seems for the most part that has been cured.

I have the ST30 and havent had to much issues with glare. I do have blinds on all my windows though (that are almost always closed) and it is only on dark scenes its even an issue really. There is a point where it doesnt matter if its plasma or lcd on the glare too. i know on bright sunny mornings when the sun is going through the window at my parents house they cant really use their lcd in the upstairs but can use the plasma in the basement just due to their positioning.

Yeah, if you have direct light in the mornings or evening it doesn't really matter what kind of screen it is. I would like to try an minimize it though.

Funny I just purchased the Sharp TV 2 weeks ago. Here is my quick review of it.

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/prod...spx?path=7db6769b23cf0de251166e3982d74224en02

"Wow, this is an upgrade from my 42", 5 years old plasma TV. The size difference is unbelievable. Once I got the color adjusted to my liking the picture looks fantastic. There is some significant lag when displaying fast moving pictures but I am willing to live with it.
Netflix on WiFi looks quite pixelated due to the TV size. Not watchable in full screen mode.
I mounted the TV on the wall using one of their $100 wall mount. Be aware that the bottom of the TV is thicker then the top and will restrict how much you can tilt the TV down. Also the convectors on the back of the TV became very hard to reach. Don't plan on using a USB stick.

Overall I am satisfied with this TV and hi def movies look absolutely fantastic."

I don't game so I can't give you an opinion on that.

I am liking the TV more and more.

Mine won't be wall mounted. I will have to wallmount a different one in the bedroom because my wife bought furniture that is way to big and there isn't anywhere to put a TV stand but that's another issue entirely. I do watch lot of sports and play a good bit a games so the blurring is a concern.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

I have a Panasonic plasma. St30. Picture is fantastic. Only complaint really is the power usage. I'm seeing about 400w at the wall. It also puts out quite a bit of heat. Not a good thing in Texas. If I could do it over I'd probably get a LCD. Id lose a little picture quality but power usage and heat would go way down. I'm the type of guy that walks around and checks all the electronics with a kill a watt meter though. In reality it probably would only save me $15 in a year to have a LCD. I love really energy efficient stuff and that may not matter as much to you. It's nice getting $100 electric bills on a regular basis.

 

[boomhower]

I have a Panasonic plasma. St30. Picture is fantastic. Only complaint really is the power usage. I'm seeing about 400w at the wall. It also puts out quite a bit of heat. Not a good thing in Texas. If I could do it over I'd probably get a LCD. Id lose a little picture quality but power usage and heat would go way down. I'm the type of guy that walks around and checks all the electronics with a kill a watt meter though. In reality it probably would only save me $15 in a year to have a LCD. I love really energy efficient stuff and that may not matter as much to you. It's nice getting $100 electric bills on a regular basis.

That is exactly what I'm afraid of with the Panny, power and heat. The one I have now is a darn furnace and I do not want to repeat. Honestly it's the biggest thing keeping me from getting it.

 

[velillen]

That is exactly what I'm afraid of with the Panny, power and heat. The one I have now is a darn furnace and I do not want to repeat. Honestly it's the biggest thing keeping me from getting it.

ehhhh after 62 minutes into Tron legacy (gf is watching it while i do other things) the back of the tv is barely warm in parts. Other parts are still cold to the touch. The "warm" parts are simply next to the boards inside (input board, processing boards, ect). Still the back of the tv over there spots is just warm. Rest of the metal on the back is cold to my touch. House is at ~65 degrees for reference. Would hardly call that running hot.

As for power....itll depend on your settings as well. my 60 ST30 was using ~325-350W last time I checked with my kill-o-watt meter. Though between 325-400W seems normal...just depends on your settings i suppose. The LG is rated at ~ 220W i think i saw so its not a whole lot more in the grand scheme of things.

