It was supposed to be exiting with this years 9000 series, especially the 21:9, but after seeing it with reflective front screen, I find it very dissapointing, and a review is not very interesting - the usual theoretical picture quality testing in a dark cave, not testing in the user environment.
WHY may we ask ? Philips removed the major advantage it had on this years 8000 and 9000 models - performance both day and night.
Check the picture of this 8605, can such TV set be considered to have a good picture performance ?:
With a reflective screen you see lamps and candle lighths in the picture in the evening, during daytime you see your self, the furniture, the garden, the dog, in the picture.
Better to pay less than half the price for a nice plasma ( if you can find one with out buzz ) plus a bettter picture quality ( in the dark ). They will both perform equal badly under ambient light. Or the 7000 model which seems to be the top Philips models this year - best all-round performer.
Further dissapointment is the lag of full Internet support, you still cant watch Internet TV, the set misses the media players. Watching TV via the internet is hot. We are in 2010, not in 2007 !
Especially the new 21:9 is a dissapointment as to above - I can live with the bad menu system and software, slow boot and channel shift, bad remote - but adding reflective screen and no full internet support, is just too many problems for 3.000 Euro , 4.000 for the 21:9.
Dont get me wrong - I have been waiting 12 months for the 21:9, but reflective screen is unacceptable. We have three Philips TV sets in the family. So what to do ? Wait for 3. generation 21:9, wait for Sony or other manufacturer to produce a propper 21:9 - or give up and buy a PFL7605 - the last option seems to be the solution ?