| Overall Rating |   |
| Picture Quality | |
| Value For Money | |
Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 Review
The Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1
The Neo PDP panel is one of Panasonic’s latest innovations, which cuts down energy consumption in half. increases brightness and helps to create eye-popping black levels. You can find it on high-end Viera models or more affordable ones like the Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1, which has many other great things to offer.
Design
The design of the Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 is fairly simple, but stylish enough. A large power button, an indicator light and the Panasonic and Viera logos blend in nicely into the glossy black bezel, which has rounded corners and curves at the bottom just above a thin silver strip. The speakers are cleverly hidden while the matching stand, though still lacking in swivel capability, provides maximum support.
Unfortunately, the clicker that comes with it fails to impress. Although most of the buttons are easy to distinguish from each other because of their unique shapes, sizes and colors, none of them are backlit and you’ll have to look a bit harder to spot the tiny Menu button. The on-screen menu sports the same yellow-on-blue color scheme, but has more rounded edges and extra icons. Explanatory text, like those found on Samsung and Sony models, is still absent.
Screen/Picture Clarity
As mentioned previously, the TC-P65S1 creates not just outstanding black levels, but infinite blacks, which, combined with excellent shadow detail and rich colors overall, creates amazing images. Because of its wide viewing angle, these images remain equally superb no matter where you are seated in the room. It has a full 1080p resolution and a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, as well.
As for video processing, the TC-P65S1 delivers line of 1080p and 1080i content, and though it falls short when processing film-based sources, the problems are hard to discern for ordinary viewers. Its 600Hz Sub-field Drive guarantees smooth frame transition and excellent motion resolution so images remain crisp even when the action picks up.
Features
Videophiles may find the picture controls of the Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 lacking, although four adjustable picture modes, three color temperature presets and five aspect ratio options are provided. There are also built-in mechanisms to treat and prevent screen burn-in. Three HDMI inputs are provided, as well, along with two component-video inputs and an SD card slot on the side for easy photo sharing, although a PC input and a standard analog audio output are not.
Without interactive features and less than extensive connectivity, the Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 may fall short of expectations. Still, these can be overlooked in favor of its breathtaking picture quality, especially for those who are only looking forward to spending countless hours watching their favorite shows and movies. And if you count the fact that the TC-P65S1 is one of Panasonic’s least expensive full 1080p HDTVs with a Neo PDP panel, you might just find yourself looking at a great bargain.
<< Click HERE to Read The Latest Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 User Reviews >>
Here it goes:
I purchased this Panasonic from Amazon, this is my third time ordering a Plasma through Amazon and have not been disappointed yet. Delivery is always outstanding through Pilot Freight. Each delivery they are professional and ensure the complete setup is working properly before they depart. All items below I ordered through Amazon. I did purchase the Panny when Amazon and Panasonic was advertising this 65″ monster with their blu-ray player with $300 off purchase price so I purchased the TV and Blu-ray for $2289.00 one outstanding deal!
I just completed my Media Room in my ROG and purchased the following:
- Polk Audio RM705 5.1 Home Theater System/Polk Audio RM6751 Satellite Speakers/Sanus Systems Wms5-B Wall Or Ceiling Speaker Mounts
– In my opinion these speakers are the best value for the sound quality I was seeking. When using the Sanus mounts the Polk
speakers must be mounted upside down for a ceiling install. Sanus mount kit comes with everything to install speakers. I
wish however Polk would of designed the mounting holes on top or bottom of speaker housing to accommodate wall or ceiling
installation.
- Yamaha RX-V863BL 735 Watt 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver
– This is an outstanding receiver, up converts HDMI signals to 1080P/HD receiver, does it all. This is my second Yamaha receiver
and still Yamaha has to work on their remotes, they are painful to program to control all devices.
- D-Link DGS-2205 5-Port 10/100/1000 Desktop Switch
– Purchased this switch to connect my PS3 and Roku Netflix player to one RJ-45 cable. Worked excellent easy to setup.
- 3 Port Smart HDMI Switch by Game Infinity
– Ordered switch just in case, but did not have to install. However I did test switch in my family room setup and worked as
advertised no issues. Comes with remote also and auto switches fine.
- PlayStation 3 Slim
– Although I received a free blu-ray player with my 65″ Panny I felt a PS3 was essential. Best value for the money now with the
$299 price tag and Netflix is teaming with Sony to Stream Videos if you have a Netflix account.
- Yamaha YDS-11SL Universal iPod Dock for Select Yamaha Home Theater Receivers
– Easy to install receiver detected docking station and IPOD, no issues.
- Logitech Harmony Adapter for Playstation 3
– Easy setup, plug and play
- Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote
– I gave up on the Yamaha receiver remote and ordered the Harmony One. Outstanding remote, it does take time to setup. I was
pleased with Logitechs database, they have over 5,000 electronic components available to program this remote. If it cannot find
your component, the Harmony One can learn the IR signal and you can actually type in the control feature into the software
provided to maintain the same functional capability as the original component remote.
I hope this helps anyone thinking of setting up a Media room, I am by no means an Audiophile or expert in electronics. I am very satisfied with room. I don’t think I will be spending money at the Movies any further.
Enjoy, do not hesitate to purchase this Panasonic.
The TV is great as I expected and lives up to consumer reports recomnendation.
