Customer Reviews
Very satisfied 
2008-07-09
Very happy customer. Briefly here are my comments:
PROS:
A) Good Price on Amazon
B) Great quality set
C) THX is great quality
D) Very usable set. Controls and menus very well laid out
E) Remote control is best thought out i ever used
F) Sound is very good on this set too
G) Image viewer is good.
H) On screen sound change only lasts 1 second. Just right amount of time of a visual cue.
I) Surround bezel is very classy
J) Set doesn't get too hot (it has fans - but mine never kicks in yet)
K) Colors are very good. Blu Ray is amazing
L) Amazon shipped to me in Carolinas in 4 days. Setup was ok. Set was perfect.
Cons:
A) Light reflection of glass is very strong. Set is great in dark room, but does pick up reflections very easy. You'll find yourself moving lamps around and keeping shades down more that you used to.
B) Most expensive TV i ever bought. But it maybe 3 times bigger that i ever bought before (i love it)
TH-50PZ800U - review from an engineer's perspective 2008-06-28
Panasonic Viera TH-50PZ800U 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV
June 28, 2008
Owned for 45 days
PICTURE QUALITY
I can not say anything negative about the picture quality... it's a ten for today's technology.
SOUND
I dealt with a Panasonic rep when I made a deal on the 800U and he indicated that the sound was superior to the PH-50PX60U I already had... yeah, it's a tad better but not by much. My 14 year old Sony KV-27HFR tuber still blows them away in sound. But I guess most people don't use their flat panel TV for sound like I do... this ones in the bedroom and I don't have an audio system hooked up to it.
BEAUTY
The cabinet is nice... much nicer than I expected. It's got that sheet of glass front rather than several inches of bezel protruding around the glass that most flat panel TVs have nowadays. There is maybe a 1/4 inch low-profile black bezel around the glass front... very new looking. There is still a 3-inch bezel surrounding the picture tube (if that's what they still call them) - but it's underneath the sheet of glass front so when the TV is off it looks much nicer than that standard bezel look.
ANTI-GLARE SCREEN
The anti-glare screen is better than my PH-50PX60U... but not much. Don't expect it to be much of an improvement. One thing I did notice is that from the side, you don't as much depth in the double images... not much to comment on but it is another improvement. Cleaning the screen can and is hard to do. I used regular Windex after testing a small area. Using a soft micro-fiber cloth, it took a lot of reapplying Windex to get the finger smudges off the screen. Our hands left a lot of finger prints from hanging the TV. If you don't get the fingerprints completely cleaned off - then they leave an iridescent sheen on the screen that quite visible. This kinda reminds me of the anti-glare coatings on camera lenses.
MPG VIEWER
The TH-50PZ800U has a decent MPG viewer... it's not great but it's a step better because it "can" fill the screen now. Pictures don't get shrunk - they just display as-is. I've started cropping mine with ACDSEE or Photoshop at 1920x1080 so they fit perfectly. This year is a big improvement over the older viewer SW they had before. Controls via the remote are minimal... seems like you can start, stop and move forward & backward... and set the slide show delay in seconds.
The picture viewer on my old PH-50PX60U sucked. Even though I would feed it a 2272x1704 picture - it would shrink it down to about 1/2 the size of the screen... grrr. Guess back then they didn't have any good SW engineers working at Panasonic.
TV ERGONOMICS
About as nice as you can get for a plasma today. Black rounded back that doesn't look bad when seen from the side. The front panel that folds down so you can access the SD memory slot is ok... but again, I give Panasonic a ding in the design - why did you not recess the SD slot a bit more so I could close the door when the SD memory card is inserted but not pushed in? Why oh why Panasonic guy??? This means that I can not store my SD card with my reformatted pics "in" the TV's SD slot... unless of course I leave the door cover open. Oh well. And why don't they give us a little slot under the door that holds a dozen or so of the SD cards... I've got 10 or so now and would like to use the smaller ones to organize my pics... and keep them in the TV. Oh well.
