Panasonic TX-L42DT65B Review

Panasonic’s assault on the LED TV market continues with the TX-L42DT65B – the 42in model within the Viera DT65 series – that we’re reviewing today. In case you’re wondering, the UK-exclusive DT65 shares nearly identical specifications with the DT60 which the rest of Europe gets: the change in numerical suffix apparently reflects not only the set’s premium status, but also restricted availability through authorised dealers.

Within the Japanese TV manufacturer’s ever-expanding lineup of LED-lit LCD televisions, the Panasonic DT65 sits merely one rung below the flagship WT65/WT60 series. Besides this 42-inch version, three other screen sizes are available, namely the 47-inch Panasonic TX-L47DT65B, the 55-inch TX-L55DT65B, and the 60-inch TX-L60DT65B. This review will deal with the baby of the bunch (and probably the most popular, given the smallish average British home size), then.

Of course, there’s a significant change in display technology (and by extrapolation, the underlying LCD panel) between this year’s and last year’s Viera DT series. Because of a decision by Panasonic to adopt passive 3D across its entire 2013 LED LCD range, the TX-L42DT65 is equipped with FPR (film-type patterned retarder) polarized 3D LCD technology provided by LG Display, instead of the active-shutter glasses (ASG) system found on last year’s DT50. With this in mind, let’s see what the TV is capable of!

Design

Upon unboxing the TXL42DT65 and inspecting the accessories, we can’t help but feel that silver is the order of the day – the designers at Panasonic HQ must have received a memo declaring this to be the new black. First, the slim bezel is beautifully chiselled and finished in gleaming silver, which may appear a touch reflective in a brightly-lit viewing environment. This is matched by the highly polished V-shaped, swivel-capable stem that supports the television on a brushed metallic – yes, you’ve guessed it – silver rectangular base.

Even the two supplied remote controls are silver affairs. The first is a traditional one that sports large legible keys and can be backlit; while a secondary touchpad controller – featuring an inbuilt microphone and an innovative “trigger finger” button – aims to complement the impressive array of Smart TV functionalities including voice control on the Viera DT65.

The TXL42DT65B ships with 4 pairs of polarized 3D glasses, which is double the number of active-shutter eyewear included with this year’s Samsung 3DTVs, and Panasonic’s own active 3D plasmas.

Calibration

To get an idea of how accurate the Panasonic 42DT65 can be out of the box, we switched [Viewing Mode] from the default of “Normal” to “True Cinema“, and measured away.

Greyscale

Pre-calibration RGB tracking and delta errors (dEs)

The TV didn’t fare too badly here, although blue channel was underfilled, causing on-screen images to appear a touch too warm. A quick trip to the [White Balance] submenu (which houses the 2-point WB controls) sorted this out – we didn’t even need to do much tweaking to the 10-point controls (accessible via the [More Detailed Adjustment] option) to obtain what we would say is an excellent result:

Post-calibration RGB tracking and dEs in [Professional1] mode

Delta errors (dEs) were suppressed to below 3 (widely considered to be the human perceptible limit), ensuring that greys remained tint-free which, believe it or not, is a key element for accurate colour reproduction. Near-black areas – transmissive display technologies like LED LCDs cannot render true blacks on a per-pixel basis – took on a purplish shade, which is a common trait of IPS (in-plane switching) panels.

Gamma

Perhaps to draw attention away from the not-so-deep black level (a known weakness of IPS LCD panels), Panasonic’s engineers seemed to have tweaked the default gamma on the Viera TX-L42DT65B such that brighter portions of the video appeared darker than they should be. This creates a punchier image, but can look slightly unnatural due to uneven tonal transition.

