We'll forgive you for being unfamiliar with the name Planar: while the manufacturer is firmly established in the US, it's never previously ventured properly into the UK TV market. However, on the evidence of the brand's UK LCD debut – the 47in PD470 – we suspect that Planar is now here to stay.

While rival manufacturers are still scrabbling around in a desperate attempt to catch up with the outstanding design prowess of Samsung’s previous LCD range, the Korean brand has moved the goalposts again with its new ‘touch of colour’ models.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that the picture quality on the new category of slimline ‘flat’ TVs may have been sacrificed to the whims of designers. Not so on Sharp’s first foray into the super-slender sector. And there’s plenty more about this telly that makes it excellent value.

Hyundai, after some success with its projectors, is mounting an assault on the affordable end of the flatscreen market. The E465D is a 46in whopper that eschews fashionable, super-slim aesthetics and whiz-bang processing 'engines' in order to deliver giant sets within feasible reach of the mainstream.

The first range of Freesat-receiving (including HD) TVs to appear is Panasonic’s PZ81 plasma range, which comes in three sizes – 42in, 46in (about £1,600) and 50in (about £1,800) and, for those whose Freeview/aerial coverage isn’t entirely non-existent, also boasts DTT and analogue tuners.

Plasma technology is far from the dead duck some would like you to think it is. Samsung’s 50in plasma is a cracker, especially in raw value terms. And this 42in Panasonic effort is even better.

Exclusively available through John Lewis, Sharp’s 46in X8E LCD TV is a development of the B20 Aquos range, incorporating all the same technology, but with a larger screensize and a smaller physical footprint.

Does everyone in South Korea own a really handsome TV, or what? For not only have we got the aesthetic delights of Samsung’s A656 series, but we’re also getting bowled over by Korean rival LG’s 42LG6000.

If you’d love to have a 40in TV but don’t think you’ve got the space for it, check out this model from Toshiba. This amazing-looking 40in set employs Toshiba’s Picture Frame technology to deliver a bezel measuring just 23mm across. This means that not only do you end up with a stunningly stylish screen that seems almost to hang freely in space, but you also get a 40in TV that occupies the same area as a typical 37in model.

Like its Korean compatriots, LG and Samsung, Hyundai is still producing both plasma and liquid crystal screens, and this LCD TV is part of its Vvuon series. Although its list price sounds rather high, it does include some novel extra features that you’ll do well to find on rival offerings.

Full HD televisions have gone from being a niche concern to mainstream must-haves in what seems like minutes. Toshiba's new 1080p machine looks to iron out an arguable recent dip in its usually impeccable flatscreen form by matching uncompromising spec within killer styling.

This 46in Bravia LCD is all about eye-candy whether you’re watching TV or not. The W4000 features a design concept dubbed ‘draw the LINE’ – no, I have no idea what it means either.

Common wisdom has it that for a TV to grab the public eye these days it needs to be Full HD and stunningly designed. But Panasonic’s TX-32LXD85 is neither of these things. So, what’s this TV’s pulling power?

With a cold wind blowing through the nation’s ever-shallower pockets, those of us who can’t resist the allure of a big flat telly are looking to save a few pennies. A timely arrival, then, for the latest bigscreen from HANNspree, complete with bargain basement pricing.

We’ve been frustrated by Toshiba recently: some of its flat TVs made us happy, but others were seriously lacking. So it’s with trepidation that we set up its latest 32in TV – especially as it’s from the budget end of Toshiba’s new LCD range.

If you’ve seen the ad campaign for LG’s Scarlet, you could be forgiven for assuming – like a bunch of US celebrities who were fooled into attending the launch – that it was a TV series, or even a person. But it’s not; it’s a range of TVs – with bright red backs. But is it all style and no substance?

It may not be part of LG’s much-hyped new Scarlet range, but the 52LG5000 still deserves to make big-screen headlines

The neat little Sharp LC26D44EBK is currently the smallest HD Ready Aquos that Sharp UK sells. Available in shiny grey or glossy black its 26-inch screen size makes it an ideal second TV. Hook it up to a DVD player in your bedroom, perhaps, or plug it into a PlayStation 3.

Arguably one of the nicest looking sets in its class, the LG 22LS4D is very easy to use. The Korean company's colourful and clear menus are a joy to navigate and make getting up and running, as well as tailoring the picture, an absolute doddle.

Whether you prefer this set's pictures or those of its rivals largely boils down to personal preference. Where others may be warm and natural, the LC-20AD5E is precise and exacting. While other sets may lay claim to a slightly richer, more cinematic image, the Sharp has them licked in terms of detail resolution and general stability.

The Sony’s idiosyncratic, stand-free design and gunmetal finish is bound to attract and repel people in equal measure, but it deserves to be judged on what’s underneath that exterior.

If you're not full HD these days, you'd better be pretty and if you're really trying to turn some heads, make sure you're both. Samsung's LE32A588 is surprisingly slinky for a 'conventional' LCD television. The sparse frame is decked out sumptuously in piano-black gloss and the edges of the screen surround are subtly rolled, softening the set's profile.

Aimed squarely at the bedroom or kitchen, this one-stop entertainment system is remarkably well connected for something so apparently self-contained, with HDMI, component and Scart providing more than enough socketry to make it a viable stand-in TV for the main room, and a USB and card reader handling your multimedia needs

The features on the Sharp LC-26AD5E have been trimmed to keep the price down and, while hardly show-stopping, the basics are all here. The HD Ready 1,366 x 768- pixel panel is coupled with two HDMI inputs, which is a decent return for the cash. Delve into the set’s set-up menus and you’ll discover a black level booster and a digital noise reduction engine, but we’d hardly call that top-brand picture processing.

Sporting a brace of HDMIs, rather than the standard issue single input is a fast way into anyone’s affections.