Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I did all the research. Read pretty much the whole cnet site. Read the excellent wirecutter.com. Every single word written about tv's lately says plasmas have better picture quality, dollar for dollar. Every single review says at 42" the 720 resolution is fine. So, ok, I decided I wanted a budget plasma, I don't need any 'smart' features, and don't think 3D is worth my time yet. The 2012 Samsung PN43E450 kept coming up as a good value. I also considered the Panasonic line, particularly the TC-P50U50. Also considered a low featured good value TV. Picture quality is my main concern. It is a TV after all. So I set about finding the Samsung in stock locally so I could check it out. Went to BestBuy, Walmart, Sears, and Target. Yeah, I know, I am crazy. And I am a person that loathes big box stores. Anyway, I finally found myself at a BestBuy that had the old Samsung, the Panasonic, AND this one. This one made me nervous because there are simply zero reviews out there for it. So doing a little snooping about and I think this is simply just the 2013 version of the PN43E450. So standing there in store with all these TV's blasting all around is a serious mind game. The plasmas look dull compared to the LED's, the 42" looks small compared to the 50's, and the 720 looks pixelated compare to the 1080p's. Look the salesmen say as they put their faces a foot from the screen, you can see the pixels on the 720 vs 1080. Stand back and the LEDs are glowing like beacons in the dark. How is one supposed to choose the cheap ass plasma over the other more expensive choices? Finally, after agonizing over a stupid TV for way too long, my budget conscious brain won. Maybe the first time ever, but it did. I bought the cheap, dull, small one. Holy Sh--! This TV is amazing! Set it up in my living room and it feels absolutely gigantic, the picture is gorgeous, and it is plenty bright enough. Yes, I know, the other TVs are bigger, better, and with more features. I will eventually get used to the size and will probably want bigger, and dropping $1000-$2000 will get me a super duper TV (hear me Apple?) but the point is, that this is simply an excellent TV when judged on its own merits. 400 bucks and you have got a damn good TV.