Pre-calibration gamma tracking (avg 2.45)	Post-calibration gamma tracking (avg 2.25)

Greyscale calibration improved (but did not completely eradicate) the issue. Since the DT65′s black level measured above 0.1 cd/m², we lowered our target gamma from the 2.4 we usually aim for (this is the reference stipulated by ITU for flat-screen HD studio monitors used in a dark room, but then their blacks are quite a bit better than 0.1cd/m²!) to 2.2, so that shadow detail was not crushed. In case you’re wondering why we didn’t take advantage of the 10p gamma controls on offer to flatten the tracking, that’s because we noticed sporadic posterization in real-world viewing with their use.

Colour

We found red to be undersaturated on our Panasonic TX-L42DT65 review sample, not only at 100% saturation point, but also at 25%, 50% and 75% points which CalMAN 5 now lets us track. Blue also suffered from a similar problem at sub-100% saturation points.

Pre-calibration CIE chart including saturation tracking

[Colour Management] to the rescue. Panasonic’s HSL-based (hue, saturation, luminance) CMS (colour management system) is effective, but there’s a fair bit of interaction between the parameters (for example, adjusting luminance will affect saturation to a degree, and vice versa) so care must be exercised. As per our current workflow, we prioritised getting colour luminance/brightness/intensity spot-on to wipe out any decoding error (not that there was much in the first place):

Post-calibration colour luminance (coloured bars=targets; black bars=measured values)

… and then gently used the [R-Saturation] and [B-Saturation] sliders to minimise red and blue inaccuracies respectively across the 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% saturation tracking points, while also using other controls to touch up the secondary colours. Trying to correct the slightly deviated RGB hues at 100% saturation would unfortunately also skew the sub-100% colour points, so we decided to leave them be since these hue errors were undetectable in real-life content.

Post-calibration colour saturation tracking

Benchmark Test Results

Dead pixels	None
Screen uniformity	Mild “dirty screen” effect
Overscanning on HDMI	0% with [16:9 Overscan] set to “Off“
Blacker than black	Passed
Calibrated black level (black screen)	0 cd/m2 (LEDs shut off)
Calibrated black level (ANSI checkerboard)	0.156 cd/m2
Black level retention	Auto-dimming with full black screen
Primary chromaticity	Very good
Scaling	Excellent
Video mode deinterlacing	Effective jaggies reduction
Film mode deinterlacing	Passed 2:2/576i & 3:2/480i with [Film Cadence Mode] on
Viewing angle	Very good for an LCD; washout occurs after 60° off-axis
Motion resolution	900-1080 with [Intelligent Frame Creation] on; 300 off
Digital noise reduction	Defeatable
Sharpness	Defeatable edge enhancement
Luma/Chroma bandwidth (2D Blu-ray)	Full luma; full chroma with [1080p Pixel Direct] engaged
1080p/24 capability	No judder in 2D or 3D
Input lag (high-speed camera)	33ms compared to CRT TV
Leo Bodnar input lag tester	36ms with [Game Mode] engaged
Full 4:4:4 reproduction (PC)	Yes, with [1080p Pixel Direct] engaged

Power Consumption

Default [Normal] mode	49 watts
Calibrated [Professional1] mode	38 watts
Standby	<1 watt

Picture Quality

If you’re familiar with the different characteristics of various types of LCD panel technology, then you’ll know what to expect with the Panasonic TXL42DT65B which uses an IPS panel. Bearing that in mind, first let’s talk about this television’s Achilles’ heel: at 0.156 cd/m², its native black level was relatively bright compared to VA-based LCD displays (such as Samsung’s Series 7 and Series 8 LED TVs, or Panasonic’s own 42E6 model), let alone plasma TVs from these two companies that are capable of supremely deep blacks.

To be fair, the mist of greyness that pervades where it should be black was only apparent when watching predominantly dark scenes in a dimly-lit viewing environment. The presence of moderate-strong ambient light (i.e. during daytime) or some bright elements on screen went a long way towards deflecting from the less-than-impressive black-level response – we actually found the TX-L42DT65 very watchable under such conditions.

