11:09
Ali TariQ
Panasonic is widely regarded as being the king of the plasma TV
market and with its latest range of NeoPlasma sets that doesn't look
like changing any time soon.
The new VT30 series was announced
last month at CES but it's only now that we've been able to have a
proper look at the full range. Panasonic shows off its new products at
an annual launch event every February, so today we've been walking the
floor at London's Excel centre checking out the new kit.
As we
reported yesterday, Panasonic has expanded its range of 3D TVs to
include the VT30, GT30, and ST30 NeoPlasma 3D TVs (out goes the NeoPDP
branding, in comes NeoPlasma), and also now the DT30 series of 3D LED
LCDs.
The four TVs in the VT30 series represent the cream of
Panasonic's plasma line-up and replace last year's VT20s. They're
available in four different sizes, the 65-inch TX-P65VT30B, the 55-inch
TX-P55VT30B, the 50-inch TX-P50VT30B and the 42-inch TX-P42VT30B.
The
first thing you'll notice about these TVs is that they're actually
pretty good looking – shock, horror! While Panasonic tellies have long
been revered for their picture quality, they've more often than not
underwhelmed when it came to looks.
Samsung and Philips TVs have certainly looked a lot prettier over
the last few years, and while the VT30s don't look radically different
– that bezel is still there and yep, it's still black – they certainly
look a bit more refined.
They're built with a single sheet of
glass which spans across the face of the set, and they're also a bit
thinner than last year's models while the bezel is noticeably slimmer
too.
We're not sure exactly how much they weigh but we had a cheeky
fumble and can report that they're very light. Our three-year-old
TX-P42G10 is a weighty monster in comparison.
As far as picture
quality goes, you can probably guess that these plasma TVs are
stunning. Black levels, as always, are the stand-out feature while the
handling of motion is also a very obvious step-up – certainly from the
Neo PDP sets from two years ago.
The VT30 series comes with the
new internet TV service Viera Connect which replaces the damp squib
that was Viera Cast. Viera Cast was blighted by a lack of content and
was, frankly, the worst IPTV service of all the big players
However, the new Viera Connect service offers a variety of new
content options, while also offering Skype video calling and the like.
We were unable to properly test these features due to a significant
lack of remote controls at the event, but we did see it all in action
and it looks a lot more developed than Viera Cast was.
It's Wi-Fi
ready too, and you'll get a USB wireless LAN adaptor in the box with
the TV so you won't have to wire it in which is a blessing.
Other
assorted features include an image viewing option for looking at 2D and
3D digital still images and both 2D & 3D HD video recorded on an SD
Memory Card, USB HDD Recording as well as SD Card recording.
You
also get two pairs of Panasonic's active shutter glasses with every TV
which is more than you get with some other brands' 3D offerings.
We'll be getting this TV in for a proper test in the next few weeks so check back soon for the full-fat TechRadar review.
Posted in: TX-P42VT30B review
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