panasonic usa potential problems.......

[admin_exported]

ive been following a story on other forums , and review sites , regarding claims of panny plasmas losing their deep blacks , as mentioned in another recent thread on here , well , up until today , most posters that had been involved in the initial thread , highlighting the problem , felt that panasonic were readying a firmware fix for any tvs that started losing their deep black levels ...

but , panasonic have emailed a certain u.s. website , declaring that it is NORMAL for a panny plasmas black level to lighten over time , and that its necessary to keep the tv working normally over its lifespan , etc etc....

basically , if YOUR plasma suddenly has black levels like a poor lcd , panasonic will not see it as a problem , they say thats normal .... but some people reporting the fall in black levels (the most important aspect of a plasma) , say the deep blacks , turned to lcd like greys , after only 300-400 hrs of use ???? does that sound normal to you ??? would you be happy buying a panny plasma , for its deep blacks , er , for a month or so , ???
Content deleted for copyright reasons - MODS

 

[Andrew Everard]

So you're giving advice based on what you've read on another forum? Or did you do the tests and take those pictures yourself before posting your thread and its sensationalist headline?

 

[Anonymous]

im reporting panasonics explanation , to a problem that is being reported on several forums , of panasonic black levels dramatically lightening , their explanation is there for all to see , on a well known us website , the pictures are an example , posted by a person who felt his tv was affected , and im not giving advice andrew , im posing a question , the only thing sensationalist that i can see in my op is panasonics viewpoint ....

 

[Andrew Everard]

maxflinn:the pictures are an example , posted by a person who felt his tv was affected

In which case the pictures are gone, for copyright reasons.

 

[Ravey Gravey Davy]

Post 1 - yes thats my advice

Post 2- I'm not giving advice.

So no grey areas then.

 

[Anonymous]

ok ive removed the , im giving advice bit from my op , apologies , i dont want this thread being about anything other than what people think about the potential black level lightening , and panasonic stating that its normal ......

 

[Ravey Gravey Davy]

Oooooooh MF- you little tinker- you edited out the first 4 words of your first post .

Edit- good on yer for posting the change.

 

[wireman]

Maxxflinn - I have the same G10 as you. Having seen those pictures you posted EDITED BY MODS - please do not discuss moderation

, are you saying that the original poster took a photograph of his new screen, anticipating this problem, so he could take a second photograph some 3-400 hours later to show the difference and prove a point? If he really believed that the black levels were going to go, why on earth did he buy the screen in the first place?

On the other hand, it'd be easy for me to take 2 similar photographs right now, with a minor adjustmnent inbetween the two, just to support an argument. If that poster does have a problem with his particular screen, what suggests that to be a common fault affecting all Panasonic plasmas rather than just his?

Sorry. I really do think this is nonsense.

 

[Anonymous]

he , like harmunt , the op of the other similar thread on here , only found out about the potential problems after he had just received his tv , so he took photos , just in case , at least thats what he said , does that not sound plausible ??

why doesnt anyone reading this thread , google , panasonic black level , ???? and read what ive read , then post their opinions , interpretation here .....

 

[wireman]

maxflinn:why doesnt anyone reading this thread , google , panasonic black level , ???? and read what ive read , then post their opinions , interpretation here .....
Okay, doing that now. In the interim, I'd just like to say that my G10 already has about 1000 hours on it, and I genuinely can't see any problem, so it can't be affecting ALL Panasonic plasmas, can it? Is your G10 showing signs of black level problems?

 

[Anonymous]

wireman:maxflinn:why doesnt anyone reading this thread , google , panasonic black level , ???? and read what ive read , then post their opinions , interpretation here .....
Okay, doing that now. In the interim, I'd just like to say that my G10 already has about 1000 hours on it, and I genuinely can't see any problem, so it can't be affecting ALL Panasonic plasmas, can it? Is your G10 showing signs of black level problems?google ...plasma tvs losing blacks.... and its the first one , my panny is perfect , its brilliant , and i love it ....

if it stays that way then thats fine , its panasonics statement i dont like , it looks to me like they are trying to brush this under the carpet , have a butchers .....

 

[Andrew Everard]

Sorry, but I really don't see what you're trying to achieve here. You have a set that's fine, and you're banging on about a problem someone has reported for whatever reason, without any first-hand knowledge of the problem yourself.

And as you say, the problem is being experienced in the States, affects models sold there and not here and the response is from Panasonic USA.

Even the reviewer who contacted Panasonic for a statement says he has no first-hand knowlege of the effect, so he is also jumping on a forum bandwaggon. It's widely known that plasma screens lose brightness/contrast over time - that's why companies quote a screen life, which describes the time the screen takes to fade to half of its original brightness, but in the case of modern plasma that's many, many tens of thousands of hours.