What impressed me most was the two young men that Amazon.com sent to deliver and unpack & test the TV. They were polite,professionable,helpful and took the box and packing with them so I didn’t have a mess to deal with. THANK YOU
I needed to upgrade from my Samsung DLP (issues with the digital board). I did the research, and originally was looking at another Samsung until I came across the Panasonic. Excellent reviews online and through Consumer Reports, and I couldn’t pass up the deal from Amazon! Free shipping, no tax, $300 off if you bought a $175 blu-ray player, and a free blu-ray of Snow White.
The tv shipped quicker than expected, and the picture looking amazing! Plasma still beats LCD, and you can’t beat it price wise compared to LED.
I bought this TV essentially from my research to find an affordable TV with a large screen (over 60 inches). Result? For the money, this is a very good value. While I can’t agree with some of the other reviewers who gave it 5 stars and called it the best out there, it is a quality set that most will be happy with. One of the main cons, but to be expected from a screen this size, is as one other reviewer stated non-hd shows do look much worse on this TV than on any other TV I’ve seen. Also keep in mind, if you are planning on placing this on a wall this TV is quite heavy. It certainly is over 150 pounds.
Got the PS65S1 just in time for baseball playoffs and love it! HD sports on this look fantastic and the picture in general is great. Delivery was great, they brought it in and set it up on my stand which is good because this is a heavy TV.
The only issue with a screen this size is when you watch non-HD shows they look even worse. Watching a non-HD football game was a chore.
We chose this TV because of the size, I have a 16×23 room, and it fits it perfectly.
All in all am very happy with this purchase, my wife and I are totally happy staying home watching HD sports and Blu Ray movies on it.
When I was comparing the 50″ S1 version to other LCD TVs at Sears the Pana S1 whites looked less bright. But the S1 and the LCD TVs had the same contrast ratios, so I finally asked the salesman if he could turn up the contrast on the S1, when he did it looked just like the LCDs, which had white whites but other colors were washed out (they were really too bright, but I think that is how they are getting people to buy them).
So I got the Pana 65″ TC-P65S1 from Amazon and at home it is amazing! Now the factory contrast setting was set to 100% and it was way too bright, with it at 28 it seems to be perfect in a dark room. Got the Pana DMP-BD80K player with it and I am amazed at how well it upconverts DVDs (480p) they look great on this TV from 10′, and of course 1080p BDs look amazing! In addition, the Pana S1 can control the Pana BD80 blueray player through the HDMI cable, so you only need the TV remote to control both. And the speakers are actually pretty good. Just remember that to clean the glass dilute dish soap 1/100, and I just used a damp microfiber cloth without soap. Too much soap may be a problem for the excellent anti-reflective coating on the glass.
Mounted it on the wall with the Sanus VMPL3-B tilt wall mount others have mentioned, it fit perfect and had all the hardware needed, went into three studs to anchor it. With the tilt brackets (it also comes with low profile brackets) you have just enough room to connect a HDMI cable to the back.
Got it through Amazon, the Pilot delivery guys helped unpack it and waited for me to turn it on before having me sign. This TV in the box is heavy, by by its self two guys can lift it without too much problem.
Delivered today. Watched it for 30 minutes then heard a “pop” and picture was gone. TV done. In my opinion now junk regardless of price paid. For this price regardless of value nothing should fail that quickly out of the box. I can not recommend regardless of what I wind up doing with it as I never had problems with my Sony’s or Sharps
Gorgeous 65″ picture out of the box. I don’t understand discussions about calibrating the color, because Phillies red, Eagles green and Giants blue were like being in the stadium. Upgraded my cable to HD and set up a 7.1 Dolby IIz surround system, and I never want to leave the house.
UNBELIEVABLE price. I needed a 65″ screen for a 20′ x 20′, with good anti-glare since lots of windows on the other three walls surrounding the TV. When I started shopping a year ago, lesser models were $6000. This has everything you need and more. Through Amazon with the special offer, I got this TC-P65S1 with a free Panasonic DMP-BD80 blu-ray player for LESS than $2300 (delivered). The major feature missing from this S1 compared to the top-of-the-line V10 is Viera Cast internet access (youtube etc), but that feature was part of the “free” blu-ray player (though no real interest in this anyway).
SIZE MATTERS. You will love this TV!
Its a nice tv.. its truly heavy though, glad I had them carry the thing up… but love it. U’ll need two other people in order to mount it on the wall since its so heavy, but it is really thin so that is really nice…
I originally had a maxent plasma 1080i/720p 50″ tv and went to a Sharp 1080p 65″ LCD. THe sharp was very nice, but… you just cannot beat the picture quality of plasma. After a year with the sharp LCD, I sold it to a relative and went with this pany plasma 65″. I don’t know what it is, but the picture on a plasma, and especially this plasma, is always stunning. LCD is good… Plasma is best.
Very happy with this set. Just hope it doesn’t fall off the wall because this set is heavy. The 65″ LCD took 2 people to handle/mount/lift. THis set takes 3. Make sure you hit those wall studs when wall mounting. Out of the box it worked and looked great. Just set the video to “cinema” and turned on SS sound, that was it. No need to mess with service tweaking and things you shouldn’t do, like so many others insist on doing. Got it directly from Amazon, thank goodness, was the last one left. Probably ok to buy from one of amazon’s partner’s but I prefer directly from amazon. These things are selling like hotcakes. No wonder why…
My husband and I did alot of research prior to purchasing this TV – we looked at more expensive and less expensive ones, this one is priced in the middle and we couldn’t be more satisfied (just wished it had more than the 2 HDMI connections in the back, the one the side sticks out to much without a right angle adaptor. The price through Amazon and the delivery process was outstanding!
