Kenny, good post and good info.  Only thing that needs to be known is that Insignia and Dynex are Best Buy stamped products that are made by LG so they have the same quality as LG.  For the money and if you do like LG, they are not a bad product and good bang for the buck.  Not the best as some of the Japan made models but as your entry says, pretty close.

Kenny, Aman, all - thanks for the posts, and it’s a great conversation re: what a really is a “deal”. For this post in particular, my intention was not to convince anyone the Element was a great (or even good) tv. really, i was just floored to see any 50” set selling for less than $1k, regardless of quality. more of a commentary on the industry i guess. i do however, think that cheap products have their place, assuming you’re willing to gamble. example: i’m dying to get an additional hdtv for our playroom/guest room. if i even attempted to talk the mrs into a kuro/bravia, i’d likely be moving to that guest room permanently. so, i’m gonna have to wait until i can afford, or go cheaper. a matter of compromises on price, quality and reliability. personally, i wouldn’t buy the Element either… maybe a smaller westinghouse or lg. in this case, whatever i buy won’t be used nearly as often as our den hdtv, so that too makes me hesitate on buying the best.

i guess what i’d like to convey is that deals are just that, a negotiation, usually with price and quality involved, and i will certainly try include that sentiment in my future deal posts. thanks again for all the great input…and if you see a great deal yourself, please send along!

John,

You are somewhat correct here. LG does make the PANEL for Dynex and Insignia. They also make the panel for Vizio and many others.That is as far as it goes. LG products are made in Korea or assembled in Mexico in some cases. The low end product you mention is made in China. The actual glass panel is built by LG for these low end companies. That is as far as it goes. The circuit boards, power supplies, processor etc…..are not manufactured by LG. Also you can’t just take a Dynex TV to an LG service center to get repair. With Dynex you are at the mercy of Best Buy as to whether or not they will stand behind it. I do love the way Best Buy acts as though they are special in some way for the EXCLUSIVE rights to carry the “Insiginia” & “Dynex” brand. WOOOOOOO!!!!!! This TV is rolling out of the same plant with the same low end LG panel in China as the Polaroids, Element etc….You could in a matter of months have a brand of TV’s called “Crowell” (your last name) that would sell in this country and come off of the manufacturing plant in China as all of the other brands we have discussed. You could go out and sell lots of these sets to people and probably make a good living doing so. You would be OK. Your customers would be screwed. If you did not bother to set up a network of service centers (most don’t) then where does your customer who bought a “Crowley” to get the TV serviced.

Just because the panel is made by LG does not make it an LG. Do you remember the Sony XBR 60” Plasma a few years ago at 20,000 retail? Possibly one of the best pictures on a 60” plasma to date! Guess what? It was an LG panel. Is a Samsung equal to a Sony XBR5 LCD TV? Heck no. But Samsung built the panel.

As I have mentioned this is why you should not shop for your electronics where you go to shop for CD’s. You have likely been mislead by the big box store that so favors the “Insignia” and “Dynex” brands. Hopefully you are writing this because you heard it from somewhere and not because you are a new owner of one of these.

Did anyone happen to read Aman’s comments?

Kenny

I bought an Element 50” from Circuit City last week for 869.00. Aman commented that leaving your TV on over night with the DVD Menu up might damage the picture… no kidding. It does however have a protection method built in. (Aside from being intelligent enough to turn your TV off before you pass out) It’s called a sleep timer. In all honesty, if you buy an Plasma TV for 869.00 (like I admittedly did) you should know that it’s not going to take the abuse a set twice the price could tolerate. I set the TV up, it works great, I turn it off when I’m not watching it, set it up where direct sunlight is not an issue, Mounted it sturdily, and have no doubts that within 5 years I’ll be scrapping it for another TV. The way I see it though, with the incredible amount of advancements we have in the TV/Media industry, I gambled that by the time this TV burns out, I’ll be looking at much higher native resolution TVs at the same price. 3mm thick OLCD’s pushing 37”. Who knows.

I agree with Kenny to the extent that you are taking a risk when you buy something cheap. They’re great when they’re working, but it’s going to be hell when something goes wrong.

The references to buying a car may be a bit extreme however. Considering that if my TV burns out, I can still drive to work, a 50” Plasma is a commodity. I’d also like to point out that Aman’s only complaint is based on the fact that he screwed up and burnt an image into his TV Screen.

can anyone tell me what is the weight of this element 50 inch plasma tv?

109.5 lbs.

I actually saw it online when browsing for new TVs at or around $1000, and was disappointed to see that on average 50 inch LCDs start at around $1300 and up. Then I see this gem; the Element Electronics PLX5002B.

