Panasonic VIERA TC-P60S30 60-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

The straight facts!, March 29, 2011

If you read the 3 star product review, you might think twice. This individual actually sounds convincing. That is unless you’ve done your homework. I’d like to clarify a few incorrect points that have been made.
– Fast switching phosphors are used in all Full-HD VIERA models for 2011. By reformulating the phosphor materials, afterglow has been minimized and luminous efficiency has been increased. This enables crisp, clear rendering of motion images. A level of efficiency that exceeds our 2010 panels also increases picture quality while lowering power consumption.

Only the top of the line 2010 3D models ($2K) had the fast switching phospors. The neoplasma is literally a promotional “tag”. The 2011 3D TV’s have a different rib structure in the panel as needed for the seperation of 3D images, specific cross talk cancellation processors to minimize 3D double images, and a specific louvered filter (infinite black) to help keep glare down while keeping the two 3d images clear.

Panasonic streamline the production lines by sharing internal components for 2011.
Cost leader is the 2D 720 “X” model. High end 1080 2D is the 2D “S” model. The only 1080 3D line is the “ST” model. That’s it. It’s cost effective.
Note that “X” and “S” do not have the pro mode picture setup like the 3D models but don’t let that scare you. The 3D models need it to fine tune double imaging.

The 720 “x” model is a fine choice however you will notice a difference in edge glow with blueray IF you know what your looking for. Since most HD TV channels are 720, you’ll never know the difference. A lot of people read the old CNET report and live by it and a lot of it is valid. But a one size fits all review between 720 and 1080 is flawed. The old comparisons between LCD and plasma is no longer an issue as power consumption is now equal.

Panasonic plasma has always been choosen as best picture over Samsung and LG. Do your homework and make sure your looking at a review within the last two years. Panasonic wins period. Far more natural colors, especially over LED-LCD which makes movies look like they were filmed with video tapes.

I have no need for 3D as its not receiving the support expected. Soon 3D screens without glasses will be standard just like the new handheld games systems that have just been released. They just have to get past the headaches…

My old Panasonic was one of the first 1080s on the market and has been through 4 rough home moves and is still kicking strong. That earns a bit of brand loyalty from me.

I went with the “S”46 model for a very simple reason. $768 delivered.
Thinner, better design, better picture technology than the 2010 Panasonic models and 1080 for bluray. Lovin it.

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Panasonic VIERA TC-P46S30 46-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

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Seriously gorgeous, March 12, 2011

By 

Curtis G (Surf City USA) –

  

**Please note that I am reviewing the TC-P42S30. I feel obliged to mention this because in some cases, Amazon has migrated the reviews of a particular product to the newer version’s page. I just want to avoid confusion–and snippy comments.**

I am the ecstatic owner of a Panasonic TC-L32X2 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV with iPod Dock, so when it came time to move up to a 42″ set for the living room (and move the 32″ to the bedroom to replace the 27″ tube TV), I mostly confined my search to Panasonic. I had considered the previous version of this unit because it was highly rated on Amazon, as well as slightly less expensive, but I decided to take a chance on the newer model–even though it’s so new that it has no ratings or reviews. (As of 3/27/11, however, this unit is less expensive.)

I ordered this TV on a Saturday and received it via delivery truck on Wednesday. Setup was painless (it is pretty heavy, though). I was pleasantly surprised to see that it supports Internet connectivity (although it wasn’t something I was looking for, the concept has really grown on me), but less pleasantly surprised to learn that the wireless dongle (Panasonic DY-WL10 Wireless LAN Adapter for select Panasonic Viera HDTVs and Blu-Ray Disc Players) is another $99. For that much, I think I’ll run a LAN cable. [I did; see below. Also see the comments for another wireless alternative.] I’m using the three HDMI ports for my Verizon FIOS set top box, Apple TV 2, and JVC XVBP11 Blu-ray Player. A set of RCA audio/video inputs takes care of my Pioneer laserdisc player. (Yeah, I’m old school.) I don’t foresee using the SD card slot for anything but firmware updates, but I like having USB ports so we can watch our Flip movies in full HD glory–once I learn how to do it, that is.

I was very happy with my LCD TV even in the middle of the day; maybe that’s why I never realized just how bright our living room is. The first time I tried to watch this TV from the couch, the reflection from the skylight was terrible. Around noon, the glare was nearly unbearable.