With that out of the way, it’s mostly good news when it comes to the Panasonic DT65′s picture performance. The Japanese TV manufacturer has developed a reputation for delivering high-quality video processing, while knowing when to hold back on any tinkering urge, so that already pristine HD detail can shine through unblemished. That’s exactly what we got on the Viera TX-L42DT65B, with first-rate standard-definition handling (the set even passed our Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason PAL DVD torture test with flying colours) and judder-free 1080p/24 Blu-ray playback among the virtues that brought a smile to our face. Of course, a lot of credit needs to go to Panasonic’s generous provision of useful calibration controls, which helped us achieve highly accurate greyscale and colours on the TXL42DT65.

As with most edge LED televisions, a mild “dirty screen” effect (most noticeable during panning shots) was unavoidable due to the way LEDs mounted along the borders are required to illuminate the whole screen with the aid of light guidance plates. Motion quality was clean (another strength of IPS technology) without any sign of low-tone motion smearing that can afflict VA panels. Engaging [Intelligent Frame Creation] would bump motion resolution from the baseline LCD level of 300 to in excess of 900 lines – we certainly advise setting it to “Min” for video-based content to boost the clarity of moving objects. In the past we’ve found Panasonic’s motion-compensated frame interpolation (MCFI) technology to exhibit less glitches than similar systems implemented by rival TV brands, and our 42-inch DT65 sample remained true to this trend.

IPS panels are revered too for their wide viewing angles (at least within the LCD circle), a trait that was immediately apparent on the Panasonic TXL42DT65B. Colours held on to their saturation as far as 60° off-axis before any significant washout occurred, although blacks – which were not great to begin with – became brighter earlier than that. Either way, this is a notch better than LED TVs that use VA-type LCD panel.

Since the L42DT65B uses an FPR polarized 3D LCD panel sourced from LG Display, we already knew what we’re getting in the third dimension based on our experience withprevious 3DTVs featuring the same technology: bright extra-dimensional images that are free of flicker, low on crosstalk, and deliver bags of depth. All three frame rates (50hz, 60hz, 24Hz) were handled impeccably without judder in 3-D mode – another testament to Panasonic’s video processing prowess.

Our sensitive eyes could pick up dark horizontal scan lines through the passive 3D glasses – an inevitable side effect of the polarized filter/lens – from as far as 6 feet away. Obviously sitting farther away from the screen can make the scanlines/ lessened vertical resolution dissolve away, but then so would the tri-dimensional detail and immersiveness.

Another thing to note with passive 3D televisions including the Panasonic DT65 is that the vertical viewing angle is fairly limited – watching the screen from anything more than 15° above eye level would result in an intolerable amount of ghosting/ double images. This is of particular importance for owners who wish to enjoy three-dimensional content on their wall-mounted TX-L42DT65 – make sure the TV is installed at eye level.

Conclusion

Panasonic has worked its magic on the TX-L42DT65B to make the best of an IPS LCD panel whose strengths (wide viewing angles, no motion smearing) and weakness (less-than-impressive blacks) are common knowledge. Video processing for standard definition and 3D content is excellent, and the Viera DT65 – like most of the company’s non-entry-level HDTVs this year – can be calibrated to within an inch of its life, owing to their engineers’ deep understanding of what constitutes an accurate image, coupled with the inclusion of a comprehensive array of advanced calibration controls.

The TX-L42DT65 is really only let down – as all IPS panels do – by its black-level response, which makes it more suitable as a bright-room television than for critical viewing in a dimly-lit viewing environment. Had Panasonic paired its TV-making know-how with an LCD panel capable of producing deeper blacks (such as the VA one used on the TX-L42E6B), the result might have been spectacular, although the company would probably have to reverse its stance of “only passive 3D on LED TVs”. Perhaps next year?

