10 best cheap LCD, LED and plasma TVs

Reindeers don't like to carry flatscreen TVs on Christmas Eve, but with some stunning bargains on the high street, Rudolph and Co. may have to invest in some extra-large sacks this December. So why not find yourself a flatscreen without spending all your Christmas cash?

For end-of-year bargain, read end-of-the-line obsolete products, right? Last year's tech dusted off from a warehouse, eh? Not this year – we've found a mix of plasma and LCD TVs featuring the very latest tech, from Full HD panels and LED backlighting to Internet TVs with widgets and even Bluetooth connectivity. And all going for a song (or should be Christmas Carol?).

All these screens include built-in Freeview TV tuners, while we've included both HD-ready and Full HD TVs; the latter may be most popular, but anyone looking for a smaller screen really doesn't need it.

It's become standard practice to call LED TVs a separate category of telly, though it's largely an update on LCD tech and not a replacement. It's also employed very differently, with LED screens from LG, Samsung, Sharp and Sony all subtly different. There are two ways of using LED lights in a TV: you can put them around the edge of the screen, firing across it, or directly behind the screen, shooting straight forward.

Both types are featured here, as is a smattering of plasma TVs. Accounting for less than one-in-ten flatscreen TVs sold, plasma is fast becoming retro-tech, though here's some convincing evidence against. In this LCD-dominated world, we present proof that plasma is – pound-for-pound – still the best around, and capable of hi-def greatness.

This list of flatscreen thrift, in reverse price order, should see your, or your loved ones', wallet stretched as little as possible. Santa will just have to buy more reindeers.

1. LG 50PS7000 50-inch Full HD plasma TV - £851

The best value 50-inch Full HD screen around.

LG's mid-range 50PS7000 boasts some unique multimedia features, but at its core is the best value 50-inch Full HD screen around.

Compatible with MP3 music and JPEG photos, this plasma's media player can also play a host of digital video files such as MPEG, MOV, AVI, DivX and, crucially, DivX HD files.

That's mostly via a USB stick (or, for photos from a mobile, using Bluetooth), while elsewhere are four HDMI inputs.

A lacklustre performance with SD aside, the 50PS7000 is an excellent value plasma that's best suited to anyone who wants a decent all-rounder, but who plans to watch a lot of HD material.

• Read TechRadar's LG 50PS7000 review

2. Samsung PS50B550 50-inch Full HD plasma TV - £809

Put yourself in the red without going overdrawn.

Samsung's unusual rose black styling isn't for everyone, but it makes a change from gloss black. The onscreen menus also demonstrate Samsung's attention to detail; this is a TV that's so easy to use, with top picture quality to boot.

The plasma panel itself can't quite manage jet black, but it comes close, and both SD and HD fare is handled well, though the latter can be a touch soft.

Whether Samsung's PS50B550 has anything over LG's 50PS7000 is debatable; the two plasmas are very similar, though this TV's USB input can't handle video files – only MP3 music and JPEG photos.

So it comes down to how much you like the PS50B550's red tint; proof of just how competitive the 50-inch plasma category is.

3. Sharp LC-40LE600E 40-inch Full HD LED TV - £746

The 40LE600E introduces direct LED backlighting to the masses.

Lucky masses. By choosing the direct LED system, Sharp has delivered a fairly chubby set that isn't anywhere near as slim as Samsung's latest edge LED TVs. However, it does mean the LC-40LE600E can offer a key feature that the edge system can't: local dimming.

And that means luscious black that add a giddy dose of realism to Blu-ray.

There's little else to get excited about on the LC-40LE600E (no USB input, no 100Hz and only three HDMI ins), but LED for under a grand? That's some package.

• Read TechRadar's Sharp LC-40LE600E review

4. LG 32SL8000 32-inch Full HD LCD TV - £657

Easy to use and with novel DivX HD playback, there's little this multimedia TV can't do well.

Unlike a lot of Full HD LCD TVs at this price, the 32SL8000 is packed with features that are as useful as they are easy to operate.

The most impressive is the USB media player, which can display JPEG slideshows set to MP3 music as well as various video files – including DivX and DivX HD.

It's also got TruMotion 200Hz, though LG's take on the tech is to provide a scanning backlight alongside a 100Hz filter.

Less crucial is Bluetooth connectivity for wireless headphones and sending pictures from a mobile phone.

A jack of all trades and slim to boot, the 32SL8000 is a good value and hard-working LCD TV that would grace any living room after a catch-all digital and hi-def solution.

• Read TechRadar's LG 32SL8000 review

5. Panasonic TX-P42S10B 42-inch Full HD plasma TV - £638

Full HD plasma excellence combines with a low price to make this the best value TV in its division.

Unexceptional when it comes to styling or connections (three HDMIs and no jacks for internet or a PC), this Panasonic's Full HD resolution is a rare discovery on a 42in plasma TV of this price.

There's an SD card slot for JPEGs and AVCHD video, but few natty extra features. Pictures prove predictably good, but don't quite achieve greatness. Their biggest strength is their black level response.

Dark scenes in films contain areas that actually look black, while there's still plenty of detail on offer in the shadows.

The P42S10 also looks enjoyably – if not emphatically – sharp and detailed with HD sources.

• Read TechRadar's Panasonic TX-P42S10B review