Panasonic ST50 (TX-P50ST50B) 50 Inch 3D Plasma TV Review & Comments

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Reviewed by Stephen Withers, 22nd March 2012. The Panasonic P50ST50B is absolutely fantastic mid-range plasma, offering an impressive level of image accuracy and some of the best blacks we have seen, especially at such a competitive price point. The 2D and 3D performance were both excellent and the level of features and Smart TV functionality were very comprehensive. If you're in the market for a new TV then you owe it to yourself to demo the Panasonic P50ST50B - Highly Recommended.
Read the full review...
 
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Steve an excellent review, and excellent results..its seems like Panasonic, has really stepped up there game this year...

overall and with the price point and everything else taken into consideration...it seems like the year to upgrade my ageing PHD8 which has served me well.

your whole review bodes very well for my prospective purchase choice of the VT50..a review I am now relishing ...

your review was worth waiting for ...so good in fact im about to read a few more times to soak everything up.:clap:
 
Thanks for the review,:)

Just wanted to ask about brightness on this set. The increase in brightness, is that only confined to calibrated modes, or is it found in normal pre-set settings e.g. 'normal' 'cinema' 'true cinema'.

If you're to compare to ST30, is it brighter in 'true cinema' mode?

The reason I'm asking is that I like to upgrade to a brighter plasma set and where blacks are not grey under normal lighting conditions.

Thanks.
 
excellent review! Was thinking of looking at the G30/ST30 for a bargain, but now I just might wait some more until the ST50 becomes affordable for me :) Good work!
 
Just wanted to ask about brightness on this set. The increase in brightness, is that only confined to calibrated modes, or is it found in normal pre-set settings e.g. 'normal' 'cinema' 'true cinema'.

If you're to compare to ST30, is it brighter in 'true cinema' mode?

The reason I'm asking is that I like to upgrade to a brighter plasma set and where blacks are not grey under normal lighting conditions.

As I understand it, all of Panasonic's plasmas are 30% brighter across all modes this year. They will never be as bright as an LCD but they are definitely brighter than last year's models. I think if you go for a ST50 you'll be happy with the brightness in whichever mode you choose and you'll definitely be happy with the blacks.
 
st50 is similar in terms of video quality to panasonic vx300?

Well the blacks are certainly similar but for overall image quality the VX300 is in a league of its own; of course it's also five times the price.
 
talking of comparisons..generally IYHO how would you rate the ST50 against last years VT30.(other than black levels..i mean overall general comparison in terms of picture quality and functionality

also..how do the hardware reviewers feel about side by side comparisons and multi screen shootouts, and will we see any this year? on my beloved avforums

(maybe pitting the sammys against the pannys head to head) what do you think Steve?
 
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Well done Steve, delivered a fantastic and comprehensive review as we have all come to expect from you. Like golden Pheonix said, absolutley relishing the VT50 review - on the basis of the ST50 it's definitley the year for me to upgrade the uber trusty 42 inch PW5! - still delivers amazing images - sad thing is its probably worth about £40 nowdays - was £3800 from JL's in 2002!
 
talking of comparisons..generally IYHO how would you rate the ST50 against last years VT30.

also..how do the hardware reviewers feel about side by side comparisons and multi screen shootouts, and will we see any this year? on my beloved avforums

(maybe pitting the sammys against the pannys head to head) what do you think Steve?

I'll caveat my comments by saying up front that I didn't have a VT30 on hand to make a direct comparison but from memory I'd say the ST50 looked very similar to the VT30.

I think a shootout would be great, it's just a question of logistics really. We would need all the TVs together at the same time in a space large enough to set them all up. That's a lot easier said than done.
 
Steve - you'll likley be asked a million times but when you do anticipate getting your hands on a VT50? - obvioulsy the review would follow like 10 days later or so...
 
Steve - you'll likley be asked a million times but when you do anticipate getting your hands on a VT50? - obvioulsy the review would follow like 10 days later or so...

I'm afraid I can't answer that Bish, it depends entirely on Panasonic's release schedule.
 
Very nice, this just might be my next set :)
Does it still have fans and if so, how many and how noisy?
I had to get rid of my 50G10 after 1 year because of the noisy fans :thumbsdow

My wife is very sensitive to the plasma buzz, another reason to dump the G10. Did you hear any on this set?
 
I'm afraid I can't answer that Bish, it depends entirely on Panasonic's release schedule.

Roger that Steve, will keep everything peeled!

Can anyone say with any authority if Panny have said anything regarding the UK release for the VT50 - I think i read end April/May?
 
I'll caveat my comments by saying up front that I didn't have a VT30 on hand to make a direct comparison but from memory I'd say the ST50 looked very similar to the VT30.

I think a shootout would be great, it's just a question of logistics really. We would need all the TVs together at the same time in a space large enough to set them all up. That's a lot easier said than done.

Am I wrong in being disappointed that this TV doesn't beat out the VT30??

Seemingly it has way better blacks - is 30% brighter has less bugs and seems to have better processing.:confused:
 
Thanks for the review Steve. I guess I'll have to decide once reviews are in whether it's worth paying extra for the GT50 now :)
 
excellent review of an excellent TV, if an entry level tv can deliver such performance, i just can't imagine what the GT50 and VT50 can do, I think that this year we may have our KURO successor:arty:
 
Very nice, this just might be my next set :)
Does it still have fans and if so, how many and how noisy?
I had to get rid of my 50G10 after 1 year because of the noisy fans :thumbsdow

My wife is very sensitive to the plasma buzz, another reason to dump the G10. Did you hear any on this set?

good and very important questions, these things never seem to get mentioned in reviews for some reason, which is strange as they can totally ruin the viewing experience.
 
Does it still have fans and if so, how many and how noisy?
I had to get rid of my 50G10 after 1 year because of the noisy fans :thumbsdow

My wife is very sensitive to the plasma buzz, another reason to dump the G10. Did you hear any on this set?

There are no fans, so nothing to worry about there and no buzzing, unless you put your head up to the back of the chassis, which as a rule is not the best position for watching TV.
 
Am I wrong in being disappointed that this TV doesn't beat out the VT30??

Seemingly it has way better blacks - is 30% brighter has less bugs and seems to have better processing.:confused:

In fairness the VT30 is a great display and I think a TV that is at least as good, if not better, for considerably less is reason to be happy.
 
Steve , would appreciate your opinion.
I just returned a GT30 as it had green tinges and my dealer is letting me try out a VT30, but i could have a GT50 for the same price, barring any green on the VT what would you decide?
 
There are no fans, so nothing to worry about there and no buzzing, unless you put your head up to the back of the chassis, which as a rule is not the best position for watching TV.

Fantastic! :clap:

Maybe they learned something from Samsung and possibly LG who had no fans in any of their 2001 range as far as I know.

I was looking towards the GT50 but I really can't think what would be significantly better for the GT50 over the ST50 :confused:
 
Steve,

Something very interesting I have read, The VT30 apparently has 6,144, gradation steps and the expensive VX300 can generate 12,288. The ST50 has 12,286 gradation steps according to the specification page. Is this correct? If it is then I am absolutely gob smacked. Panasonic must really be pushing for sales this year. Not to rule out Samsung just yet but with this kind of aggresive pushing from Panasonic (which is obviously a good thing) it its difficult to fathom what they could come up with. There has been very little noise thus-far about Samsung 2012 plasma range.
 
viper what shop menioned the free glasses and player?
 

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