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Panasonic TC-P50GT30 Review
50" Plasma 3D HDTV, $1899
 
Dick De Jong The GT30 series is perched right below the VT30 models at the top of the Panasonic line of 2011 3D TV models. (The VT30 touts the Infinite Black Pro Panel, which includes a better filter than the GT30's Infinite Black 2 Panel.) Scaling the heights even further, I believe that the TC-P50GT30 delivers some of the best 3D performance that I have seen from the 3D TVs in today's marketplace. Perhaps more importantly, since the amount of 3D content is still somewhat limited, the 2D Picture Quality (PQ) from this 50" GT30 plasma is velvety smooth. In addition, Panasonic has organized a star-studded cast of Internet content providers like Netflix, YouTube, and Pandora. And for the social networkers, links are supplied to Facebook and Twitter. But if you belong to a household of 3D fanatics, a major consideration in purchasing this VIERA HDTV is the price of the 3D active shutter glasses. At this time, Panasonic does not include any in the TV's package and they sell for over $160 each. Ouch. My only other reservation with the TC-P50GT30 is that its 50" screen seems too small to contain all of that divine PQ. If your room and pocketbook are big enough, I would suggest stepping up to the one of the larger GT30's. (Editor's Note: At this time, Panasonic is offering two sizes of the VIERA GT30 series, 50" and 55" [$2199], on their website. And they are just rolling out the jumbo sized 60" [$2799] and 65" [$3699] GT30's. Since all four have similar specifications, this review of the TC-P50GT30 can apply to its bigger brothers.)
Page 2: Out of the Box & Setup
Page 3: Performance & Conclusion Specifications - Panasonic TC-P50GT30 Our Star Ratings
Performance: 4.5  Is the picture on the TC-50GT30 perfect? No. I have a few nits that I could pick. But overall, the 2D picture quality from this plasma is deep and dreamy and the 3D performance is right up there at the top. Of course, the audio quality from the standard 10W speakers could be better, but really, to do the PQ justice, you need to pair this 50" HDTV with a separate surround system.
Features: 4.5 Panasonic supplies an extensive list of Internet heavyweights like Netflix, Facebook and Pandora. Wi-Fi is not built-in, but a plug-in adapter is packed in the box. I would hope that at least a pair of 3D glasses (if not a starter kit with a 3D movie) would be included with every 3D TV. At this time, that is not the case here.
Ease of Use: 4.0  The basic setup of the GT30 is a five star walk in the park. But expect to take some time and patience familiarizing yourself with all the features and registering with some of the streaming content providers. Calibrating the TV can be a challenge, but for most folks, that task is not necessary because the default Picture Mode choices are quite satisfactory.
Value: 4.0 At the time of this review, the Panasonic site had the TC-50GT30 marked down 10% from its $1900 retail price to a little over $1700, which makes it more appealing when compared to other 50" plasma 3D TVs, especially if you are attracted by the GT30's superior 3D performance.
But if 3D is what you want, remember to budget for the active shutter glasses that you will need. At $180 each, the price of entry into the 3D world becomes quite a bit more expensive, even when I am finding this 50" beauty online for under $1400. Star Ratings Description Ratings are relative to when the review was written. The obvious example is Value, what you could purchase for $2000 two years ago or even two months ago would seem like a bad value for that price now. We have give very few 5 Star ratings, which we reserve for truly outstanding accomplishment.
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Posted Dec 2, 2011 9:14:48 AM
By Bill Smith