0312wv33 Panasonic TX-32PS12

10/13/03

5:10 PM

Page 105

ON TEST: PANASONIC TX-32PS12

32in Nicam TV 950

SPECIFICATION
FEATURES 100Hz 16:9 TV; flicker reduction; Nicam stereo with Ambient/speech/music modes; pic presets; noise reduction; tilt correction; autotuning; Q-Link; owner ID system; multiple aspect ratios; pic freeze; picture/text split screen; AI; colour balance; off timer; teletext sub-page access SOCKETS Rear: Three Scarts (two RGB); stereo audio outputs; RF jack Front: S-video input; composite video input; stereo audio input; headphone jack WEIGHT 55.5kg DIMENSIONS 564(h) x 902(w) x 553(d)mm CONTACT 08705 357357, www.panasonic.co.uk

Mixed bag

Panasonics TX-32PS12 is the archetypal TV mid-ranger, boasting 100Hz pictures, a respectable features count, and Nicam stereo sound. It looks pleasant, too. A glossy deep grey inner frame is set off well by the lighter silver outer frame that also scores style points by curving gently towards you at its extremities. The only aesthetic bumnote is the customary front AV jacks. These have been left under the screen, rather than being tucked away down the side somewhere. Rear panel connections are dominated by three Scarts two of which, happily, can take RGB. Unlike some of Panasonics other recent TVs, there arent any component video inputs but then, this isnt a progressive scan TV, so they wont be too sorely missed. During set-up we revelled in the usual fabulously designed Panasonic remote control. The TVs autotuning system did its job quickly and efficiently, with Q-Link on hand if you need to download tuner settings to a suitable VCR. The chief picture adjustments comprise noise reduction, flicker reduction, and an optimistically titled AI mode thats really just a fancy contrast booster. As for sound, there are Music and Speech presets, together with an Ambient mode for widening the soundstage. Reduction is off (since its introduction drastically ups the processing noise), switch off noise reduction, and finally, keep the contrast no higher than 50 per cent. Stray from this guide and the picture looks much softer and more processed. Not all problems can be circumvented with careful set-up, though. First of all, tuner pictures look significantly worse than RGB feeds. Theres more grain and colours seem less natural and more muted. The picture is also prone to kinking and bending, particularly during 4:3 viewing, when the edges arc in at the middle really quite alarmingly. Finally, not being able to use Flicker Reduction, because of the extra processing murk it introduces, can leave some bright scenes (check out the white-dominated Sky Sports News) flickering like mad over their top few inches. The TX-32PS12s sonics are fair. Good volumes are possible in fact the soundstage sounds richer the louder you make it. However, a lack of dynamic range means the speakers are overloaded in the mid-range, so that theres no great sense of bass or treble detail, and dialogue can sound muddy. For all its faults, though, the TX-32PS12s picture is so damn good when it is at its best that it just about won us over in the end. Provided youre not restricted to analogue tuner feeds for your TV needs, the 32PS12 definitely deserves an audition John Archer
TEST DATA Colour: very good no bleed, hard edges, rich saturations, though ghosting over edges and red bleed to top right Geometry: fair excellent with dark footage, but serious bending with bright fare, especially in 4:3 mode Frequency response: excellent clarity to 5.8MHz

ALSO CONSIDER.

PANASONIC TX-32PS5 Lower priced 50Hz set, but has Dolby Digital sound AND works better with standard tuner sources. Reviewed: August 03 PHILIPS 32PWdearer and short of inputs, but delivers sublime, Pixel Plus boosted pictures Reviewed: July 03

PERFORMANCE

Pressed into action, the TX-32PS12 proves a mixture of the sublime and the merely fair. On the plus side, the TV excels in the colour department, with RGB and S-video feeds. Sky digital broadcasts are richly saturated and vibrant, with plenty of depth and contrast. Edges are tightly controlled too. For instance, the white text against rich red and blue backgrounds on Sky News remains almost entirely unsullied by seepage. RGB pictures look very sharp and finely detailed, too not least because, in a major improvement over some previous Panasonic TVs, theres precious little mess caused by the 100Hz processing. Movement remains relatively smear free and for the most part, theres no evidence of colour noise over more muted colours. Make no mistake: at its best, the picture is simply superb. To make it look its best, though, you need to make sure that Flicker