Words couldn’t begin to describe this beauty in my living room. I received this product four days ago and I couldn’t be any happier. It arrived thru manna’s white glove delivery; they unpacked the TV; I checked it for any screen cracks– there were none; I hooked it up and turned it on and it was just mind-blowingly beautiful. Blacks were real blacks as opposed to LCD screens and its sheer size practically fills your whole visual field. It sits right by my french windows where there is ample ambient light– there is some tolerable glare but it’s not as obnoxious as most people complain about. This TV is actually an upgrade from my 55-inch Hitachi plasma (which by the way is still in good working condition for three years now). I have been hunting this TV for about a year now and finally decided to take the plunge on Black Friday; I ordered it thru amazon with no sales tax and no delivery charge. I could not get a better deal than that even if I buy it from BB. I watched my favorite bluray movies including Planet Earth, Star Trek, Harry Potter series and Matrix– the colors look so real, they practically pop out of the screen. ESPN HD is a glory to behold; football never looked this real and in-your-face. I’m so glad I decided to buy a plasma as opposed to an LCD screen (LCD colors are oversaturated to the point of being cartoonish). I pretty much stick with the HD channels because the regular ones look awful on the 65-inch screen. This TV dramatically transformed my living room into a home theater I can proudly show off to my friends and family. Don’t hesitate, buy it!
Had this unit for about 4 weeks now and love it. Its my 4th Flat Panel TV, still have the other 3 as well, just upgraded to the 65″. Panasonic cant be beat, I have had really good experience with their products, from TVs to wireless phones, just good stuff. Be careful the price fluctuates wildly, its been had for $2100-$2400 with free Blueray DVD player so wait for a deal, prices should go down, not up (supply and demand I guess). If you can get one, pull the trigger you wont regret it. Only thing I wish is that it had more than 3 HDMI inputs.
First let me say Amazon you are awesome! I ordered this tv the Sunday before Christmas and expected it to get here on Dec 28. To my surprise the delivery company called three days later and delivered it that same day.
Secondly, THIS TV IS AWESOME!!! When it was delivered I opened the box to check for damages and I got nervous about the huge size. After a neighbor helped me get it upstairs to the media room I ascended to video heaven. My seating is 12-13 ft from the tv and 65in is the optimal size for this distance. Since the tv is so big I had to order a special wall mount (which I haven’t received yet)but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying it. It took about 30 minutes to attach to the stand and hook up to my existing sound system (Onkyo receiver w/ 7.1 Atlantic Technology speakers). If you are going to use the stand make sure you have a heavy duty wide console to put it on…and if you have small children I recommend you attach it to the console. I noticed the back/bottom of the stand has screw holes on it, which I assume is for attaching it.
Picture quality is excellent. Don’t listen to all the so called experts who say it is too green, too red, etc. They don’t know what they are talking about. After making a few changes to the picture defaults,contrast, color, etc)the tv was ready to go. The sound on the tv is good for everyday watching but if you are watching a HD action or drama movie or tv show you really need to hook it up to a home theater sound system…..in order to achieve total audio/video bliss.
If you have been looking for a 65 in plasma…this is the one for you.
I am extremely happy with this purchase. The set came with a free Panasonic Blu-ray player also! You would be lucky to purchase a 52″ 120hz LED backlight LCD at this price and you would not get nearly as good a picture (or Blu-ray player).
I was concerned that 65″ might be too big for our space as we sit about 10-14 feet from the screen but it is great.
Standard TV is a little grainy but this is exaggerated because by contrast the HD is so clear and sharp. The set provides plenty of options to customize the picture to your liking. The preset options (standard, cinema, games and vivid) are very good if you don’t want to play with customizing the picture. I have found myself surfing so I can watch only HD channels as I want to enjoy the full HD experience!
There are only 2 HDMI inputs on the back, the 3rd is on the side. HDMI seems to be the default HD hookup method now so the other component video inputs don’t seem as useful. It depends how many devices you want to hook up.
The internal speakers are reasonable but you should, at the least, get a minimal set of external speaker to use with any large screen set. I have external mounted speakers and there is a strange echo effect if you use the internal speaker with the external ones. It is worse if you use the ‘surround’ setting for the internal speakers. It could be my room ???
The stand is very solid and significantly more stable than the stand that come with the Samsung 63″ set (the other large Plasma option). I opted not to wall mount as I am using the set in a corner and it is a heavy unit to mount (150lbs) if you want a wall mount swivel.
On DIrecTV there is a strange phenomenon when you change channels such that the picture first jumps to a ‘zoom’ format momentarily before resolving the picture. It is not a show stopper but it does annoy. I am not sure if this is a DirecTV issue or a Panasonic issue. I have read that DirecTV does have delays when you switch channels because they only process one channel at a time when you change channels. Again it is more annoyance than issue. Still a small price to pay to be rid of the high cost, poor performance and horrid customer support of cable!
I would Highly recommend this set. Sears had a great sale around Xmas but they sold out in a day and would not honor their advertised sale price (even though they did not state in the ad that it was limited to stock on hand). Shame on you Sears! Instead I purchased from Video Only and they were cheaper, better service and have free delivery and setup!
