Panasonic OLED

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › Panasonic OLED

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#217924 18-Jul-2017 17:59

I'm considering a Panasonic 65" OLED to purchase.

I'd appreciate any comments from anyone who has purchased one of the new Panny OLEDs.

Any ex-plasma owners - how does the picture compare?

I had a quick look at the new Panasonic OLED side-by-side with the new LG, and both looked pretty similar.

1 | 2 | 3

4705 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1824675 18-Jul-2017 18:23

I have the 65" EZ-1000 model. Watching Netflix right now. Have watched a whole lot of movies and TV shows in native and streaming 4K. Colour accuracy is superb out of the box if you use Professional 1 with gamma set to 2.2, Bright THX or other THX modes. Professional 2 for night time with no lights with gamma set to 2.4. Please turn OFF IFC (Intelligent frame creation) and motion flow for all picture modes. Gaming is great. Does 4:4:4 chroma on HDMI1 and HDMI2 ports.

Do whatever you want to do man.

PsychoSmiley

250 posts

Master Geek

#1825012 19-Jul-2017 10:25

They will all be using the LG panels; Sony, Panasonic, all the same.

As a former plasma owner, OLED wins hands down now I own one.

Painted Minis | Steam Profile | PSN Profile

Currently Playing: Heroes of the Storm (PC) | Half-Life 2 (PC)

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1826094 20-Jul-2017 18:48

PsychoSmiley:

They will all be using the LG panels; Sony, Panasonic, all the same.

As a former plasma owner, OLED wins hands down now I own one.

How does the OLED picture compare with plasma for movie watching?

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1841464 8-Aug-2017 21:01

Ok, after viewing the LG, Sony A1 and Panasonic EZ TVs at retailers, I decided to pull the pin on the Panasonic 65" EZ950.

This TV replaces my Panasonic 65ST60 plasma killed by the Kaikoura earthquake. As a stop gap, for the last 9 months, I purchased a Sony 55X8500D while I was waiting for the 2017 OLEDs. I was very impressed with the Sony, especially for upscaling picture quality, but the lack of uniform black levels was the killer.

So, 24 hours in, here are my thoughts on the Panasonic 65EZ950.

First up, contrast. Pure black is amazing. Last night I watched Alien (1979 original). In a dark room it was impossible to discern where deep space ended and the top and bottom black bars began. Everything was pure black, it was amazing.

But, at this stage, apart from the black levels, I am luke warm.

SD TV is not as good on the OLED as it was on the Sony or the Panasonic plasma. HD broadcasts are much better.

Blu-ray looks great at a distance, but sit closer to the screen there is a lot of digital noise - which is particularly frustrating as I like to sit close to the 65" screen for movies. On the plasma, the picture up close was flawless. In short, the OLED picture just looks like a digital image, not the cinematic experience I remember from my plasma. (For blu-ray, I am watching in Cinema mode, with sharpness turned right down and all digital processing turned off).

I am using a Sony BD DVD player and I am thinking of bringing my older Panasonic BD DVD out of storage to see if it plays nicer with the Panasonic TV (I used the Panasonic BD player with my plasma).

In summary, I really want to love this TV (it cost a lot!), but I'm not there yet. I'd even say the Sony 55X8500D, apart from the woeful black levels, produced a more cinematic experience (ie. less digital noise) than the Panasonic OLED. And that is disappointing as I had high hopes to be blown away by this Panasonic OLED - they nailed plasma and I waited a long time for them to release a OLED.

PS: I have yet to feed 4K though the TV, but then I didn't buy it for 4K - I love cinema and have a huge library of bu-ray which is my core passion.

I will keep testing and report back.

PsychoSmiley

250 posts

Master Geek

#1841731 9-Aug-2017 11:53

Have to factor that it is 4K. On an older screen is was doing a 1:1 pixel mapping for 1080p where as with any of these new OLEDs it's going to be upscaled and you'll notice it if you're used to staring at screens.

If you've got the time go digging for some 4K demo material. Youtube has plenty of lovely timelapse nature videos and while it is compressed more than your average content it does show off the exceptional detail that can be achieved. My wife was not one for high def content and scoffs at my desire for quality but she was wow'ed by the 4K timelapse stuff at home.

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1841814 9-Aug-2017 13:00

I did some further testing into the night, and I'm more upbeat now.

It appears the first two blu-rays I tested (Source Code and The Dark Knight) have quite a bit of noise in the pictures. Subsequent disks (Cohen's True Grit, Inglorious Basterds and Life of Pi) were much more cinematic in look. Life of Pi in particular was stunning.

I need a bit more time, but it looks like it may be less forgiving than the plasma on lower quality material, but performs really well with the right material.

Quinny

887 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1841912 9-Aug-2017 15:38

dafman:

I need a bit more time, but it looks like it may be less forgiving than the plasma on lower quality material, but performs really well with the right material.

This is my main concern as well. For us in NZ 4k via Sky or Freeview wont happen overnight so if usage is more SD/HD than 4k (maybe BluRay) level then it is a huge consideration. Why atm I am leaning to the Sony A1 (as noted in the LG B6 thread). Thanks heaps for a post that helps me a lot. Could be the Sony ends up on par but reviews have the Sony/Panny ahead of the LG in upscaling for what I have watched.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1841953 9-Aug-2017 16:37

Quinny:

dafman:

I need a bit more time, but it looks like it may be less forgiving than the plasma on lower quality material, but performs really well with the right material.

