Panasonic TH42PZ70B Plasma TV

In recent years, the television market has been overpopulated with LCD televisions that Plasmas are now outnumbered by a huge number. This is because LCD’s are more attractive as consumers opt to go for LCD’s higher resolutions, specifications and versatility. In addition, LCD’s are slowly catching up on Plasma television’s size advantage. Before, Plasmas lord the 40 to 44-inch category, now LCD’s are not that far behind.

But even so, Panasonic is up to the challenge and they will definitely not go down without a fight. With the TH42PZ70B plasma TV, Panasonic is hoping for a renewed life for the Plasma family. The Panasonic TH42PZ70B boasts of a higher contrast ratio and 1080p/24 capability, and it is a serious contender as an alternative to 1080p LCD televisions.

To start, let’s go into the details of the set. The TH42PZ70B comes in with a pedestal stand. All you really have to do is attach the stand and place it whichever corner you want it positioned. Just a quick info, the panel is a bit on the heavy side, but noting this, the manufacturers included hand-grips on either sides to help you with this predicament.

The set is encased in a glossy black bezel and padded by a pair of finely perforated speaker grilles on both sides. The bottom edge of the bezel arches slightly upwards to reveal a metallic grey strip with a concave- forward surface that accommodates the master power button, LED indicator and remote control sensor.

The TH42PZ70B however is a surprise as it only has two HDMI 1.2 inputs when most of todays television comes in with three HDMI 1.3 inputs. At the side, you have an SD slot which allows you to view photos straight from you digital camera or your camera phones.

Now we go to the panels set of features. The Panasonic TH42PZ70B doesn’t offer white balance adjustment options in the user menu. Its color setting is also a problem since it has limited adjustment options both in the user menu and service menu. Its black level, on the other hand, is very good. It still has black fluctuations at times (common to most Panasonic Plasmas) but it was very subtle and could not be considered as an issue.

As for its performance, the set produces excellent blacks and reveals shadow details perfectly. These are characteristics that are expected from a plasma TV. It’s reproduction of 1080p signals does not disappoint in fine detail retrieval presentation.

When fed with standard definition signals, the TH42PZ70B turned in a decent SD performance. Pictures are remarkably clean and had minimal digital noise.

All in all, the Panasonic TH42PZ70B is a steal when it comes to Plasma Television. The Panasonic TH42PZ70B may not be the life saver of the Plasma line of televisions as it does have a few flaws here and there, but still, the Panasonic TH42PZ70B produces clean and detailed pictures and at the same time handles motions excellently.

Sources:
http://www.kaboodle.com
http://www.nextag.co.uk
http://www.ciao.co.uk