panasonic 50 inch vs. hitachi 55

Will you care or even perceive a difference at a 12 to 14 feet viewing distance? Better visit the dealer and vary your viewing distance, if immersion in movies is a goal rather than casual viewing. The SMPTE and THX viwing-distance calculators suggest either of these is too small for a 12 to 14 foot viewing distance.

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I also own the 55" Hitachi plasma and love it. I compared it directly (side-by-side) with the Panasonic 50" and felt the Hitachi picture was better. For the price and size range I think it's very difficult to beat Hitachi.

I compared the two and ended up with the panasonic. I think the picture if more vivid and lifelike on the panasonic, more like looking at a photo

Check out this link to see who is buying what. http://www.plasmatvbuyingguide.com/index.html. You will see the Panny's are the best rated plasma's on the planet. The 9UK, 60U and 600U Panny's use the same engine, but have different features. I sell the Panny's and have had excellent success with them. A great picture.

As for the Hitachi's. They do have a wonderful picture, but so do most HDTV plasma's. The Hitachi is one of the better one's out there, though.

If I'm not mistaken the Hitachi and Pioneer Elite plasmas are made in the same factory in Japan using virtually identical parts. Having said that, I believe the Pioneer Elite plasmas have the best PQ on the market. They also charge out the ying-yang for it too.