Genius. Some day all remotes will be made this way!
WHATS GOOD Picture with RGB sources, design WHATS BAD Poor 4:3 geometry, tuner sources PICTURE. SOUND. FEATURES. EASE OF USE VALUE.77777.77777.77777.77777.77777
VERDICT Capable of delivering a fabulous picture, but suffers one or two flaws and inconsistencies
December 2003 s WHAT VIDEO AND WIDESCREEN TV 105

0312wv32 Thomson 32WB643

10/13/03

5:01 PM

Page 106

ON TEST: THOMSON 32WB643

32in Nicam TV 1,000

High flyer

Thomson joins the higher-resolution game with its new Hi-Pix TV, the 32WB643. John Archer can hardly believe his eyes
Another month, another new resolution-boosting technology. Hot on the heels of JVCs DIST, Panasonics Acuity and the second generation of Philips Pixel Plus technologies comes Thomsons take on the whole extra-detail scene: Hi-Pix as found on the 32WB643. In common, more or less, with those other systems, Hi-Pix uses high-falutin digital processing to add more pixels to standard pictures. In this case, it works by upping the number of dots per line to four times the normal amount though unlike some rival systems, it doesnt also add lines to the image. Hi-Pix isnt only about better resolution, though. It also claims to improve the colour saturation. Without getting too techy, it essentially achieves this at the video signal digitisation stage by doubling the sampling of the red and blue components of the YUV system. The result? Brighter, sharper colours. Hopefully It also lets the TV receive PAL/NTSC progressive scan feeds from any compatible DVD player. Nice.

OPERATION

As befits a TV that rests squarely towards the top end of Thomsons huge TV range, the 32WB643 is fully loaded with features. Hi-Pix rules the roost, of course, but on the off-chance that something about Hi-Pix might offend your eye, Thomson has provided progressive and plain 100Hz viewing options as well. We also availed ourselves fairly liberally of a three-level contrast booster, multi-level noise reduction system, excellent twin-tuner picture-in-picture facility, and a rather neat Photo Mode that cleans up still digital photographs a treat. Theres also a Film mode which adapts the progressive scan to best suit film sources, a graphic equaliser, Virtual Dolby, and a rather groovy teletext navigation system that includes instant access to preloaded teletext subpages.
The 32WB643 even looks cool from the back

DESCRIPTION

Contemporary design and cutting-edge performance
The belly is the built-in subwoofer
Dedicated followers of fashion will be pleased to find that Hi-Pixs debut comes within a very tasty body. Atop its matching stand, the 32WB643 cuts a seriously attractive dash, with bold sculpting and a slick finish rounded off literally by an eye-catching yet useful bulge protruding from its underside. Why useful? Because it contains a built-in subwoofer. Marvellous. Surprisingly, Thomson has elected to potentially spoil the 32WB643s pretty-boy looks with unsightly front AV jacks, instead of tucking the usual suspects down the TVs side as most rival designer TVs do. The rear, meanwhile, proudly accompanies three Scarts (two RGB) with one of our favourite treats: a component video input. Whats more, this component input isnt just there to take in the most pristine video signals possible.

PERFORMANCE

This is all very interesting, of course, but youre probably getting impatient to find out how the Hi-Pix picture stacks up against its competition. The answer is: very well, indeed. Perversely, though, well start with some bad news Which is essentially that Hi-Pix does not deliver quite the same extra-resolution impact as consistently as Acuity, DIST or Pixel Plus. At times, particularly with a good DVD like The Lord Of The Rings, the Hi-Pix effect is breathtaking. But its a bit more hit and miss with broadcasts. This is surprising, since the Thomson system can actually deliver more pixels per line than its rivals. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that the Thomson system doesnt introduce extra horizontal lines

