Since Pioneer stopped producing its Kuro Plasmas a few years ago, Panasonics flagship plasma sets have become the new standard for picture quality. Last year’s VT20/25 was considered by many enthusiasts and tech sites as the best performing HDTV of 2010 for both 2D and 3D picture quality. For 2011, Panasonic has revamped their plasma lineup and made many improvements. The VT30 series is their new top of the line set and comes in 55” and 65” sizes. At this review we refer to the Panasonic TC-P65VT30 which is the 65 inch model of the Panasonic TC-P55VT30.

Design

In recent years, design hasn’t been one of the strong points for Panasonic’s plasmas but in 2011 they have slimmed down all models and incorporated an elegant look.

The Panasonic TC-P65VT30 appears more stylish since a thin sliver of silver can be noticed at once alongside the farthest edging to counterbalance the glossy black. It has sharp lines and a clean, minimalist design. Moreover, a small speaker bulge is located along the bottom edge. Nevertheless, this model actually shows a perfect rectangle panel. It has a long panel life of up to 100,000 hours of usage. The VT30′s major design enhancement against the GT30 series is a single pane of glass which fronts the whole panel, getting rid of the depth variation between the frame and the screen. When compared to the VT25, the VT30 has a narrower panel and bezel, although it isn’t quite as sleek as Samsung’s high end plasmas. The stand is rectangular and low profile, but is not able to swivel. Overall, the TC-P65VT30 is understated yet attractive.

Panasonic has also released new 3D glasses that are less bulky, lighter weight and far more appealing than last year’s model. They now have an on/off switch and are also backwards compatible with 2010 TV models. Additionally, the 2010 glasses will still work with 2011 TVs. The Panasonic TC-P65VT30 comes with one pair of 3D glasses.

Features

The Panasonic TC-P65VT30 is a 3D TV and uses active shutter technology. It has THX certification for both 2D and 3D. One feature that separates it from the step down Panasonic PGT30 is its 96hz mode for 1080p/24 content. Other highlights are an included Wi-Fi dongle, DLNA and a new dejudder processing. Panasonic has also revamped its Internet suite. It is now called Viera Connect and has expanded content offerings and a new app store. Available content includes Facebook, Twitter, Shoutcast, Netflix, Skype and Picasa, along with several games.

With VIERA Link, interconnection of the function of various audio and video equipments can be obtained. Those compatible devices can be linked physically thru HDMI cables. The viewer can easily manage those devices by means of the VIERA remote control.

Through its feature Infinite Black Pro 2, improvement to the panel as well as cells aid in regenerating pictures with smooth, normal progression along with deep, rich blacks even if seen under vivid environmental conditions. In films, the accurate, deep blacks realistically express the concept of the movie producers, providing further authority and realism to the viewing experience.

Extra user-menu control selections are being provided by this Panasonic TV model as compared to other competitors. This year, Panasonic has inserted a 10-point grayscale tuning, a developed CMS together with a 10-point luminance correction to focus on gamma.

Performance

The VT30 has been deemed the best overall performing TV of 2011 although very costly. It produces the deepest black levels of any set since the Kuro and has terrific shadow detail. The competing Samsung PND8000 plasma (check on Amazon), which has been thought to give the Panasonic TC-P65VT30 a run for its money, falls short in these categories. Video processing is excellent and picture uniformity is near-perfect. One area where the Samsung proved superior was color accuracy, although the TC-P65VT30 shows brilliance. While not perfect, the mode offers great out of the box picture quality for those who don’t get their set calibrated. Bright room performance isn’t the best, but still can be regarded as first-class for a plasma screen.

The Panasonic TC-PVT30 possesses exceptional overall picture quality, with better black-level performance, extremely fine shadow detail along with precise color points in THX mode.
The new dejudder processing is a “motion smoother” feature that increases the motion resolution but doesn’t have a noticeable effect on blur, which was found to be minimal anyway. 1080p/24 content is also handled properly. 96hz mode also helped at reducing artifacts. 3D performance has also been improved since last year and the result is less crosstalk and greater detail in THX mode. However both Samsung’s high end PND8000 plasma and UND8000 LED handle crosstalk better.

Conclusion

The 2011 Panasonic TC-P65VT30 & Panasonic TC-P55VT30 sets the new standard in terms of picture quality. It edges out the Samsung PND8000 as an overall performer. However, the two sets are quite close and the VT30 is quite a bit pricier. It produces some of the deepest blacks ever seen on plasma, offers a wide range of features, content, and picture adjustments, and has an attractive design. 3D quality has improved since last year but it falls short of some of the competition. It lives up to the high standard that Panasonic has set in past years and is a great choice for anyone looking for a top of the line TV set that puts the bar for performance.

Promotion valid till September 17, 2011

Videos:

Here is a video about Panasonic TC-P65VT30 from CES 2011:

Here is a video review by CNET:

More:

Official web page of the Panasonic TC-P65VT30.

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