Panasonic has today shown off its LCD TV family for 2013, ranging from the top-end 1080p WT60 with 3D, partial voice control and tablet/smartphone sharing, down through the 1080p WT60, DT60, ET60, E60 and EM60, and at the budget end the 32-inch, 720p XM6 and B6.
Check out all the latest CES 2013 news and hands-on reviews here
Panasonic VIERA WT60 and DT60
Sitting at the top of Panasonic’s LCD 2013 TV range, the VIERA WT60 and DT60 use 1080p IPS panels with LED backlighting. Both offer 3D with 2D-3D conversion and local dimming. The WT60 adds 4200 BLS backlight scanning and ISFccc calibration with advanced calibration software, while the DT60 makes do with 1200BLS and no advanced calibration.
The Panasonic VIERA WT60 comes in two sizes, the 47-inch TC-L47WT60 and 55-inch TC-L55WT60. The VIERA DT60 comes in your choice of 55-inch TC-L55DT60 or 60-inch TC-L60DT60. It’s a bit odd to see the higher-end TV range not offering the same size as one model down.
Both the VIERA WT60 and DT60 offer partial voice control and interaction, with text-to-speech and spoken search. You also get personalised TV settings, which is a feature we would like to see on every telly.
Swipe and Share 2.0 lets you transfer content like pictures and videos between your TV and an Android or iOS smartphone/tablet at the flick of a finger. The usual Smart features including media playback, apps and browsing are present, and built-in Wi-Fi is also part of the picture.
Visually the WT60 offers a minimalist, part-transparent bezel but – oddly for the top-end modern TV – only three HDMI ports.
Panasonic VIERA ET60 and E60
Maintaining a 1080p resolution and 3D, as well as Smart features like voice interaction and Swipe and Share 2.0, these LCD televisions bring backlight scanning down to 70BLS and 240BLB respectively.
The ET60 is available in 50-inch (TC-L50ET60) and 55-inch (TC-L55ET60) models, while the E60 goes all the way from the 42-inch TC-L42E60 to the 65-inch TC-L65E60.
Panasonic VIERA EM60
The EM60 LCD TV drops 3D capabilities and network-related Smart functions, though it still offers local media playback. Size-wise you can choose between the 39-inch TC-L39EM60 and 50-inch TC-L50EM60.
Panasonic VIERA XM6 and B6
Sitting at the bottom of Panasonic’s 2013 LCD TV range, the VIERA XM6 and VIERA B6 do away with advanced backlight scanning and are the only families to offer 32-inch models, which step down to 720p rather than using Full HD panels. The B6 can also be had in 39-inch and 50-inch models which do offer 1080p.
Panasonic VIERA LCD TV 2013 Price and Availability
A UK price for the new Panasonic VIERA range has not yet been announced, while availability is set for “Spring 2013”
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
