Panasonic VIERA TC-P55ST30 55-Inch 3D Plasma HDTV

Panasonic VIERA TC-P55ST30 55-Inch 1080p 3D Plasma HDTV

Product Description

Panasonic VIERA TC-P55ST30 55-Inch 1080p 3D Plasma HDTV – Step into the 3D World. The VIERA ST30 Series Full HD 3D Plasmas create an all new viewing experience by putting you inside the action and creating a new world of TV viewing realism.

Features

• Revolutionary VIERA Full HD 3D Technology delivers award-winning realism that immerses you in the image
• Infinite Black 2 panel delivers deep blacks and minimizes reflection for bright, vivid images
• VIERA Connect WiFi ready – Enjoy a world of movies, sports, and other online apps plus free Skype video calls on your VIERA HDTV
• VIERA Image Viewer with 3D Playback (Movie & Photo Capable)

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Customer Reviews

The best picture quality you can get for under $1500, May 21, 2011 – By Eric Bergmann

If you’re looking for a 55 inch TV and don’t want to spend a fortune, this is the TV to get. The ST30 will give you the best picture quality out there for the price, and beats LCD/LED sets thousands more in price (as do most plasma sets).

When you first open the box, you will have to set up the set by attaching the stand to it. This isn’t difficult but if you have a larger set, you may want to get someone to help you with the lifting. The stand is basically two metal posts that the TV sits on top of, and then you bolt them in through the back. I wouldn’t want to take the chance of dropping my set while trying to line the posts up so they fit in the TV’s slots.

Once that’s done, the rest is a snap to set up. Going through the menu for initial setup takes literally seconds. As with any plasma set, you may be inclined to use a break-in technique to age the phosphors before beginning regular viewing. The ST30 has an SD card slot in the side, so it’s very easy to run slides on it for break-in purposes. This is the method I chose to use and I couldn’t be happier with the picture.

The apps work well also, mostly I only use the Netflix one. I haven’t noticed any lag.

The sound is about what you would expect from TV speakers. If you’re getting this for a serious home theater, it sort of goes without saying that you will not be using the TV’s speakers. I currently am using the built-in speakers however, because I spent all my money on the TV! Seriously though, they’re fine for normal viewing and the sound quality is actually a lot better than other TV’s I’ve had.

If you’ve done research on the ST30, you may have stumbled upon some news about the “fluctuating brightness” issue on this set. Previous Panasonics had rising blacks, and the 2011 sets have fluctuating brightness. The issue appears to be much worse on the GT30 than the ST. On my ST30, I have only seen it a handful of times and it’s never distracting. What the issue is is basically the TV adjusting scene brightness mid-scene. You can see the issue when an especially dark shot transitions to a lighter one. Sometimes the TV will initially display the bright scene, and then you will see the brightness increase or decrease ever so slightly. I suggest taking a look at some of the in-store models to see if you can notice it. Like I said, I have barely seen any cases of it after a month of viewing. Others have reported that the issue is so bad on their set that they had to return it. The last I heard, this is inherent to the driving mechanism in the TV and likely won’t be able to be corrected through a firmware or other update. The 2011 Samsungs also exhibit similar behavior.

Overall, even with the fluctuating brightness issue, this is hands down the best TV you can get for under $1500. I couldn’t be happier with mine, and when it’s time for another set I will likely get another Panasonic plasma. I was hesitant about going plasma at first, but the picture quality blows my LCD out of the water.

Rolled the dice and won!, May 4, 2011 – By Terd Ferguson (Parts unknown.)

After hours of reading reviews and multiple trips to Sears and Best Buy I decided on this TV. I choose this Panasonic over Samsung mainly because the customer service reviews for each company, everyone had major complaints about Samsung and glowing reviews for Panasonic. I was really concerned about ordering something as fragile as a TV over the internet, but Amazon has such an outstanding return policy, not to mention I saved over three Benjamins by buying it here. The whole deal was perfect, great price, delivered on time in perfect shape and the TV itself has an outstanding picture. Last night we were watching the NBA playoffs and it was like sitting courtside, it could not have looked any better. When I first got the TV I was skeptical about the picture but then I figured out that the quality was affected by the signal received, if you have a good broadcast signal you will have a great picture with this tv. We just switched from Direct TV to The Dish Network and for some reason some of the HD shows look a lot better than others. One thing I will say is that the default setting for the brightness is really dim. It may have something to do with the break in procedure, but after the first 200 hrs. and you can make some adjustments, you can get the picture to look really great. Also, the remote is really user friendly and top quality. Lastly, if you do buy a Pansonic, buy the extended warranty directly from Panasonic and not Best Buy and you will save about 50% and have actual Panasonic techs working on it and not Geeks.

Very pleased with this TV!, April 30, 2011 – By Strummer (KY)

I got this TV from Amazon about 3 weeks ago, and I am extremely pleased with it. My unit has not had any issues with blobs, pixel breakup, or any other issues. The blacks are absolutely black, which creates excellent contrast. I haven’t customized the picture (yet); I just run it on vivid and normal temp. It is in a south facing room; no issues with glare. No discernible buzzing heard. Basically works as advertised!

Set up was very easy; took about 3 minutes to get through the initial menu; I delayed the internet connection (a dongle is included)at first but later installed that with no problem. (it helps to read the manual online prior to delivery!) I currently have it on the included stand. It was delivered (from Amazon) via CEVA; they notified me 2 days prior to the scheduled delivery and actually delivered it a day early. There was only one delivery guy; he offered to get another helper but it would have been later in the day, so I helped him bring it in. He opened it; he helped me attach the stand and lift it to TV stand (not so much heavy as it is kinda big to handle), and waited until I got it hooked up and turned it on. I hadn’t ordered anything this big from Amazon before; but I will do so in the future!

Regular HDTV cable is great; bluray DVDs are absolutely fantastic. I haven’t really noted any motion blur. I don’t use the TV’s sound as I pipe it through the home theater set up all the time. The internet connections work flawlessly, although I have only used Netflix and YouTube so far. I got a couple of the short 3D DVDs; other than the DVDs being pretty lame (no great movies yet) the 3D works very well. I get a little breakup on 3D; but I have since read the DVDs I bought are problematic for that, although I think I will hang the unit on the wall to get it a little higher for a better feed for the glasses synch. I had to play with it a little bit to get the 3D, but turned out my issues was with my Sony bluray player (this is my 1st 3D)

I was a little concerned that I hadn’t actually seen the TV before buying it, as it wasn’t in stores yet, but I had been looking at last year’s Vieras, so I thought it would be OK. It is – and I am very glad I purchased it – no regrets whatsoever.

I highly recommend this TV!

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