Bigger is better. Go for it!
I was a bit reluctant to buy this without seeing it, but all the reviews said it was good and I couldn’t beat the price. I am glad that I bought it. Great picture, easy setup, simple menus. This is a huge screen and the 1080p picture is fantastic!!! I replaced a 50″ Pioneer 720p with this 65″ Panasonic and I am very very happy with this purchase!!!!
I bought this 65 inches plasma several months ago. I can say that the good reputation from other people is absolutely correct. I am quite happy with this, and slso my wife and sons. I added 7.1 ch Yamaha AV receiver and sounds also good. There is no disadvantage comparing with 65 inches LCD. Maybe 65 plasma is better than 65 LCD.
Plasma shows same quolity viewing from any angle. Excellent to fast moving pictures. I strongly recommend 65 Plasma to all the big screen lovers.
Only one dissatisfaction: When this big Plasma arrived at my home, delivery guys carried it into my basement AV room and opened package for me. Also they offered to set up the display on my theather fanuture, but we could not find the support stands in the box. I thought shop mistakenly short shipped parts. But, the fact is “support stands are not incluede in 65 inches display”! I found this fact when I read the manual throughly, and it is written in small letters. Other smaller size displays include stands. I bought the stands separately, and they arrived at my home two weeks later. I set up this heavy device by myself. A cause of fault is mine, but I hope Panasonic should clearly note this matter on the brochur information, or includes these stands in every model.
I have been researching for over a year to buy a large plasma to replace my 60″ Sony rear projection 720p LCD television. The TC-65S1 is the value series of Panasonic’s 2009 Plasma line-up. The only other 65″ plasma Panasonic currently offers is their top-of-the-line V series at a significant premium. Samsung offers two 63″ plasma sets – the PN-63B650 and the more featured laden PN-63B590. The 2010 models are just beginning to be announced.
I saw the Samsung PN-63B590 at Best Buy and HH Gregg and liked the picture but was concerned by a loud buzzing issue that apparently affects a small percentage of Samsung’s B-series plasmas. I also wanted to buy as large a screen as possible knowing that TV’s tend to look smaller once you get used to them. I viewed the TC-65S1 at HH Gregg but bought through Amazon when they offered a 12-month, no interest and no payment promotion.
The TV was shipped through CEVA and they delivered on the promise date. I was worried that they would bring a large tractor trailer into my neighborhood, but they had the set on a normal sized delivery van. At my request, the two CEVA guys carried the TV around to the back of my house and put it in my daylight basement. They popped the top off the box and plugged the set in to make sure it turned on before they left. It was a painless process.
With the help of my wife and daughter, I removed the TV from the lower portion of its box, attached the pedestal stand and put the whole unit on a OmniMount G362 60″ Stellar TV stand that I also purchased through Amazon. The top shelf of the OmniMount G362 stand is rated for 250 lbs. so it is plenty stout enough for the 65″ Panasonic. I got the stand in gloss black which matches the overall look of the TV.
Out-of-the-box, the picture quality was very good. It looked much better in my home than it had looked when I viewed it in the store. I think most people will be able to find a pleasing picture after adjusting the picture pre-sets and the controls in the user menu. This TV does not have as many picture adjustments as its big brother, the TC-65V10, but it also costs [...] less. For movie watching, I have the sound running through my home theater system, but for regular TV watching, I just use the built-in speakers in the TC-65S1. The TV speakers sounds OK to me.
The knock on this TV in the enthusiast forums is that the picture pushes green. I knew that going into this purchase, but to be honest, I thought my set looked pretty good with the factory settings. I followed the plasma break-in and calibration advice from various threads on the AVS Forums [...] and actually improved the picture by making tweaks the service menus. The AVS Forums are a great resource for all your audio and video needs.
There are no perfect televisions. All makes, models, and display technologies compromise on one thing or another. The TC-65S1 is a great value because at 65 inches it is big enough to give you an immersive movie or sports experience, it throws a great picture right out-of-the-box, it is a popular model so there is a ton of information about it including calibration tips and service menu tweaks on the AVS Forum, and it can be had for less than [...]. Is it the perfect televison? No, but until they make one, the TC-65S1 will keep you smiling.
First, thanks to all of you who have reviewed this TV. I had been looking for a large screen TV for months. Going back and forth from Plasma to LCD and the newer LED’s. After extensive comparisons and in store viewing I went with Plasma. Lots of technical research and readings of online reviews and it finally came down to Samsung or Panasonic. Based mostly on owner’s reviews I purchased this TV at Best Buy for 2199.00. Absolutely no regrets. The big beautiful and stunning picture you get speaks for itself. The sound(when set to surround) was better than I expected based on the reviews. However I do recommend connection to a good surround sound system and a Blu Ray player for the perfect TV experiance. Colors are beautiful and life like and on screen controls are more than enough to tweak the pic to your own taste. I’ve had the TV for a week and B-Ray discs could not look or sound any better. Standard DVD’s also look great. I really don’t think you need calibration on this TV. I would suggest using the 200.00-300.00 calibration cost on a good Blu Ray player or a good sound system. If I could I would give this Panasonic model 10 stars. If you want a big screen TV and can have it in a room where you can control the light I highly recommend the 65″ S1. I don’t think you’d be sorry.
Picture quality compares well with other 58+inch plasmas. If you catch one of the sellers on the right day, the price can be unbeatable.
