Panasonic 42VT30

[michael hoy]

Just received my VT30...

Can't wait to get home and dabble.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi,I saw this model a few days ago and thought that it was very good.
I am also looking to buy but I am just a bit put off by all these flooting blacks and 50 htz problems of last years models.
Please give me your thoughts when you can,thanks.

 

[strapped for cash]

You could get the scoop by posting the first online review of the VT30. I'm very interested to find out how you get on...

 

[michael hoy]

Well, first impressions are very good, unfortunately the screen has a hairline scratch about 13" long from bottom left 1/3 rd way in to about half way up the screen and 5/8 th the way in from the left.

This cannot be seen straight on and only noticeable when I was knelt down to the right of the screen. I will have to contact the supplier tomorrow.

 

[michael hoy]

I must say so far the customer service from Sound and Vision has been excellent, replacement TV due on Wednesday.

I will update once new set as been installed and set up.

 

[Anonymous]

I must say so far the customer service from Sound and Vision has been excellent, replacement TV due on Wednesday.

I will update once new set as been installed and set up.

Hi Michael hoy,are u keeping the tv until wednesday and using it,if so what are your thoughts,sorry to be pushy.

 

[Anonymous]

I must say so far the customer service from Sound and Vision has been excellent, replacement TV due on Wednesday.

I will update once new set as been installed and set up.

Hi Michael hoy,are u keeping the tv until wednesday and using it,if so what are your thoughts,sorry to be pushy.

 

[Anonymous]

I must say so far the customer service from Sound and Vision has been excellent, replacement TV due on Wednesday.

I will update once new set as been installed and set up.

Hi Michael hoy,are u keeping the tv until wednesday and using it,if so what are your thoughts,sorry to be pushy.

 

[michael hoy]

I am still using the TV but only for the odd hour or so, there is not much point in playing around with the TV with it going back.

Out of the box it is pretty good, the THX setting with Blu Ray is excellent.

I did consider buying the Calman auto setup software for the new Panasonic tv's but that will have to wait.

The only annoying factor is the cooling fan, not had a plasma for about 4yrs now and forgot about this, it is not excessive but it is noticeable.

 

[micks_address]

i should be picking up my VT30 in the morning.. cant wait.. can you buy the calman software with the tv? cheers, mick

 

[strapped for cash]

i should be picking up my VT30 in the morning.. cant wait.. can you buy the calman software with the tv? cheers, mick

Did you audition the VT30, micks_address? Review is available on another website. I'm sure you've read it already.

 

[michael hoy]

i should be picking up my VT30 in the morning.. cant wait.. can you buy the calman software with the tv? cheers, mick

Hi,

Still waiting for the replacement, problem with bank holidays being the same as delivery days.

The Calman software, it states on the Calman site for Panasonic dealers, so I am not sure if you can buy it or not now.

 

[micks_address]

Hi Strapped,

Sorry for the delay in replying - was off for a few days.. I went to audition the VT30 on Saturday morning with my VT20 in the boot of the car. The intention was to change to the 42VT30 if a few key areas had been improved on. 1) Floating blacks - i hate these. 2) Buzzing - the vt20 buzzes quite a bit (like the v20 and more so with higher contrast content.

So I was at the shop just as it opened and asked the guys to setup the vt30 i would be buying and connect up a blu-ray player so i could check it out. I brought The Matrix, Inception, Fight Club, Bolt 3d, How to train your dragon and harry potter & the half blood prince (this to check for the flucuating brightness thats been reported elsewhere. )

Popped the tv into 'THX' setting with sharpness at min..

First the Matrix - 3 mins 6 seconds - guards enter the room where trinity is - used to float like mad on my vt20 - on the vt30 - blacks stable no floating.. hopes high!

Second - How to train your dragon - opening seen floats crazy on my vt20.. on the vt30 no floating! - hopes still high

Third - Fight club - again lots of floating blacks on the VT20 - perfect on the vt30

Fourth - Harry Potter.. looked at the scene recommended to check for flucuating brightness but couldnt see any.. so very happy at this stage..

Fifth - Bolt 3d - 3d looks excellent as good as vt20.. but also used this test to check for buzzing.. in 3d mode my vt20 buzzed quite bit.. the level of buzz remained constant with the vt30.. no change in level at all..

I also asked the shop if they had any football recorded on their freesat boxes but no joy. Fair enough I thought as they let me play around with the tv for close to an hour with no pressure to buy.. i think they wanted me to be sure i was happy with the set as they dont want me back changing again in a few weeks/months

So i decided to do the deal and change for the VT30.. brough home and setup was a breeze.. its physically smaller than the VT20 so I had to re-adjust speakers etc but it does look very neat.. i love the 'one sheet' design.. one thing i noticed with the tv is that its a good bit heavier than the vt20..i attribute this to the one sheet of glass design and i think a happy byproduct of this is that set doesnt buzz hardly at all compared to the VT20s and v20s of last year.

