Panasonic TC-P55VT30
Editors' rating: 4 out of 5
The good: The Panasonic TC-PVT30 has outstanding overall picture quality, with superior black-level performance, very good shadow detail and accurate color points in THX mode. It can handle 1080p/24 sources and bright rooms well and exhibits the nearly perfect screen uniformity of plasma, as well as very good 3D picture quality. It includes one pair of 3D glasses and a Wi-Fi dongle. Its Internet suite is simple to use yet content-rich, and its styling is understated and classy with a single-pane design.
The bad: The VT30 is very expensive, and last year's Panasonic plasmas lost black-level performance over relatively short periods of time. Its color is not as good as the best current plasmas and it uses significantly more power than LCD TVs.
The bottom line: Superb all-around picture quality, anchored by the deepest plasma black levels of the year, make the Panasonic TC-PVT30 series the best-performing TV we've tested in 2011.
Read CNET's full review
Prices start at $2,599
Series information: We performed a hands-on evaluation of the 55-inch Panasonic TC-P55VT30, but this review also applies to the 65-inch model in the series. Both sizes have identical specs and according to the manufacturer should provide very similar picture quality.