My only concern is that owners have begun reporting degredation of black level over time (see [...] reviews). I have not read similar complaints about comparable sets. As I have not been witnes to these changes over time, I cannot attest to such claims. Furthermore, when viewing the set at the store (a set presumably running for hours-days-weeks) I did not notice any clear difference (albeit the display wasnt utilizing high quality media). Nonetheless, from the content in the forum(s), this may be a known and predictable event with the panasonic plasmas.
At any rate, if you’re like me and end up purchashing a new tv every 2-3 yrs this may not matter. In the end, and until I see a loss of black level, Id still say this set is in the top 2or3 for cost-size-quality combination.
For the last six months I have been studing the different large screen HDTV’s online and at different stores to replace our Sony KDL60XBR950 720p HDTV. After deciding on the Panasonic Viera TC-P65S1 65″ 1080p Plasma I found my best price at Vann’s through Amazon.com. I then ordered the HDTV and three each of the Mediabridge Ultra Series-6′ High Speed HDMI Cable-Version 1.3 Category 2 Certified-1080p-Blu-Ray-PS3 also sold here at Amazon.com. I received both orders before a week had passed. I used the High Speed HDMI Cable on both my FiOS STB and my LG Model: BD370 Blu-Ray Disc Player. I then used the easy to follow instructions to set-up the HDTV by putting the picture mode on standard and adjusted the contrast, brightness, color, tint and sharpness to tone the picture down to our liking. Both my wife and I were truly amazed at the 1080p Blu-Ray DP picture showing the movie “Full Metal Jacket” on this 65″ Plasma. It looked as though you were actually there in the jungle with them…truly amazing!!! Then we viewed our HD programming through the FiOS STB and this also was a truly great picture. After only having this set for a few days we couldn’t be more happier with our purchase and would recommend this set to anybody who wants a quality large screen 65″ Plasma for a very reasonable price.
I upgraded from Sony 46xbr4, and expected to sacrifice image quality for size; however, I sacrificed nothing. This television blows away the xbr4 in every aspect. The image quality is incredible with the lights on or off, though i would not recommend this product for an area with direct sunlight and lots of windows.
Product is great. Picture and Features outstanding. Sound is a little “tinny” at times. The only problem I’ve had was with the connection ports on the back of the unit. We purchased a low profile wall mount and when we hung the TV on a brick wall – the HDMI cables were damaged since the unit was so close to the wall. The older flat screen Panasonic we owned had all the connection ports on the bottom of the unit which seems like a good idea since having them on the back means you risk damage while hanging and unit has to be unmounted to add/move cables. There are some connection ports on the side, but having them all on the sides and bottom would be more convenient.
Well I’ll try again as I lost my first attempt at a review. Since so many of the reviews have focused on picture quality I will attempt to focus this review on the less oft-covered aspects of this TV. First off, I did not purchase this through amazon as it was only offered through 3rd parties, and I was able to get free, scheduled delivery, a lower price, and some purchase incentives through a different, respected, online vendor. I would ensure delivery be included in the purchase as the TV when boxed is very large and unwieldy.
Once unboxed the TV is surprisingly “mobile” with very convenient handholds recessed in the back, and therefore a fairly easy two-person lift for normally sized/strength adults, man or woman. I did purchase the “Sanus VMPL3-B Tilt Wall Mount for 27″ to 84″ Displays (Black)” for this device through amazon, and hanging the TV on the mount was fairly easy due to these recessed handholds. It was also fairly easy to move the TV around getting a reasonable idea of best viewing location etc.
I wish more of the connectors on the back recognized the likely wall-hung configurations for the TV. Only the connectors on the side actually provided an orientation parallel to the wall. The component connections in particular are just about on the outermost part of the housing creating a need for the TV to be at least a couple inches away from the wall unless you ensure the openings for the cables are in the wall directly behind the connectors on the TV. For some applications this is OK, but if you happen to have source components (game system, hd/dvd player, or older pre-amp/receiver with only component video switching, etc) where the highest quality connection is component video and the cables don’t necessarily run through the wall you may want to create a little more space between the TV and wall to allow cable connections than would otherwise be needed. If you use the base that comes with the TV set on the floor or table/shelf of some kind there will be plenty of space behind the TV for even component video connections.
The overall appearance of the TV is rather understated (much like in the online pictures) with a black frame and not any very prominent logos, or shiny metal or such.
The viewing angle is nice and wide, and the room where I have it installed is subject to very big changes in ambient light (near some big sliding glass doors out to deck), and I have not had trouble viewing in any ambient light conditions.
For a bit more than $2K the price/performance on this TV is quite good, and overall image quality compares rather well to smaller LCD/LED sets. If you have a large space &/or are likely to be viewing from multiple rooms or in an entertainment setting I would strongly recommend the larger size and relative brightness of the plasma compared to LCD/LED, and also the speedy refresh rate is great for gaming.
This TV is the BOMB! I don’t think I could ever do without a 65″ TV again for the rest of my life. I still use standard def. from directv and it costs me 64.00 a month so no I’m not going to pay another 10.00 bucks a month for HD. $768.00 a year for TV is enough already. But enough about that, the picture is excellent. I like the picture on it better than my LCD Tv. Vibrant colors, media player movies are great. Would I buy it again, you bet cha!