(even though Thomson says this shouldnt make any difference!). But anyway, thats pretty much where the bad news ends. Having just said that Hi-Pix doesnt deliver as much perceived resolution to all footage as some rival technologies, it still kicks normal TVs squarely into touch. We came to the 32WB643 directly after looking at the by no means poor Panasonic TX-32PS12 reviewed on p105, and it was immediately apparent how
WHATS GOOD Picture, sound, design, price WHATS BAD Er, um, ah PICTURE. SOUND. FEATURES. EASE OF USE VALUE.77777.77777.77777.77777.77777
VERDICT A sublime all-rounder at a frighteningly affordable price
106 December 2003 s WHAT VIDEO AND WIDESCREEN TV

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SPECIFICATION

FEATURES 32in Nicam TV; Virtual Dolby; Hi-Pix picture processing; colour enhancement; 100Hz and progressive scan options; contrast boosting; built-in subwoofer; picture-in-picture, with multiple second image sizes/positions; multiple aspect ratios; pic freeze; picture/text splitscreen; sleep; picture presets; teletext navigator tool; universal learning remote; still picture mode; film mode; graphic equaliser; dynamic bass booster; headphone settings; wake up timer; parental control SOCKETS Front: composite video input; S-video input; stereo audio input; headphone jack Rear: component video inputs; stereo audio input; stereo audio output; three Scarts (two RGB); RF jack DIMENSIONS 900(w) x 656(h) x 550(d)mm WEIGHT 65kg TEST DATA Colour: very good very minor bleed, but good hard edges and no ghosting or edge noise Geometry: excellent once wed used the TVs menus to correct geomagnetic tilt Frequency response: awesome total clarity beyond 5.8MHz CONTACT www.thomson-europe.com
much sharper and more detailed the 32WB643 is. To see the Hi-Pix effect at its best for yourself, just check out any of the mine scenes in The Fellowship Of The Ring (especially using a PAL progressive feed). Awesome. The good times continue to roll with the TVs colours. At times they really are breathtakingly vibrant and richly saturated. More so than any other TV? Yes. Not consistently so, perhaps, but at times, such as during football matches and with still digital camera pictures, they really are (although there are one or two Philips TVs out there which might care to disagree!). Very occasionally, some full-on colours such as logos and footballers shirts can look so vibrant, they almost seem to be somehow slightly separate from the main picture. But on balance, we think Hi-Pix works a treat. Other good bits and bobs worth talking about include a superb contrast range and black level response, impressive handling of

noise of all types, and edges that manage to avoid either glimmering, jaggedness or bleed. The only negative thing left to say, really, is that just occasionally lots of fast motion in the picture can cause some slight trailing smear. But its not bad and isnt joined, thankfully, by the sort of shimmering halo seen around the first (but not the newest) Pixel Plus TVs and Panasonics Acuity sets. We also feel bound to point out that it is possible to reduce the quality of the 32WB643s pictures quite dramatically but provided you keep contrast and noise reduction settings fairly low, you should be just fine. Thomson has happily backed up the 32WB643s scintillating picture with some pretty darned impressive sonics, too. Theres enough dynamic range on hand to deliver plenty of the bass (thanks very much, built-in subwoofer) and trebly detail that a good movie soundstage needs. The sound can expand to meet action movie hotspots too, and
without cramping out dialogue either. In fact, the speakers and subwoofer work so well and so powerfully together that even the Dolby Virtual mode is usable which is more than can be said for similar systems on most rival TVs.

Also consider.

PHILIPS 32PW9308 Philips most affordable Pixel Plus TV delivers brilliant pictures but costs a touch more and has far inferior connectivity and features Reviewed: July 03 PANASONIC TX-32PD30 Stunning looks, occasionally spectacular pictures, superb connectivity but it costs a hefty 500 more than this Thomson. Reviewed: September 03

CONCLUSION

With the 32WB643 Thomson has joined the TV A-List in no uncertain terms. Its a superb performer in practically every department. It looks lovely and oh, yes, theres something else we havent really gone into yet: its fantastic value for money to boot. Philips entry-level Pixel Plus set sells for 100 more than this Thomson, and yet delivers nowhere near as many features or, critically, connections. And JVCs DIST and Panasonics Acuity sets arent even in the same price ball park. In fact, the more we think about the 32WB643, the more we feel sure that this much TV quality has never before come at such a low price. Period

Attractive and less complicated than it looks
December 2003 s WHAT VIDEO AND WIDESCREEN TV 107