Gear

Big Is Beautiful: We Compare 4 Plus-Size Screens

You don’t have to deny yourself a big-ass TV just because the economy is in the crapper, right? It wouldn’t be wrong to put your severance (or inheritance from Aunt Gladys) toward a 1080p, 50-inch plus monster LCD (or even a plasma) instead of a college fund, gas or food, would it? The only real […]

Pioneer_elite_kuro_pro111fd_f

You don't have to deny yourself a big-ass TV just because the economy is in the crapper, right? It wouldn't be wrong to put your severance (or inheritance from Aunt Gladys) toward a 1080p, 50-inch plus monster LCD (or even a plasma) instead of a college fund, gas or food, would it?

The only real decision is what kind to get.

Wired's resident big-screen specialist Chuck Cage heeds your call with a breakdown of four of the biggest behemoths on the market. Read on to see what he had to say about each set -- and which one rules them all.

Pioneer_jpg_2
Pioneer Elite Kuro Pro-111FD

You don't need a physics degree to coax incredible contrast and theater-perfect color out of this 50-inch beauty: The set measures your room with color and light sensors, then tweaks the TV's zillions of settings to make whatever you're watching look its best.

$5,000
9 out of 10

Read the entire Pioneer Elite Kuro Pro-111FD review right here.

Sharp_2
Sharp LC65E94U

Holy crap, this is a seriously big-ass TV. You have no idea how big
65-inches is until you see one in person. (Go down to your local Best
Buy and check one out if you don't believe me.) Thankfully its torch-bright picture and effective motion-smoothing 120-Hz refresh mean this set looks great, because at this size any glitches would be visible from space.

$5,500
7 out of 10

Read the full review of the Sharp LC65E94U right here.

Toshiba
Toshiba 52XF550U

We loved this 52-inch Toshiba's narrow-bezel case. But its LCD panel pulsed visibly between dark and light movie scenes — a result of
Toshiba's DynaLight feature varying the set's backlight in an attempt to increase contrast. Its noise reduction seemed ineffective on our test video, and the set's 120-Hz film stabilization mode left some judder when we popped in a test DVD.

$3,000
6 out of 10

Read the full review of theToshiba 52XF550U right here.

Westinghouse
Westinghouse TX52F480S

This 52-inch LCD's slick menus put many others in our test to shame.
But they don't make up for a lack of noise-reduction settings, off-balance color, and de-interlacing problems with both video and film sources.

$2,500
6 out of 10

Read the full review for the Westinghouse TX52F480S right here.