I know that the majority of people reading this review are doing so because they can't decide whether this tv is the masterpiece that 'What Hi-Fi' say it is, or the cloud ridden mess that 'AV Forums' will suggest.
I know that's what you're thinking because I was in the exact same position. I spent hours agonising over whether to take the risk and buy this tv or compromise and buy a Panasonic. I took that risk and I do not regret my decision at all.
I was completely unaware of the problem of clouding before I started looking on the internet for ways to spend my well earned bonus and became terrified that if I bought this tv I would see huge patches of white where there should be black. That really is not the case. Can I see see some evidence of the backlight in the corners when I watch dark scenes? Marginally, perhaps. Does it spoil my watching of the tv? No. Would I have noticed it if I hadn't have been looking for it? No. Whilst my eyes automatically flick to the corners now everytime a dark scene appears, I believe my growing contentment will mean this will soon stop. I watched Lord of the Rings on normal DVD last night, which is a dark film on many occasions and had nothing but praise for the quality of the picture.
I had a cheap 32" Lcd before this tv and looking at it now I can see the backlight on the screen when its completely blank. However, I was not aware of it before I learnt what clouding was and it never spoilt my viewing of that tv before, or even now that I've moved it into my bedroom and watch it regularly at night.
'What Hi-Fi' consider this tv to be the best 46" tv made in 2008 and made the smaller screen version their product of the year. This tv is exceptional in the quality of picture it provides, particularly high definition, and even on standard definition freeview (although I am receiving this through a dish and not an aerial). Like everyone, I have stood in Currys and looked at some awful looking pictures on tvs of this size which scream picture noise at you (that's little pixels of colour dancing around on large areas of the screen, I think). It handles motion wonderfully and I can't wait to watch some Champions League football on ITV hd.
Maybe I have been lucky and other versions of this tv have the clouding problem as badly as some of the forums will suggest. All I can say is that I love this tv, have nothing but praise for the picture it provides and do not regret buying it at all.