panasonic

Danny DeVito speaks with CNET at CES

LAS VEGAS--I have independent confirmation that Danny DeVito is indeed a gadget hound.

Besides being one of the stars of "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia," and acting in, producing, and directing a litany of Hollywood blockbusters, including "Hoffa," "Romancing The Stone," and "L.A. Confidential," my cousin Rob (a movie costumer) says the trailer DeVito uses on location is always packed with the latest consumer electronics.

DeVito is going to be all over CNET's CES coverage today. First, he is scheduled to appear at the CNET stage to talk about … Read more

What mattered at CES on Day 1

It may feel like it's been running for months already, but today is actually the first official day of CES. But even after yesterday's whirlwind of product announcements, there are still plenty of new electronics to savour, and we've got stories on them all at ces.cnet.com. But if you don't have time to pick through everything, here's the news that mattered the most.

Despite having a press conference yesterday, Panasonic saved its most interesting revelations for today. First is its answer to Sony's concept 4K OLED TV, its own concept model that's very similar. … Read more

Panasonic pushes prototype pixels: 4K Windows 8 tablet

LAS VEGAS--Panasonic is ready to go to the next level in PC and tablet resolution. Is anyone else?

Ultra HD/4K televisions blanket this year's Consumer Electronics Show like freshly fallen snow, but Panasonic is standing alone demonstrating 4K technology in a personal computer. The company's 4K tablet prototype on display at its booth has a ridiculous 3,840x2,560-pixel resolution and 230 pixels per inch packed into a 20-inch IPS LED-backlit LCD display.

The 15-inch Retina Display MacBook Pro has a 2,880x1,880-pixel resolution at 220 ppi. There isn't a 20-inch display currently in a … Read more

Panasonic highlights its ambitions beyond TVs at CES 2013

Panasonic is more than a TV company. Or so said the company's president, Kazuhiro Tsuga, during an opening keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday.

Indeed, Tsuga and TV journalist Lisa Ling, who joined him on stage, spent the good part of an hour highlighting the many facets of Panasonics varied business. From green technology and battery technology that helps power smart grids and electric cars to cutting edge avionics technology to creating new cutting edge business-class tablets. And of course, there was talk of the successful TV business.

At the heart of the … Read more

Will Panasonic ST60 outdo our favorite 2012 TV?

LAS VEGAS -- Last year, if someone asked for a recommendation on which TV to buy the discussion usually started and ended with the excellent Panasonic ST50. This year the ST60 again looks like that TV.

Panasonic reps told me that the ST60 has a few picture quality improvements over the ST50, namely a slightly better screen filter, but I took that to mean the two would perform basically the same. That's not a bad thing; the ST50 was one of the best-performing TVs of the year, despite a modest price.

Speaking of price, Panasonic is already taking pre-orders … Read more

Panasonic unleashes first prototype 4K OLED

LAS VEGAS--Not to be outdone by its competitors, Panasonic has displayed its own 4K OLED screen at CES with claims of it being the world's biggest.

Like the 4K display from Sony, the Panasonic 4K OLED is only a prototype but is the first OLED from a company that has thus far concentrated on plasma technology.

The 56-inch TV features a 3,840×2,160 resolution, weighs 27 pounds, and is less than half an inch thick. The bezel also appears very slim and equivalent to a mainstream LCD.

The company boasted that its new printing technology enabled … Read more

Ultra HD TVs are big at CES 2013

Tuesday's CNET Update from CES 2013:

The show floor has officially opened at the International CES, and here's a quick breakdown of the highlights so far:

Televisions and home entertainment tend to be the star of the show. This year, LG announced shipping and pricing details for the 55-inch OLED TV that everyone was gawking at last year. The buzz now is more focused around Ultra HD resolution, also called 4K. You need a very large screen to appreciate that extra resolution. Sharp showed two Ultra HD TVs. Samsung unveiled an 85-inch Ultra HD TV with a floor stand. … Read more

Panasonic's snubs HTIBs, offers three convertible sound bars

LAS VEGAS--Usually at CES time, you can expect Panasonic to roll out slightly updated versions of its Blu-ray home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) solutions, featuring six-to-eight plasticky speakers and a whole lot of proprietary speaker wire. But CES 2013 is different.

Panasonic is ditching its standard assortment of HTIBs, opting instead for three new sound bar and convertible sound bar models. The SC-HTB770 and SC-HTB370 both feature a similar design; you can use them in the traditional horizontal alignment or you can break apart the sound bar and use the pieces as separate speakers. The SC-HTB770 converts into a 3.1 system, with … Read more

Panasonic snubs HTIBs, offers three convertible sound bars

LAS VEGAS--Usually at CES time, you can expect Panasonic to roll out slightly updated versions of its Blu-ray home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) solutions, featuring six to eight plasticky speakers and a whole lot of proprietary speaker wire. But CES 2013 is different.

Panasonic Web site reveals preorder pricing on some 2013 TVs

LAS VEGAS--Pricing information is usually hard to come by at CES in January. Manufacturers have just debuted their newest products, and final suggested retail prices are usually subject to some jockeying before the products launch over the next few months.

That's why I was surprised when my colleague Matthew Moskovciak sent me a message saying that Panasonic's official site, shop.panasonic.com, was showing pricing and other details for TVs the company had just announced this morning.

Most of the company's TV series are listed on the site now, with the exception of the lowest-end X60 and … Read more