This is my main concern as well. For us in NZ 4k via Sky or Freeview wont happen overnight so if usage is more SD/HD than 4k (maybe BluRay) level then it is a huge consideration. Why atm I am leaning to the Sony A1 (as noted in the LG B6 thread). Thanks heaps for a post that helps me a lot. Could be the Sony ends up on par but reviews have the Sony/Panny ahead of the LG in upscaling for what I have watched.

I chose the Panasonic as it presented (to my eyes) a better picture than both the Sony A1 and LG. I don't know where you live, but in Harvey Norman Tory St Wgtn, they have the 65 Panny side by side with 65 LG, and the 55 Panny side by side with the 55 A1. Being feed the same input, in both cases, I thought the Panny had the better picture, so I'm not sure if the lower res issue is a Panasonic issue or an OLED issue.

SD television in particular seems worse, and some Freeview HD feeds (eg. TV1 news) although very good, don't seem to quite match the Sony LCD 55X8500D the OLED replaced.

HD You Tube seems very good and on a par with the Sony. I've had a quick look at some 1080p mkv's and they looked very good, but only a quick look at this stage.

All of that said, I'm loving the true blacks, so would not consider reverting back to LCD. I just still miss my plasma, that's all.

Outside of the picture quality, I prefer the Panasonic UI over the Sony Android interface which was buggy at best. The Panasonic seems faster around menus and the built in chromecast and screen mirroring feels more seemless than the android TV OS. (I didn't realise the Panasonic came with built in Chromecast, so that was a nice little bonus to discover).

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1848143 17-Aug-2017 18:17

Ok, now with more miles on the clock with the 65" OLED Panny EZ950 ... I'm sold.

Compared with my deceased 65" plasma and my Sony 55"X8500D, poor quality SD is not as good ... but ...

HD content absolutely shines, and given that this is the majority of my daily watch, this is the TV for me.

If I had the choice, I wouldn't go back to my plasma, I love outstanding contrast this set delivers.

Batman

Mad Scientist
29770 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1848195 17-Aug-2017 19:15

dafman:

I did some further testing into the night, and I'm more upbeat now.

It appears the first two blu-rays I tested (Source Code and The Dark Knight) have quite a bit of noise in the pictures. Subsequent disks (Cohen's True Grit, Inglorious Basterds and Life of Pi) were much more cinematic in look. Life of Pi in particular was stunning.

I need a bit more time, but it looks like it may be less forgiving than the plasma on lower quality material, but performs really well with the right material.

Not all 4K movies are recorded in 4K I guess

DarthKermit

5346 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1848219 17-Aug-2017 20:07

@dafman, is that Alien on bluray disc?

sdavisnz

1015 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1848274 17-Aug-2017 23:01

dafman:
Ok, now with more miles on the clock with the 65" OLED Panny EZ650 ... I'm sold.

Compared with my deceased 65" plasma and my Sony 55"X8500D, poor quality SD is not as good ... but ...

HD content absolutely shines, and given that this is the majority of my daily watch, this is the TV for me.

If I had the choice, I wouldn't go back to my plasma, I love outstanding contrast this set delivers.

Panasonic does not have built in chromecast.

It has an implementation of the 'dial api' for casting.

Chromecast is a physical product of the 'cast api'

Only very few apps support the dial api, several thousand apps support the cast api for casting.

Voice gives context

Spyware

3764 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1848275 17-Aug-2017 23:02

Batman:

Not all 4K movies are recorded in 4K I guess

Well no, Dark Knight for instance was shot on a mix of 70 mm and 35 mm film.

Spark Max Fibre using Mikrotik CCR1009-8G-1S-1S+, CRS125-24G-1S, Unifi UAP, U6-Pro, UAP-AC-M-Pro, Apple TV 4K (2022), Apple TV 4K (2017), iPad Air 1st gen, iPad Air 4th gen, iPhone 13, SkyNZ3151 (the white box). If it doesn't move then it's data cabled.

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1848332 18-Aug-2017 08:52

DarthKermit:

@dafman, is that Alien on bluray disc?

Yes, the original 1979 movie on blu-ray.

dafman

3928 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1848334 18-Aug-2017 08:55

sdavisnz:
dafman:

Ok, now with more miles on the clock with the 65" OLED Panny EZ650 ... I'm sold.

Compared with my deceased 65" plasma and my Sony 55"X8500D, poor quality SD is not as good ... but ...

HD content absolutely shines, and given that this is the majority of my daily watch, this is the TV for me.

If I had the choice, I wouldn't go back to my plasma, I love outstanding contrast this set delivers.

Panasonic does not have built in chromecast.

It has an implementation of the 'dial api' for casting.

Chromecast is a physical product of the 'cast api'

Only very few apps support the dial api, several thousand apps support the cast api for casting.

From the user perspective, it works exactly like Chromecast. I can cast to the Panasonic directly from the cast icon in Chrome browser, or direct from the cast icon on my YouTube app on phone.

And, interestingly, the cast function is less buggy on the Panasonic than with my Sony android TV.

1 | 2 | 3