Currently have a Samsung 46" LED TV it has been a great TV and has been on 24/7 for the past 4 years to keep the dogs company when we are at work. The TV has some bad vertical lines across it and the internet research I've done suggest is maybe on its last leg.

Anyways the wife and I have been talking about getting a bigger TV for our living room for when friends and family come over and now it looks like we will be getting another TV to replace the Samsung. We may end up getting 1 Plasma and 1 LED from Costco since they have a 5 year coverage plan. I'm looking at Vizio's for the LED.

I hear these new Plasma TV's are better than they used to be. Just looking for input on reliability and picture quality from Plasma and Vizio LED owners.

Thanks! :-)
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I bought my parents a 46" Samsung plasma three years ago (I believe), its been running pretty much 24/7 for the same reason, additionally my mom has insomnia. It's been great, but I have noticed that when the picture is white, there is a slightly hazy ~1" line across the screen around 2/3s of the way up.

Don't know if that helps, but I thought it might. And to be honest, the tv was a sale tv from frys that they run just about constantly in the papers for around $400 plus tax.
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If you do not have a lot of ambient light/ sunlight in the room that the plasma will be located in it will work great. They have come a very long way from what they were. If there is a lot of sun light in the room or in direct light it will be too dim, and the LED is the way to go.

I am not a vizio owner, but through my profession I have removed a number of them do their reliability issues. If you are going to get free replacement from costco and the price is right, go for it. I prefer Samsung TVs, I have found them to be the best bang for you buck.
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I got a 49" VIZIO. It was an LED Smart Wi-Fi TV. $900 from walmart, shipped to my house free. Hands down best TV in the house. I got a 62" Plasma, once it goes past a certain inch range, images become decently pixelated if the source isn't immaculate :-)
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Thanks for the input guys!

Mike I am pretty brand loyal to Samsung also and may get another Samsung TV. After I figured up how long that TV had ran it's actually lasted quite a while although I will probably set a sleep timer on the next one.
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I don't know what the new plasma's are like, but I have an older 52inch and it heats the room. I actually had to move it out of my small man cave because it warmed the room up too much. The picture quality is good, and I've never had any complaints except the heat it generates.
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Have A LG 60" Plasma Upstairs In The Game Room For The Last Year. Beautiful Picture, Deep, Rich Blacks, & No Picture Jitters When Watching Sports. I Love It!:-)
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I've got a 3 year old Panny Plasma P58V10 58". I know I'm partial, but it's one of the best looking sets I've come across. Warm, deep blacks, accurate colors...I could go on and on. We have an edge backlit Vizio LCD 42" in the bedroom and a Samsung 32" LED edge lit in the kid's room and while they're both good TVs, the pictures almost look artificial sometimes. The Panny picture looks so natural and I'm often still in awe. BTW, it was one of the top lines in 2009 and ran me $2600. I'd pay it again.

Recent backlit LEDs are thin and quite lovely. They can be a little pricey, too. Remember, you get what you pay for. Put your money in a good TV. Also look up reviews of what ever models you narrow down to. A few dozen reviews will help you see problems and will help get a good idea of what you're getting.
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I have a 42" plasma and a 32" LCD. The plasma has richer deeper colors but the LCD is light weight and stays cool. I have had my Plasma for almost 10 years now without any problems. It is a Hitachi Ulrtraview or something like that. The 32" LCD is my gaming TV. I think the glass screen on the Plasma looks better than the plastic screen on the LCD.
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We have a Hitachi 52" and no problems after 4 years.
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I have an LG 50" plasma. LOVE IT!!!

Small sample size, but I would recommend against the Vizio. I know of multiple stories of the board going out. My parents had a 47" that went out after 6 months. Im sure all have a small percentage of failures.
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I have a Panasonic 50" Plasma. Its awesome.
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I replaced a 42" Magnavox plasma w/ a 60" LG frOm Costco this year. The new tv is only a little larger when taking in the cabinet, it does not heat up like the older one and looks almost 3-D(it is not).
Garry-
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I have a 42" Plasma and a 52" LCD. The Plasma is about 8 years old and the LCD is about 4 years old.

The colors and clarity on the Plasma as still fantastic but it is more fragile than the LCD (you have to be careful when you move it and let the plasma "flow" back to normal). At the time we bought the plasma, LCD did not have a decent range of viewing angle, whereas the plasma had a very wide viewing angle.

I would take your favorite example movie (e.g., something like Avatar) to a store and try out all your options and see what looks best to you in your price range.
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I had a hitachi director series 60" plasma cost me an arm and a leg . Power supply went out after 2 years go it fixed then the plasma screen went out a year later.Replaced with a samsung 60 " led . It's just opion but with the experience I had with that plasma I would never buy another one...
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Plasmas are always going to give you a more natural picture, with better blacks. There have been some new LCD's coming on the market this year (the Sharp Elites, for one) that are starting to get the black level right. Don't be misled, there aren't really any consumer LED TV's on the market. What they are referring to is the type of backlighting used on the screen, they are all LCD TV's. The best LCD TV's DO use LED backlighting, and are not the cheaper "edge lit" variety. One major tip if you do choose an LCD would be to turn OFF any of the "smooth motion" or any other crap processing they include that is touted in the adverts, it tends to make everything look like a cartoon. For my money, LCD's would not even be in the equation, but I am kind of a home theater buff. As far as Plasmas go, Panasonic is the top of the market.
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I have 2 of the 8000 series LED Samsung, I have one 11 months and 6 months. I have not used the 3d yet, they have the 2d to 3d upscale feature which is awesome! When I bought them there wasn't a LED or Plasma equal :-)
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Thanks for the input guys! We picked up another 46" Samsung Led on Black Friday. I moved the old TV from the den to the living room until it stops working or I find a deal on a 60" led or plasma to replace it.
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When are you inviting me over to smoke and watch it? :-)
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I just got a 7500 series Samsung and the picture is absolutely incredible. My friends sit in front of the TV dumb struck by how good the picture is. My other TV is a 4 year old Panasonic plasma and the picture is great on that too, but the Samsung LED is just so sharp and so bright. The picture almost looks 3D even in 2D mode!
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