Interesting. Is it worth the price difference to get this over a TC-P42X1 ($600) if I won't be using 1080p?
I am just amazed at today's plasma prices. It is shocking to me the kind of quality you can get for that price. The same could be said for the 42'' X1 for $550.
Is the G10 worth the extra $200 to you? I don't know. Would you notice deeper blacks, higher native contrast ratio, more shades of gradation, cleaner processing or a better picture settings out of the box? I played with the X14 (similar to the one you're looking at) recently and was a little bit disappointed by the picture on vivid, standard and cinema mode in the factory setting. The vivid just looks horrible even for vivid (grain crawl galore among other ugly things) and standard and cinema have a dingy green/yellow tint that can't quite seem to be adjusted out with the on screen picture controls. With that said, it is a pretty good picture once you make a lot of major adjustments in the menu, but not as good at the G10 by any stretch. Yes, those differences will still be visible if you're only watching standard DVDs or HDTV sources.
Would I buy an X1? Yes. Would I buy a G10? Yes. Choosing one depends on so many different factors. For example, if you're only watching standard DVDs and have some old junker DVD player, the extra $200 might be better spent on a decent $160 Panasonic Blu-Ray player. That's an essential upgrade for a HDTV even if you're only going to be watching standard DVDs for the rest of your life. Your new setup will only be as good as the weakest link.
Five years down the road will there be a huge difference between those TVs when compared to new stuff? No.
