Whats the SKU no?

Maybe some need to get their eyes checked...or at least take off the rose colored glasses. If I had one, I would almost certainly be satisfied, especially for the price, but let's not get carried away with reality here. These sets produce a decent picture at best, but that's about it.

Cnet's take:

CNET did not review the Hitachi P42H401 but we did review the larger model in the series.

Hitachi P50H401

Although it's inexpensive, Hitachi's P50H401 50-inch plasma produces one of the least impressive pictures we've seen lately.
Review date: 01/02/2008
Specs: Plasma TV, 50 in, 1280 x 1080, 16:9
CNET editor's take 5.8
Average

Performance
The Hitachi P50H401 turned in a disappointing picture quality effort, even for a TV in its price range. Its black-level performance was among the worst we've seen, its color is inaccurate and it appears a bit softer than other 50-inch plasmas with standard 1,366x768 resolution.

We began our evaluation by adjusting the user-menu controls of the P50H401 to achieve the best possible picture in our completely darkened theater. The Hitachi lacks fine color temperature controls, so we weren't able to get a more-accurate grayscale than the "Standard," preset, which measured too blue. For our complete settings, click here or scroll down to the Tips section below.

To formally evaluate the P50H401, we set it up next to a few other HDTVs we had on hand, including the Panasonic TH-50PH9UK, a 50-inch plasma, the Olevia 252T FHD, the Philips 47PFL9732D, and the Westinghouse TX-47F430S, all large-screen LCDs, as well as the Sony KDS-55A3000, our color reference. We watched Hot Fuzz on HD DVD courtesy of the Toshiba HD-XA2 playing at 1080i resolution.

Our biggest complaint with the Hitachi's picture concerns its poor black-level performance. In dark scenes, such as the one in Sergeant Angel's bedroom during Chapter 6, the black areas and shadows looked significantly lighter than any of the other HDTVs in the room. The lighter "blacks" (actually they were more like dark gray) also robbed the picture of impact and muted the colors.

The accuracy of the Hitachi's primary color of green was also an issue. Later in the chapter when Angel goes jogging, for example, the lush fields looked entirely too yellow as opposed to the deep green we saw on the Sony. Even the Panasonic, whose green also warranted a "poor" in our Geek Box tests, looked significantly more natural than the Hitachi. The P50H401's bluish grayscale made the pasty skin tones of the lead British actors appear even pastier--an effect exacerbated by the set's tendency toward undersaturation.

The Hitachi also exhibited more false contouring than any HDTV we've seen in a long time. During the beginning of Hot Fuzz, for example, the light around the logo became disclosed and dropped abruptly into the black background, instead of fading naturally. We noticed similar contours elsewhere in the film, especially in dark areas, such as the shadows on the hero's radiator in his darkened bedroom.

To try to get a handle on the P50H401's wacky native resolution, which the company says is designed specifically for 1080i sources, we compared it directly with the Panasonic, a standard 1,366x768-resolution 50-inch plasma, from a close seating distance of about 7 feet. With most 1080i sources we watched from our DirecTV HR20, including a hockey match and an episode of Nothing but Trailers on HDNet, as well as a recording of Planet Earth from DiscoveryHD, the Panasonic seemed a bit sharper, especially on sharp-edged text and areas of fine detail, like close-ups including hair and a shot of a craggy mountainside. Like most differences in resolution, it was subtle, and some of it can be attributed to the Panasonic's superior black levels (higher contrast ratio adds punch and increases the perception of detail), but our overall impression was that the Hitachi's image appeared softer. On better material, namely Hot Fuzz and the main montage from the Digital Video Essentials HD DVD at 1080i, again the Panasonic looked sharper, for example in the tiny links of chain on the barge behind the dancing couple in New York harbor. We also noticed flicker on the Hitachi, again most prominently in menus like the DVE selection screen, that wasn't visible on the Panasonic. Overall, we couldn't see any benefit in program material to the Hitachi's "HD1080" resolution.

Our impressions of program material were backed-up by test patterns. The Hitachi failed to resolve any detail in the highest-resolution area of the 1080i multiburst pattern from our Sencore VP403 signal generator; the Panasonic, for its part, did resolve a few lines of detail in that area (as much as can be expected from a TV of its resolution). Video processing on the P50H401 also left something to be desired. The TV failed both of the 1080i deinterlacing tests from the HQV Blu-ray Disc, introducing serious flicker into the highest-resolution areas of the patterns. Many TVs we've reviewed fail the film-based portion of the test, but few fail video as well. As a result of these findings, we recommend P50H401 users choose 720p resolution sources when possible.

In its favor, the Hitachi's antireflective screen did a better job of attenuating bright room lighting than the standard plasma glass of the Panasonic. It wasn't as effective as the screens we've seen on Pioneer and some Panasonic models, but it still helped.

With standard-def sources, tested via the component video input at 480i using the HQV DVD, the Hitachi performed below average. There was serious flicker in the color bar pattern, and although the set did resolve every line of the DVD format, details in the stone bridge and the grass from the Detail test appeared softer than on the other HDTVs. With video-based material, including a waving American flag, the set didn't do much to smooth out jaggies from moving diagonal lines. Noise reduction on the other hand was pretty good, and the High mode had a noticeable impact in cleaning up the motes and snowy noise in the scenes of sunsets and skies--although it did soften the image a bit, as usual. We'd recommend avoiding the MPEG NR setting entirely, however, because the softness it introduced was extreme. The Hitachi also successfully engaged 2:3 pulldown detection.

