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True full-HD display stars

By Philip Wong
August 24, 2009

Whether you are a diehard videophile or a no-holds-barred home consumer, the following high-performance offerings are definitely The Ones worth shortlisting. A match made in heaven, these models wed full-HD image fidelity with future-proofed 1080p video input compatibility. In short, you are guaranteed lossless video reproduction and trouble-free integration with all current and upcoming HD gaming console, player or settop box.

Firmly rooted at the top is the 2008 Pioneer Kuro which has yet to be toppled by any of the new 2009 entries, though we believe the THX-certified Panasonic Viera plasmas are strong contenders. We should be getting our review units soon. Nonetheless, we've the recently reviewed Philips Cinema 21:9, Samsung LA50B850Y1M and LA6B750U1M scaling up the chart in this latest edition of our Top 10.

Here is the lineup from the Korean, Japanese and European vendors ranked by their review scores.

Click here for a feature comparison table.

Pioneer Kuro KRP-500A (50-inch plasma)

CNET Asia rating: 8.9 out of 10

The good: Class-leading black level; immersive 3D-like visuals; bassy and crisp sound; quality remote control; abundant A/V tweaking options; effective Optimum mode; ultra-thin bezel.

The bad: Soft PC text; 1080i-only component-video; fixed stand; no front/side HDMI.

The bottom line: The Pioneer Kuro KRP-500A gets our stamp of approval in the audio-visual department, plus an Editors' Choice for its relatively pocket-friendly pricing.

Review | See full specs | Rate this

Samsung UA46B7000WM (46-inch LCD)

CNET Asia rating: 8.6 out of 10

The good: Good blacks and sharpness; crisp sound; 29.9mm ultraslim design; four HDMI inputs; wireless media streaming; Web-based Yahoo widget support; built-in digital TV tuner; bundled with two remotes.

The bad: Blacks not as deep without local dimming; mild brightness uniformity issue; slightly recessed side inputs; YouTube no search function; pricey.

The bottom line: The stunning Samsung UA46B7000WM is a cutting-edge connected TV with a solid visual performance to boot.

Review | See full specs | Rate this

Sony Bravia KDL-46X4500 (46-inch LCD)

CNET Asia rating: 8.5 out of 10

The good: Overall sharp and clean pictures; plasma-like blacks; tight bass and crisp treble; onboard JPEG/MP3 playback via USB and network; four 1080p24-ready HDMIs; RF-based remote control; unique and customizable design.

The bad: Extremely pricey; no remote backlighting; no DivX playback; chassis a bit on the thick side.

The bottom line: This Sony flagship Bravia LCD TV is simply brilliant in most areas, particularly in deep blacks, but is slapped with sky-high pricing and outgunned in this aspect by the Samsung Series 9.

Review | See full specs | Rate this

Samsung LA46B750U1M (46-inch LCD)

CNET Asia rating: 8.4 out of 10

The good: Generally sharp pictures and realistic hues; effective 200Hz playback; IDTV; DLNA multimedia network playback; Yahoo widgets such as YouTube videos; bundled 802.11n Wi-Fi adapter; four HDMI inputs; backlit remote.

The bad: Bass-shy; mediocre MP3 sound quality; stain and dust magnet; limited built-in memory.

The bottom line: The Samsung LA46B750U1M is an all-rounded LCD TV which offers brilliant picture quality and an advanced feature set, but leaves much to be desired in terms of audio credentials.

Review | See full specs | Rate this

Samsung PS50B850Y1M (50-inch plasma)

CNET Asia rating: 8.4 out of 10

The good: Clean and sharp visuals; good blacks and natural colors; IDTV; YouTube playback via Yahoo widget; DLNA network multimedia streaming; Wi-Fi-ready; backlit remote; ultraslim and attractive design.

The bad: Bezel rattles if bass is set too strong; tight port placement incompatible with thick cables; stain magnet and scratch-prone; mismatched metal stand; slight buzzing noise.

The bottom line: The Samsung PS50B850Y1M is an attractively slim plasma TV that offers all the latest bells and whistles with good picture quality to boot.

Review | See full specs | Rate this

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