Panasonic TH42PZ70 Review

[francododds]

Thanks for this good site, with lots of detail, some that left me baffled.

I'm new to flat screen technology, but within the budget of this piece of kit, all I want is a true to life image that matches my current 27" Philips CRT, particularly smooth action, good definition and true colour. I was looking at Toshiba LCD's, but I'm disturbed by the Judder and Blurring on Action and Panning which appears to be still an LCD problem for all makes, even on 100Hz models. Apparently Plasmas do not suffer this movement problem, and are equally reliable.

I'm thinking of buying the Panasonic TH-42PX71E (French equivalent I believe) and mating it to the Panny EX77 Hard Drive recorder. Do you consider there are any aspects of this combo that may disappoint?

[dajumper]

I've just about made my mind up on this tv after initially leaning towards the Sony 40W3000 but am now concerned that the power consumption on this panny on normal watching mode is circa 495W (as suggested in the review and also confirmed by Panasonic UK custonmer service) which more than double the aforementioned sony of 240W!!!!

I'm now confused because i would like to be more evironmentally friendly.

What am i to do or is that not much more power usage anway?

[eden188]

dajumper,

Have a read of this guide:-

http://www.plasma-lcd-facts.co.uk/myths/energy-use/

This may help you decide a bit better.

[Strictly_Mad]

Remember this peice of information.  To get screen burn (not image retention) on a quality plasma you have to be an absolute ass!  As long as you keep the contrast and brightness a little lower than normal for 200-300 hours you will have no problems.  I have had numerous plasma panels and I am a avid gamer, especially with shoot 'em ups, so I always have the HUD showing and I have had no problems at all even with 6 hours of continuous gaming (although I would not recommend doing this everyday without some time outs for your TV and brain).  As long as you do not leave a static image on screen overnight you will be fine and even then you'll probably be alright.  The thing you have to look at as Vincent says in his review is can the things that let down a TV be rectified by other sources.  I want deep blacks and no motion blur, so plasma it is for me.  Nothing worse in my opinion than watching a film or football and it is like they are running through water!  Not acceptable.  The question I asked myself was:  Do I buy a TV that definitely has motion blur but screen burn is very unlikely OR do I but a TV that has no motion blur but carries the rare risk of getting screen burn   It is a no brainer especially when the TH42PZ70 is under 1k  .  Actually does anyone know when they will be releasing the TH42PZ70 with the cabinet?  The 50" has one but the 42" does not!
To answer the French chap's question on contrast, 5000:1 is probably the panel contrast not dynamic.  Google it!

[ronnieburns]

It said in the review that this set made some more noise than other plasmas, not just from the psu but fan noise from the ventilation holes in the back.  Is this true, what if u are watching a movie at lower volume than others or simply a quiet scene with no action, can u hear this noise?

[dajumper]

Thanks Eden188 for that plasma-lcd link....

However, i think that report is rather biased, leaning towards plasmas.... check out the manufacturers who have funded the report and type of tellies they're currently mainly producings and you'll might also agree.

 

[100papel]

Hi Vincent,
Thanks for your review on the PZ70. I live in Portugal and based on your review I've ordered my first plasma. Since I've no experience calibrating the PZ70 is it possible for you to send me the calibration settings for my first plasma?
Thanks
Joao

[dajumper]

Well.. i took the plunge and bought the 42PZ70 today for £1000 incl 5 yr warranty. Really easy to set up and only calibration i've done is to set it to cinema mode for first 200 hours as advised by Vincent. Surprised how big the box was which required 2 people as the the whole unit is rather heavy (We had to take it back in an MPV minicab). At the moment watching only SD tv... it's ok i suppose... as i have a small living room the sofa is a little over 2m away. the further the better i say.

I also realised after setting it up that i got the 42PZ70BA model. The user manual lists models 42PZ70B, 42PZ70BA and 50PZ70B... I wonder what the differences are between the B and the BA.. and hope that i've not been given the lesser model.

Does anyway one know the difference?

Thanks

[TIrthankar]

Hi dajumper,

Thanks for sharing your experience with this kit thus far. Vincent did mention the lack of film-mode de-interlacing. However, I would like to know what it means in reality, so:
1> when you watch movies broadcast by any SD channel, how would you rate the picture quality?
2> if and when you watch movies played via an upscaling dvd player, it should be better of course, but how would you personally rate it based on other tvs you have seen as part of your search before you decided on this model?

I am just trying to get a real-world-feel to warp around technical numbers which are a bit difficult for me to understand.

