I've been hunting for a HDTV for months. This would be my first HD set, so I tried to educate myself as much as possible before making a purchase. I read magazines, CNET, and customer reviews from CNET, Circuit City and Amazon and looked at hundreds of sets in stores.

Initially LCD looked like the best choice for me between LCD, Plasma, and Rear projection TVs. I was looking to spend about $2000 with a size of 46-55" but the biggest determining factor for me was picture quality. I wanted the best picture quality I could get for my money. I was leaning towards a 1080p LCD TV, and I was almost ready to pull the trigger on a Sony Bravia KDL-46v2500. However, I read a lot of negative press about backlight clouding / mura effect, which was a deal-breaker for me buying an LCD. Check out the AVS forums for more details about this...totally turned me off to buying an LCD.

I decided on Plasma because I wanted a TV that would have minimal motion blur for sports, as well as having a nice contrast ratio so I could watch movies and play games on my Xbox 360.

After looking at plasmas in person, the best two TVs at Best Buy looked to be the Pioneer PDP-5070HD and the Samsung HP-T5064. The Pioneer had a few more features including a CableCard, but a higher price tag. I personally thought the Samsung had a sharper picture than the Pioneer, and I think I made the right decision based on all my factors.

The set looked great in the store, and hooking it up at home did not disappoint. I currently do not have any digital or hi-def cable hooked up, I have the coaxial cable plugged directly into the TV. The built-in QAM tuner picked up a number of broadcast stations in HD, like CBS, NBC, ABC and others. I watched the Travelers Championship (Golf) in 1080i on CBS, and it totally blew me away. The picture is CRYSTAL CLEAR. The level of detail is incredible, and the colors really pop. The flesh tones of the golfers looked great. The fine details of the landscapes and greens of the golf course were extremely sharp. Even standard def cable is quite good for an HDTV, much more tolerable than most HD sets I've seen.

I also watched a few DVDs through component on my Xbox 360. I was very impressed with watching Sin City and Goodfellas, even in standard 480i. The level of detail is great, and I expect even better results when I purchase an upscaling DVD player. Overall the picture quality is very, very good - everything I wanted in my first HD set. Colors are accurate, bright, and vibrant.

Playing 360 on this TV with game mode was jaw-dropping. I played Burnout Revenge in 720p, and it looked great. Very clear, bright, and detailed.

So far I have been VERY satisfied with my purchase, I highly recommend the TV for anyone shopping for a plasma in the $2000 price range. Only negative thing I could say right now, is the anti-reflective coating on the screen could be much better. I suppose it does reduce some reflections, but I've still seen some glare. Otherwise a really fabulous set with great features and incredible picture quality.

One other pleasant surprise was the speakrs on the TV. I was expecting crappy quality because the speakers are thin and hidden in the bezel. They are however much better than most tube and CRT TVs I've owned. The clarity is good, and the level of bass is decent.

I got a great deal on this set also. I purchased my 5064 from Amazon for $1875 with no taxes and free shipping. It came in about a week. Getting a 50-inch plasma at this price would be unheard of a few years ago!

Also, sorry for the long review, but after reading reviews for months I wanted to be as helpful as possible for other people shopping for an HDTV. If you're in the market for a 50" Plasma, go with this Samsung - you won't be disappointed!!

Two more things: To minimize the chance of screen burn in for plasma TVs, make sure you turn down the contrast and brightness for the first 100-200 hours. Also try to minimize the amount of content you watch with black bars (i.e. movies, 4:3 content) for the first 100-200 hours. Avoid any static or still images if you can.

Check out this thread at AVS forum for some picture settings for the 5064: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=841319

Hope this was helpful, and good luck in your search!