In late afternoon/full dark, this TV looks fantastic. It’s so good, in fact, that I couldn’t tear myself away from 2 Fast 2 Furious, which says a lot. The problem is that I do most of my viewing during the day, so I’m not sure that it’s going to work for me in the long run. I’ll have to give it a few more days. The preset color modes aren’t perfect, but they’re fairly accurate right out of the box. Both Netflix and iTunes movies streamed over the Apple TV look great. When I have some time I’ll run Video Essentials to get the levels dialed in.

The speakers are adequate at low volumes, and there are separate bass and treble adjustments, but at normal volumes, certain low frequencies rattle the cabinet. It was particularly bad while I was watching Inception, but my wife even noticed it during “Top Chef.” I know I’ll eventually have to upgrade my 15-year-old Sony receiver (it has only RCA input, and the TV has only digital audio output), but it’s a little irritating that I have to do it just to watch TV without annoying rattles. If the sound quality were better, I would be happy to give this TV a full 5-star rating. (If it were just about the picture, I would.) Additionally, I need to jack up the volume when I use my Blu-ray player–a problem I also have with my 32″ TV. I suspect that the player’s audio output level is lower than the DVR and Apple TV. NOTE: After the first few days of viewing, the rattles disappeared. Also, I wired up the DVR box and the BD player to the receiver, so I have big sound when I want it (unless I’m using the ATV).

One feature I will never use is called C.A.T.S., which adjusts the TV’s brightness according to the room’s light level. Evidently it’s set to On in Standard picture mode, which I discovered by accident. After exploring the settings, I found…

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excellent picture, March 30, 2011

The picture quality of this TV is simply excellent. Compared it with more expensive Panasonic “Infinite Black” G model and it’s impossible to see the difference in real video content. You need to be in total darkness and have very high quality, low noise signal with large swatches of black and put them side to side to notice a slightly darker black in G models. Of course, just watching TV you will never think I wish blacks were deeper.
I’ve watched HD programs over the air, from blu-ray, Netflix from Roku, and from PC over HDMI. All modes 480/720/1080 progressive and interlaced displayed perfectly, and TV did a good job upscaling lower resolution to native 1080. No problems with motion, no blurring, no color fading or runoffs. TV does have a slightly lower moving picture resolution 900 lines (vs 1080 lines in top models), but it’s quite impossible to notice that without measurements. So sports viewers will be satisfied. Also, on a positive side, the screen is not as glossy as the majority of other plasmas, so reflections are subdued.

I’ve been using this set for a few days now, so I can’t comment on “image retention” problems that previous generations had. Supposedly the phosphors used in this set are improved from previous year, and reportedly they last longer. Just be sure you turn on the “pixel orbiter” to avoid burning in the logos and avoid prolonged display of static images. You can also run “scrolling bar” once a day for 15 minutes for the first week to age the phosphors evenly. Not all plasma owners believe a break-in period is necessary for the later generations of plasma TVs, and no plasma manufacturers now suggest their sets require break-in.

The description Amazon (and it looks now they removed it) seemed to suggest that TV had a built-in Wi-Fi. It doesn’t, you need to buy a separate Wi-Fi USB adapter for that. Due to lack of adapter I cannot tell if IPTV and DLNA are working as expected. The other negative is common to all plasmas, which is high power consumption. You don’t find this information advertised anywhere, because this set is rated at a whopping 339W. The built-in audio is weak, it has two tiny 10W speakers. It’s fine for casual watching TV programs, but if you want to watch movies you probably want to invest in a separate audio system.

This TV may lack all the bells and features you can find in more advanced models, but it does deliver an excellent picture at a very reasonable price and that what matters most.

Edit 5-8-2011. I installed USB Wi-Fi adapter (Netgear N600) to test the Viera Tools. I didn’t find them very useful though. It has Netflix client, but picture quality is poor (compared to Roku on the same network). Then there is CinemaNow, which I never used. Amazon Video on demand looks OK. I don’t have any use for Pandora, Napster, or Facebook, so I can’t comment. There is also Media Player for SD and USB cards, works pretty well. I popped in an SD card from Panasonic camcorder and picture was pretty good, no conversion was necessary. And finally, there is DLNA client, which I couldn’t make to work. I does find the DLNA server, but connection always fails.

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