Panasonic TC-P46ST30 User Reviews
Great Television for the Price by J. Lemons
The Panasonic ST series sits at the perfect price point for those who are looking for a high quality television without breaking the bank. The ST series loses the THX designation and some of the advanced adjustment features of the Panasonic GT and VT series, but it allows you to get a very good television under the 50in. minimum of the higher-end series.
My experience with the television over the last few weeks has been positive. Setting up the unit is straightforward and the guide appears to be written by someone who speaks English (Spanish and French are also available). There are an ample number of connections for digital and analog services. For grins, I plugged in my cable connection directly from the wall (bypassing the cable box) and the TV pulled down 80 analog channels and 40 digital channels with excellent clarity. Initial setup takes you through everything that you will need your TV to due from labeling inputs, setting up a wireless internet connection to your home/office network, adjusting the clock, etc.
A 802.11b/g/n wireless adapter comes included with the television and can either be plugged directly into one of two USB ports or attached using the included USB extension dongle. Using the USB extender provides a clean look with no visible wires or attachments. The adapter sticks out from the edge of the television about an inch if you opt to plug it in directly. Since a final 802.11n standard has yet to be established, the adapter may have issues with your wireless network. I use a Netgear router without any issues. If you have troubles, I would recommend using a wireless bridge rather trying to find a suitable adapter, especially if you are using the TV with a Blu-ray player, game console, or any other devices that require an internet connection.
The Viera Cast service turns the television to the internet with built in apps for most of the major streaming content providers (Netflix, Amazon Video, Alphaline, You Tube, etc.) in addition to a host of apps for games, sports, weather, news, and social networking. Each time you access Viera Cast it will check for updates that must be completed prior to proceeding. Usually this takes just a couple minutes if an update is required, but can be irritating when you want to do/view something. The image quality on this television is excellent out of the box with very black blacks and true colors. The anti-glare screen works well in most situations. I have noticed that at some, usually extreme, angles there is a good deal of reflection, but when viewed from a typical angle the result is very good. 2-D SD and HD are both excellent with no noticeable artifacts or ghosting. I have not had a chance to test the 3-D viewability since the glasses (sold separately) are prohibitively expensive and there is not enough content out to justify the price at this time. This should not dissuade a purchase, since it is now almost impossible to find a television with great 2-D viewability without 3-D capabilities.
Overall, this is an excellent television and disputably the best under 50 inches. The videophile will miss the advance color tuning options and THX capabilites, but those features simply don't exist in the current model year sub-50in televisions.
Great TV by Jonathan Steinmann
If you're looking for that great plasma picture quality (deep blacks, true colors), truly smooth motion that no LED can replicate (600hz refresh), and 3D technology (plasmas do 3D better than any other technology available), this is the best bang for your buck, bar none. To get a TV equivalent to this in an LED, you'd spend $2000. At $1100, this is a great deal. The screen has a relatively good anti-reflective screen, making it better in natural light settings than most of the high end LEDs that have all moved to reflective screens to increase contrast ratios. I highly recommend this TV.
Great Picture by Vince C.
This plasma has a fantastic picture in both HD and SD. I had to play with the settings because I didn't care for the standard or cinema modes which are too dark. There are websites out there that give professional settings for this TV if you look around. I was watching golf in HD with my father-in-law and he couldn't believe how good the picture was. He said he wanted to dive into the TV and be on the golf course. I'm a big hockey fan also and that looks great too, much better than on my LCD. The sound isn't the greatest but it never is on the flat panels. The wireless internet works flawlessly also. I would definitely recommend this TV.
Excellet Buy for the Money by Buffy
Excellent tv for the money. I would recommend having the display calibrated, or at least using a home setup BD to get best picture quality.
3D is very good with minimal ghosting. I have viewed multiple 3d blurays and was impressed with the effect.
I also use this TV with my xbox 360 and PS3. Gaming is excellent. I have not noticed any significant lag. 3d gaming also works well.