Description from AMAZON:

Offering a rich feature set and exceptional quality for its price, Samsung HPT5064 50-inch 720p plasma TV uses the company's latest DNIe enhancement circuitry to deliver outstanding brightness, contrast, and image clarity. Use it for home theater and use it for your PC--it's perfect for both. In addition to a standard-broadcast NTSC tuner, it also features an integrated ATSC tuner that can capture over-the-air digital broadcasts from local network affiliates (the set will still require a set-top tuner for receiving non-terrestrial HD broadcasts from channels like HBO or Discovery). Other noteworthy features include a 60,000 hour panel life, Samsung's unique auto pixel-shifting technology to prevent burn-in, a gaming mode, cinema progressive film mode, and 3 HDMI connections. This model is also compatible with an Auto wall-mount Samsung will release this year that is controllable in 3-dimensions via the HTDV's own remote control.

Samsung currently offers two 50-inch 720p plasma models; this one and the lower priced HPT5054. this model is set apart from the HPT 4254 by its cosmetic design and by the inclusion of a USB 2.0 connection for playing photo files or MP3s. Both models offer the same high level of digital image processing, 15,000:1 contrast ratio, and HDMI connectivity. If you don't need the USB connection, you may want ot consider the the HPT4254.

The Samsung Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe) Video Enhancer refines all analog NTSC and wideband video inputs for an overall improvement in picture quality. DNIe improves contrast, white level, picture detail and incorporates digital noise reduction to improve lower quality video inputs. Thanks to the new 13-bit processing capability of DNIe, the HP-S4253 can produce over 549 billion colors (compared to the one billion colors that TVs with 10-bit processing can produce.

Single-tuner Picture in Picture This HDTV has a picture-in-picture feature, but it only has a single tuner which does not allow POP to function n the same mode. For example, you can't watch one TV channel in the main screen and another channel in the PIP screen. You can watch a tv channel in one screen and view contnet from your computer or a DVD in another. This tends to be the functional limitation of PIP in most HDTVs currently available.

Connections:

* HDMI connections: 3 (1 side 2 rear) * S-Video Inputs: 3 (1 side 2 rear) * Component Video A/V Input: 2 (rear) * USB 2.0 Connection: (1 side) * PC (RGB) input: 1 (rear) * Composite video input: 1 (side) * Headphone Jack: 1 (side) * RF input: 2 (rear)

What's in the box Plasma HDTV, Remote control, 2 AAA batteries, Power cord, Owner's Instructions/Quick Setup Guide, Warranty Card, Registration Card, Safety Guide Manual, Cloth-Clean.

Product Description Experience the true feel of being in the theater right in your home. Samsung's Plasma TV technology features a high-contrast ratio that produces dramatic lights and darks, and every nuance in between. With billions of colors, images are bright, sharp, and clear. Designed for action-packed viewing, motion is crisp and exciting. Rich surround sound completes this extraordinary entertainment experience. There are no bad seats when you're watching the 50" widescreen HP-T5064 plasma HDTV. Even in a brightly-lit room, patented Ultra FilterBright keeps the pictures looking detailed and deeper at every angle. Samsung's powerful anti-burn-in technology assures a long screen life. The 15,000:1 contrast ratio lets you see every nuance, even in nighttime action. Advanced plasma picture technology delivers sharper screen text, while eliminating noise. Dynamic SRS TruSurround XT produces theater-quality sound. Connect your digital devices through three HDMI ports, one on the side, and a full complement of audio and video inputs, including USB 2.0. Control all your CEC-compliant digital devices through the one HPT5064 remote. And it's Energy Star Compliant, so you'll use less energy. NTSC / ATSC tuner with Clear-QAM Game mode Silhouette editor (False Contour Reduction) 18 bit color processing Consumer Electronic Control (HDMI-CEC) compliant Audio - 10-watts per channel (2 channels) built-in audio amplifier with SRS TruSurround XT Connections - Rear A/V - 3 HDMI ? High Definition Multimedia Interface (2 rear/1 side); 2 component connections; S-Video and composite connections; PC input // Side A/V connections - HDMI?High Definition Multimedia Interface; USB 2.0; S-Video and composite connections; Headphone jack Monitor - 48.5 x 31.1 x 4.1; Monitor with stand - 48.5 x 33.4 x 12.4; Net weight - 97.0 lbs