Panasonic TC-P54G25

Each year, manufacturers are unveiling new TVs to convince consumers to upgrade their older models and take advantage of the improved picture quality, overall performance, and attractive extras. Most of these manufacturers will price these new models competitively, but some customers may be put off to pay for these extra bells and whistles. Fortunately, not all newly introduced TVs are more expensive than older models. There are some attractive TVs like the Panasonic TC-P54G25 that are rich in features with minor improvements, but without the huge price tag increase.

Panasonic TC-P54G25

Panasonic TC-P54G25

Technical Features

There are actually four devices in the G25 plasma family and the Panasonic TC-P54G25 is the largest of the four. It may not be as large as the 65-inch TC-P65S2 that was also launched recently, but the design is sleek and has the same energy efficiency as the other new 2010 Panasonic models. The TC-P54G25 meets the Energy Star 4.0 specifications which mean that the TV gets an extended life span of up to 100,000 hours. The TV will continue to function beyond that point with the brightness halved.

The large 54-inch screen size combined with full HD 1080p is a great combination especially when watching sports in high-definition or Blu-ray titles. It doubles as an exciting gaming TV since it has 3 HDMi ports to provide connectivity to a gaming console and entire media center. The Game Mode setting can even be used to boost the gaming performance. Because of the added technologies incorporated to the Panasonic TC-P54G25, THX gave its certification.

Actual user review:
“This is my first plasma, as my previous TV was a 5 yr old 46in Toshiba DLP, so I am not new to HD. Out of the box, the highly recommended THX mode is near perfect. If you are extra picky, you can check AVS Forum for the calibration settings for this model by doing a search for D-Nice (licensed pro calibrator), and his break in slides and settings. If you do not wish to pro calibrate this TV through the Service Menu (risky), don’t worry about running the slides.

For best results out of this TV and to prevent Temporary Image Retention (IR), just keep it on THX (the best setting), and keep the brightness and contrast around 50 for the first 100 hrs of watching. Keeping these settings down while watching TV with static images like ESPNHD bottom ticker or playing games will help you out a great deal.

As for performance, my G25 is a May 2010 build (kinks worked out at the factory by this time) and the Picture was better than I’d even thought it would be. Blu Rays looked great and the black level is dark as ink. I am still “breaking in” the set of course, but I don’t seem to have any of the issues from early builds like buzzing during bright lighted scenes. I tested Dark Knight, Book of Eli, and HD broadcasts during the 1st night without any issues.

Again, for this price point, there is no better value or quality 2010 HDTV to be had. LCD and LED black levels don’t come close to this Panny plasma. Only the Panny 3D VT25 has better PQ, but only by a small margin.

If you are in the market for a new HDTV, look no further than the G25, and Amazon again has the best service, easy returns, and lowest prices you will find. I say go for it!” – Ray(Birmingham,AL)

Technologies

The NeoPDP technology has been successful in reducing the power consumption to meet the Energy Star 4.0 requirements and increase the luminous efficiency as well. This technology is present in the Panasonic TC-P54G25 and uses the 600 Hz Sub-field drive to analyze the image data and reduce afterimages for increased clarity.

The black gradation is also significantly enhanced thanks to the Infinite Black technology. Regardless of the room lighting condition, the black scenes never appear grayish and the 5,000,000:1 brings it close to the quality of LED TVs.

Extra Features

The Panasonic TC-P42G25 includes an Ethernet port which is all it needs to use an Internet connection to display content from a number of popular sites Twitter, YouTube, Picasa, Pandora, Amazon Video on Demand, and Netflix. It supports video streaming and keyboard connectivity via USB input for enhanced browsing. This feature is called VIERA Cast and it also includes a Skype application which works like the original program which allows video and voice communication. For this feature to work, the TY-CC10 (sold separately) camera is required. The Wi-Fi LAN adapter accessory can also be plugged into the USB port for wireless connectivity. There are 2 USB ports present allowing dynamic setups.

The second major extra is the VIERA Image Viewer which reads SD cards from its integrated slot. Unlike the newly introduced S2 plasma series, the VIERA Image Viewer can open AVCHD videos taken from digital cameras and camcorders in addition to the standard JPG format. Images displayed on the screen look nice if they are in HD form and they are played back in style allowing viewers to choose from the five types of background music and display effects. The thumbnail interface makes it easy to find the desired picture. If it is connected to a PC via network connection, travelogues can be made as well by adding memos and messages to the slideshow.

Finally, the Panasonic TC-P54G25 includes the VIERA Link feature which serves as a bonus for owners of other Panasonic devices including LUMIX digital cameras and other portable devices that support VIERA Link. It allows the TV remote control to operate other devices to allow users to easily control their integrated home theater system components.

Bottom Line

The Panasonic TC-P54G25 is priced at around $2,000 which puts it in line with the other LCD models of that size. Many argue that plasma technology has its downfalls, but Panasonic is overcoming these disadvantages by bringing the same features seen on their LCD displays to their new plasma ones. The fact that it meets the Energy Star 4.0 is significant since the TV will last longer. That translates to a lighter electric bill with a longer life TV.

Average User Rating:

Actual User Reviews:
• “We looked at LCD, LED and Plasma was still the best looking for high speed action-and the new burn-in prevention features sold us. Great service and delivery. Great picture!!! Does help to turn down the sharpness as the other reviewers say-the resolution is so fine already the default 75 is not needed. The 75 setting can create some grain with a less than true HD signal. One other thing I noticed-many reviewers say to use THX setting during burn in-but the THX setting is also trying to change the frame rate. This leads to annoying edge signals with standard def signals broadcast in HD. For example try putting on Directv Boomerang HD-with a low def broadcast-like say “Thunder the Barbarian” and you will see some fuzz at the top of the screen. Flip THX off this goes away. This is not from the standard brightness and sharpness settings. Notice there is more than one page of settings when you change modes. Scroll down. In some of the modes the real changes are taking place on page 2 with color temp and noise reduction etc. So if you want to lower setting for burn in-just goto Custom or Standard and change the brightness etc. there on page 1. If you do want to mess with color temp etc-its neat that when you select these advance options for tuning-the rest of the menu goes away so you can see what the setting is doing to the picture a lot better.” – J.P.Hughes(Atlanta,GA)

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• “Just like the other reviewers I considered all of the top brands and local dimming LED. I started my research about a year ago and missed out on the last of the Kuro series from Pioneer. I was very hopeful that the Samsung 8000 and 9000 LEDs would be superior but was somewhat disappointed with the final product. You can’t argue with the clarity of those TV’s but the black levels, motion blur and soap opera effect of their digital processors made me think twice. Not to brag but budget was was not really a consideration for me, even though the Samsung 9000 is about 5x the price. If you are considering a 50+ inch TV you are realistically not going to move it more than a few times. Maybe once when you mount it and twice when you take it down for the next TV. So the thinness and weight of the TV is not going to outweigh the picture quality. In terms of picture quality the LEDs just can’t compare unless you settle for enhanced images that look like TV soap operas. I wanted to view movies in its purest form just like the theaters, sports without motion blur and be able to make out dark scenes in movies like underworld. If you want picture quality then go plasma. If you want best of breed technology in plasma then go Panasonic. They are adopting Pioneer’s legendary Kuro technology and each model is an improvement.” – Steven(USA)

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