As things stand, the TXL42DT65B’s stylish design, accurate images, easy-on-the-eye 3D and excellent Smart TV platform earn it a spot in the “Recommended” category, even though those who are seeking the best value for money are better served by the ET60 series which delivers essentially similar picture quality at a lower price.

FAQ

          

What size screen should I buy?

The TV screen size that will best suit your viewing needs will be based upon how far you will watch your TV from. As a rule, the closer you are to the screen – the less the need for a larger screen TV. For those with smaller living rooms - a great way to create extra space is to wall mount your new TV. This will allow you to hang your TV flat up against the wall and create extra space to enjoy the full effects of a larger screen TV.

Normally a Full HD (1080p) TV will truely show its class when watched on a TV of 40-inches and above. Anything lower and the screen will struggle to really highlight the extra detail compared to an HD Ready 720p TV.

Our 19-inch and 22-inch TVs make the ideal bedroom and kitchen TVs as when viewed from close range they’ll perfectly highlight the finer details thanks to their HD resolution - perfect for viewing within a 5ft distance.

If your typical viewing position is slightly further than this, from 5 to 7ft you should look at our TVs between 26-32-inches. These will suit bedrooms where the bed is on the other side of the room, or small living rooms where the sofa is positioned close to the TV.

For TVs from 37-47-inch you should aim to sit up to 12 feet away to get the maximum enjoyment from your TV whilst a larger screen will suit a slightly greater distance.

Should I buy an LED or LCD TV?

If you’re looking for a new TV then you'll be forgiven for not knowing whether to choose an LCD or an LED TV. Whilst both produce fantastic picture quality and won't fail to disappoint, LED technology is the most recent technology and offers designers the chance to produce TVs which wouldn’t look out of place inside an art gallery.

Basically, LCD TVs work by shining light evenly through a panel made up of tiny liquid crystal cells. These cells then either block or let the light through to produce the picture.

An LED TV is simply an LCD TV with LED-backlighting, featuring hundreds of small LEDs (light emitting diodes) that light the TV from behind, producing greater contrast ratios in which blacks appear blacker - leading to a sharper image. They are also slimmer, consume less power than similarly-sized traditional LCDs and are mercury free.

What is a 3D TV

3D TVs offer viewers a new way in which to enjoy their cinematic experience. 3D content adds depth of field to the action - making pictures come to life before your very eyes. There are two types of 3D availbale - Passive and Active. Our TVs contain Passive 3D.

Passive (polarized) 3D technology delivers a flicker-free tri-dimensional viewing experience, as well as allowing for cheaper, lighter and more comfortable 3D glasses. As a result the technology is perfect for watching 3D films with the kids or having your mates round to watch 3D sporting action.

Passive 3D glasses create the illusion of 3D images by restricting the light that reaches each eye. The glasses which also contain a pair of polarizing filters. As each filter passes only that light which is similarly polarized. Each eye sees only its separately polarized image, producing a three-dimensional effect. 

Key benefits of Passive 3D:

• Unlike Active 3D glasses, passive glasses require no batteries - so you won't have to worry about recharging your glasses.


• Passive 3D glasses are lightweight at just almost half the weight of conventional 3D glasses - making them easier to enjoy 3D TV with.


• Passive 3D provides greater viewing angles compared to active 3D as unless you are sitting within a few degrees of centre and with almost zero horizontal (head) tilt, the contrast, brightness and image quality plummets with active 3D glasses.

A common perception of 3D TVs is that if you don't have access to 3D content then you'd be better off getting a non 3D model. This simply isn't the case. 3D TVs offer the greatest picture quality in both 3D and 2D, so it's better to make your TV future proof by buying a 3D TV now then regretting not having the future when 3D becomes common place within the nation’s living rooms.

2D to 3D Upscaling

If your 3D TV features 2D-3D upscaling then your TV will transform normal 2D programming into the third dimension – allowing you to enjoy all your favourite channels with greater depth and enjoyment. However, the 3D effect won't be as great as a 3D blu-ray movie from a blu-ray player.