I bought a 50″ Panasonic G10 plasma last August to hang on the wall of our newly finished game/bar room. The bar area is 16 x 16 and I wanted to fill it with a great plasma for Steelers football and Penguins Hockey games.
From the moment we installed it, I couldn’t help thinking that wall was reaching out for MORE TV. The TV was absolutely awesome but the size left me wanting more.
I kept researching bigger TV’s for the next few months, hoping to convince my wife that our bar needed a bigger screen. I enlisted my sons and friends to make comments to help me working on the “boss”.
My son bought a 60″ LG plasma and I helped him install it in January. I actually fell in love with that TV because it was one of the nicest looking TVs I’d ever seen. When it’s off, all you see is a big black glass screen. No visible frame and oh so thin. Great picture, pretty TV.
Then came the day our 8 year old Sony WEGA rear projection LCD TV in the family room got deathly ill. The picture had been going for the last year but, that day, it really went! I got on Amazon and began researching 60″ Plasmas.
This 65″ Panasonic had the very best reviews and it was available from wide choice of suppliers through Amazon. I began narrowing down the ones that had the best prices and reputations and was very surprised at how differently two companies can treat potential customers.
Vann’s seemed to be the biggest and their price was within a dollar of Electronics Expo. I called both to see what I could get. Vann’s had a voicemail telling me all reps were busy with other customers and told me to leave my name and number with a message of what I was interested in.
I then called Electronics Expo and was quickly talking to Keith Hansen. Keith is one of the most knowledgeable electronics reps I have ever spoken to. In a matter of maybe a half hour on the phone, he gained my confidence and trust to make me feel very comfortable to plunk down over two grand without batting an eye. (Something I really don’t take lightly, I might add….) I wanted to give Vann’s one last chance, just to satisfy my need to comparison shop. Since the phone didn’t work before, I tried their on-line chat. One thing led to another and after “chatting” online for a half hour, they basically told me they had the best price, the best reputation, the best service, the best etc, etc, etc.. Yea…RIGHT….the best Service!!
I called Keith at Electronics Expo back and ordered this TV on the spot. That was last Tuesday. I asked him if he could get it here by Friday because I would have my sons here to help me hang it over the Easter weekend. He called the shipping company and confirmed they could. The TV arrived promptly on Friday afternoon and was hanging on the wall by Friday night.
If you have ANY doubts whether Panasonic is the right choice for plasma……put your fears to rest. Panasonic concentrates on plasma and they are the best in the business…..my opinion having two of them in my house right now and after researching for over 8 months…..yes, 8 months before buying my first plasma. If you have ANY doubts that the picture from a 65″ plasma might be compromised because it’s so BIG….Don’t!! My wife, remember her…the BOSS, told me on Saturday while we were watching the Final Four…..”Man, the picture looks almost 3D!!” That, my friends, made all the groveling worthwhile!! Don’t hesitate to buy this TV. It is clearly the biggest and best picture available for the money!! You’d have to spend THREE times as much to get any more size or quality. BUY IT!!
When the TV showed up I was excited but that soon turned to disappointment when the tuner would not bring in most of my cable TV stations. I read the fine print from Panasonic that they could replace my not yet fully unwrapped TV with a refurbished unit at their discretion. I wrote Amazon and they stated they would stand behind the TV and replace it if necessary with a new one and that made me much happier. I contacted Panasonic support and they walked me through a reboot process that reset the TV and it has worked beautifully since. I was nervous about spending this kind of money and not having a physical place to go if I had issues but Amazon is great and I will never be apprehensive dealing with them again. Coupling this TV with the Panasonic BluRay player added Vera Cast so I can get NetFlix streamed, this was an $800 savings over getting it built into the TV in the V10 series. Over all I am very happy.
I’ve had this television for about a week so this will be a preliminary review based on my experience with this model so far.
First. This is a BIG television. I mention this because the photos of it on the internet don’t really do it justice. My wife and I (granted we’re not as young as some other reviewers) could NOT lift this TV out of the box, or even think about mounting it on the stand by ourselves. The TV must easily weigh about 100 Lbs. and add another 50-70 Lbs. in cardboard and packaging on delivery. We finally opted to have it professionally wall mounted. I STRONGLY recomend you have this done professionally because of the weight involved and the subsequent stress it will place on your wallboard (IE. you don’t want to come home one day to find a broken TV on the ground and a hole in your wall). They also did a great job of hiding the wires inside the wall and installing the components to minimize any exposed wires so it looks very sharp.
Secondly. The television is amazing. The picture is clear and sharp. The colors are full and rich. I have found no issues with reflected light or blurring of the picture during fast motion images. I did find the factory settings to be a bit dark for my liking but with a few minutes of tinkering with the picture controls I found that the ‘vivid’ setting seems to work best for us. If you’ve never had a television this big before you’ll spend the first few days just gawking at it. It really is like having a small theater in your living room (and dont forget a decent sound system to complete the effect). As other reviewers have said, this is a great television for the price. My inner geek is pleased!
Thirdly. Do your homework. The price for this Television can vary greatly (from $2160 – $3600). Also, if you decide to buy this TV from an online source don’t forget to do a ‘Google’ search for any online coupons before you hit the ‘buy’ button (this actually saved me an additional $60 on my purchase).
Trust me. Once you get past the hassle of unpacking, mounting and setting up this behemoth you’ll have no regrets on your purchase. Enjoy.
