Samsung HP-R4252 42 in. HDTV Plasma Television

I would not recommend this TV to anyone. After only 2 months of use the picture went dead. Circuit City would not take it back and Samsung sent out a repair tech 3 times, over a 4 week period, and could not repair it. Samsung will not refund my money, only offering to replace my TV with a new model. In addition, when the TV was working, the picture, when viewing normal cable TV channels (not HDTV) was terrible...read the Consumer Reports article on Plasma TVs in the Nov 2005 issue. Do not buy this TV!

I have long been fascinated with the flat screen, plasma TV's that give such a clear, crisp, detailed picture, particularly on HD. However, I could not give this TV an excellent rating because of the pictures not on HD. If I watch a "regular" channel, the movement and particularly people, appear out of focus, like a shiny blurb on the screen. You can make out their faces, but no detail at all. It's like going back to the first TV's in black and white. I've watched enough Andy Griffith shows in black and white to know that even the detail in those TV pictures is better than what I sometimes receive from my Samsung. I have tried several different means to achieve better resolution and detail on the regular channels, but have found nothing that is satisfactory to me or gives me a picture that is at least equal to that which I receive on my RCA 27' standard TV. So I am somewhat disappointed with that aspect of it. It also does the same for older VHS tapes and other recorded shows. Elsewise, I am very pleased with the HD picture and the stereo sound is good, even though I haven't attached a surround sound system yet. It has all the connections necessary to be used as I see fit, so overall I am satisfied. But that picture on regular TV leaves something to be desired so I can not rate this unit any better than good.

This is the best TV I have ever had. The picture quality is absolutely insane! ...a great television from a great brand, Samsung! Enjoy the world of high definition!

This is the best television I have ever owned. It has a superb, vivid picture and you cannot beat the price. Samsung is the creator of plasma technology, so everyone else is just a copycat.

Being the first Plasma HDTV I have ever owned, this is a huge step up from my old CRT projection. Very easy to set up, just hook it up to your cable and you're ready for a great picture. I had read that standard channels looked horrible on HDTVs but I disagree. Samsungs DNIe(???) technology make standard TV signals look better than my old TV. Obviously, the HD channels look much better. HD is amazing on this TV.

The sound quality was a pleasant surprise for me. I live in an apartment and don't need huge sound. I usually have the TV on about 20-25 volume and it goes to 100. While connected with component cables the TV automatically adjusts the picture display size to the original recorded size so that the picture doesn't look streched or distored.

Keep in mind that this screen is really big. 42 inches doesn't sound that big compared to the huge 50" and 60" TVs, but I wouldn't want anything bigger than this for apartment. I would even be more than satisfied with a 37", I just got this one on sale. The picture is super bright and the colors really vivid.

One negative comment. The remote is supposed to be universal, so that you can control your DVD player, VCR, TV, and cable box with on remote. That doesn't really work with this remote. I got another universal remote with my digital cable and it seems to work much better. Overall, this is a great TV for a great price. A huge step for anyone looking for a great quality HD plasma.

For the price you can't beat it, I love the number of options it has available and the picture is almost flawless