Feature :
- THX Display Certification delivers exceptional video images and true sounds
- 600Hz sub-field driving refresh rate technology for realistic movement in sports and movie actions
- 1080p Full HD resolution 1920 x 1080p with 3x HDMI v 1.3 digital inputs with swivel stand
- Mega contrast ratio of 2 million to 1 provides sharper image quality
Overview :
Tap into internet content easily and seamlessly with this stylish, Full HD model. 50" PDP 1080P Broadband HDTV, 1920 x 1080 Resolution, THX Display Certified, 600Hz Sub Field Driving, 2,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio, 1,500 cd/m2 Brightness, ATSC/NTSC/Clear QAM - 1 Tuner, Dual XD Engine, SRS TruSurround XT, 4 HDMI input
Customer Review :
I purchased this TV during the pre-christmas sales in early November 2009 for a great price (9). I was originally going to the store to purchase the Panasonic P50G15. However, the Sales Associate convinced me to buy the LG - it was the best TV for the price (the P50G15 was 99 which included a blu ray player vs. 9 for the 50PS80). With Pioneer out of the market the Panasonic Plasma's are considered the best picture quality available. However, comparing the LG P580 vs. the Panasonic G15 is comparing LG's top of the line model against a high end Panny, but not their best (V10 series). The following features gave the LG a slight edge for the price:
1. The LG PS80 utilizes a single pane of glass (The Panasonic G15 is two panes... the Panasonic V10 is also one pane). This reduces the glare in a bright room. My set is in a room with a huge Bay window. The glare is not that noticible. On particulary bright days I close the blinds. I also have a big ceiling light that hangs down directly behind the viewer. If the light is on the fullest setting, you know its there... but if you dim the light you don't notice it. Another trick I learned is to swivel the tv so you aren't perpindicular to the screen. THe light behind the screen no longer is reflected back at the viewer. With the plasma the viewing angle is superb... so with a slight viewing angle the picture is perfect and there is no glare.
2. The tv stand swivels. If you are buying a wall mount or a entertainment center that has a mount that swivels this doesn't matter. However, if you are just putting the tv with its default stand on an entertainment center the swivels is very useful. Especially for when I use a nintendo wii.... I can turn the screen so its facing away from my coffee table and I can play active games on the wii. As mentioned above... sometimes I swivel the set slightly to eliminate any glare from behind the viewer.
3. The LG PS80 supports 24P Cinematic Playback. I'm not 100% educated in this feature... theoretically this means that vidoes filmed at 24 frames per second will play smoother on the LG PS80 than sets that don't have 24P capable (I don't believe the P50G15 does, though the V10 definitely does). The CNET reviews say that the LG software isn't as consistent as the top-of-the-line competitors (like the Panasonic V10), but thusfar every movie i have watched looks amazing... and is smooth without any noticible artifacts / ghosting / etc.
4. The I/O ports are slightly different... there is 1 more HDMI on the LG. There is not an S-Video on the LG. Though with all of the HDMI and Component Video options I have no need to ever use S-Video... I would rather have the 4 HDMI's. The I/0 on the side of the set is also very useful.
The reviews from sites like CNET knock the picture quality of the PS80 because of the black levels. My father owns the last generation of the Pioneer Elite Kuro's, which are known to have some of the best black levels ever... and I can honestly say that once you calibrate the picture settings on the LG... the Picture Quality (PQ) is stunning... and comparible to the older Pioneer. The black levels of the LG are significantly better than most if not all of the LCD's on the market... my friend brought one of the top of the line Samsung LCD's during Christmas 2008 (00 vs. 9) and this LG blows the picture quality away.
The bells and whistles that the NetCast provides are pretty cool, though not necessary. The NetFlix feature is great and very convenient (G15 has ethernet but not Netflix). One push of the button on the remote brings you to the NetFlix menu... you scroll through your movies... and make a selection. Works great... with pretty good picture quality (supposedly its 720P). If you have an XBOX 360 (like I do) or other NetFlix enabled devices this isn't necessary in the TV... however it is convenient to have it in one push of the button... saves time. The Yahoo widgets I find fairly useless. I do use the Weather one frequently... which is pretty cool. Its useful to know the temperature forcast and whether or not you will have a storm... though its frustrating that you can't tell how much snow you will get (i.e. 4" to 6" of snow). The sports scores are pretty useful as well... but easier to do on a laptop... and I notice that some of them don't update too often.
One knock on the LG PS80 is that I have notice some level of temporary image retention (i.e. burn-in) especially during the first few weeks of using it (break-in period). Menu systems (especially ones like selecting a movie with the VUDU widget) would leave a light images on the screen of the menu when the screen displays something dark or goes black. However, with a little bit of time they always go away. The tv also has "ISM" methods that you can use to "wash" the screen... completely removing the retention in a few seconds. Now that my tv is "broken-in" it rarely happens anymore. I have used my XBOX 360 and Nintendo Wii a lot and have had no issues.
If you have a 50" tv you most likely have a receiver with surround sound... so speaker quality probably won't matter too much to most people. However, it should be pointed out that the sound quality of the LG 50PS80 speakers is suprisingly good. Great depth of sound... good amplification... and the sound is sharp and clear. It also has an optional "ClearVoice" mode which amplifies the sound of human voices so you can pick them out better from the sound effects / background noise. I played with this setting... thought it was neat... but leave it turned off. If you are hard of hearing it may be beneficial.
This review is getting long winded... so I won't write much more. The big thing I would recommend is calibrating the picture settings... this is true of any TV you buy. The default settings (Vivid Mode) look like crap at home. The tv has a simple calibration mode built into the menu system... this will get you started. Take time to learn how to set the ISF Expert modes. I bought a calibration disk which worked pretty well. Another option is to try the settings recommended by CNET. I started with those... and the difference in picture quality is night & day. Every tv will vary slightly so their recommended settings won't give you a perfect calibration... but its a great starting point. I've provided the CNET recommendations below:
Picture menu:
Aspect ratio: Just Size
Energy Saving: Off
Picture Mode: Expert 2
Contrast: 77
Brightness: 52
H Sharpness: 50
V Sharpness: 50
Color: 50
Tint: 0
--Expert control menu
Dynamic contrast: Off
Noise reduction: Off
Gamma: High
Black level: Low
Film Mode: On
Color Standard: HD [grayed out]
Color Gamut: Standard
Edge Enhancer: Off
xvYCC: Auto [grayed out]
Expert Pattern: Off [grayed out]
Color Filter: Off
White balance: Warm
Method: 2 Points [see review for details]
Pattern: Outer
Red Contrast: -21
Green Contrast: 2
Blue Contrast: 0
Red Brightness: -16
Green Brightness: -12
Blue Brightness: 15
Color management system
Red color: 0
Red tint: -9
Green color: -7
Green tint: -6
Blue color: 0
Blue tint: 0
Yellow color: -11
Yellow tint: 13
Cyan color: -15
Cyan tint: 4
Magenta color: -1
Magenta tint: 0
*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Sep 06, 2010 13:16:30
