gooomz,

I'm was debating between the TH-50PH9UK and Panasonic's new 50" 1080p TH-50PF9UK myself. The H model has a dedicated thread on AVS forum ( www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=706697 )that might help you. As you noted the 50PH9UK is very well received and the price is really tempting.

I don't get the "shielding" concern. I've been using a commercial Hitachi monitor for almost 4 years without any issues. I suppose there are some differences as the commercial are class B but that shouldn't be detrimental to personal HT use. What type of sales rep did you speak with? One who sold only consumer models? I think the issue with a commercial model is that you need to be careful to select the correct options to insure compatibility with your other components and your desired results.

During my research I found it interesting that the value of a 1080p capable monitor versus a 1080i/720p monitor (like the 50PH9UK) was highly dependent upon the size of the screen and the viewing distance. The consensus of what I read is that you need to sit between 6 and 8 feet to actually see the difference created by a 50" 1080p capable monitor over a 720p monitor. Well, that is a huge difference in cost as the 50PH9UK is going for just under $2,000 and the 50PF9UK is $4,500 to $5,000. At my seating distance, 11 feet, the 1080p content from a BluRay or HD-DVD player may not be worth the expense.

If you are interested in reading one person's rather elaborate discussion about the relationship between screen size and resolution take a look at www.carltonbale.com/blog/2006/11/1080p-does-matter/ . It seems mostly directed to folks with projectors but is probably applicable to smaller screens used by LCDs and plasmas.