I was going to pull the trigger on a Panny 800u but,

[snowball_iv]

Ok so i was going to get the panny plasma 50" 800U but best buy only had the floor model left and i wasnt going to buy that one and they are all out of them. So my question is should i bump up to the 850u or bump down to the 85 or 80U. Do they have the same picture quality? I know there are some features missing in the 80 and 85. I figured if i got a the cheaper one i would spend the extra on like a nice pair of speakers or reciver. I would really like whoevers input.

[plowmanjoe]

would you consider buying the 800u online?

[DrinkMore]

Originally Posted by snowball_iv

Ok so i was going to get the panny plasma 50" 800U but best buy only had the floor model left and i wasnt going to buy that one and they are all out of them. So my question is should i bump up to the 850u or bump down to the 85 or 80U. Do they have the same picture quality? I know there are some features missing in the 80 and 85. I figured if i got a the cheaper one i would spend the extra on like a nice pair of speakers or reciver. I would really like whoevers input.

85U is better than 80U.

850U has all the "bells and whistles", the 800U is lacking some. Does it justify the price increase? No. You will never use them most likely. 850U is designed for those die hard, have to have every feature on a tv person.

Now, 80U/85U have a beveled frame, like a photo frame. There is an edge all the way around the TV. The 800U/850U have a full sheet of glass covering the entire TV. No bevel. It's gorgeous. Think iPhone/iPod touch.

They also have different technical aspects. Not aware of all of them so I will let someone else chime in on that

With that said, any Panasonic plasma is going to look great! Pick one that works for you. If you have wiggle room, even better. Just do the research and pick one that fits your budget/needs.

[snowball_iv]

Thanks drinkmore, and i wanted to buy in store that way i can make payments. Ya I really liked the 800 because you could get a 58" but the 85U doesn't come that big. I am upgrading from a 42" 1080i, and i feel like if i am buying a new tv i want to see the big difference.

[DrinkMore]

Originally Posted by snowball_iv

Thanks drinkmore, and i wanted to buy in store that way i can make payments. Ya I really liked the 800 because you could get a 58" but the 85U doesn't come that big. I am upgrading from a 42" 1080i, and i feel like if i am buying a new tv i want to see the big difference.

Make sure you have the room for the 58". We were going to go that way as well, but it turned out to be too big. We went with the 50" instead. Perfect size. I could not justify the $1,000.00 price difference between the 50 and the 58". Not worth it. See if you can get an Amazon card. Will be much cheaper in the long run. Your going to pay close to $1,200.00 more in store than online.

[snowball_iv]

I'll check into that amazon card. Thanks! Also best buy has got a deal going, where if you buy any panny plasma you get a panny blu ray with it. What bout the difference between 85U and 80U.

[DrinkMore]

Originally Posted by snowball_iv

I'll check into that amazon card. Thanks! Also best buy has got a deal going, where if you buy any panny plasma you get a panny blu ray with it. What bout the difference between 85U and 80U.

See the chart in the link below. You will have to scroll down a bit. Gives you the general idea on the differences.

http://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-Vier...9637615&sr=8-7

Amazon had the same deal. Not sure if it's still going on or not.

[snowball_iv]

alright thanks. I think i might just do the 85U and use some money to get some speakers.

[scubasteve2]

I bought the z85u a couple days ago. It's a fantastic TV. Couldn't justify the price premium up to the 800 or 850, so just went with z85u.

[rubberghost]

get the cheaper t.v. and a fresh pair of sneakers.

[lettucenpico]

I bought the 42 inch PZ80U. It's nice, but I prefer LCD. If you're more of a plasma person, I'd go with either one. You won't be disappointed.

[starbuck4488]

some of the differences b/w 80U, 85U, and 800U on paper:

-80U has a contrast ratio of 20,000:1 vs 30,000:1 for the 85U and 800U.
-80U(1 in front) and 85U(1 on side) have 3 HDMI ports vs 4 for the 800U.
-All three bezels look different with the 800U looking the "cleanest" by far like someone earlier described.
-800U has THX picture preset whereas 80U and 85U do not.
-800U has 4 speakers with a bigger amp whereas 80U and 85U have 2 speakers.
-800U and 85U have a PC port whereas 80U does not.
-800U has 24p whereas 80U and 85U do not

some reported notes:
-picture quality on all 3 sets look "amazing" with the 85U slightly edging out the 80U.
-800U with the THX setting looks great right out of the box with little picture fiddling necessary which makes it "better" than the the 80U and 85U.
-24p on the 800U looks bad(flicker) to some and not others.

Now if you introduce the Costco 50" version into all of this, your head really starts to spin.