CES 2014

In a dark cubicle, with no photos possible (or allowed), Panasonic demonstrated a prototype of a 4K flagship LCD/LED set planned for release later in 2014. Sited next to the now discontinued ZT60 plasma, it looked impressive. The LCD set had full-array LED backlighting, and appeared to have respectable off-center performance—as far as it was possible to tell in such a small space. One of the Panasonic reps said it had an IPS LCD panel—the LCD technology with the best off-axis performance.

No, its black levels and color saturation on some darker shots weren't quite up to the level of the ZT60, but they were very close. Hopefully that was simply due to minor setup differences, or to a gap that can be closed with minor refinements before final production. At least Panasonic, unlike much of the competition, not only has an in-house reference standard in the ZT60 but also a number of former Pioneer Kuro engineers to help make it happen.