The other issue worth talking about is the 50hz motion people talk about with sports. Yes its still evident on the vt30 but not nearly as much as it was with the vt20.. at first i didnt see it at all but yes its still there.. id say its greatly improved from the vt20.. i could see it all the time on the vt20.. ifc on mid solves the problem when watching football and doesnt for me at least introduce any processing problems.. but its a few menu items deep and to be honest its hardly worth the hassle of switching it on the problem is so minor. I'd imagine maybe this is more pronounced on the larger sets - but for me on the 42 its fine. Now i did watch a GAA hurling match on the vt30 on sunday in SD quality.. and this had very fast panning shots.. way more than a soccer match has.. and the pans are way quicker due to the speeds of the ball.. that was a little messy.. but again improved with ifc on mid setting.

i've only had the tv to myself for a short time.. i watched Inception which was a joy without the floating blacks, and some of the dark knight yesterday which again looked great. I think the THX setting might not be as accurate as it was on the VT20.. but its still very good.. and i'm going to let the set bed in before being to harsh on it.. i was tempted to run the 'break in ' slides on the tv but as i wont be getting it calibrated for a good few months i'm not going to bother...

So to sum up - delighted so far.. for me a major improvement over the vt20.. biggests improvements for me? no floating blacks, variable buzzing gone, improved 50 hz motion - nicer design (sunjective)

Downsides? Screen seems to be a little more reflective that last years model but i watch mainly with the curtains drawn and at night.. so again no deal breaker for me..

some pictures taken with phone.. http://img807.imageshack.us/slidesho...=imag0131o.jpg

Anyway.. im tempted to not look at forums etc any more or reviews.. as i love the tv so much i dont want to go looking for faults with it!

Cheers,
Mick

i should be picking up my VT30 in the morning.. cant wait.. can you buy the calman software with the tv? cheers, mick

Did you audition the VT30, micks_address? Review is available on another website. I'm sure you've read it already.

 

[micks_address]

sorry link broken.. have tidied things up a bit since lined up with speakers etc..

http://img807.imageshack.us/slideshow/webplayer.php?id=imag0131o.jpg

 

[Anonymous]

Great news Mick,I am having my 50 vt30 Friday I think I will be as happy as you are.

 

[strapped for cash]

Hi micks_address,

Glad you're happy now. I agree it's probably unwise to spend time browsing forums for reported problems. I'm sure there will be some, since no TV is perfect. Obviously the key is finding a level of performance you consider acceptable for the price. If you feel this is the case -- and it sounds like you do -- you should simply enjoy your viewing and read no more about it.

For the record, my issue with the V20 isn't really a buzzing sound, but a high pitched whine/whistle, which was audible irrespective of the content on screen. This has either improved, or I'm losing the ability to hear that particular frequency. In any case, it doesn't bother me so much now.

I'm trying to focus on what the TV does well -- and frankly it gets most things right -- and spend less time obsessing about its inevitable imperfections.

 

[TKratz]

Hi Strapped,

Sorry for the delay in replying - was off for a few days.. I went to audition the VT30 on Saturday morning with my VT20 in the boot of the car. The intention was to change to the 42VT30 if a few key areas had been improved on. 1) Floating blacks - i hate these. 2) Buzzing - the vt20 buzzes quite a bit (like the v20 and more so with higher contrast content.

So I was at the shop just as it opened and asked the guys to setup the vt30 i would be buying and connect up a blu-ray player so i could check it out. I brought The Matrix, Inception, Fight Club, Bolt 3d, How to train your dragon and harry potter & the half blood prince (this to check for the flucuating brightness thats been reported elsewhere. )

Popped the tv into 'THX' setting with sharpness at min..

First the Matrix - 3 mins 6 seconds - guards enter the room where trinity is - used to float like mad on my vt20 - on the vt30 - blacks stable no floating.. hopes high!

Second - How to train your dragon - opening seen floats crazy on my vt20.. on the vt30 no floating! - hopes still high

Third - Fight club - again lots of floating blacks on the VT20 - perfect on the vt30

Fourth - Harry Potter.. looked at the scene recommended to check for flucuating brightness but couldnt see any.. so very happy at this stage..

Fifth - Bolt 3d - 3d looks excellent as good as vt20.. but also used this test to check for buzzing.. in 3d mode my vt20 buzzed quite bit.. the level of buzz remained constant with the vt30.. no change in level at all..

I also asked the shop if they had any football recorded on their freesat boxes but no joy. Fair enough I thought as they let me play around with the tv for close to an hour with no pressure to buy.. i think they wanted me to be sure i was happy with the set as they dont want me back changing again in a few weeks/months

So i decided to do the deal and change for the VT30.. brough home and setup was a breeze.. its physically smaller than the VT20 so I had to re-adjust speakers etc but it does look very neat.. i love the 'one sheet' design.. one thing i noticed with the tv is that its a good bit heavier than the vt20..i attribute this to the one sheet of glass design and i think a happy byproduct of this is that set doesnt buzz hardly at all compared to the VT20s and v20s of last year.