The black issue has been fixed (to my knowledge) on any set made after July 2011.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

ehhhh after 62 minutes into Tron legacy (gf is watching it while i do other things) the back of the tv is barely warm in parts. Other parts are still cold to the touch. The "warm" parts are simply next to the boards inside (input board, processing boards, ect). Still the back of the tv over there spots is just warm. Rest of the metal on the back is cold to my touch. House is at ~65 degrees for reference. Would hardly call that running hot.

As for power....itll depend on your settings as well. my 60 ST30 was using ~325-350W last time I checked with my kill-o-watt meter. Though between 325-400W seems normal...just depends on your settings i suppose. The LG is rated at ~ 220W i think i saw so its not a whole lot more in the grand scheme of things.

The black issue has been fixed (to my knowledge) on any set made after July 2011.

Where do you live? It might not seem hot to you but you adding another 400w of heat in the Texas summer time can be brutal. Sure you don't feel the heat in the winter time. I'd also like to know how you get 75w less than me power consumption and I'm running a 55" vs your 60"?

 

[velillen]

Where do you live? It might not seem hot to you but you adding another 400w of heat in the Texas summer time can be brutal. Sure you don't feel the heat in the winter time. I'd also like to know how you get 75w less than me power consumption and I'm running a 55" vs your 60"?

I was more just trying to say its not the tv itself that is going to cause heat but the ambient air that is causing it. In which case any tv will run hot. TV induced heat is pretty minimal. my 720p 42" panny is warmer just due to it being wall mounted. My 60" is on a stand just for reference too with a good 2 feet behind it as well. So im sure good airflow around the tv is just as important.

As for our differences in power usage....cant tell ya. You have speakers on or off? (mine are off). I assume no power savings is turned on for either of us (cats or whatever its called). So all i can guess is we use different settings. I just tested again with Avatar (was ~300ish), Tron Legacy (~275W...but darker overall so understandable to be less), and The Pacific part 1 when they first enter the jungle (325W). So Im still right where i said i was. I do know the settings impact it quite a bit it seems like. I turned the tv on and with just the menu up with my settings i was at 180W, switched to the Vivid setting and it shot up to 275W.

And for the movies that was more the average of the 30 seconds or so i watched. It went higher and lower obviously. The kill-o-watt was giving me a reading of 118 Volts and ~2.75 amps when i was watching The Pacific.

Now i am curious why we are so far apart.

 

[boomhower]

You guys are right, the power consumption isn't that drastic. We're talking a lighbulb of difference. The brightness is a concern as the panny seems to be a bit dim. Another thing is the price of the panny jumped up $200 today making it about $250 more than the Sharp making it the same price as the next level up Sharp, the LC60LE830U but it doesn't seem to be drastically different from the cheaper version. Plus at $1700 with still no 3D it seems overpriced. Is the Panny 3D very good? It's certainly not a high priority but would be a nice feature to have if I'm spending that much money. Is $1700 for the Panny a good value or is $1450 for the LCD a better way to go. That's just getting to be a bit more than I really wanted to spend, but I can afford it if I need to.

 

[tHa ShIzNiT]

is anyone considering this TV? SONY KDL55NX720 54.6" 1080P LED SMART HDTV,LOCAL DIMMING,WIFI,MOTIONFLOW XR240,3D

Its $1099 at Frys right now and people are going crazy about it over at slickdeals. I'm thinking about it too. You look like you want a 60 inch though, so maybe this wouldnt be right for you. Food for thought anyways

 

[boomhower]

is anyone considering this TV? SONY KDL55NX720 54.6" 1080P LED SMART HDTV,LOCAL DIMMING,WIFI,MOTIONFLOW XR240,3D

Its $1099 at Frys right now and people are going crazy about it over at slickdeals. I'm thinking about it too. You look like you want a 60 inch though, so maybe this wouldnt be right for you. Food for thought anyways

That's a killer deal but I don't have a Fry's. I'm the wrong coast. Yeah, I am pretty set on a 60". My dreams of the 73" have been killed so I still want to get the biggest screen I can afford.

