plasma

Entry-level Panasonic plasmas get Infinite Black

Of the 42 individual models of plasma and LCD TVs that Panasonic announced at the 2009 CES, the X1 series lives on the bottom rung of the totem pole. That didn't stop the company from endowing the plasmas with so-called Infinite Black technology, however.

The Panasonic rep we talked to explained that Infinite Black caused the TVs, when displaying a completely black screen, to basically fade down to nothing, as if the TV was turned off. The new entry-level panels also improve upon the contrast-ratio spec for the entry-level PX80U series from last year, doubling it from 15,000:… Read more

Wireless Panasonic plasma just 1-inch thick

The epic battle between plasma and LCD manifests itself in numerous ways--Hz oneupsmanship, contrast ratio and viewing angle specs, lifespan claims--but until now, panel depth was a frontier comfortably dominated by LCD, with ultrathin models like the Hitachi UT37X902. Now Samsung and Panasonic aim to claim that frontier themselves, the latter with the new inch-thick Z1.

Panasonic's press material uses the term "Z1 series," which indicates to us that the company is planning other screen sizes with inch-deep panels. But for now the only size the company sees fit to announce is the 54-inch TC-P54Z1, due in … Read more

Panasonic claims improved 24p plasma playback

The ability to properly deal with native 1080p/24 content is a big deal to some videophiles, because it guarantees that a display can capture the correct cadence of film. Panasonic tried and failed to implement 24p with its plasmas last year, but, according to the company, it has improved its processing for this year with the V10 series.

The four-model V10 plasma lineup includes the 50-inch TC-P50V10 ($2,299 MSRP) and the 54-inch TC-P54V10 ($2,699), both due in June, as well as the 58-inch TC-P58V10 and the 65-inch TC-P65V10 (both $TBD), due in August.

Panasonic's V10 models … Read more

THX, Internet content grace Panasonic plasmas

Last year, our Editors' Choice plasma, the Panasonic TH-50PZ800U, earned a good portion of its praise by virtue of excellent color accuracy, which we lay at the feet of THX Display Certification. For 2009, Panasonic has included THX in two series of plasma TVs, of which the most-affordable will be the G10s.

The company's G10 series of plasmas comes in four screen sizes. The 42-inch TC-P42G10 ($1399 street), the 46-inch TC-P46G10 ($1699), and the 50-inch TC-P50G10 ($1999) will ship in March, while the 54-inch TC-54G10 ($2,399), a new screen size for the company, will ship in May.

THX Display Certification consists of a series of hurdles the TVs must clear to earn the all-important THX logo. While we're generally pretty skeptical of a certification program that refuses to divulge the height of those hurdles--aside from vaguely mentioning that they include certain minimum specifications for contrast ratio, color gamut based on the HDTV standard, uniformity, viewing angle, gamma, and still picture resolution--in our tests of the PZ800 and other THX plasmas from LG delivered improved color accuracy, at least.

Update March 13: According to the Panasonic manual unearthed by the folks at AVS Forum, and later confirmed by Panasonic, the G10 models will have 24p compatibility; previously, Panasonic indicated that the feature would be reserved for the step-up V10 and Z1 lines. According to Panasonic, the G10 and G15 lines will refresh at 48Hz, which leads us to suspect that they'll suffer from the same sort of flicker seen on the 24p modes of last year's PZ800U and PZ850U models. The V10 and Z1 lines, however, will refresh at 96Hz, which shouldn't introduce flicker. We'll know for sure when we get the displays reviewed.

Panasonic's answer to other TV makers' Internet connectivity is called VieraCast, and new for 2009 the company is adding the capability to view content from Amazon Video on Demand. We'd like to see Netflix streaming added too, a la LG, but that's not in the cards so far. Check out our hands-on look at VieraCast for details.

… Read more

Panasonic NEO plasmas consume half the power

Update 3-11-2009: We've posted reviews of three products in this series, albeit with smaller screen sizes: the 42-inch TC-P42S1, the 46-inch TC-P46S1 and the 50-inch TC-P50S1. Judging from their identical specifications, we expect the picture quality of the larger 54-, 58- and 65-inch models to be similar to those of the smaller ones. See the reviews for further information.

As we've been reporting for years, plasmas are much less energy efficient than LCDs. Panasonic aims to level the playing field with its new NEO PDP plasma panel, which uses half as much energy to create the same brightness, … Read more

Sixth Avenue Electronics has the LG 50PG25 Plasma HDTV for $999, after $700 savings.

Save $700 on the LG 50PG25 Plasma HDTV from Sixth Avenue Electronics >> Regular price is $1699 >> Sale price is $999 >> Savings $700 (41.20%) >> Click here for deal

Samsung slims PNB850 plasma TV series to an inch

LED-backlit LCDs are certainly winning the hype war at CES 2009, but home theater buffs know that plasma TVs often offer better performance for your dollar. Samsung's new top-of-the-line plasmas, the PNB850 series, feature a superslim, inch-thick design and offer the new Internet widgets available via the Internet@TV platform. Here are the important details.

Key features of the Samsung PNB850 series:

Slim design, about an inch thick Ultra FilterBright Plus antiglare screen Real Movie (24 frames per second) mode Wide color Enhancer Pro Built-in Ethernet Wi-Fi-ready, with purchase of additional adapter Energy Star 3.0 compatible

Pricing and … Read more

Vann's has the Samsung PN50A760 50" 1080p plasma HDTV for $1999.98, after $500 savings, plus free shipping.

Save $500 on the Samsung PN50A760 50" 1080p plasma HDTV from Vann's >> Regular price is $2499.98 >> Sale price is $1999.98 >> Savings $500 (20%) >> Click here for deal

Panasonic pro plasma provides prodigious PQ

Panasonic markets its professional monitors, like the TH-50PF11UK I just reviewed, to hospitals, TV studios, and airports, but these displays will serve just as well in your own home. In fact, in past years they've delivered better picture quality and better value than the company's line of mainstream "consumer" models.

That's no longer the case--the company's best consumer plasmas, like the TH-50PZ800U, performed better than the TH-50PF11UK we tested--but the pro model still has excellent picture quality. In addition, its styling is about as compact and unassuming as you can get and makes a … Read more