This year has been an interesting one for new TVs. For the most part, picture quality stayed the same as last year, with the improvements coming in price, size, and features. In a few cases, we actually saw the picture quality decrease.
But there were several notable standouts, which offer some of the best looking images we’ve ever seen.
Our first pick is definitely our pick for overall best HDTV of 2012. The others are all excellent in their own right, but aren’t in any particular order. And the winners are:
Panasonic TC-P65VT50 Plasma
Every year, Panasonic makes their top-of- the-line plasmas just a bit better. They’ve gotten so good that they’re now equal to, if not better than, the first few generations of Pioneer’s vaunted KURO plasmas. The native contrast ratio and black levels of the VT50 series (image at top) are significantly better than anything else on the market today. Truly gorgeous televisions.
Feature wise it has all the great performance goodies including 96Hz for judder free movies without the soap opera effect seen on LED LCDs with 120 Hz or higher refresh. It’s also THX-certified for excellent image quality out of the box (in THX picture mode). This is also a Internet streaming TV with multiple movie/TV services, Skype video calling (with optional camera) and more. The VT50 is available in the 65-inch and 55-inch versions. We currently have a TC-P65VT50 in our test lab.
If the VT50 series is too pricy for you, the GT50 
The TC-P65ST50
Price: TC-P65VT50 ($3,200)
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We reviewed the ELITE a few months ago, and were highly impressed. As one of the few local-dimming LED LCDs, the ELITE combines excellent brightness with deep black levels. Its native contrast isn’t quite as good as the VT50, and off axis performance is poor, but overall the image is nearly as good. Check out our review of the 60-inch PRO-60X5FD. The Elites are available in the 70-inch and 60-inch screen sizes.
Price: PRO-70X5FD ($8,000)
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As one of the only other local dimming LED LCDs, the HX950 series offers significantly better performance than edge-lit LED LCDs. It doesn’t have nearly as many zones as the ELITE, so it doesn’t quite offer that level of picture quality, but it puts out an excellent, bright, punchy image for a lot less money. Check out our review of the 55-inch XBR-55HX950. Available in the 65-inch and 55-inch screen sizes.
Price: XBR-65HX950 ($5,000)
Though it doesn’t quite offer the picture quality of the VT50, that’s a lot like saying a Nissan GT-R is slower than a Ferrari. The E8000 has speech recognition, facial recognition, gesture control, a fantastic Smart TV suite, and oh, right, really excellent picture quality.
Price: PN64E8000 ($2,900)
LG 84LM9600 Ultra HD 4K LED LCD
The Era of 4K is upon us. Oops, sorry, I mean The Era of Ultra HD is upon us. With its 3,840 x 2,160 resolution, the 84-Inch 84LM9600 offers four times standard 1080p resolution. Right now there is no 4K standard, and there’s basically no 4K content. However, as we discussed in our What’s The Deal with Ultra HDTV? there are a couple of advantages to the higher resolution now, one of the biggest being passive 3D at full vertical resolution.
Price: $16,999.99
(Note: the prices shown are valid at the time this post and are subject to change)
Geoff Morrison @TechWriterGeoff
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