While yhis big 50-inch Panasonic display accepts both 1080p and 720p sources, it only has a resolution of 720p. But for its output, image quality is uniformly excellent, and we found little to fault with the visual presentation. Color accuracy is almost perfect and the delineation of skin tones, the ultimate test of any video display, exceeds that of the other plasmas we've examined.

This set is bright and performs well even in conditions of high ambient light. No blooming is evident even with the brightness control set at the maximum. Contrast is exemplary, and blacks are deep and rich. Screen glare is minimal even in bright rooms, and artifacts and video noise are entirely absent.

Most current generation plasmas offer admirable sharpness and resolution of fine details, but this modestly-priced set is better than the norm.

The TH-50PX75U has provisions for displaying digital photographs, and while it appears to be designed primarily for home entertainment applications, it will perform well as a display monitor for business presentations as well. As with all plasma sets, care should be taken to avoid prolonged display of still frame images.

The set has a full range of audio and video inputs including two HDMI digital inputs, but does not have enough analog outputs to drive a component home theater system.

The TH-50PX75U comes equipped with the new HDAVI interface, which is used on a number of Panasonic products but has not been embraced by other manufacturers. HDAVI is basically a home automation standard for entertainment systems which allows the user to turn on the entire system with a one button command; however the function can only be invoked if all the components in the signal chain have HDAVI interfaces.

So what are the deficiencies? The audio system is an afterthought and does not complement the superb video performance. In addition, the range of video controls is less than on some competing products. Most users will appreciate the convenience of the automated video calibration of the display, but perfectionists might prefer to make their own adjustments.

Pros: image quality that is exemplary in every way
Cons: limited options for calibration

Warranty
1 year, limited