well, was looking at plasmas earlier at avant, compared the following:
LG 42PX4RV 200k
HITACHI 42PD7800TA 300k (cheaper with matzter (sp?))
PANASONIC TH 42PA30M 220k
The Hitachi had very saturated/rich colours (for lack of a better term), the HK DVD22 attached produced jaggies all over (source was a dts test dvd that was burned). The same DVD was played on the LG with an LG LH W5100, was flicker free but the colours were sort of muted. Good blacks though. Tried several DLPs but they weren't so good compared to the plasmas (i think i need to take viewing distance into account, as it seems DLP RPTVs are more sensitive. Tried the Panasonic lastly and i'd have to say it was a balance between the two earlier plasmas: good blacks, good balanced colour, little to no flickering.
used the kill bill vol 1 tea house scene (uma vs cutey japanese) and i robot lotsa robot scene. focused testing on black levels, colours, then fast motion, as well as shimmering effects. all connections used component cables. testing was conducted in avant.
ranking subjectively (nothing pro here, please. this is my first attempt at auditioning flat panels, or any display device for that matter), i ranked panny first, followed by hitachi (assuming the jaggies are due to improperly set up dvd player) and lastly lg. considering costs though i'd say i'd consider panny, then lg, then hitachi.
hope this helps some, been a pain looking for info, particularly on local models. any suggestions on where to look for more panny models (i heard listening in style group has lots) as well as toshibas would be much appreciated.