Vizio VM60P

The good: Inexpensive for a 60-inch plasma; excellent feature set including four HDMI inputs and a computer input; menu color temperature controls; accurate color decoding.

The bad: Imprecise picture controls; no independent input memories; false contouring visible in gradations; subpar detail in shadows; inaccurate color temperature.

The bottom line: The Vizio VM60PHDTV's excellent value proposition will outweigh its picture quality issues for most viewers.

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Description: The Vizio VM60PHDTV is a 60-inch, plasma television. Compared to other plasma TVs on the market, it is midpriced at around $2,500. In general, a liquid plasma display can provide more realistic black-levels than an LCD display can.

Pros: Has a 60-inch screen size, which is somewhat larger than some similarly priced TVs. In fact, the typical cost of a product with this large a screen size is $4,135. Also, this TV has a 3D digital comb filter. This is more favorable than the average TV on the market today, but is to be expected for a TV of this price. (A 3D filter is one of the best types available, and is "motion adaptive," meaning it utilizes a special method for clearing up the moving parts of the picture, as opposed to the static parts.) Furthermore, this TV has multi-channel viewing (PIP), note: a single-tuner PIP TV requires an external signal source such as a VCR, DVD player, or a cable box with composite video outputs. With built-in HDTV compatibility, this TV set can display images that are significantly sharper and more realistic than regular television, as long as the source is high definition. (It can easily render standard-resolution digital TV broadcasts and also depict the full resolution of widescreen DVD video.) The 3:2 pulldown feature of this set reduces artifacts that can occur when motion pictures are transferred to a digital format such as DVD.

Cons: None noted, given available product data.

Suitability: Made for those who are looking for a stylish, compact TV.

Value: Overall, this TV's features are as expected for this price.

Suggestions: (1) For assistance in shopping for a new HDTV, review CNET editors' <ref type="link" url="http://cnet.com/hdtv-world/?tag=arw">Ultimate HDTV Buying Guide. </ref> (2) If donating or repurposing your old TV is not a viable option, CNET encourages households to recycle their electronics. Please explore the following website to find a recycling center in your area Electronics Take Back Coalition .