Plasma TV Review

Toshiba 50HP66 50″ Plasma TV

Slick looking, contemporary design, Crystal clear picture quality Toshiba has impressed us again with 50HP66. This 50” plasma TV has two stereo speakers with 10 watts of power per channel and has SRS virtual surround sound. The excellent audio/video performance of this model comes from the connections option that is available. Connections options such as

• Composite A/V: 3 (1 front) in, 1 out
• S-Video: 3 (1 front) in
• Component Video: 2 in
• HDMI: 2 in
• RF: 1 in
• PC VGA: 1 in
• PC audio in: 1
• Digital audio out: 1 coaxial, 1 optical

Gives a perfect signal with just one cable and has no degradation.
In this plasma TV package, along with the remote control and power cable, you can also find tabletop stand that can be removed for wall mounting. Many features have come hand-in-hand to give a perfect picture quality for this plasma TV. This set offers five Theatre Wide modes that expand letterboxed images–which are particularly useful when watching narrow letterboxed Panavision or Cinema Scope films. The 3D/YC comb filter separated brightness and colour domains better in 3D domain to eliminate cross-colour, cross-luminance and dot-crawl distortion. 3D/YC also has the talent of determining the existence and extent of video noise.

The technology is used in such a way that the field-by-field comparison of the television image is performed to remove the horizontally and vertically hanging dots as well as dot crawls resulting in razor sharp images. 3:2 pull down helps in digitally correcting the duplication removing the redundant information to display a frame-accurate picture. This plasma set features Toshiba’s Cable Clear DNR+ technology that optimizes poor NTSC signals from antenna or cable sources to eliminate video noise thus resulting in a crystal clear picture.
Regarding the sound quality, this plasma uses SRS WOW virtual surround technology that has three sound expanding systems. They are SRS 3D, True Bass and Focus. Each of these three systems performs a unique function thus extracting the buried highs and lows.

SRS 3D- creates a three dimensional sound field from just two speakers, thus giving the multi-speaker effect. True Bass- helps in producing powerful-low frequency sound thus giving the effect of sub bass woofer. Focus – performs an intelligent operation which directs the energy from the speakers of the television set in a vertical direction up towards the listener’s ears. Thus these three technologies give the listener the feeling of hearing a multi speaker surround sound system.
Though there are minor draw backs like confusing input layout, factory setting’s picture quality not being quite good and no support for PAL, it is overall an excellent TV to own.

Toshiba Plasma Technology
New Toshiba Plasma panel

with 1000 cm/m2 brightness (peak) boasts a contrast ratio of 10,000:1, for spectacular brightness and contrast.
3D Y/C Comb Filter

Filter processes the picture to minimize unwanted artefacts, improving edge detail and smoothness.
Convenience Features
ATSC/NTSC/QAM Tuner

Allows tuning of off-air, and unscrambled HD cable channels for increased flexibility.
4-Item Glow Universal Remote

This universal remote will operate many of your home theater components and, includes glow keys for ease of operation at night.
Audio System Features

Stable Sound

This feature maintains television volume within a preset range regardless of the source signal.
SRS WOW

SRS WOW technology greatly improves the performance of the TV’s sound system. SRS WOW, True Bass, and FOCUS combine to create a three-dimensional sound stage, dramatically improve bass response, and better direct the sound toward the TV watcher, to deliver a superior sound quality compared to a standard TV sound system.
Terminals and Connections

PC Input (15 Pin D-Sub)
for use as a computer monitor for added flexibility.
Dual HDMI Digital Inputs
Includes both uncompressed digital video and digital audio in one convenient cable for connections from today’s best home theatre components.

