- Panasonic TC-L42U22 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV
Picture Quality.
There are presets to adjust the picture. ‘Cinema’ is my preferred mode.
Chassis.
The chassis is piano black and looks nice. This makes a difference on a screen this large!
Sound.
You will need a surround sound system, because it is not great on this TV. The speakers are behind the screen, so the volume needs to be higher than for front-facing speakers.
Inputs / Outputs.
This TV does not support older technology very well. The only audio output is digital optical. Since my home lacks such an input, I am stuck with the mediocre speakers when using the antenna or an HDMI source without an analog audio output (this includes my digital cable box).
I mostly watch movies on a DVD player. So, the (analog) audio output is run through my stereo and it sounds great.
On the input side, it is missing S-video input. S-video is on its way out, but my camcorder has an S-video output. So, no chance to use it here.
The SD card input is very nice. You can quickly start a picture slide show of everything on the camera. Plus, you can navigate the SD card directory. It is very nice! When you see pictures from an SLR camera on a 42 inch screen, it definitely has a ‘WOW’ factor.
The DB15 connector for the laptop works fine. Streaming video from a laptop requires a long VGA cable AND long audio cable. A combo cable on Amazon (video with male-male audio cable on one 15 foot cable) works great.
Remote.
The remote is passable, but the buttons are very close together. Pressing the wrong button is easy for some tasks. I have the most trouble hitting VIERA TOOLS when trying to push INPUT. The two buttons are on top of one another and the VIERA TOOLS button is like 3 times the size of the INPUT button.
The remote does have a nice “sub menu” button for quickly getting to things like the signal strength meter. My HDTV signal comes from an antenna so the meter is a common tool for me. Thankfully it is not buried under sub-menus. Another cute feature is the favorite button. Program favorite channels and use this short cut to see them.
The are R G B Y buttons that DON’T TWEAK THE PICTURE. They are for special functions. That is not user-friendly!
The INFO button is very useful. It shows if the picture is 720p, or 1080i, or whatever. It shows source type, the name of the show, etc. The FORMAT button lets you force 4:3 with a few 16:9 flavors. These are nice to have features.
Is It Worth Getting?
After watching this set for a few months, my criticisms have been few. It has been an excellent value. The picture quality is breathtaking whether 1080p or 1080i broadcast.
