New Plasma: 1080p or 750?

Well the cable company compresses their signal up to five times. That's why they look bad. You should see 720p over an antennae. No compression.

Joe,

I just bought a Panasonic TH-50PZ800U after looking closely at the Panasonic and Pioneer units. The Panasonic was a fantastic value and is very well done. I'm extremely happy with it.

If you can afford it, go for 1080p and you won't regret it.

In the Panasonic line, the "800U" model has THX certification, but the step-up 850U model drops this in favor of added equipment that allows you to connect your TV to the internet and download various content directly into your TV. I thought this was stupid as I plan to keep the TV for many years, and chances are, this feature will be obsolete in just a couple of years -- the same way I never recommended buying a TV with built-in VCR!

Anyway I would suggest avoiding LG and go for Samsung, Panasonic or Pioneer if you possibly can.

Hey, thanks Muiter. I had already decided on the Panasonic 42PZ80U. I have a shirt tail relative that I can get one from for around $1k. then the old Sony goes in the basement for the kids.

At what viewing distance?

You need to sit within about 5' of a 42" plasma to visually resolve 1920x1080. For most installations you won't be close enough to tell the difference, and want to buy the set with the fewest other problems (green noise, bad black levels).

Hey Drew, I've heard this before, lot's of threads that say you can't see the difference between a 108p/720 ona 42". However, I have viewed a: 50" 1080P, 42" 1080p and a 42" 720 Panasonics side by side and I could quite clearly see better definition and overall higher quality picture in the 42" 1080p, all standing between 5' to 15'