Panasonic TX-P42U30B 42-inch Widescreen Full HD 1080p 600Hz Plasma TV with Freeview HD

I'd done a lot of research on the web to decide whether I wanted a plasma, LCD or LED TV. Upon deciding a plasma was best for me, Panasonic always appeared to be at the top of the ratings, so not it was a choice of three TVs (I'd already decided on a 42" a long time ago). The Panasonic website provided a good comparison tool, which allowed me to determine that the two 'top' TVs had more functionality than I was ever going to use, so I chose the U30B.

I was up and running within 10 minutes of connecting everything up and turning it on, and everything was automatic. So much for Mr TV Arielman telling me that my current ariel could not pick up digital signals ... my Panasonic can.

The only issue is that it only has one SCART input. I have standard Sky and a DVD recorder, both of which require a SCART socket. My SCART splitter resulted in the Sky picture being unwatchable until the DVD recorder was put into standby. A bit of internet searching informed me that a SCART switch was required instead of a splitter. I was always going to upgrade to Sky + HD at some point, so I chose to do it now rather than spend money on a SCART switch (they are about £15).

I've had the TV for two days now, and the sound is good and the picture is very good. I've got a bit more playing with the setup to do when I read a bit more of the manual, but for the price ... I'm certainly not complaining. I would drop half a star for the missing SCART, but the reviews won't let me.

The title says it all. Buy this plasma if you want a WOW experience!

At first, I thought I had gone for overkill in terms of size, especially when the item was delivered to my house. However, just a week later, I was already dreaming of my next even bigger tv purchase :)

In terms of picture quality, it is fantastic. The HD Tuner works great and picks up all available freeview channels in a reasonably fast amount of time. The menus are very easy to use and contain a wide array of features to help you personalize your viewing experience. The blacks are pretty deep though you do need to spend some time configuring your brightness settings. I didn't care much for the pre-set ones...

The sound is loud and crisp for normal viewings. I have even seen movies without a home theatre connected and am satisfied with no complaints. You should not however, expect this to give you the sound and output which you would get from a home theatre as that is an entirely different ballgame.

I have noticed some ghosting effects even though this has a fast refresh rate but am still satisfied on the whole. The control is well built and feels just right in the hand though it would have been nice if it had been glow in the dark.

The HMDI inputs work beautifully and display crisp output for 1080 (full HD) movies with no lag or choppy pictures. The inbuilt resolution detection works beautifully too and adjusts the screen size accordingly to the native resolution of the movie or tv channel which is playing.

One review mentioned that it is reflective which is absolutely correct. You need to position it in your viewing room after some careful thought and planning with respect to your windows/mirrors. One does need to know before purchasing this that between the three technologies available (plasma, LCD and LED) plasma is deemed the most reflective and picks up ambient light easily. However, the plus side is that in terms of price, this technology gives you the biggest bang for your buck while giving you the natural colours you desire. LCD is also very affordable and offers you a less reflective screen but the colours are not as natural as in the case of plasma. LED gives you the best of both worlds with the least reflective screen, deep blacks and natural colours but at a much higher price so it all depends how deep your pocket is!

Now for the wish list....

Panasonic tv's come with SD card inputs and no USB. However, it would have been nice if Panasonic had included USB inputs too for external hard drives or cameras as that is still my input of choice over the SD card.

While the tv includes an ethernet input, it is supposedly meant only for online firmware upgrades (have not tried it yet). It would have been nice if this could have been used for going online since half the work has been done anyway by Panasonic by including the input!

I did find this item from another store at a cheaper price than what Amazon was offering (for a change) and am very happy with my purchase.

Just remember, in the world of home cinemas and plasma, LCD or LED tvs, bigger is better. Buy the best you can afford today and you won't regret it or want to upgrade your purchase for a longer period of time.

Bought this TV from Amazon after checking out a lot of other retailers and had actually decided to go for the TX-P42G30B when I saw this one.

It has now replaced a 6 year old Sony Bravia 40 Inche LCD TV and the difference in picture quality, even on standard Digital TV is hard to believe.
The colours are fantastic the reds are really RED!!, and the yellows are really YELLOW !! and as you would expect from a plasma the blacks are really BLACK!!.

The TV itself looks much better built that the set it replaced, with metal panels being used at the back instead of Plastic, and the stand is a fairly substantial
metal affair. The only minor gripe would be that the stand has no swivel facility to help with getting the best viewing angle.
The TV actually looks smaller that the 40 Inche Bravia it replaced much to the delight of my missus, who was afraid that the wooden hippopotamus
that she had sitting on a shelf behind the TV would be obscured by a 42 inche monstrosity. (Her words not mine and she ate her words when she saw it installed).

Sound from the television even without the benefit of a home cinema system is great, better that you have any right to expect from such a thin TV.

I have attached a Panasonic Blue RAY home Cinema system to the television through one of its two HDMI sockets and the quality of the picture is outstanding, this
coupled with the excellent sound from the Cinema system takes the viewing of movies to a whole new level, our kids think its fantastic.

Yes the screen is shiny, and every now and again when very dark colours are on the screen, if you are looking really hard you can catch a glimpse of your reflection,
but to be perfectly honest it doesnt effect the viewing experience, and at the end of the day, when you buy a new Television thats what its all about.