I replaced my ten year old 65″ rear projection TV with this sleek and beautiful Panasonic Viera S1 Plasma.The picture is gorgeous,black levels superb,and we can watch TV from any angle ,without degradation of the picture.The anti glare screen is a big improvement over my older plasma TV.I can hardly wait to watch the Laker play off games in 1080P 65″ excellence.The delivery and service from Vanns was super!
Dave
Purchased from [...] through Amazon and received almost a month-and-a-half ago. Product arrived on time and in good condition. Excellent picture. As with basically any television, the sound is adequate at best if you’re using the TV’s speakers; that shouldn’t matter if you’re using a home theater setup. Even at 65″ you get used to the the larger display pretty quickly. Very satisfied with my purchase.
The picture on this TV is the best you can get for the money. As an avid plasma fan (THE only way to watch live sports on TV versus LED or LCD) this TV is an amazing value for the cost. I upgraded from the 50 inch Panasonic and have to say that is was well worth it. Three weeks in and still no quality issues – hoping this continues. Picture and components have exceeded expectations. Unless you need the extra bells and whistles (such as more than three HDMI connectors or built in Netflix) then there is no reason to upgrade to a higher model. The picture on this TV is outstanding with live sports HD via cable (world cup, baseball, golf, auto racing, NBA finals all have been amazing pictures!) and the blu-ray experience really shows off the 1080p picture perfectly. Only downside is that it took a while to receive from Amazon (almost two weeks) but actual delivery and set-up were flawless – Pilot did an outstanding job!
I’ve had this set for three weeks now and it impresses me more & more. Six years ago I purchased a 61″ DLP HDTV. Back then they didn’t make 65″ plasmas and the 50″ sets could run you over $10,000. I liked plasmas from day one but couldn’t afford them and they had way more issues back then.
Flash forward six years and I’m sick and tired of repairing my DLP every year. It blew another color wheel and I decided to take a look at new sets. Wow….I could now get a bigger plasma for about 1/2 of what I paid for the DLP! Checked all the reviews and took the plunge on the Panasonic.
Glad I did. What a picture….and the issues are virtually gone. Screen life rated to 100,000 hrs. That’s approximately 3 decades of daily viewing! Blu-Rays and HDTV look absolutely stunning. It also handles Standard definition better than I thought a 65″ screen would. My son and I also play games (360 & PS3) daily….no issues with image retention or burn in.
I’m a big proponent for size over features when it comes to HDTV’s…..so long as it can throw up a great picture. This Panny delivers in spades.
I bought this TV in March, just before the Madness started. I was upgrading from a Panasonic TH-50PX75U 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV, mostly to enjoy Blu-ray at its fullest 1080p. I looked at several options, including LCDs (too expensive for similar size) and the more expensive Panasonic V and G series. I just couldn’t justify the massive cost of the more expensive lines, despite having a few better features (THX, PC and USB hooks). I run almost everything through my receiver, which has all those features anyway, except THX, but honestly I can’t hear the difference. I have a LG blu-ray that has built in wireless so I can access netflix, on demand, and other functions that way. This is my 3rd Panasonic plasma. I’ve been a little more partial to plasmas due to the better blacks, and less blurring for sports/action at a lower price point typically than LCDs at this size. I am not a gamer, so can’t comment on that.
Delivery through Amazon was fanastic. It took 3 days to arrive. The delivery guys put it in the house for me up two flights of stairs. This tv is very heavy. I found the 50″ one pretty heavy, although I could move it (slowly) myself. there is no chance, unless you are an Lou Ferrigno that you will move this alone.
Set up was very easy. A lot of people have recommendations for settings, but I say mess around with them and see what works best for your room. It took me a while to get the red or green tint just right, but once I got it, it looks great.
My first experience was to watch some March Madness games on CBS. Cable compresses the picture to 720p (and is what most HD is broadcast anyway), so not the full 1080p experience. At first I thought–this stinks. I called a friend and said that CBS’s madness coverage was terrible, so it wasn’t the TV. I tested out other HD channels, and wow, we started to get some real pop. But the real test was to put in a blu-ray. I started with Inglorious Basterds–nice! Crisp shots, great sound (through the receiver), everything was wonderful. Very pleased with the picture. Lesson learned though…with TVs at this size you will see imperfections in substandard broadcasts more easily than smaller sets. So standard definition and subpar HD transmission flaws will show. Standard DVDs still look very good too because most blu-rays will upconvert them a bit.
The only drawback of this set (and a lot of plasmas) is the glare. It has coating to reduce, but I definitely notice a difference when watching during the day vs. the night. I’d try to eliminate any light source directly in front of the tv.
The tv is big (my girlfriend reminds me that the set size is as tall as her-65″) but it has a small profile (thickness–both the girlfriend and the set-ha!). It’s no thicker than the old 50″ one. It doesn’t overwhelm the room its in. It makes my 50″ look like the old 26″ box tv’s that used to be the standard. I don’t ever use the tv for standard def programming. the HD cable program looks fantastic. No artifacts, blurring, or anything like that. I have never used the speakers, so also can’t comment on that.
It’s definitely worth the price tag because it’s a lot cheaper than some of the others out there for a very good picture and size. The S2 model I think was just released which seems pretty much the same as the S1.
