With the success of Pioneer’s Kuro line, Panasonic decided to enter the high end market with their Premier series. The Panasonic TH-65VX100U is made from high grade components and comes with a lot more picture options than found in the standard HDTV. These, along with other high end features makes the Panasonic TH-65VX100U worth considering when looking for a high end HDTV.
Design
Instead of using its standard frame design, Panasonic opted for a brushed metal finish that gives the HDTV a classy look. What is missing, though, are the built-in speakers, but in most cases you would want to get a
Panasonic TH-65VX100U
good set of HD speakers to accompany your HDTV. The menu system is fairly simple but gives more options for calibrating. Be warned though. Many of the extra options have very technical names and might be a bit confusing for the average user. The menu system also remembers the last menu pane which you opened, which comes in handy when calibrating the HDTV.
The remote control is the same as those of the other models. The buttons are well placed and large enough. The remote is also backlit, making finding the buttons easier in the dark. There are a few changes to the standard remote, though. Gone are the volume and mute controls due to the lack of speakers on the HDTV and Panasonic decided to add a button for each HDMI input, PC input and component input.
Screen/Picture Clarity
The TH-65VX100U comes with an 18-bit color array which gives you bright and vivid colors. It has a resolution of 1080p, the current standard HDTVs are aiming for. It has a contrast ratio of 60,000:1 which gives you black levels nearly as deep as those found in Pioneer’s Kuro line. The shadow detail found on this HDTV is very impressive and is comparable to the shadow level found in the Kuro, as well. To handle high motion scenes, this HDTV has a refresh rate of 100Hz which even outperforms LCD HDTVs.
Though this HDTV does not come with a built in TV tuner, it is able to improve the image quality from a standard definition source. Indeed, if it were not for the artifacts due to the cable TV signal, some SD content would pass as HD content thanks to the Panasonic TH-65VX100U.
Features
The Panasonic TH-65VX100U comes with 4 HDMI ports, a PC input, and component video input. It may lack various other connections compared to other models, but this is a high end model and content would look better through HD connections. Though missing the standard speakers, this HDTV comes with a built in stereo amplifier capable of HD audio output. Also included are Panasonic’s standard features used to reduce and remove burn-in like the wobble, which subtly moves the picture around and a white vertical scroll bar to remove burn-in images. Another feature which helps reduce burn-in is the peak limit mode which limits the peak brightness level by 30% to help prevent burn-in.
Being a high end HDTV, some features had to be sacrificed like the removal of Panasonic’s Viera Link and Viera Cast. This HDTV also does not come with any media connectivity like USB ports or SD card readers, so if you want to show off your photos, you will have to have another device (like a computer or Playstation 3) connect to the HDTV. It remains a good HDTV in spite of these, though.
Indeed, with such high picture quality and deep black levels, the Panasonic TH-65VX100U can hold its own against Pioneer’s Kuro line. Though its picture quality is a step just below the Kuro, this HDTV offers a larger screen size than any Kuro found to date. It may be quite pricey, but if you are looking for an HDTV with good picture quality and a screen suitable for a mini theater, take a look at the Panasonic TH-65VX100U and prepare to be impressed.
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