Plasma Display Specifications

Screen Size : 50″ diagonal

Screen Aspect : 16:9

Contrast Ratio : 10000:1

Brightness : 1000cd/m2

Pixel Pitch : [not published]

H Sync : [not published]

V Sync : [not published]

Video Standards : NTSC, HDTV

Data Signals : VGA, SVGA. XGA

TV Scan Lines : 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i

Input Terminals

Composite Video : 3 (RCA)

S-Video : 3 (4-pin mini DIN)

Component Video : 2 (RCA x 3)

VGA RGB Signal : 1 (15-pin mini d-Sub)

HDMI Interface : 2

Stereo Audio In : 3 (RCA L/R)

PC Audio In : 1 (mini stereo plug)

Output Terminals

Composite Video : 1 (RCA)

Stereo Audio : 1 (RCA L/R)

Digital Audio : 1 (BOTH)

Plasma Monitor Accessories

Audio Amplifier : [not published]

Speakers : Built In Speakers

Mounting Options : Table Stand Included

Dimensions and General Specs.

Power Supply : 100-120V @ 50-60Hz

Power Consumption : [not published]

Dimensions : 49.45″ x 32.31″ x 4.96″

Weight : 95.92 lbs.

FCC Class : FCC Class B, Home Use

Toshiba 42HP83P Plasma Television

With excellent combination of excellence and worth Toshiba have had a great reputation in the television market for a very long time now. With such evidence, Toshiba bringing the revolution to the plasma industry have provided us with a number high quality Plasma Televisions. A perfect remote plan to the sleek overlay Plexiglas shielding screen has been well dealt with. The 42HP83P replaces the previous model – 42HP82P, as the third generation offering of Toshiba 42″ plasma.

The antiglare feature with this plasma is one of those features that could attract you firstly. Cutting out background ambient light with such perfect characteristics in addition to avoiding the hazy. The picture clarity is one of the main strengths of this plasma TV. Even cutting down the picture sharpness by 25% from the 50% which is set as factory default has not much an effect on the picture quality; the picture stills remains excellently clear.

Motion pictures with fast action sequences have no trouble fitting themselves on this Plasma TV. Disc handling by the Toshiba is well equipped to meet high standards. When tested with other displays, this Plasma TV has a perfect animal colour rendition with stellar admittance through the pixels was inevitable. Overall rendering a dazzling smooth picture was achieved easily. Moreover the only complaint about this Plasma TV is that it had with the redundant White Balance. Very high black levels of this plasma TV are definitely satisfying and yet there is a tendency of it to lose small quantity of definition in dark areas of images. An over the AIR ATSC signal helps provide True High Definition crystal clear images.

The Plasma TV offers 5 aspect ratios: Theatre wide 1, 2, 3 Full and Natural. Theatre wide 2 acts as a zoom feature, Full aspect ratio for 16:9 (DVD) and Natural aspect ratio is for 4:3 videos. With clear evidence of high sophistication and design being poured in by the Toshiba designers, this product is definitely a worth to your money invested.

Description: 42-inch HDTV Plasma Display, Widescreen 16:9 Format
Resolution: 1024 x 768 (WXGA)
Includes: Built in NTSC tuner, 2 X 10W speakers, plasma tabletop stand, universal remote control
Visible screen size: 42″
widescreen aspect ratio 16:9
(optional) Wall Hanging Bracket
Dimensions: 1318(w) X 698(h) X 124(d) mm
No Signal Off/Mute

Product Features

• 42-inch widescreen high-definition plasma monitor; 52 x 27.5 x 4.9 inches (W x H x D)
• Colour Stream HD component-video inputs provide ultimate picture quality from DTV receivers and progressive-scan DVD players
• Crystal Scan HDSC converts all inputs signals (including 480i/p) to 1080i video resolution
• 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 340 CD/m2 brightness, and 1,024 x 768 pixel resolution
• 10 watts per channel audio power x 2

Technical Details

• Brand Name: Toshiba
• Model: 42HP83P
• Display Technology: Plasma (PDP)
• Display Size: 42 inches
• Image Aspect Ratio: 16:9
• HDTV Compatible: Y
• Speakers Included: 2 speakers
• Height: 27.5 inches
• Width: 51.9 inches
• Depth: 4.9 inches
• Weight: 108.5 pounds