Panasonic launches 42in and 46in 3D plasma TVs

 

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Posted on 3 Sep 2010 at 13:08

Panasonic has announced two new 3D plasma TVs, the 42in 42VT20 and the 46in 46VT20.

The latest 3D plasma TVs from Panasonic, the 42in 42VT20 and the 46in 46VT20, use the company's NeoPDP Plasma technology. The Japanese consumer electronics giant claims that this gives them better image quality and lower power consumption than both the company's previous plasma models and those from competing manufacturers too.

Fabian Roth, Panasonic's General Manager for the company's European TV Group, states that these two models have an 'infinite black' contrast ratio of 2,000,000:1. Unlike other 3D TVs we've seen, two pairs of 3D glasses are included. Panasonic has developed a 2D-3D Conversion function, which uses a dedicated processor to 'upscale' 2D footage into 3D.

Other special features include USB ports for playing video content stored on USB storage devices, as well as the ability to access the internet using downloadable apps. Panasonic calls this latter feature Viera Cast. Apps include AceTrax for renting and purchasing streamed and downloaded movies online as well as Skype.

Althougn not unique to the VT20 plasma 3D series, the Skype app does depend on a dedicated Panasonic webcam that plugs into a USB port. We were sceptical about the usefulness of Skype on a TV, but the reasonably good onscreen image quality and simplified interface make it better suited than a webcam-equipped laptop when used by technophobes for making video calls.

Hirotoshi Uehara, the Director of Panasonic's Business Unit, also announced that a special edition 3D Blu-ray copy of the movie Avatar will be included with select Panasonic 3D TVs. Uehara was unable to confirm when this would happen, which models will come with the free movie and whether Panasonic had exclusive rights to the 3D Blu-ray version of the blockbuster film as some internet pundits claim. Nevertheless, we would be surprised if the movie wasn't included with the VT20-series 3D plasma TVs.

Both the 42VT20 and 46VT20 should be available shortly. Both models will come with two pairs of 3D glasses. The 42VT20 will have a suggested retail price of £1,500, while its 46in counterpart will have a suggested retail price of £2,000. Prices for extra pairs of 3D glasses, which Panasonic claims are lighter and more comfortable than previous glasses, has yet to be confirmed.

Author: Alan Lu