Review Of LG 50PS80 Television

LG 50PS80 is one of the best plasmas in town. Interactive features like Netflix and its sleek look make it hard to resist.

Sum and Substance:

Thumbs Up:

Interactive features, HDMI and PC connectivity, Attractive looks.

Thumbs Down:

Had problems with processing full HD content, cramped buttons on the remote control, everything else rocks!

Inside the Trunk:

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

LG 50PS80 is plasma TV which deals with full HD (1080p) content. It can also take 720p and 1080i resolutions.
Other stats are as follows:
Image Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Dynamic Contrast Ratio 2000000:1
Brightness 1500 cd/m2
Color Depth 10-bit color
Backlight Life 100,000 hour(s)
Analog TV Tuner NTSC
Video Interface HDMI , S-Video , Component , Composite
2 X 10 watt speakers, Dolby Digital, Surround Sound
Connectivity for PC input and 4 X HDMI
Flat Panel Mount Interface 400 x 400 mm
Width 59.1 in
Depth 11.3 in
Height 34.7 in
Weight 95 lbs

Razzle Dazzle:

The LG 50 inch Plasma panel has to be the sexiest looking panels around. The glass panel on the screen stretches a bit behind the panel too. The speakers are hidden and the panel rests on a shiny stand that swivels. The back of the TV has 3 HDMI ports, a pc input, and a LAN port for Internet access. There is no wireless internet provision and the side panel includes one HDMI, a USB and AV input but doesn’t have a S-Video.

Inside Dope:

Purchasing a product like Plasma TV is a once in a lifetime deal. At least you will never end up buying a plasma twice or thrice in your life unless you are born with a silver spoon. So it is necessary to do good research before you buy a panel. So lets see if this TV is worth your precious money.

This plasma panel is massive 50 inch long. This should add to the viewing joy and it does! Watching HD content on this screen is pure joy and we hardly had any issues with it.

The plasma HD had some problems with processing full HD content. HD content is of 1080p (1920X1080) resolution and the panel couldn’t take it smoothly. The panel is supposed to take three formats 720p (standard definition), 1080i (HD ready resolution) and 1080p (Full HD)

The panel has PC connectivity and you can hook up your TV to this panel and enjoy the movies stored in your PC. It also has four HDMI ports in the back. There are 2 ten watt speakers on this TV, total comes to 20 watts.

One thing that we must mention is that when we left an image paused on the panel for 30 seconds or more the image got bad and started forming trace signs but we guess this is not a problem since no one will hold up a screen and start staring at it for long time.

The menu on the panel was very exhaustive and we were often confused using it. No doubt there were buttons for every need but LG should have put some explanations on how to use these. Most frequently used functions aspect ratio, picture and sound modes, the timer are all present, so even if you loose the remote you won’t be missing too much except you will have to walk up to the TV every time to use the functions.

Also, there are color settings for expert users where in you play through the blue-only, green-only, red-only settings to help set the color balance. However, all these settings are for the advanced users and will appear all jargons for layman.

We were not so happy with the remote control of the plasma TV. The buttons seemed cramped and gave you the feel of the QWERTY sized mobile phone keyboard. LG could have done better to come up with a sleeker remote for this sexy TV.

Another exciting feature of this TV is its interactive features. It has Netflix, Yahoo Widgets, Vudu where in you can order content online and watch it on the TV. No other panel has such interactive service till date and if you want this service, you will have to hook up a console or alike.

So till rivals come up with such interactive service, there is an edge that this product has. For Netflix, you will need to attach the tv to a pc to in order browse and choose titles. With Netflix you can seamlessly browse from the website and choose the movies and the TV shows that you want to watch.

With Vudu you get high definition content and the picture quality indeed is superb. If you compare a content ordered from Vudu to a Blu-Ray disc you will realize that there is hardly any difference. However, there is a catch, the price. Vudu is a little pricey but all the high quality content that you get, it is worth paying.

Talking about LGs Yahoo widgets, we must say that it is better than Sony or Samsung TV.

But the PS80 doesn’t have wireless capability. If you want to cut the ethernet cable then you will have to add your own wireless bridge

We also tested the panel for color tests and it came out with all guns blazing. The color reproductions of the panel were very natural. Aspects such as paleness of the skin look natural and don’t appear too red or too shiny as in case of some TVs. The primary and the secondary color usage on the panel too is natural.

The power consumption of this panel is more than others in its genre, but there is power saving feature. When the power saving mode is switched on, the panel detects outside light and adjusts accordingly. LG is doing its two bits to go green.

Nitty Gritty:

This Plasma panel is the best panel or definitely among the top three, if not the best. We had no issues with it accept that it was a bit struggling when processing full HD content and the remote control buttons were a bit too close to each other.

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