Amazon has the panny used in their warehouse deals for $1350 but I am a little uneasy with that, especially with warranty concerns.

 

[velillen]

the panny is still available on amazon for $1,531.98 shipped. only 1 left though. I wouldnt pay 1700 personally as it seems like it goes to 1500 fairly often. Granted i dont know if that includes shipping or what not. I picked up mine for 1500 shipped a few months ago. i'd aim for something 1500-1600 at the most.

 

[Soccerman06]

fyi the ST50 is coming out by the end of the month if you cared.

 

[boomhower]

the panny is still available on amazon for $1,531.98 shipped. only 1 left though. I wouldnt pay 1700 personally as it seems like it goes to 1500 fairly often. Granted i dont know if that includes shipping or what not. I picked up mine for 1500 shipped a few months ago. i'd aim for something 1500-1600 at the most.

Saw that popped back up. I had decided it wasn't worth $1700. Wish I would have caught the $1250 sale a few days ago.

fyi the ST50 is coming out by the end of the month if you cared.

I'm sure that since it's brand new it will be priced well above my budget.

Another seller has popped up with the 73" Mitsu I had been eying for $1300 shipped. Damn it! I didn't need yet another option.

 

[Soccerman06]

Saw that popped back up. I had decided it wasn't worth $1700. Wish I would have caught the $1250 sale a few days ago.



I'm sure that since it's brand new it will be priced well above my budget.

Another seller has popped up with the 73" Mitsu I had been eying for $1300 shipped. Damn it! I didn't need yet another option.

I think the TC-P50ST50 will be $1400, but the older models will be discounted.

 

[boomhower]

I think the TC-P50ST50 will be $1400, but the older models will be discounted.

I'm looking at 60's though.

I think I've decided on the plasma. All the complaints of picture issues with the LED's are getting to me. Worst issue with the plasma is complaints of brightness but those seem generally from those that are used to looking at LED at Best Buy that have the brightness jacked through the roof for display. In real world use it should be more than fine.

 

[fralexandr]

Where do you live? It might not seem hot to you but you adding another 400w of heat in the Texas summer time can be brutal. Sure you don't feel the heat in the winter time. I'd also like to know how you get 75w less than me power consumption and I'm running a 55" vs your 60"?

power usage is highly based on the tv's calibration settings as well as size and year
newer panels with the newer energy star revisions in particular (there was a huge change in the past few years, was it energy star 3.0?) will use somewhat less power to achieve similar results

tv's typically ship out with brightness set way too high (giving it the store showroom feel)
while settings will vary between models, they also may vary with each individual tv set, so you should optimally use a calibration disc or device, but it'll probably be enough to search for calibration settings of your specific model online.
assuming your room's ambient lighting isn't high, you can reduce the brightness to "normal" levels (something like 50) while keeping contrast somewhat higher (something like 60-80)
this really reduces the "wow" factor a ridiculously bright screen provides, but perhaps provides more realistic lighting levels.
properly calibrating a screen also has the benefit of reducing eye strain


----- //hah bolding dashed lines does nothing // -----

if you have an hhgregg nearby, i think they sometimes have nice deals on HDTVs, though i'm sure it's a YMMV

 

[boomhower]

if you have an hhgregg nearby, i think they sometimes have nice deals on HDTVs, though i'm sure it's a YMMV

I live in the middle of nowhere. The only big box stores even close are Walmart and Bestbuy.

 

[Soccerman06]

I'm looking at 60's though.

I think I've decided on the plasma. All the complaints of picture issues with the LED's are getting to me. Worst issue with the plasma is complaints of brightness but those seem generally from those that are used to looking at LED at Best Buy that have the brightness jacked through the roof for display. In real world use it should be more than fine.

Ah, well the 60 will be $2100 and not available till 4/14, probably not as good as a deal a discounted model

 

[tfinch2]

P55ST30 is $899 at Sears if your interested