Panasonic have launched their new 2012 VIERA range this month and where I work, we have received the first models.
The very first one we have un-boxed is the new passive 3D, yes you read it correctly, panasonic have produced a passive 3D TV, in which the panel has been made by a certain Korean company whose name has 2 initials.
The model in question is the new ET5 and it’s a 42″ version that is out.
It’s not a bad looking set as you can see from the pictures below:
Aside from the design, it’s an incredibly slim set and has plenty of connections for both HDMI and USB.
Another cool feature before we get into all the SMART stuff is that a lot of the range this year has built in wifi! Hurrah, no more unsightly dongles being required to connect wirelessly to your router.
Plus it takes up a USB connection and I know feedback from customers has been that they wanted built in wifi and a web browser. Plus they didn’t want to shell out £50-£80 for a wifi dongle after they had bought their new shiny TV.
Only thing I’m not keen on is where the buttons are. A bit too far in round the back, just above the wireless LAN module that’s bolted onto the TV.
But Panasonic won’t want you to use the buttons as you get a remote and now you can use your iOS and android devices to control the TV via their very own VIERA Remote app.
SmarTViera
The Viera Connect platform has been a great addition to the features offered by Panasonic to their customers and now there are some new apps exclusively available on 2012 models. Apps such as Netflix are only available on 2012 sets that have the Viera Connect service, as opposed to people like me who own a 2010 or 2011 set.
Another exclusive feature is a Web Browser, now I’ve personally never known why people want a browser on their TV (won’t be supported or created by typical web browsers and whether or not it will support flash content either is an unknown) but Panasonic have once again bowed to consumer pressure for wanting passive 3D sets and including a web browser.
Images are below of the many apps you get on your new 2012 Panasonic Smart Viera.
The other welcome update is to the YouTube app, this has been long overdue but I do like the look and feel of this newly revamped app.
And last but not least before boring pictures of what you get in the box is what my firms website looks like on the new web browser.
All in all, it’s a nice TV, finished well and I’m looking forward to offering this model of set to many of my customers this year. You get plenty of telly for your cash.
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