WHAT'S BEHIND DOOR NUMBER 1
The front panel swings up to expose some external connectors and the important TV controls - just in case the dog carries the remote away.
Menu TV OK/Video v-Vol-^ v-Channel-^
1-S-video connector
1-Video L-Sound-R (RCA PLUGS)
1-HDMI connector
1-SD memory card slot
SERVICE & MY DOG EARS
Don't know if it's just me or what - but after the TVs been on a while, I begin hearing a high pitched noise coming from the TV. Kind of like a low pitch noise you hear from a transformer outside - but at the high frequency end. Mute the sound and it's less but still there. Turn up the sound and it louder. In fact, this is why I have the 800U... the noise from the old 60U was driving me crazy. But I must say that the local Panasonic customer service rep was great and he replaced the TV for me near the end of the 1 year warranty. I just paid a couple of hundred dollars and upgraded to 1080p. Again - Panasonic service was top notch! But if you haven't seen inside a 50 plasma yet, let me tell you - there's a whole lot of 2-inch high voltage capacitors in there... enough to make some serious high pitched electronic hum for sure. Don't let this sway you from a decision on this - no one else hears it but me... hence the dog ears.
CONNECTIONS
It's got everything I want... just check the published specs. The only thing I would recommend they change next time is to angle the connectors on the back down a bit so things like the HDMI plug don't stick out so far. This would allow the tilting wall mount to tilt down a bit more - right now it's resting the connectors against the wall. Not a big deal just a suggestion for Panasonic next year.
REMOTE
The remote mostly sucks in the normal remote ways, ie, the ergonomics, functions and button positions are poorly laid out. And where the frig did the sleep timer button go - it existed on my PH-50PX60U remote. So guess what - I'm using my old remote for the new TV... just for the sleep timer function... that's the only reason I pick it up. For everything else I use my FIOS TV Motorola QIP6416-1 DVR remote... but like most all remotes - it does not have a sleep button either - grrr.
FINAL CONCLUSION
Overall TV satisfaction... a 10.
Suggestion for next years model - get some decent ergonomics engineers on staff and build the worlds first award winning remote :)
Excellent TV. Excellent buying experience 2008-06-17
I could not be happier with my TV and the total buying experience from Amazon. It is rare when I get a chance to say, "Everything worked perfectly"! The TV arrived 3 days earlier than the original delivery date. I received a call from CEVA to schedule the delivery for the next day and they showed up right on time. The picture and colors on the TV are fantastic and the sound is great when run through a surround system
Amazon and Panasonic Deliver! 2008-06-17
I was one of the folks who jumped on the "pre-order" sale back in early spring, before Panny was actually shipping product. I had narrowly missed the amazing Panasonic Plasma/Blu-Ray deal a few weeks earlier, so I was determined not to miss out. As soon as I saw the price I jumped.
First things first: as many others have reported it was not until late May before Amazon received units from Panasonic. Nonethless, I am happy to report that after "confirming" my order and agreeing to the slight delay, I was surprised in early June with a shipping notice. My unit arrived within a week - well ahead of estimated schedule.
The delivery itself was fantastic. A very pleasant young lady called me one evening to schedule delivery. I picked the day I wanted and she told me it would arrive between 10 and 2. They called me about 30 minutes out and arrived right in the middle of their delivery window at about noon. After a quick check for damage I was assembling the pedestal stand. I can't recommend the delivery and service enough.
Oh yeah - the TV! What can I say, the Panny delivers the goods and far exceeds expectations. You know the specs, so I won't bother repeating them here. I do want to mention how nice it is to look on the back and see 3 HDMI ports (the 4th is up front). It also has a digital out for sound, which is both convenient and necessary IMO. My one disappointment is with the built in speakers. Not enough oomph for me, but I may just be spoiled by my own surround setup.