What's the difference between Full HD and HD Ready?

If you’re looking for the best way to judge how good the picture quality of a TV is then the best general indicator is screen resolution. The resolution is made up of lines of pixels that display the picture - and the greater the resolution the higher the picture detail will be.

The resolution of standard definition broadcasts is 576i (576 lines of 720 pixels each) whereas high definition TV can be broadcast in 3 different formats: 1080i , 720p, and most recently 1080p.

Put simply, HD Ready TVs will only display HD broadcasts whereas Full HD TVs will do this, plus provide even greater picture quality when connected to a Full HD source such as a blu-ray player.

If your TV is HD Ready then it offers you a screen resolution of at least 1366 x 720p. Currently in the UK, TV programmes are only able to broadcast up to the HD 720p level so if you've got a HD Ready TV then you'll experience TV programmes at their finest levels of detail. View our HD Ready TVs

For those looking for a larger screen TV and for those who intend to play blu-ray disc movies or want to experience the finest details from gaming, our Full HD TVs offer the purest form of picture quality a television can display. These are the only sources currently able to send a Full HD signal and leads to a smoother, more film-like image which will satisfy sports and movie lovers alike.

There are a number of ways in which to enjoy high definition content on your HD Ready TV. If you choose one of our TVs with Freeview HD built-in then you’ll have access to HD content as soon as you plug your TV in. Alternatively you can attach a Freeview HD box or use Freesat HD – though the latter will require a satellite receiver installation. Take a look at our Freeview HD PVR box

By connecting to a Sky box, and subscribing to the relevant HD package, you’ll be able to enjoy great sporting action and view your favourite movies in stunning HD.

If you’re looking to make the most from your Full HD TV then hook up a Blu-ray player or a games console capable of playing 1080p format movies or games and you’ll get the finest levels of details available at the moment.

What is PVR?

Most of our TVs feature USB recording. This allows for the easy connection of external memory devices to the TV via USB enabling you to record digital broadcasts directly onto your external memory. It’ll also allow you to pause and rewind live TV making sure you’ll never miss those crucial moments again. Our Freeview HD PVR has a capacity of 500GB which will allow you record Freeview HD directly onto its huge hard drive.

How about SRS TruSurround HD?

TruSurround HD is a robust multichannel virtualization technology developed by SRS Labs that provides an enhanced listening experience unlike any other technology that has been offered for a two speaker playback environment. TruSurround HD processes up to 6.1 channels for playback over two speakers or headphones, and utilizes additional proprietary algorithms from SRS Labs to optimize bass performance for deep rich bass dialog clarity for better intelligibility of vocals, and definition control for maximum high frequency clarity.

• Surround sound virtualization for 1.0 to 6.1 input channels, and up to 3.1 output channel configuration
• Extremely broad sweet spot for maximum realism and enjoyment
• Sculpted bass to optimize low frequency performance of small drivers and enclosures
• Dialog enhancement to ensure clear and intelligible vocals
• Definition control for maximum high-frequency realism and clarity
• Bass management for subwoofer and centre speaker designs

Tell me more about TVs featuring 100Hz technology

The motion judder effect on fast moving objects is removed by inserting calculated frames in between the original frames, hence doubling the refresh rate with advanced 3D noise reduction.

As a result you’ll experience smoother, sharper and cleaner moving objects and enhanced overall picture quality with amazing depth feeling.

What connections should I look for?

Your TV will have a number of HDMI ports - the type of connection that allows the transfering of high definition and 3D pictures. Most games consoles, home cinema systems, satellite receivers, set-top boxes and DVD/Blu-ray players will connect via HDMI.

Some of our TVs have four HDMI inputs, making them perfect for switching between sources with your remote at ease - saving you unplugging certain AV equipment when using another.

As some older AV equipment still use SCART connections, our TVs also accommodate this so you’ll be able to connect your existing equipment easily.

