Panasonic LT-61LCX65 61" HDTV

Review: Panasonic LT-61LCX65 61" TV

(5 star rating)

Panasonic PT-61LCX65 LCD Projection HDTV - giant screen, slim footprint, sexy picture

Background
I have owned this LCD projection TV for almost 5 weeks now, and it has gotten quite a bit of use during that time. It s set up in my basement as the foundation for my home theater. I ve watched movies through my DVD player, sports, movies and regular shows on standard cable TV channels, and also watched movies, sports and HD shows on channels like HBO HD, ESPN HD, NBC HD, Fox HD, etc. I ve hooked up my computer to the TV using the PC input on the front of the TV. I ve also hooked up my Playstation 2 to the TV and tried a few games out using both the regular yellow, red, white RCA connection cable and then also using the component connection cable.

Basic Information on the Display Technology
With all of the various TV display technologies on the market today (Plasma, DLP, LCD, etc.), it is important to understand the basic pros and cons of the display technology used in this TV. The PT-61LCX65 uses LCD projection technology, and the LCD stands for Liquid Crystal Display. It is similar to the technology used for flat-panel LCD computer monitors, but due to the large size (this TV is the 61 model), it uses a lamp to actually project the image onto the screen. This is the main difference, as LCD flat-panel computer monitors and LCD flat-panel TV s do not use a lamp to project the image onto the screen.

Advantages of LCD projection technology include:

1. Thinner and lighter than conventional CRT rear-projection TV s
2. Not susceptible to image  burn-in , which is the possibility that an image, or part of an image, can become permanently  burned into the screen
3. No  rainbow effect artifacts that are sometimes found in rear-projection DLP TV s

Disadvantages of LCD projection technology include:

1. Not as thin and as light as plasma TV s
2. Possibility for seeing  screen door effect artifacts
3. Viewing angles may not be as wide as plasma TV s or CRT tubes
4. Lamp bulb will eventually wear out and need to be replaced

Basic Features of the Panasonic PT-61LCX65
Listed below are what I believe to be the important characteristics of any TV, along with my impressions / comments on the usefulness (or lack thereof) with the Panasonic PT-61LCX65.

1. Big screen --- this TV has a 61 screen, which is plenty of real estate for your viewing pleasure.
2. HDTV compatible --- this is a must have for any new TV. HDTV is slowly but surely becoming the standard for all TV stations, and if you enjoy watching TV, your experience is vastly improved by watching HDTV. This TV is capable of displaying 480i, 720p and 1080i HD signals.
3. 16:9 aspect ratio --- a must have for watching DVDs and HD shows. After watching movies and HD shows on this 16:9 TV, I can t imagine going back to a regular 4:3 aspect ratio TV.
4. Built-in HDTV tuner --- a nice feature that allows you to watch over-the-air HD channels (such as NBC, CBS, Fox, etc.) without the need to purchase an additional tuner or antennae. Included with this TV.
5. Slim footprint --- I have limited space in my basement, and a tight doorway / staircase leading down to my basement. Therefore, I needed a TV that was a manageable size. This TV is not as big and bulky as the older CRT projection TV s, but not as slim and light as a plasma. It weighs just over 100 lbs. and measures just 40.51'' x 56.06'' x 18.43'' (H x W x D).
6. Plenty of Video Inputs --- What good is a TV if you can t hook up a DVD player, a PC, a Playstation, and all of your other gadgets to it? This TV has more inputs than I need: 3 component (all in the back), 2 S-Video (1 in front and 1 in back), 1 PC (in front), 3 red, white, yellow (2 in back, 1 in front), 1 UHF / VHF cable, and 1 HDMI input.
7. Picture-in-Picture --- This is of very limited use to me, but is important to some people. The only thing I use it for is watching a show on one channel during a commercial on another channel.
8. Progressive Scan (3/2 Pulldown) --- a must have for watching movies and I consider this a must have for any HDTV. Included with this TV.
9. High quality sound --- not as important if you have a separate home theater audio setup, but definitely important if you do not. I am currently running all sound through my 5.1 home theater, so this is not as important to me. This TV has above-average sound quality coming from 4 speakers with a total 30W output. It uses BBE stereo and surround sound reproduction.
10. Warranty --- important to protect your investment. This TV comes with a 1 year parts and labor warranty, except only a 90-day warranty on the lamp bulb. I would have liked to have a longer warranty, but am not willing to pay for an extended service plan.

My Experience with this TV
In the following pages I have broken down my experiences with this TV into separate sections, as I realize some people may not be interested in all of this information.

Next: Watching HDTV on the PT-61LCX65