Panasonic TX-37LZD80 Review

 

The Panasonic TX-37LZD80

Panasonic continues its onslaught of the HDTV market, both in the plasma and LCD fronts. While at the moment it’s known more for its plasmas, it does come up with impressive LCD sets, like the TX-37LZD80, which pose serious challenge to the dominant brands in the LCD niche. (The TX-37LZD80 set is not to be confused with the higher-end TX-37LZD800 model, which bears almost the same specs as the former, but with a ‘Clear’ panel, 100hz. Motion Picture Pro 2 technology, four HDMIs and better audio.)

Design

Styled in gloss black and silver, the TX-37LZD80 doesn’t look much different from other current HDTVs in the market. The bezel framing the screen is quite thick, but it gives the set a solid, sturdy look. There is a curved silver accent beneath the screen which looked like a lower lip on a permanent pout – it hides the speakers while showing some attitude. The non-swivel stand that comes pre-attached is also in gloss black with silver trim.

A standard Panasonic remote comes with the TX-37LZD80 and it’s a delightful one to use. Large buttons, solid feel and excellent groupings of keys make the remote easy to use, even without backlighting. The standard Viera yellow-on-blue interface is built into the set, and the no nonsense menu system is intuitive and easy to use. It would be helpful, though, if Panasonic places some numerical indicators to mark setting adjustments, as users now rely only on the displayed position in the bar which isn’t exactly accurate.

Screen/picture clarity

Powered by the V-real 3 video processor, the TX-37LZD80 produces vivid pictures and handles motions superbly, even without 100hz. processing. However, the great image quality is pulled down by the uninspiring blackness offered by this LCD. The pale blacks make pictures less stunning than they should be, and details are less pronounced.

The same video processor nonetheless handles 1080p and 1080i materials quite well, and scales effortlessly other sources into the 1920 X 1080 native resolution. It’s in standard def that the TX-37LZD80 didn’t fared well, particularly in handling Freeview materials – it seems that the processor smoothen out images too much that even details are lost. The resulting images look unnatural, if not smudgy. And no amount of picture adjustment seems to remedy this glitch.

Features

Among the features packed into this HDTV are: HD3D Sound for virtual surround sound;  built-in Freeview tuner; 24p Blu-ray playback; eight-day electronic programming guide; SD card reader and a handy timer to remind you when a programme is about to begin. Connectors include three HDMI slots, two Scart, component and composite video jacks, PC input and a host of other connectors.

While this TV may have fared below expectation – it nonetheless is a good buy for the price. Picture quality is still good despite the poor black levels, and poor handling of standard def can easily be overcome by focusing on high-def sources or for gaming purposes. After all, it’s really just a matter of attitude.

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