USB connections enable the sharing of your media on your big screen TV – great for showing holiday snaps or re-living home videos. You’ll also be able to play all your tunes out loud. Our TVs with USB PVR brings you control of the scheduling – allowing you to record, pause and rewind live TV, as well as scheduling future recordings.

VGA PC ports are particularly ideal for our smaller TV range as they make the perfect computer screen. Simply connect your laptop or computer to the back of your TV and you’ll enjoy your computing on the bigger screen.

What is a Smart TV?

A Smart TV is a TV that’ll bring on demand and catch-up TV services directly to the comfort of your living room sofa.

Finlux Smart TVs come with BBC iPlayer - allowing you catch-up with all your favourite TV and radio shows from BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three and BBC Radio stations throughout the UK. The easy-to-use App will store the last 7 days worth of programming so you’ll never miss out again.

Sit back and share some of the funniest videos in the world via the YouTube App, whilst for social media fans there’s simple access to Twitter and Facebook, as well as sites such as eBay!

You’ll also be able to enjoy video on demand services via Viewster – offering you a range of movies ready to go when you are.

To connect your Smart TV you’ll need to plug in an Ethernet cable into the back of your TV from your home network, so you’ll either need a cable long enough to stretch from your network point or look into a Homeplug that’ll carry your internet connection through your power supply.

Pixellence2

Some Finlux products feature Pixellence2. This is a distinctive technology that provides superior picture quality. With Pixellence2 edges are sharper, images are more distinct, colours are more vivid, and fast-moving objects have a smoother and more precise look.

What about wall mounting?

You can save even more space in your home by wall mounting your TV. You may think this would be complicated to install or too much of a risk to do yourself, however wall mounting your new TV is simple and can transform your living roominto a real entertainment hub.

There are different types of brackets available which can attach your TV flat to the wall, allow it to be tilted as well as fully articulating brackets.

What is the Digital Switchover?

Digital TV switchover is the program that will provide digital TV to almost everyone in the UK. Once it is complete the old analogue TV signals will be shut down.

The digital switchover is nearly complete across the country with only Meridian, Tyne Tees and Northern Ireland regions left to switch. Viewers in Meridian can expect the switchover to start by 4th April 2012, whilst the Tyne Tees will start from 12th September 2012.

Every TV which still uses an analogue signal (channels 1-5) will need replacing with a digital TV so that you can continue to enjoy your TV viewing.

What is the difference between Freeview and Freeview HD?

For the last few years manufacturers have been selling HD Ready TV's with built in Freeview. This means that the TVs will receive regular Freeview channels and when they are connected to a HD device (such as a Blu-ray player etc.) they will display the output in HD.

However, just because these TVs are HD Ready does not mean that they can receive Freeview HD transmissions via their internal tuners. You'll need to ensure you choose one of our TVs with Freeview HD built-in or attach our Freeview HD PVR box. This will enable you to watch all your regular standard definition Freeview channels as well as the following dedicated hi def channels: BBC HD, BBC One HD, ITV HD, Channel 4 HD. There’s no subscription and no satellite dish. The PVR will also allow you to record up to 500 hours worth of HD programming.

Acer X1161P 3D-DLP Projector Reviews

TechnicalDLP 3D ready (3D content, 3D glasses and appropriately equipped PC also required to display 3D images)Projection Mode: Front, rear, front ceiling, rear ceiling.Resolution: Native: SVGA (800 x 600). Maximum: UXGA (1600 x 1200). Maximum Wide: 1080p (1920 x 1080). (native), 16:9Brightness - ANSI Lumens: Standard Mode: 2500, Economy Mode: 2000Description
The Acer X1161 DLP P 3D provides very detailed text and images with 2500 ANSI lumens, a contrast ratio of 4000:1 and native SVGA resolution. Better color rendering on any surface, even the colored walls, thanks to Acer Color Boost II-