I have seen this very unit in the store and I was blown away when I hooked it up to DirecTV and began sampling. I have at this point seen all the HD channels that D*TV provides and the only way I can describe it is breathtaking. Literally. I found myself watching some of the programming with my mouth wide open. The colors are amazing. I was slightly concerned that even a latest generation plasma would lack the punch that I had seen from some of the nicer LCDs in stores. No need to worry - the improvements in this year's model will blow you away. I was lucky enough to watch the Stanley Cup (game 7), the NBA Finals, and The U.S. Open all in HD, and I can attest to the superb quality for live sports. Movies and other programming will never be the same after watching them on this TV. I caught a repeat of SNL the other night and it was almost creepy how crisp and realistic the picture was.
The unit itself is gorgeous. I might have to get a new house to match my TV. :-) I started with a pedestal and have since moved on to wall mounting. Both were a breeze, although the unit is heavy enough to require two people to lift.
SD programming is good, although I have developed a very strong bias for HD content, so I find myself watching a lot less of that. I also hooked up my 480p DVD player and I am pleasantly surprised with the performance. I can't wait to get my hands on a Blu-Ray to see what 1080P and 24p playback will look like.
I have to get back to my TV now...
Excellent TV 2008-06-13
I purchased this TV 2 weeks ago. Shipping was great (arrived early) and everything works and looks great. The TV has a great picture and you definitely get a great price from Amazon. Setup was easy and the THX picture setting looks great. I couldn't be happier with the TV.
Panasonic 800 Series HDTV Review & Configuration Help 2008-06-13
The PZ800 series meets the THX Certified Display specifications, signifying the highest standards of performance and quality. The PZ800 Plasma televisions feature an improved native contrast ratio of 30,000:1; Game Mode; VIERA Link; a PC Input, four HDMI connections and an all new one sheet of glass design concept.
Thanks Amazon for A-1 Service! 2008-06-12
I was worried after reading some reviews as recent as May 23rd that said bad things about getting their TVs, or not getting them. But Amazon really came through with flying colors, shipping the TV out within a couple days and it got here AHEAD of schedule by 4 days! The white glove service was AWESOME. The guys took the TV out, put it on its stand, plugged it in, pretty much everything but watch it with me. CEVA was fantastic. The TV got here from one coast to the other in 5 days or so and I would -still- be waiting ofr Abe's of Maine or 123 Direct to ship it out if I didn't cancel on them BOTH in favor of Amazon. The other guys also charge you -$200- extra for the white glove service Amazon gives for FREE. If you want a great deal (2,288) on this one, keep checking a few times a day as Amazon's price goes up and down depending on who their supplier is. 2,288 seems to be the lowest I've seen yet.
Great product and service 2008-06-10
O.K., you know the TH-50PZ800U is a great HDTV. Now where to buy?
Based on my recent purchase, amazon.com is definitely the best place. Amazon is an authorized online retailer with white-glove delivery, and their price is excellent. The freight company used by amazon, CEVA, delivered my HDTV on June 9, 2008 right on schedule. The shipping carton for the TV was in perfect condition! In a very short time my Plasma was inside my home and plugged in. The TV is excellent! Thank you Panasonic, amazon, and CEVA!
THX CERTIFIED 2008-06-04
I was a big fan of LCD's but when I saw that Panasonic was coming out with the first THX certified TV, I plunged on it. I got a great deal via Panasonic since my works for a company that gives employee discounts for Panasonic TV's. The TV is great. There's a reflection but most of our TV watching is at night. A TV at this price should also have a remote that lights up at night but I can live w/o it since I have a Universal Remote.
The THX mode is great.
The bezzel and the panel are nicely blended.
The remote is very easy to use.
4 HDMI's are great.
We just saw the Red Planet and it was great. I would recommend this TV.
Did anyone who purchased this TV on "Pre sale" get it yet? 
2008-05-22
With my experience the same as the other reviewers, I'm beginning to wonder if anyone got their TV yet (from Amazon). No reviews about how they ordered their set on April 1st and they got it in a timely fashion or at all? While I'm waiting for my set, I'm searching for other retailers who are near the price I was promised from Amazon, and it looks like BB is going to be it (surprisingly). I was singing the praises of Amazon to my friends and family, but after this, I won't be buying from them ever again.
