My wife and I are looking to buy a 50" flat screen HDTV. We did some research and have found that the plasma TV's only last for 10 years and the LCD last longer. What are the pro's and con's for either the plasma or LCD?

Get the plasma TV. its the best of the TV types. why would you need to buy it when you can get it for free? I just entered these sweepstakes and got the 42" Panasonic Plasma TV for free. I couldn't believe it. You can also get the 42" Sony TV, but I like Panasonic alot better.
You just need to enter your Zip Code for more info. http://doiop.com/plasmaTVdeal check it out.

Plasma tv's can reach an incredible 71 inches in screen size where as lcd tv's reach about 46 inches.

Plasma tv's are heavier then lcd tvs and lcd tvs come slightly thinner

LCD usually has a slightly clearer picture in smaller models and a higher resolution

Lcd tv's usually have a longer lifespan then a plasma as its not operated by gas which will need refilling

Lcd tv's use less energy then plasma tv's

Lcd all the way unless you are looking for a very big size. Check out this article which should help you somewhat
http://ezinearticles.com/?LCD-Or-Plasma,-Which-One?&id=2360598

Buy the cheapest tv possible.new technology only will be old tomorrow.Plus how great could it be?

LCDs do last longer and I believe they cost the same. I do have an LCD and its really nice. I believe Plasmas have a better picture but there are really only a few channels that are shown in HD so it's not much of a difference.

LCD's are available up to at least 55". That said, LCD's are infinitly more durable than Plasma. The big ticket item in a plasma is, lets just call it a light bulb. The bulbs burn out on a regular basis. LCD's do not have any parts that need replacing on a regular basis. I will disagree with some of the answers here in that plasma gives you a better picture. I've got a Sony Bravia 52"er. I compared the plasma's and the LCD's and I did not seed a difference in the picture.

I did a great deal of research into new TV types before foregoing both the plasma and LCD for a DLP technology. I like the idea of a flat screen TV, but the DLP is surpisingly slim, much less expensive for the money and the picture quality is better than I'd hoped.

There are many options to consider. Bleck levels, peripheral views, electronics compatability, burn-in, bulb life, etc. I found that the website www.cnet.com is a very reliable source for information and product reviews. They have a couple articles on the pros and cons of the different technologies as well as reviews of most major models. Good luck.