Concluding reviews of LED sidelit LCD displays is somewhat difficult, because above all, they are an effort in improving aesthetics first, and picture quality second (if at all). Whilst the buying public appears to be enthusiastic about the novelty of ultra-slim displays, when placed in the corner of a room, their aesthetic benefits are unlikely to be too visible.
Of course, looks (and their value) are in the eye of the beholder. With the TX-L42D25, Panasonic has succeeded in producing an LED LCD TV which retains most of the strengths of the company’s traditional LCD TVs. In comparison to the S20 LCD series which we reviewed nearer the start of the month, the ultra-slim Panasonic TX-L42D25 has marginally more accurate colour (after calibration), very slightly inferior Greyscale tracking, and higher quality deinterlacing of SD video material.
Given that other LED side-lit products have exhibited severe screen uniformity issues, something which the Panasonic TX-L42D25 is free of, this makes it a strong contender in this category. Of course, buyers should remember that they are paying extra money for style over performance when compared to traditional LCDs. For readers already sold on a slim display, Panasonic’s offering has the least issues we’ve seen on an edge-backlit LED LCD television to date.