The other issue worth talking about is the 50hz motion people talk about with sports. Yes its still evident on the vt30 but not nearly as much as it was with the vt20.. at first i didnt see it at all but yes its still there.. id say its greatly improved from the vt20.. i could see it all the time on the vt20.. ifc on mid solves the problem when watching football and doesnt for me at least introduce any processing problems.. but its a few menu items deep and to be honest its hardly worth the hassle of switching it on the problem is so minor. I'd imagine maybe this is more pronounced on the larger sets - but for me on the 42 its fine. Now i did watch a GAA hurling match on the vt30 on sunday in SD quality.. and this had very fast panning shots.. way more than a soccer match has.. and the pans are way quicker due to the speeds of the ball.. that was a little messy.. but again improved with ifc on mid setting.

i've only had the tv to myself for a short time.. i watched Inception which was a joy without the floating blacks, and some of the dark knight yesterday which again looked great. I think the THX setting might not be as accurate as it was on the VT20.. but its still very good.. and i'm going to let the set bed in before being to harsh on it.. i was tempted to run the 'break in ' slides on the tv but as i wont be getting it calibrated for a good few months i'm not going to bother...

So to sum up - delighted so far.. for me a major improvement over the vt20.. biggests improvements for me? no floating blacks, variable buzzing gone, improved 50 hz motion - nicer design (sunjective)

Downsides? Screen seems to be a little more reflective that last years model but i watch mainly with the curtains drawn and at night.. so again no deal breaker for me..

some pictures taken with phone.. http://img807.imageshack.us/slidesho...=imag0131o.jpg

Anyway.. im tempted to not look at forums etc any more or reviews.. as i love the tv so much i dont want to go looking for faults with it!

Cheers,
Mick

Nice review micks_address! Thanks for sharing.
Your points is very much in line with what I have read from comments and reviews elsewhere.
The floating black issue has been solved. The new issue - fluctuating brightness - is not nearly as critical, and most people will not notice.
The 50 Hz problem has still not been solved but is far less noticable on the VT30 combared to the VT20.

Then there is the design as you mentioned, better black level etc. Many places this is already considered the TV of 2011, and if I was to buy today, this would probably also be my choice (need to see one first though )

 

[michael hoy]

Well, today sat waiting for my replacement to arrive should be AM delivery.

 

[michael hoy]

It has arrived and all seems well, I would like to thank Sound and Vision Bolton / Leeds for the excellent service they have given me.

I can now sit down and dabble.

 

[StanleyAV]

Hi Strapped, Sorry for the delay in replying - was off for a few days.. I went to audition the VT30 on Saturday morning with my VT20 in the boot of the car. ady.

How did you dispose of your VT20 mick? Are there dealers who would part exchange this or other high end models?

I have a 46" Viera Z1, its tempting to move, if I could get a decent deal on a new screen!?

 

[micks_address]

I was lucky in that my VT20 was only 6 months old and had all the packaging intact down to the stickers on the front of the screen.. my retailer was/is hoping to sell it at a discounted prices in store.. i gave him my 2nd gen 3d glasses to package with it (i had upgraded from the older style ones that came with the VT20) and gave him back the 3d blu-rays i'd claimed from panasonic so he could try and put a deal together for someone (sans avatar)

the VT30 doesnt come in a 46" version which is a bit of a bummer but it might be released later in the year.. and i see there's talk of VX300 screens coming later this year.. which will be high end panels which i imagine might be kuro toppers in all regards.. there's plenty of talk on other forums about brightness flucuations on the VT30... so if you are buying sit down with the screen you are taking home and do some serious viewing in the shop before you leave to ensure it doesnt bother you to much.. i am very happy with my 42vt30...

 

[Anonymous]

Purchased mine after attending trade/press day at Gadget show.

gott it from local pana store - went for 42" bluray player (they bundle in 4 blu rays as well) for £1399 and 6 year warranty.

so far cant fault it.

been using it for a few weeks now without any troubles.

 

[Andrew Everard]

Purchased mine after attending trade/press day at Gadget show.

See, yet again Sosages I'm confused: you're not in the trade, yet you attend trade/press days. Time to come clean, perhaps...?

 

[Anonymous]

nah its pretty simple - someone sent me a link that auto generated a ticket for me via email. They didnt even check it on arrival bit of a joke really as they said i had to bring 2 forms of ID.
simple but lucky i expect
if i was in the trade i would of got the TV a lot cheaper

 

[Andrew Everard]

Ah, another one of those mysterious someones... But yes, I guess you 'would of'.