Alexa,

Here is the definition of “Gem” in the dictionary.

gem (jm)
n.
1. A pearl or mineral that has been cut and polished for use as an ornament.
2.
a. Something that is valued for its beauty or perfection: a little gem of a book.
b. A beloved or highly prized person.
3. A type of muffin.

I do not believe this set falls into any of these definitions. The muffin would be the closest since neither are going to last long.

I recommend you do some homework first. There is plenty of good reading on this forum since this rediculous review was posted. It appears this forum will never die. I guess we will be able to read some posts about the broken ones soon. Jump in anytime “Element” owners.

Good luck,

Kenny

Kenny, i wouldn’t call this article a “review”, merely a heads up on a low price. however, if the fine folks at Element care to send me a test unit, i would be more than happy to give it a workout.

I have had this screen for 4 months at the end of my bed. effing bargain I love it, Buy it

i have to laugh,of course some brands are better than others,and if i had the money would go with a name brand,i own a panasonic 42” plasma,i bought when plasmas were first starting to become popular,still going strong,but i was laughing,because some one brought up the brand “apex"on here.,i remember when i first bought my first dvd player(not recorder)dvd player,back when they were 199.00,that was cheap,i bought the apex,and was told,the laser wouldn’t last 1 year,funny thing is,i still have this apex dvd player,and use it frequently,still waiting for that laser to go,hahha,have had name brand products,long since thrown in the garbage,including “pioneer” cd players/recorders,sony televisions etc,the fact is everything is made in china,or worst mexico,i had to laugh when i seen a “samsung"plasma ,sorry i am not sure of the model,probably their entry level model but,on the back,it said made in mexico. hahaha,for real.  just food for thought.

I just got a steal on this 50” Plasma TV.  Purchased from Circuit City 2 days ago for $550.  Was a lttle worred about the picture quality after reading a few reviews.  I was suprised to see when it was hooked up that it put my 6 year old Panasonic HD projection TV to shame!  I know there is no comparison.  This is a bargin.  May want to check your local Circuit City for a clearance plasma.  The Panasonic died in 6 years.

Wow, all of this over tv’s. I see people complaining about this and that. Is it a name barnd or off brand. Will it last long.
Well lets look at it all. Does a name brand matter? Not to everyone. Samsung and Sony are considered to be the best. But for the best quality, you pay for your tv to be the best. Sometimes you get a good deal but most of the time you have to pay for that best quality. Off brands for a long time have had a bad rep. You can mainly thank Sylvania for that. Been around as long as Sony but have not really improved on their product mainly because they are a low budget tv. Only recently have off brands become decent to good. A prime example of this is Vizio. They have been doing good for the past few years. You get what you pay for with their tv’s. IMO, decent picture that is very affordable. Their new tv’s that are above 40 in. are now coming with the 120 framerate. Their price $1199. Samsungs version with 120 framerate is around $1500. You can save a few hundred by going with a Vizio but the Samsung will have a better picture and contrast. But as I said, you get what you pay for and with the Vizio you will get a decent picture for a good value. Kinda hard to beat. Vizio is also one of very few companies that can add features without increasing their price. Last years 42 in.lcd was $1199 and was not great but was far cheaper than most other 40-42 in tv’s. This years 42 in. lcd comes with the 120 framerate and a much higher contrast for $1199. Because of that, I have seen Samsung and Sony make lcd tv’s in 40 in. with 120 framerate under $2000 which they weren’t doing before. BTW, just so people know, Vizio who was manufacturer by Amtran is now owned by LG. LG bought Amtran. LG is the world’s 2nd largest LCD manufacturer.
As for what happens if they break. By a warranty from the store you bought it from. Don’t want to, then don’t. Rely on the manufacturers limited warranty. I wouldn’t but not everyone is like me.

As for Element tv’s. They look decent to me. I have learned that they are related to Polaroid. At least that’s what I have read. Not everyone cares about the picture. Some even say it all looks they same. To me I see the differences but there are some that just don’t care about it all.

I have one of these sets and am quite pleased with it. Has a great picture on HD and standard def is satisfactory. I wouldnt hesitate to buy another.  Sound Quality is good and the volume is adaquate. I tried an LCD model of a different brand before this plasma, had to take it back, picture quality was horrible. Only thing is it is a plasma and as such is suceptible to burn in, no problems by me, but i wouldnt advise watching anything without Zooming if necasary to fill the screen. I have seen some static images remain for a bit, but they go away and arent that noticable.