Panasonic CT-32HX40 32 inch TV
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- Screen Size: 32 inch
- Built-in Tuner: NTSC
- Screen Type: Flat Screen
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Digital TV Standard: HDTV-Ready
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Your best HDTV-Capable Value
Pros
Great picture, perfect size, great picture, features, oh - and GREAT PICTURE! :)
Cons
Low resolution artifacts
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
The absolute BEST value in an HDTV compatible TV. You will be amazed at the almost 3D-like images that this TV will display.
After over a decade of absolute commitment to the SONY product name, I broke ranks with this television set. Ready to plunk down $1500+ for the Wega (XBR400) set, I saw the PANASONIC and SONY sets side-by-side displaying the same video image. I was able to play with the settings and make adjustments to color, brightness, sharpness, etc. The PANASONIC's picture was so-much-better that I knew immediately that the PANASONIC was the television to buy. The fact that it cost LESS than the SONY was irrelevant - I wanted the better viewing experience.
Keep in mind that, although this is "HDTV Ready," it is not a "true" HDTV set. You'll need to purchase a separate tuner, and 16 X 9 pictures will always be displayed with the notorious black bars at the top and bottom. Until then (another 5 years if we are lucky) this TV will do an impressive job with normal cable, VHS, and DVD picture. I hear that the Progressive Scan DVD players do amazing thing with this TV, but I don't have one and I'm quite please with what my DVD player does. For example: When you play widescreen DVD movies to this set, it automatically detects the "black bars" at the top and bottom and only scans where there is a picture (in the center band) - it doesn't waste a millesecond on scanning the bars.
The line-doubler does a great job - except when you are watching cable television with a poor signal quality. In its effort to try to create the most stunning image imaginable, the PANASONIC creates "artifacts" which makes the picture seem pixelated. In those rare case, you can turn the line-doubler off (normal TV scan) and it looks like a regular TV again. But as soon as you change the channel, you'll want to turn the doubler back on again, so you might as well suffer with the pixelated image.
The features on this set are - GOOD ENOUGH. The nay-sayers compare it to the wealth of options available on other sets (like SONY) and claim that the PANASONIC falls short. I don't know about you, but I buy my television set for the GREAT PICTURE, not complex menus or mega-button remotes. And this TV has a GREAT PICTURE, period.
One other thing to consider when buying a TV of this size: Portability. The SONY Wega set that I almost bought is noticably larger than the PANASONIC and has no handles to grasp the behemoth box by. Much to my surprise the Panasonic has some carrying handles which made placing it in the entertainment center an absolute snap! My hat's off to the engineers of PANASONIC for thinking of this...
Keep in mind that, although this is "HDTV Ready," it is not a "true" HDTV set. You'll need to purchase a separate tuner, and 16 X 9 pictures will always be displayed with the notorious black bars at the top and bottom. Until then (another 5 years if we are lucky) this TV will do an impressive job with normal cable, VHS, and DVD picture. I hear that the Progressive Scan DVD players do amazing thing with this TV, but I don't have one and I'm quite please with what my DVD player does. For example: When you play widescreen DVD movies to this set, it automatically detects the "black bars" at the top and bottom and only scans where there is a picture (in the center band) - it doesn't waste a millesecond on scanning the bars.
The line-doubler does a great job - except when you are watching cable television with a poor signal quality. In its effort to try to create the most stunning image imaginable, the PANASONIC creates "artifacts" which makes the picture seem pixelated. In those rare case, you can turn the line-doubler off (normal TV scan) and it looks like a regular TV again. But as soon as you change the channel, you'll want to turn the doubler back on again, so you might as well suffer with the pixelated image.
The features on this set are - GOOD ENOUGH. The nay-sayers compare it to the wealth of options available on other sets (like SONY) and claim that the PANASONIC falls short. I don't know about you, but I buy my television set for the GREAT PICTURE, not complex menus or mega-button remotes. And this TV has a GREAT PICTURE, period.
One other thing to consider when buying a TV of this size: Portability. The SONY Wega set that I almost bought is noticably larger than the PANASONIC and has no handles to grasp the behemoth box by. Much to my surprise the Panasonic has some carrying handles which made placing it in the entertainment center an absolute snap! My hat's off to the engineers of PANASONIC for thinking of this...
