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There are now so many televisions to choose from that it's hard to get a clear picture of what will suit you best. Here Duncan Madden, a former editor of Boys Toys magazine and one of Britain's leading technology journalists, tunes in to the five best flatscreens. Click to view Top 5 TVs.
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Best Family TV (Panasonic VIERA TX-32LXD700) |
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 Combining a brilliant price with looks and performance that sets costing far more can only dream about, Panasonic's all-new HD Ready 32-inch LCD range topper is a true feat of engineering. Incorporating Panny's celebrated V-Real technology and the user-friendly VIERA Link, it's the perfect complement to any home cinema. |
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So new that very few people have yet seen it, I was lucky enough to have a play with Panasonic's range-topping LXD700 series at a recent press launch and was frankly spellbound by the combination of features, design and performance for an outlay of less than a grand. It's the biggest LCD screen Panasonic makes before moving over to plasma displays and reaching all the way up to the 103-inch mark.
Described by HDTV.org as “possibly the most stylish piece of kit we have seen … which just oozes stylish sophistication”, Panasonic has eschewed its traditional matt black and silver aesthetic for this sumptuous all black look, splitting the usually bottom-mounted speaker into two ultra slim side mounts with undeniably successful results.
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The bigger picture |
But it's not just on the outside that Panasonic has excelled with the 32LXD700, because this 1080i compatible 1366x768 pixel set is the best 32-inch LCD panel currently available. Anywhere. Standard definition pictures are simply astonishing, with the usual blights of pixel noise and motion blur almost completely absent, even when actively looking for them. A big part of this is the new 100Hz refresh rate, which actively works to reduce the picture lag most LCD and plasma TVs suffer with fast-moving action like football - it's the closest LCD has yet come to matching old-school CRT technology with traditional standard definition broadcasts.
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 Hook up an HD source and things improve yet again. “The colours are both natural and rich, even with tricky skin tones,” comments What Home Cinema magazine, while heavyweight film action and sports footage is treated with delightful contempt by Panasonic's V-Real 2 processing technology and the V-Real Driver designed specifically to handle fast screen motion. Quality wise it's not in the same league as the very high-end (and high-price) performers, but it's as good as any 32-inch LCD currently in production. There is also a veritable smorgasbord of picture enhancing options for tweaking to your heart's content.
One of the best features of Panasonic's new TV ranges is its VIERA Link technology. If you're using other compatible Panasonic products in your AV setup (a DVD player for example) using the HDMI connection, you can automatically control multiple devices using just one remote - so flick one button and the TV and DVD player will turn on, go to the correct channel and start playing - very handy for kids and technophobe adults alike!
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Super sonics |
| If you're shelling out on a television like this you're clearly going to be hooking it up to a DVD player and/or gaming system, in which case you really should be using a decent surround-sound system to wring the most out of it. If however you're not, those two 10w speakers do a surprisingly good job in the interim while you choose your audio system. Endowed with Panasonic's V-Audio Surround - Smart Sound Speaker System as well as SRS TruSurround XT, the pseudo surround performance is impressive (if still no real replacement for full 5.1-channel audio), while dialogue is clear and bass response convincing. |
Further features |
 The inclusion of three HDMI ports is a trend that all other TV manufacturers should sit up and take note of. With two located on the set's rear for constant hook up to the likes of an Xbox 360 and Sky HD (though again there is a digital TV tuner built in), Panasonic has also installed one on the front of the set for easy access - great for quick download of your HD family camcorder footage and the like. Alongside this sits as SD card slot again with HD compatibility (SDHC), so you can view all your digital camera pictures and videos using that excellent 32-inch screen as opposed to the camera's minimal display.
Further connection flexibility comes in the shape of dual SCARTs, component video, S-Video, PC input and digital optical out.
Beautiful to look at whether it's turned on or off, feature packed, simple to use and offering a grand mix of the latest technologies and connectivity brilliantly implemented with Panasonic's legendary reliability, this is the television guaranteed to keep your family happy for years to come. |
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For further explanation of technical terms click here
Typical price: £950/$1,884
For currency converter click here |
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