X

It's $1200 at Costco. I'm looking for a good low light-level picture since it will mostly be used at night in a darkened bedroom. Don't need any real bells and whistles, in fact I'd be just as happy if there weren't any internet junk on it. I don't care about sound on it very much.

I do want subtitles to be easily readable. My 42" LCD is somewhat deficient in that area at low light output.

Is there a better alternative?

Now I'm looking at one of these:
Panasonic 60" Class Viera® ST30 Series HDTV 3D - $1500
Panasonic 60" Class Viera® GT30 Series Plasma - $2000

Nick Martin

When I mentioned ordering a new Panasonic plasma in the thread below this one, I ordered the 50 inch version of the same model number. TC-P50ST30. It's a 3D panel, though.

Funny coincidence.

Chances are the vast majority of TVs now have the added internet capabilities so finding a TV without that might not be easy with the better brands out there.

X

Panasonic has a couple models above the P60S30 and they're 3D. They're supposed to have a better screen, but I don't care about the 3D so I won't pay for that capability. And I just won't be using the internet features, but I suppose I'll have to pay for them with whatever I get.

Nick Martin

I didn't care about the 3D either, it was purely based on cost. A 50-inch TV with all those bells and whistles for less than any of the Sony LED-backlit TVs which are smaller and what I originally was trying to get. Couldn't beat that kind of deal.

I hope that the claim to quality that Panasonic has as Pioneer's sucessor still rings true, and that the issues plasmas have are really a thing of the past.

Numanoid

I haven't viewed that model personally but while researching my purchase this year I found that the Panasonic Vieras (the "S" series is the low-end of the Viera line) are generally considered to have the best picture available, alongside the current Samsung models. I don't think I ever read a single review where the buyer was disappointed.

Nick Martin

Excellent.

Finally entering 1080p territory when this thing arrives. About damn time.

X

Yes, I'm seeing reviews that have the Samsung rated a bit higher. But it seems they cost around twice as much too. Except for this one:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung+...&skuId=2146553

I'll have to look into that model.

Kicker_of_Elves

I'm picking up a 55GT30 tomorrow after months of research I felt like it was the best tv for my needs. I have no interest in 3D but have read that 3D tech helps improve 2D picture so I'm fine having that feature. I'd consider an ST30 rather than an S series X, the S series are at the lower end of the Panasonic line and the S series just wasn't impressive after seeing it in person. Amazon recently had a 60ST30 for sale for $1384.96 shipped too, so prices are dropping on all the lines.

Also if you qualify for Panasonic EPP you get even better pricing on their sets too, you might want to check into it.

Numanoid

The general rule is that the 2010 model Panasonics were the best, but the 2011 model Samsungs took back the crown.

I have a similar model Samsung (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...00_i00_details) and it is amazing. I didn't really care about 3D, but I love it now that I have it.

Duh Vuh Duh

Numanoid, asked you in the other thread, but was curious what you paid for it, I think I have it narrowed down to that one and maybe the ST30 by panny.

http://forum.dvdtalk.com/dvd-home-th...on-new-tv.html

Numanoid

I paid $1700 back in July, but that was a promo with two pair of glasses, a blu-ray player, and several 3D movies.

Duh Vuh Duh

Cool thanks for the info. and you like the tv so far?

spainlinx0

I just purchased the 60ST30. I haven't checked out any of the 3D features since they weren't included, and I haven't wanted to pay for the glasses and a new BR player.

I really love the picture when it comes to videogames, BR movies, and even Netflix streaming looks great.

However, I have been a little disappointed with the NFL on Fios. I don't know if it's the signal or the TV. There seems to be a lack of clarity compared to other sources, but it does vary by the camera used so I'm not sure what the problem is. What is that site that people use to set their picture settings?

Imprint

I have U-verse and the image is soft, and I notice it more during football games.

The site with tv settings is tweaktv.com.

Nick Martin

Never heard of TweakTV, so thanks for that tip

I'll try it out when my 50ST30 arrives.

Numanoid

Absolutely. I have no complaints, and only praise. I got some tweak settings form AVSforum and they looked excellent to me, so I didn't have to spend a whole lot of time adjusting every little thing. The picture is perfect, and the 3D is fantastic. I can even run the 2D to 3D conversion on streaming Netflix movies, and it looks pretty good, which surprised me.

I use mine with a home theater PC, and the PC image is immaculate, and HD via Windows Media Center is perfect (Comcast). If you plan to connect a PC to the TV, just make sure you connect it to the "PC (DVI)" port (I think it's called)...I think it's input 3. The plain "PC" port is not HD.

The only weird thing my set does is when it's been on for a while, like 20 or 30 minutes, the back cover is obviously heating up and it makes a "pop" as some part of the metal buckles a little due to expansion. It's not super loud or anything, but I notice it. Strangely, I don't notice it "unpop" when it cools down. Could be a result of the mount I'm using. I have it pretty snug to the wall.

Nick Martin

When it comes to using the different settings, since there can be subtle differences with each site or forum they can be found on, I guess it's a matter of trying them all and seeing which you like best?

Take for example Home Theater Magazine's site, which has settings after every review. I looked at those and they are very slightly different to the ones I've seen today on the TweakTV site for the TV I'm getting, and there are probably different settings on forums as well. Guess the upside is having a lot of options since they've been tested and shared over time by many.

djbrown

I've had the 65ST30 for about the last three months and have NO regrets about taking the plunge. My old set was a 65" Hitachi RPTV.

spainlinx0

I couldn't find the settings on AVSforums. Do you happen to have a link?

JayDerek

I'm looking at getting a 60" Panasonic Plasma in a month or two...either the ST or the GT model.

In looking over the AVS forum - seems like a lot of people there are running 100 hours of the 'slides' to break in the Plasma sets.

Has anyone here done that? Or is it pretty much a waste of time?

Nick Martin

What slides? Is this a feature on the television itself?

There are so many odd terms associated with these things it's impossible to know them all.

Talkin2Phil

There is some strange religion on the AVS site. I got a G25 series plasma year ago, the last thing i wanted to do is wait 4 days with slides playing before enjoying my new toy. I mixed in watching animation/cartoons with movies and tv, thinking maybe the solid background colors and stuff would approximate some things the slides would do. A year later i'm still amazed by the image quality. I love my plasma. Enjoy yours.

JayDerek

Thank you. I consider this place much more 'real world' than AVS so I wanted to check.

AVS does have good threads on different settings to try for various TV's but wading through the garbage can be tough

spainlinx0

I ignored the break-in period stuff. I wanted to watch TV and play videogames.

The thread is 200 pages. I didn't even know where to begin to find the settings.

Kicker_of_Elves

I'm running them right now on my 55GT30, on my last night of running them and 91 Hrs in so far. I'm planning to use my TV for gaming heavily so I decided to run the slides. I kept reading that the first 100 hrs are when the TV has a high chance of burn in, so that made my decision for me easily.


There's a professional calibrator on the AVS board who offers his settings but requires people using his settings to run color slides for 100hrs before using them. Alot of people use them to get past the first 100hrs where burn in is most likely to happen.

His words:

The name of the calibrator is D-Nice and you can find his settings for the 2011 Panasonic's and info about the color slides there at: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1371710