EDIT: I locked this thread for a while to review the online discussions elsewhere. Having done so, I stand by my comments above, but hey, if you want to carry on discussing the subject, why not do it where the discussion pertains, and not here at third hand?

 

[wireman]

Having too been away to look at other forums to read what it is that's being said and by whom, and having read Panasonic US's actual statement in response, had this thread not been locked I would've come back with similar conclusions (albeit I wouldn't have been able to voice them quite as eloquently as our guv AE has). IMHO, the criticism is wholly unsubstantiated.

 

[Anonymous]

well , the tvs that were reported to have suffered from rising black levels , done so after a few hundred hours in some cases , we are talking g10s and v10s here , not even a year old , that shouldnt be happening , and panas response to the said reviewer , served only to cover their butts , have we not seen all that before (clouding)......

but hey , lets see what happens , hopefully this is a non story , i have a panny , and am hoping to get another one in the future , the thread is open again , so if there are any developements , we can discuss them .....

 

[carter]

i have a panasonic plasma.it is a different model to yours but its coming upto 2 years old soon and is on most of the day .

as far as i can tell it still looks pretty good.i have been really pleased with this set and my next tv will probably be another panasonic

 

[Anonymous]

To the staff at What HIFI - For the sake of G10 owners out there, could you please review this story.

Maybe pursue Panasonic for us and try to get an answer

LINK REMOVED - House Rules

Also on

LINK REMOVED - House Rules

Panasonic have now admitted this problem

 

[Anonymous]

LINKS REMOVED AGAIN. Please read the House Rules to which you agreed when you signed up. And please do not discuss moderation

 

[Anonymous]

The reason I am keeping an eye on developments, is that I have twice been affected by Panasonic getting it wrong.

The 'Purple Snakes' on my PX60 and the Freesat ITVHD dimming issue on the G10. To give Panasonic their dues, they came up with the solutions, and really impressed me with their attitude. If there is anything in this, and I don't think I have been affected yet, I hope they respond as they have done in the past.

Still a fantastic TV

 

[Anonymous]

i agree the g10 is a fantastic tv , ive been keeping an eye on the blacks on my own , and its fine , ive also had a good read on several forums , and from what i can gather , very few uk , european sets appear to be losing their black levels ...

but , what will be interesting , is to see what develops in the u.s. , as it does seem that there are many disgruntled panny owners there , reporting the problem , and panasonics response to people , has brought more questions than answers , they are saying that the 09 pannys are meant to lose black depth , in stages , over time ...

but then appear to suggest that the blacks on their 2010 models will lighten more slowly ? therefore admitting that the 09 sets are programmed wrongly ? well thats the jist of it ...

and anyway , who would like to buy a plasma for its deep blacks , if they were only temporary ??

should be interesting to see where it goes , several online tech sites have now picked up on the story , this doesnt look like its just going away , although im sure some people want it to.....

 

[Anonymous]

I'd just like to say that my "antique" 42"panasonic plasma from 2004.Max screen resolution-480p.lol.No HDMI socket.lol. Has NOT lost any of it's black levels at all. I did think the brightness had dimmed til I realised the power save function was switched on. Star Wars in particular is just as good as the day it arrrived.

So, 5 years and counting, and who knows, maybe another 5years of life still left in it.

 

[mike aitch]

glad to see our trans-atlantic puppet masters seem to be having "problems"with their g10s.personally speaking i've had no problems at all(apart from 1 dead pixel)with my 37px60,and given the model number you can all assume how old it is!

 

[Anonymous]

well, ive got a fair few gaming hours in my panasonic 42 g10 and ive not seen a lightening of the black levels what so ever. Could this all be a bit of hysterical slander to put people off buying panasonic as the 3d craze kicks in. Also Panny have picked up the Kuro technology (if im right here), so to be honest, id be doubly thinking about getting a panasonic plasma as to previously............Buying a car???Its going to lose its bhp over time you know. Would that stop you buying a car?

 

[Anonymous]

well some owners have reported a doubling of black levels over 300hrs , thats about 6 weeks average viewing , if panasonic had come out and said , they would fix any such tvs , this thread wouldnt be here , but they are trying to be clever in their response , to cover themselves ....

an anti panny conspiricy ??? could it be ??? i guess its possible , i guess its possible panny would see to it that they were represented on forums too , interesting stuff , i hope its a storm in a teacup , as ive reccomended pannys to several friends , although both me and them are currently very happy with our smashing tvs

 

[staggerlee]

Let it go people. Its a non issue and a non story. That's the problems with forums. You name any product and you will find some forum which states some problem with it. It doesn't mean one exists. I find it odd that people who have no problem with their panasonic Tv's are asking panasonic to respond ?

 

[Anonymous]

But many times these forums have reported issues that turned out to be valid.

My G10 has over 1000 hours on the clock, and am pretty sure the blacks are fine.