Philips 42PF9966 42-Inch HD-Ready Flat Panel Plasma TV Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this TV in Dec 2004, so this is the experience after 6 months of living with the unit.
To my surprise, the most prominent feature of the TV is Ambilight. It is able to project a soft light from the back of the TV. You can turn it on/off, adjust the brightness, have it dynamically adjust to the color on the screen etc. I thought it was a gimmick, but have come to the conclusion that I cannot live without it. I used to have to find the appropriate light to leave on while watching TV, now it is perfectly installed into the television.
I have my unit connected to a surround sound system recently. However, before purchasing the audio, I have been very satisfied with the speakers and sound system already in place. The main reason being that you can connect a sub-woofer to the TV, and there by greatly enhance the sound output. It is able to simulate surround sound using the Virtual Dolby Surround feature.
Another pleasant surprise I got was the ease of mounting the TV to the wall. The unit comes with a nice glass stand, but I finally decided to hang it on the wall. It comes with a wall bracket with holes spaced at 16" for standard drywall studs.
You can see the picture of my TV under the "custom image" link!
People supposedly spent around $100-$200 to buy plasma mounts. Similarly, the TV comes with the DVI-HDMI connector cable. This is the higher end video connection if your DVD or set-top box supports it. Again, the cable cost around $100 if purchased separately.
Many of the other cool sounding features are harder to distinguish. Is it sharper? Is it brighter? I don't think many of us can see the difference. All I can say is that the picture quality of the 42PF996 for High-Definition is simply amazing!! Mine is connected to Cable and I can no longer watch non-HD programming.
On the negative side, which has nothing to do with this particular model, do be aware of the following. Normal analog programming (non-HD) looks worse than on our old televisions. High Definition TVs magnify the imperfections. It is very painful to watch analog programming. Note that this unit does not have a built-in HD tuner. Which is not a big deal, because most of us get our HD programming from cable or satellite, which provides the tuner. It is useful to have a built-in tuner for 2 reasons. One is that you want to get HD signal over the air with antenna. Secondly, some cable companies can give you a 'card' in place of a cable box if your TV supports it.
Lastly, Philips customer service has been disappointing. This is not based on 1 phone call, but rather months of calls to resolve some questions.
I am the type that research the TV I buy quite thouroughly before buying, and found it useful to browse through the product manual online before purchasing. As in many other manufacturers, Philips has the manuals online for download: http://www.usasupport.philips.com/productSelector.html
So there should be no surprises regarding how many connections you need, what type of A/V available etc.
Good luck!

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Philips' 42PF9966 plasma television offers a high-performance, widescreen (16:9) image from a casing less than 4 inches deep. The 50-inch set offers astronomical brightness and contrast settings (1,000 cd/m3 and 3,000:1, respectively), as well as an integrated TV tuner for cable or broadcast reception of all your favorite programs. Hook it up to an optional DTV receiver or progressive-scan DVD player and you'll enjoy vivid, detailed images from 1080i, 720p, and 480p sources, which render at up to 720p resolution on the set's native 1,366 x 768-pixel screen.Philips' unique Ambilight feature throws a soft glow on the wall behind the set to relax your eyes and heighten your perception of image detail, brightness, contrast, and colors. Ambilight settings include 6 presets and a user-adjustable setting. Philips invented Digital Natural Motion to eliminate the "juddering" effects visible in moving video images. Digital Natural Motion estimates motion and corrects "juddering" in both broadcast and DVD-based movie material, smoothing and sharpening the images you see.With a plasma screen you get vivid colors like you've never seen before, extremely wide viewing angles (wider, even, than those of most LCD screens), and easy placement due to a plasma monitor's slim profile--the 42PF9966 is a mere 3.9 inches deep, perfect for desk or wall mounting (mounting brackets provided). Brightness tends to be extremely uniform across plasma screens, which are also impervious to the picture distortion and negative color balances that afflict CRT monitors when placed near lighting or sound systems. You do, however, need to be wary of image burn-in (wherein long-held stationary images leave a permanent impression in the screen).This TV also uses the power of the Pixel Plus processor to enhance every single pixel displayed. The result is razor-sharp pixels with incredible detail and depth. A feature called Active Control Plus continually adjusts picture settings at over 60 times per second for all inputs, correcting both sharpness and noise reduction, even adjusting for changes in ambient viewing light.The set pumps 15 watts per channel x 2 RMS, and onboard Dolby Virtual Surround simulates enveloping surround sound from any 2 speakers. FM tuning options include 40 convenient presets, RDS (Radio Data Service) for visual station and song identification, and auto/manual station setting. The unit's .125-inch headphone jack affords private listening.Audio/video inputs include a direct-digital HDMI input, 2 component-video (1 configured for RCA-type RGB+HV computer outputs, with separate horizontal and vertical sync terminals), 3 each S-video, and composite-video connections. A convenient side-panel input (including a headphone jack and an S-video jack) simplifies spontaneous hookups.HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is a lossless, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface to link the set with any AV source (such as a set-top box, DVD player, or AV receiver). HDMI supports standard-definition (SD), enhanced definition (ED), or high-definition (HD) video, plus multi-channel digital audio--all using a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports up to 8-channel digital audio, with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements.What's in the Box TV, stand, a universal remote control, remote batteries, and a user's manual.