Thanks in advance,
Regards,
T

[dajumper]

i've learnt quite a bit about Plasma and LCD tvs over the last few weeks based on my research and quest for flat screen but there's still room for improvement. I'm not a techy freak so am still clueless on what film-mode-de-interlacing is?? Hope someone can explain it for us laymens.

T, to answer your q's

1) SD: Obviously, every program on every channel is different (source: Sky+ box). IMO, quality of best picture i've seen is very good but not perfect (as i'm quite particular and then again i'm prob expecting hd quality). I can't sit any further back only further to the side and i do find that the viewing experience does improve. I think the picture quality is definitely better compared to most tvs at the shops when viewing SD. But what do you epect for £1,000 these days? hehe

2) HD: Unfortunately, i don't have any HD or upscaling players so can't comment on quality there. I think (and hope) it will churn out beautiful pictures on HD Dvd or bluerays.

3) In terms of Price, Quality, Look, Picture, Reputation & Reviews i would rate it at the top of my list based on my research. I was originally considering LCDs preferably the Sony W3000 but i think although LCDs have improved dramatically over past few years, the motion blur is still quite noticeable on LCDs (eg Philips 9632 with 100Hz) when not playing from a HD source. For me, the only thing i'm not happy about the PZ70 is the fact that it's very power hungry consuming 495W (whatever that means) more than double that of most LCDs at 180W-240W. Apparently, the 42PX70 is £200-300 cheaper with raving reviews & awards does the job almost as well although it's not full HD and will cope with anything you throw at it. (I personally wanted somthing which was full HD as not to be lagging in the new future).

4) Btw, i called up Panasonic UK today and they've confirmed that there are no differences between the 42PZ70B & 42PZ70BA models apart from the timing, batches and assembling factories... (well something like that...phew!)

Good luck with your search and let us know your progress, any findings or when which telly you've finally taken home.

cheers

[guymorganharris]

Phew!  I started looking a few weeks back and have been up all night reading through reviews on this website - it's the best, you're reviews are excellent - as are the feedback and comments.

I'm still left with a question or two though...

I'll be having a Denon Amp and upscaling DVD player.  I'll connect the Plasma through 1 HDMI only via Amp to DVD player (also playing CD's), a PC and an I-pod.  Looking at the reviews and comments and feedback it looks like best value would be to get the PZ70B rather than the PZ700 as I don't need the sound or better connections.

Here's Panasonic's own comparison: http://www.panasonic.co.uk/CompareResults.aspx

I had the Samsung Q97 recommended to me and would be very interested in how it compares to the above.

I was about to buy this but noticed the introduction of 1080p on the market and started looking again.

At home we'll be mostly watching TV (Film 4, normal programmes etc) and won't have Sky or a games console as well as watching DVD's a fair bit.  Any feedback on whether I'm about to make a mistake or have made the right choice would be really appreciated.  Viewing distance about 5m.

Was considering the Pioneer, but in comparison it seems kind of similar to the PZ70B for twice as much money.

Hopefully will buy tomorrow and shall report back on how it all goes during set up etc.  Any feedback prior to buying HUGELY appreciated,

Thanks,

[meconicuk]

Hello Vincent.

Ditched the idea of buying Sony 40X3000 as it's too expensive.

Visited John Lewis(Edinburgh) to look at their Panasonic 26"LXD70 (£549).
By chance the store was quiet; so I had a look at the other models and saw the 42"PZ70BA marked up at £899.

The salesman said it had been reduced because of a PriceMatch (Currys?). Their was no stock at present, but they
expect a delivery of 200+ "soon". He added the proviso that Panasonic have to honour their commitment to supply the sets(!)

I bought the TV on the spot as I consider this a good deal: plus you get free delivery and 5 year warranty.
I'm now waiting for Lewis's to get back to me when the new stock arrives.

[dajumper]

Btw, i have realised that for SD viewing... the internal digital freeview has better picture quality than my sky+ box... same for another friend as well.

Good on you meconic!

[TIrthankar]

Got the pz70ba delivered last week. Easy to set up. Picture is brilliant! Colours look natural. SD experience is very good: soaps, movies, news, sports all look fantastic (pioneer is better, but does not justify the price). Obviously some programs on some channels are better, but all look much better than similar sized lcds and plasmas i have seen at friends'. No need to mention high quality content as they look good on all tvs.
Go grab one, it's brilliant (will report back in about 2 months).

[JAB]

Vincent,

How is the gamma curve of this Panasonic?
There is no mention of it in this review.