Panasonic Viera TC-P65VT25 3D Capable 1080p Plasma TV

Model: Panasonic Viera TC-P65VT25
Description: 65" Full 1080P HD Plasma TV 3D TV Ready
Includes: Table top stand and 1 pair of Panasonic 3D TV Shutter Glasses
Reviewer: We
Date: Late summer/fall 2010

This shot from the Blu Ray of 300 shows intense color and great detail.

I've been reviewing and testing flat screen TVs for more than 10 years, but this is our first go at a 3D TV with programming. There is little available in the content category. Still, we felt like we got a good look.

The TC-P65VT25 is the top top tier offering from Panasonic for 2010. The TV is 3D ready, has THX certifications, is Skype enabled (camera sold separately), and contains Panasonic's new NEO PDP (plasma display panel). But how do all the fancy specifications measure up to our stringent testing standards? Read here to find out.

Picture Quality and Performance: With both HD sources and standard definition content the VT25 produced a very vibrant, colorful, vivid image even after being toned down during our calibration. This TV is like a difficult to control race horse, that doesn't know when and where to focus its energy. The panel light on the VT25 is extremely powerful. The plasma 3D TV has a tendency toward over saturation with tons of light flowing through color information – providing a bright picture. Motion artifacts and background noise are present, more with standard definition programming than with HD.

Notice the over saturation of color information in this shot from Alexander.

With a standard definition picture we were impressed with how vivid colors were displayed. Darker scenes show up very well due to the exceeding brightness of the light throughput. However, there were visible motion artifacts, flicker and judder effects with much programming and we were not impressed by the processing quality. The picture (especially standard def) is frankly a little sloppy for this price range and tier level of TV.

A shot from standard definition DVD of The Three Amigoes shows very saturated color information. Notice the red tie.

A scene from the 3D Blu Ray of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

Aesthetic Considerations: Panasonic doesn't appear to have entered the contest when it comes to 2010's TV aesthetics. They answered, "not present," even with their top end entries. The VT25's looks hearken back to yesteryear. The bezel framing is black gloss plastic at 2" on top and 2.25" on the sides giving the TV a large frame with no real design quality. The dark teal color of the screen (when off) contrasts with the black gloss frame in an unappealing manner. Panel depth at 3.5" also ignores the trend toward thin and sleek.

Left: The VT25 employs a new oval stand allows a 17 degree swivel
Right: We were not fans of the unattractive contrast between the wide 2.25" bezel and the dark teal green screen on the VT25

We suspect this TV to sell for around $4500. Hopefully the buyer will at least receive and extra pair of 3D glasses and 3D Blu Ray player. This makes a big difference in the value due to the fact that the Panasonic 3D TV glasses are $249 and the 3D Blu Ray player is $349. Competition comes from the Samsung PN63C8000 3D plasma and the Samsung UN65C8000 which is the LED 3D version and sells for a bit more.