Panasonic PT-53WX52 53 in. TV
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- Aspect Ratio: 16:9 14:9
- Weight: 183 lb.
- Screen Size: 53 inch
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Great TV, Great Value
Pros
Excellent Picture, Easy Setup, Great Value
Cons
None so Far
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
If you are in the market for a TV, get this one. Whether it be the excellent picture, sound, easy setup, or other features, this TV has it all.
I purchased another model of this TV, the 53WX42. It is the same as this model except it does not include a screen protector and has a slightly less sophisticated remote, but otherwise they are the same. It also has 2x 10w speakers instead of the 4x 15 watt speakers that are on the 53WX42.
Picture
The largest part of a TV is of course its picture, and this TV is excellent. The picture is great, excellent clarity, detail, and accurate color. Even with some basic settings, the TV looked great, much better than most sets for the price. Everything stays clean all the way to the far edges of the screen with no visible distortion. Overall, Excellent picture.
Sound
Sound on this TV is decent. Truth be told I didn't really listen to it all that long, opting to hook it up to our Surround Sound System (which you really need to fully appreciate a DVD). When I did listen to them, they sounded surprisingly good. They played loudly without distortion, but lacked the definition and bass that many movies require. They stock speakers will do just fine, but I would definitely recommend getting a true receiver/speaker combo to watch movies.
Setup
Setup on this TV was relatively simple. I purchased mine from Circuit City, and it was delivered where I wanted it in my living room. When you turn the TV on, it is obvious that some tweaking is needed. Most important of all is the convergence settings. There are two levels of convergence, one for screen position and basic lining up, and the other for specific regions of the screen. There was a noticeable difference after doing this and should always be done when setting up your RPTV. For color and picture settings, I referred to the Home Theater Forums at www.hometheaterforum.com, and looked at some settings of the other people who own this TV. I used theirs as a baseline, and tweaked the rest to my liking. The result is a highly accurate, even, and great looking picture, without a lot of hassle.
DVD and TV Viewing
Watching a DVD on this TV is a great experience. I am using my current DVD player, a Sony xxx715 through component cables in progressive scan mode. The picture is excellent, clear, and sharp, truly like a home theater. TV viewing, although much lower resolution and not a wide screen format, still looks relatively good. This TV offers several different modes of viewing, Just, Full, 4:3, and Zoom. Just is what I am currently using. It uses up the entire screen, stretching the edges to fill the rest while maintaining a relatively unstretched picture in the middle of the screen. It is good for day-to-day watching and is definitely livable. Full just stretches the picture to fill the entire set. 4:3 mode puts two gray bars on the edges of the screen, but retains the aspect ratio of the original broadcast. Zoom cuts off the top and bottom but stretches the picture to fill the entire screen, retaining the original aspect ratio minus the top and bottom of the screen. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on what a true HD broadcast looks like as I do not currently have the receiver required, but even without it, this TV looks great.
Other Things
The remote on my particular model TV was decent. It is not hard to use, but only has four device options, TV, DVD, Satellite, and VCR. This works well, but for most applications you should keep your original device remote. My model, the 53WX42, lacks the screen protector of the 53WX52, and it doesn't have the upgraded speakers. I made a decision to whether or not I wanted it, and instead of paying a few hundred more to have it, I opted to go with the model that does not have it. So far, I have been happy with my decision; the screen protector protects well, but also creates a lot of glare, and in my living room that can be a problem.
Final
Overall, this is a great purchase. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone in the market for a great RPTV for a great price; I do not think you could find a much better deal in the marketplace today.
Picture
The largest part of a TV is of course its picture, and this TV is excellent. The picture is great, excellent clarity, detail, and accurate color. Even with some basic settings, the TV looked great, much better than most sets for the price. Everything stays clean all the way to the far edges of the screen with no visible distortion. Overall, Excellent picture.
Sound
Sound on this TV is decent. Truth be told I didn't really listen to it all that long, opting to hook it up to our Surround Sound System (which you really need to fully appreciate a DVD). When I did listen to them, they sounded surprisingly good. They played loudly without distortion, but lacked the definition and bass that many movies require. They stock speakers will do just fine, but I would definitely recommend getting a true receiver/speaker combo to watch movies.
Setup
Setup on this TV was relatively simple. I purchased mine from Circuit City, and it was delivered where I wanted it in my living room. When you turn the TV on, it is obvious that some tweaking is needed. Most important of all is the convergence settings. There are two levels of convergence, one for screen position and basic lining up, and the other for specific regions of the screen. There was a noticeable difference after doing this and should always be done when setting up your RPTV. For color and picture settings, I referred to the Home Theater Forums at www.hometheaterforum.com, and looked at some settings of the other people who own this TV. I used theirs as a baseline, and tweaked the rest to my liking. The result is a highly accurate, even, and great looking picture, without a lot of hassle.
DVD and TV Viewing
Watching a DVD on this TV is a great experience. I am using my current DVD player, a Sony xxx715 through component cables in progressive scan mode. The picture is excellent, clear, and sharp, truly like a home theater. TV viewing, although much lower resolution and not a wide screen format, still looks relatively good. This TV offers several different modes of viewing, Just, Full, 4:3, and Zoom. Just is what I am currently using. It uses up the entire screen, stretching the edges to fill the rest while maintaining a relatively unstretched picture in the middle of the screen. It is good for day-to-day watching and is definitely livable. Full just stretches the picture to fill the entire set. 4:3 mode puts two gray bars on the edges of the screen, but retains the aspect ratio of the original broadcast. Zoom cuts off the top and bottom but stretches the picture to fill the entire screen, retaining the original aspect ratio minus the top and bottom of the screen. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on what a true HD broadcast looks like as I do not currently have the receiver required, but even without it, this TV looks great.
Other Things
The remote on my particular model TV was decent. It is not hard to use, but only has four device options, TV, DVD, Satellite, and VCR. This works well, but for most applications you should keep your original device remote. My model, the 53WX42, lacks the screen protector of the 53WX52, and it doesn't have the upgraded speakers. I made a decision to whether or not I wanted it, and instead of paying a few hundred more to have it, I opted to go with the model that does not have it. So far, I have been happy with my decision; the screen protector protects well, but also creates a lot of glare, and in my living room that can be a problem.
Final
Overall, this is a great purchase. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone in the market for a great RPTV for a great price; I do not think you could find a much better deal in the marketplace today.
