I'm thinking of buying a Hitachi P42H01

It's Hitachi's entry-level plasma, complete with two HDMI sockets, Freeview tuner and HD Ready spec.

With no less than two ranges above it (the HD Ready "T', which we have the 42in of into test at the moment, and the Full HD "X'), I don't think you'll be getting the best of Hitachi from this set, let alone the best the market can offer.

If I only had @£700 to spend on a HD Ready plasma, i'd sacrifice some size in favour of a better picture, in the 37in shape of the Panasonic TH-37PX70.

Ok. Thanks Clare. I'm glad I asked.

Really want to plump for a 40-42" which would be HD ready but also have a decent SD picture as i'm not likely to get HD for a while. Budget not necessarily £700 and i'm open to plasma or LCD.

What would be your recommendation?

I'd try and stretch to a 2007-generation set if you can, as we're finding (as i've posted elsewhere) that quality's generally taken a big leap up this year.

We currently testing ten 40-42in sets for our November issue (out September 20th). If you can't wait that long, our current new-season favourites would be the Panasonic TH-42PX70B plasma and the Samsung LE40M86BD 40in LCD.

They're both in that Supertest, along with the brand-new Sony and Toshiba sets among many others....