I bought this TV in March, just before the Madness started. I was upgrading from a Panasonic TH-50PX75U 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV, mostly to enjoy Blu-ray at its fullest 1080p. I looked at several options, including LCDs (too expensive for similar size) and the more expensive Panasonic V and G series. I just couldn’t justify the massive cost of the more expensive lines, despite having a few better features (THX, PC and USB hooks). I run almost everything through my receiver, which has all those features anyway, except THX, but honestly I can’t hear the difference. I have a LG blu-ray that has built in wireless so I can access netflix, on demand, and other functions that way. This is my 3rd Panasonic plasma. I’ve been a little more partial to plasmas due to the better blacks, and less blurring for sports/action at a lower price point typically than LCDs at this size. I am not a gamer, so can’t comment on that.
Delivery through Amazon was fanastic. It took 3 days to arrive. The delivery guys put it in the house for me up two flights of stairs. This tv is very heavy. I found the 50″ one pretty heavy, although I could move it (slowly) myself. there is no chance, unless you are an Lou Ferrigno that you will move this alone.
Set up was very easy. A lot of people have recommendations for settings, but I say mess around with them and see what works best for your room. It took me a while to get the red or green tint just right, but once I got it, it looks great.
My first experience was to watch some March Madness games on CBS. Cable compresses the picture to 720p (and is what most HD is broadcast anyway), so not the full 1080p experience. At first I thought–this stinks. I called a friend and said that CBS’s madness coverage was terrible, so it wasn’t the TV. I tested out other HD channels, and wow, we started to get some real pop. But the real test was to put in a blu-ray. I started with Inglorious Basterds–nice! Crisp shots, great sound (through the receiver), everything was wonderful. Very pleased with the picture. Lesson learned though…with TVs at this size you will see imperfections in substandard broadcasts more easily than smaller sets. So standard definition and subpar HD transmission flaws will show. Standard DVDs still look very good too because most blu-rays will upconvert them a bit.
The only drawback of this set (and a lot of plasmas) is the glare. It has coating to reduce, but I definitely notice a difference when watching during the day vs. the night. I’d try to eliminate any light source directly in front of the tv.
The tv is big (my girlfriend reminds me that the set size is as tall as her-65″) but it has a small profile (thickness–both the girlfriend and the set-ha!). It’s no thicker than the old 50″ one. It doesn’t overwhelm the room its in. It makes my 50″ look like the old 26″ box tv’s that used to be the standard. I don’t ever use the tv for standard def programming. the HD cable program looks fantastic. No artifacts, blurring, or anything like that. I have never used the speakers, so also can’t comment on that.
It’s definitely worth the price tag because it’s a lot cheaper than some of the others out there for a very good picture and size. The S2 model I think was just released which seems pretty much the same as the S1.
I bought this TV in March, just before the Madness started. I was upgrading from a Panasonic TH-50PX75U 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV, mostly to enjoy Blu-ray at its fullest 1080p. I looked at several options, including LCDs (too expensive for similar size) and the more expensive Panasonic V and G series. I just couldn’t justify the massive cost of the more expensive lines, despite having a few better features (THX, PC and USB hooks). I run almost everything through my receiver, which has all those features anyway, except THX, but honestly I can’t hear the difference. I have a LG blu-ray that has built in wireless so I can access netflix, on demand, and other functions that way. This is my 3rd Panasonic plasma. I’ve been a little more partial to plasmas due to the better blacks, and less blurring for sports/action at a lower price point typically than LCDs at this size. I am not a gamer, so can’t comment on that.
Delivery through Amazon was fanastic. It took 3 days to arrive. The delivery guys put it in the house for me up two flights of stairs. This tv is very heavy. I found the 50″ one pretty heavy, although I could move it (slowly) myself. there is no chance, unless you are an Lou Ferrigno that you will move this alone.
Set up was very easy. A lot of people have recommendations for settings, but I say mess around with them and see what works best for your room. It took me a while to get the red or green tint just right, but once I got it, it looks great.
My first experience was to watch some March Madness games on CBS. Cable compresses the picture to 720p (and is what most HD is broadcast anyway), so not the full 1080p experience. At first I thought–this stinks. I called a friend and said that CBS’s madness coverage was terrible, so it wasn’t the TV. I tested out other HD channels, and wow, we started to get some real pop. But the real test was to put in a blu-ray. I started with Inglorious Basterds–nice! Crisp shots, great sound (through the receiver), everything was wonderful. Very pleased with the picture. Lesson learned though…with TVs at this size you will see imperfections in substandard broadcasts more easily than smaller sets. So standard definition and subpar HD transmission flaws will show. Standard DVDs still look very good too because most blu-rays will upconvert them a bit.
The only drawback of this set (and a lot of plasmas) is the glare. It has coating to reduce, but I definitely notice a difference when watching during the day vs. the night. I’d try to eliminate any light source directly in front of the tv.
The tv is big (my girlfriend reminds me that the set size is as tall as her-65″) but it has a small profile (thickness–both the girlfriend and the set-ha!). It’s no thicker than the old 50″ one. It doesn’t overwhelm the room its in. It makes my 50″ look like the old 26″ box tv’s that used to be the standard. I don’t ever use the tv for standard def programming. the HD cable program looks fantastic. No artifacts, blurring, or anything like that. I have never used the speakers, so also can’t comment on that.
It’s definitely worth the price tag because it’s a lot cheaper than some of the others out there for a very good picture and size. The S2 model I think was just released which seems pretty much the same as the S1.