Hmm... I like the ambience of the TOS bridge above all others, but as for aesthetics I'd go with the Ent-D Generations bridge. Flip a coin choice really.
All the other bridges look clunky by comparison...this is true artistry. Behind that...the Kelvin bridge looked the most alive and functional. The Voyager bridge had an attractive sheen enhanced by metallic looking accents.
And yet they seemed to foreshadow the coming of background wallpaper and screen savers! TOS's "The Cage" seemed to have a much more active version of those upper screens, with images coming and going in real time in the background. But of course it was the pilot of all Trek pilots and, as you mentioned, budgetary reasons did that in.
I always found the "Cage" bridge to be a bit cramped as compared to the TOS production bridge for some reason. I know it was the same set, but for some reason it just seemed smaller. Even the Ex Astris diagrams make it look smaller. My favorite bridge is definitely the underlying design of the TMP thru TVH; not counting the changes throughout that series of movies - just the overall bridge layout itself. The chairs with the adjustable arm- and head-rests always did it for me.
NX-01 with Season 4 blue railings, flooring and doors. Boosted colours on the displays. Huge Captain's chair, pinched from a scene left on the Nemesis cutting room floor sure enough. But definitely the best seat in the house. The most throne-like, outside Kirk's in TOS Mirror Universe.
Code: Star Trek vi, I like the clock, the lights under the viewscreen, the gray color, the metallic patterned floor, the burgundy doors, the physical buttons and the touch controls
Is the Enterprise-A bridge from V and VI the same? Because the one from VI has always been my favorite, but I can't recall if they changed anything about it between V and VI.
NuBridge. I like the fact that it's very busy with everyone doing separate jobs at their stations. I even like the "apple store" look to it. I really like the window instead of a view screen because it gives an astronauts looking out into space feel. The view screen makes it seem like they're watching TV. I know a window is less practical but it makes space seem more real.
They are completely different, unfortunately. V looks like a forerunner of the TNG bridge, while VI is made up to be a much more millitarlistic setting. Plus they moved the second turbolift to the otherside of the room. V is the preferred version.
STAR TREK V Bridge: http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/gallery/artoftrek/ea-bridge1.jpg http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3030/3056822277_14af02a75d.jpg STAR TREK VI Bridge: http://startrekreview.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/500px-constitution_class_refit_bridge_2293.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2205/2381922806_da2e6d0f1c.jpg
One tiny little thing about the nuEnterprise and Kelvin bridges that made them seem so real: Seeing the curve of the gigantic saucer at the bottom of the window/viewscreen. As a kid watching TNG, I kept wondering why we never saw it on the bridge, or out the conference lounge windows (or, in the case of the Enterprise-E conference lounge, why we never saw those giant nacelles)