TechRadar Verdict
Pros
- +
Superb picture quality
- +
Good feature count
- +
Straightforward operation
- +
Good multimedia tools
Cons
- -
limited USB HDD recording compatibility
- -
Images not quite as bright as similarly priced LCD sets
- -
Occasional slight bias towards green
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Panasonic's V20 sets deliver most of the premium picture quality features developed for its top-end VT20 3D series without costing as much or limiting you to massive screen sizes. The P42V20 reviewed here, for example, is a 42in model for the reasonable sum of £1,200.
Elsewhere in the lineup you'll find a 50in version, while the step-down G20 models offer more affordable 50in, 46in and 42in options. The G20 series uses a slightly watered down version of Panasonic's contrast-boosting Infinite Black technology, only has two speakers versus the three in the V20 series and doesn't ship with the Wi-Fi adaptor included with the V20 models.
The S20 series is cheaper still, comprising the 50in TX-50PS20, 46in TX-P46S20 and 42in TX-P42S20. But this doesn't use Panasonic's latest NeoPDP technology, sticking with last year's less developed version, and so marks a considerable step down in quality.
At the bottom of the Panasonic pile is the X20 range, which doesn't use NeoPDP technology at all, and so is definitely only to be considered if you really can't afford one of the much superior NeoPDP models.
