Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Before I forgot I want to point out that this item is delivered by a freight company and the service includes two delivery men installing the TV at your house and testing that it arrived in good condition. So, it's a good idea to have a cable box handy by the day the delivery is scheduled. The company will contact you to set the most convenient time for you. My Panasonic TC-L55ET60 was shipped, delivered, and set by a company named CEVA, and I'm satisfied by the service they provided.
Most of us agree that plasma display is better than LCD, but this new LCD LED HDTV with its LED backlighting displays bright, high resolution images and consuming only 100 watts of energy, it is a very good deal (compared with a hungry power plasma TV), and in all honesty, I prefer it when I think about the electric bill. The detailed quality of the sharp image is great even during dark scenes, or while using the saving energy settings, which I do all the time. Regardless of where one stands or sits in the room, the image remains true from any viewing angle. Also, the lean silver cabinet blends nicely with any modern decoration.
Truth being told the TC-L55ET60 comes with more features than any of us will regularly use, so I will share in this review my personal experiences with the most used features, because if I cover everything, I would be writing a book, rather than a review.
The included printed manual is for setting up the hardware parts of the TV, if one wants to learn how to operated it and its specifications, there is an embedded tutorial with detailed data information called eHELP, which can be accessed with the touch of a button in the remote control.
I'm using the TC-L55ET60 both as a stand-alone TV and as a monitor for my HTPC (Home Theater Personal Computer), which is connected to the TV via an HDMI cable. I also have a cable box compatible with HDMI directly plugged into the TV, and a broadband Ethernet cable for the Internet connection using a Powerline Gigabit Adapter. Besides the Ethernet port, the TC-L55ET60 comes with a Built-in Wi-Fi w/ Bluetooth adapter. Because the Ethernet connection is faster than the Wi-Fi I chose that option.
I prefer to watch TV via my HTPC because in that way I can record anything I want, or securely access any content. The Panasonic TC-L55ET60 offers the option of doing both, using the embedded online applications to surf the Web or to plug it into an HTPC with an HDMI cable for perfect digital display.
When the TC-L55ET60 is turned on, the first screen that appears after the setup is complete, is the Home Screen Selection, which has its own button in the remote control. This screen shows a smaller version of what is being watched in the TV, or any input device connected to the TC-L55ET60, and shortcuts to the different applications included in the embedded software of the TV. This screen can be customized according to our preferences, and it includes the options to add or remove applications, or simply set the full TV screen at the default. Among the applications are a clock and a calendar, which can be used as a scheduler to put the family's appointments. There is a note taker application too, I guess for those times when we are given a number over the phone and pen and paper isn't at hand.
The included VIERA software is still being developed, it's not perfect but it works well for basic stuff like social networking or online video watching . It comes with a simple version of the Safari browser, which performs similarly as it does in a Smartphone. I'm looking forward to the possibility of updates and new applications being available. In the meantime, I prefer to use the HTPC hooked to the TV to browse the web, and the VIERA software to simply watch videos directly on the TV. Sadly, the browser cannot access the Kindle cloud, but it does display the Amazon website. The reason I want to have access to the cloud is to read my Kindle eBooks on the screen, since there is no application for it yet, I will continue to use the HTPC to do this like I've done it in the past.
The Built-in Wi-Fi w/ Bluetooth allows the Swipe and Share function that lets one share files into the TV screen without having to transfer them into a SD Card. This function is available by installing the VIERA Remote App 2 application into your Smartphone or table. Once the VIERA Remote App 2 is on your device, it will also let you manage some of the TC-L55ET60's functions without stopping the content being displayed on the screen at the time.
Worth mentioning is the Voice Guidance feature too, another one we won't use every day, but it's cool to have, lets say we snoozed on the sofa after a long work day and the remote is a few feet way, from our current couch potato position is better to simply voice commands to the TV rather than stand and pick the remote. By the way, a customizable turn off function is included to safe energy.
The 3D Compatibility feature is okay, I must confess that it's the least of what this TV offered I care about.
The integrated SD Card Reader supports most known file formats (AVCHD3D/Progressive, SD-VIDEO/MKV/MP4/M4v/FLV/3GPP/VRO/VOB/TS/PS, MP3/AAC/FLAC/WAV, JPEG/MPO), I tested it with this card G.Skill 8GB Class 6 MicroSDHC Flash Card with SD Adapter (FF-TSDG8GA-C6) which I keep inside my Smartphone, and it comes with a SD Adapter. The TC-L55ET60 played pictures, videos and music with great quality, using the embedded Media Player application. The Media Player offers customization as how the files are displayed.
So, if you have an HTPC, or build one, you don't really need to get extra speakers unless you're extremely picky about sound quality, because the HDMI cable conducts both video and sound. This TV has a built-in Subwoofer, and from my point of view, it sounds great. There is the option of using the digital audio port or the audio components from your cable digital box too. If the TV is connected directly to the cable box, I recommend using an HDMI cable, the difference is simply amazing. I tested it using the coaxial cable input and HDMI cable and the later is obviously the best choice.
The TC-L55ET60 comes with two USB 2.0 ports that can be used to plug an external hard drive or a wireless mouse and keyboard. I used a set of mouse and keyboard that only requires a single USB port, so I can have one USB port free for anything else. In my particular case, it's all right to use both USB ports for input devices like keyboard and mouse, because since it only reads the file format Fat 32 bit, and none of my hard drives is formatted in that file format anymore, I won't be plugging any hard drive into it, instead I'll use the USB port on my HTPC.
And for this, the Media Server application can be used together with a PC running Windows 7 or Windows 8. According to the eHELP tutorial embedded in the TV, only those two operating systems were tested with the TV home network capabilities. Two types of computers can be connected to this TV, a modern one via an HDMI cable, or an older one, that can be in another room and access via the TC-L55ET60 DLNA server. One can designate this computer as a server and upload all multimedia files into it. It's faster and easier to copy home videos into it, or one's CD collection for example, to later share it with all the family via the TV.
I uploaded a bunch of pictures showing a few screens, so you can have a good idea of how it looks in motion.
The VIERA link that connects to the available applications and the VIERA market, constantly displays adds. One can opt out from being targeted in the type of adds displayed, but not from having advertising at the screen. The truth is whenever we go Online we see adds displayed, so it's a matter of tune them out. In the practice, it doesn't really work. Even after being turned off, the banners continue to display with adds that were downloaded before. This would be the only thing I dislike about this TV, but like I said, it can be easily ignored.
So, in conclusion, after using it for about a month, I highly recommend the Panasonic TC-L55ET60.
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