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Philips 42PFL7432D 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Ambilight Review

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(More customer reviews)I ordered this HDTV from Amazon on October 2, and it was shipped the same day. It was delivered with White Glove service (from a local agent-no Eagle in Lubbock) on Monday a.m. October 8. The local dispatchers, the two delivery men, and Amazon employees were all courteous and efficient. The set was un-boxed, placed in the bedroom, and packing was carried away. You will have to install the stand (a simple process).
I had researched all major brands of HDTV for months before making this purchase, including Sony, Samsung, Toshiba, Panasonic, Sharp and others. I looked at models locally at Best Buy, and compared full price with shipping but no taxes from several online vendors. The Amazon white glove deal was the best. I currently own two other smaller HDTV units, by Toshiba and Samsung (2007 models) and had previously owned a 2005 Toshiba that had a smaller screen and cost $1,000K more.
The TV is a hidden gem in the US marketplace. It has all the usual bells and whistles, including 3 HDMI connections, 2 component video, composite connections and a host of other standard AV connections. It is 1080p native, (accepts 24HZ and 60HZ signals) and includes 6 wide screen modes, including my favorite, an Automatic mode which will fill the screen fully as content changes. The remote control is backlit (an unusual feature), and features a really nice user interface for the on screen software adjustments, Regular software updates are made available that can be downloaded to a USB flash drive and installed in the TV. There is a great support thread at AVS Forums, and Philips product support is excellent. There are numerous high tech picture enhancements, such as Perfect Pixel HD engine, Active Control +(motion adaptation), Dynamic Contrast, Color Intensity, Digital Natural Motion, Jagged Line Suppression. and white point adjustments. You can select from 3 preset picture modes, or create a custom one. The audio section includes a graphic EQ, auto loudness control, a unique Delta Volume control which allows for seperate loudness adjustments for each channel and equipment input, and Virtual Dolby Surround. Sound is good for built in speakers, but you will want to run it through an audio system. My set has absolutely no dead or stuck pixels, no flash lighting, no clouds, and no backlight issues. Blacks are black and whites are very white.
Ambilight is the one unique feature that caused me to buy this set over all the competition. Ambilight provides 2 channel backlighting via LEDS that can be fully customizable in 4 modes. There are 3 active adaptive modes which react to the colors on the screen. My favorite mode is Color, which can be customized to any of 100 levels of deep color on the color scale, from orange to green to deep blue to purple to red, with everything in between. Color Mode is fixed.
Philips is very well known in Europe as the number 1 selling electronics brand over all others; it is in the top 5 in sales worldwide. The company, based in the Netherlands, has been in business for over 100 years. Philips is best known for its medical/ hospital tech in the US, along with Norelco shavers and an array of consumer electronics, including its sister subsidiary Magnavox (a value brand made on separate assembly lines.)
This is an excellent HDTV at any price, and a real value with advanced features.
Philips 42PFL7432D 42" 1080p LCD HDTV with Ambilight

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Philips 42" LCD, Widscreen HDTV, Ambilight to enhance your picture viewing experience, 1080p for the highest HD picture performance, Pixel Plus HD Engine for the sharpest pictures possible, Built in ATSC/Qam tuner, 1920 x 1080p resolution, Virtual Dobly Surround Sound for theater like sound experience, Matching swivel stand, USB connect for easy multi-media playing, 2xHDMI, CVI and S-Video inputs.

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