We tested the P50H401 as a PC monitor using the HDMI input from the DVI output of our test PC, and the results were disappointing. We again noticed significant flicker with a 1,920x1,080 source, enough to make the image unwatchable, and we blame it on the "HD1080" resolution. The best resolution we tested was 1,280x720, which still evinced mild flicker that would be acceptable only for short periods of use. With that resolution text still looked blocky and relatively unclear at 12-point sizes, although we did appreciate that there was no overscan. In sum, if you want to get more than the bare minimum of PC monitor use out of your flat-panel display, just about any other model will perform better than the P50H401."

SDpwnsFW said:OP, this is a YMMV. this needs to be included in the title or I am reporting this to the mods. I went to 3 different cc's and none had this model. they havent had these tv's in for months.

And then

SDpwnsFW said:This deal is a YMMV. This deal is a YMMV. This deal is a YMMV. This deal is a YMMV.

I tried to leave it alone, but but after the 2nd post...
Oh no, not report it to the mods. Anything but that. Please, anything.

lousygolfer said:
It's not clear if your comment is a general one or is addressed at my comments specifically, but if it's the latter, you need to read more carefully - I did not make that statement and since Sony, Sharp and Toshiba no longer make plasmas (or at least consumer plasmas - Sony still makes commercial plasmas) if I was stating that Hitachis do not always compare with the flat panels from those brands, I was saying that some LCD's may have better images than this Hitachi.




It was a general statement, not a specific retort to your post. I brought it up in reference to a commonly raised justification which goes something like this: "well, the Hitachi plasma might not provide Panasonic or Pioneer black levels, but it's still better than the typical LCD", when that's not a reliable assumption in the current panel marketplace.


lousygolfer said:

As for ridiculing someone who claims that not all blacks are the same level of darkness, well, if you forgive the pun, that is one of the most inaccurately black-and-white statements I've heard in a while. Saying that black is black and there are no shades of it, is like saying that red is red and there are no shades of red. Right now I'm watching an episode of Law & Order SVU showing a scene at the station at night and the parts of the display that show the dark shadows are truly dark and are black in color. I'm sure other TV's would displays those shadows a bit darker, but they still show up as black and not some shade of gray or charcoal on my TV.



I don't think I claimed "all black are the same level of darkness" or should be. That would be stupid. There are indeed shades of darkness, shades of black (or at least, many shades of grey, if not black, per se). If I truly expected black to always be uniformly BLACK, then my point about the inability of some lcds and some plasmas not being able to delineate subtle but distinct variations in darker colors within dark scenes would be pointless (say, a man wearing navy blue suit, with brown hankie, charcoal tie, black shoes, etc.). Afterall, if black was always displayed as pitch black, then there would be no room for subtle details being revealed throughout a dark screen image.

If the way you depict your Hitachi's performance with respect to that SVU scene is indeed accurate, then that's encouraging. I don't think my lcd can do that. But there's a problem with taking people at their word. Everyone sees and evaluates these things differently. For example, some people absolutely cannot stand the loss of contrast, the slight sheen that flattens out the vibrancy of the picture when moving slightly off to the side when viewing most LCD panels. Many others say that they don't see it, or it's so subtle as to be not worth fretting about. Are either lying or delusional? I doubt it. For some, it simply registers more acutely while for others, it doesn't. Same with standards and assessments for black levels. Same with visibility of color wheels in DLP. Same with green/yellow trails in fast motion plasma scenes. Same with tolerance for glass screen reflection. The list goes on....


Bottom line - you can't count on any one persons take on these questions. You must view for yourself, provided you have soem understanding of settings and what to look for. If you do seek confirmation from outside sources, the greater the consensus about any particular picture attribute, the more likely your opinion will be similar. But there's certainly no guarantee of that.

 

lousygolfer said:... this is the best value you are likely to find on a 42" flat panel at the present time. To the extent this TV has weaknesses, they are not so severe that they would prevent you from enjoying what you are watching. Anyone complaining too hard about the contrast levels on this TV either hasn't set it up properly or they are the kind of person who is more more interested in listening to test tones to detect distortion levels than they are in listening to music.

Some have higher standards than others. Or at least have higher standards about certain things, and not so much with regard to others things. Most of us are like that.

If it seems like I'm challenging you, it's only to the extent that I'm trying to assess for myself how applicable your criteria for evaluation mirrors my own. The more similar they are, the more likely it would be that I would find satisfaction purchasing one of these Hitachis as well.

ps: why do I let myself into these things??

Checked stores in San Antonio and surrounding areas. 42" was coming up at $688 but they were all gone. I did see some store did a special order so that maybe a possibility if the location's district warehouse has some, but they're not supposed to do special orders on clearance items like this.

If you don't have HDTV yet, this is a good deal. otherwise, wait a bit longer you'll get a good deal on 1080p just for future %$&^%+*

I dont really need TV right now. Has anyone found a way to stack other discounts on this?=)

I have the 46" version of this TV from the Sears deal last year and the picture quality is excellent - especially with terrestrial HD or an HD DVD, but is still excellent with regular DVD. I would get the 50" or bigger in a heartbeat if there were deals again like last year (not "instead of" but "in addition to").

I've had this set since last year. People who come over are blown away by the picture quality. Maybe in true numbers game other sets will show better in tests, but when set-up correctly and with solid picture signal this set is great for the money (I paid about this same price).

lousygolfer said:It's not clear if your comment is a general one or is addressed at my comments specifically, but if it's the latter, you need to read more carefully - I did not make that statement and since Sony, Sharp and Toshiba no longer make plasmas (or at least consumer plasmas - Sony still makes commercial plasmas) if I was stating that Hitachis do not always compare with the flat panels from those brands, I was saying that some LCD's may have better images than this Hitachi.

The Sony's used the same ALiS panels as the Hitachis, FWIW.