Panasonic TX-32LZD81F

...LCD HD TV and the Panasonic TX-32LZD80 came highly recommended so I visited Richer Sounds to get one but unfortunately they had just sold the last one in stock. However they had one left of this newer TX-32LZD81 model at just £20 more at £499.95 which I understand is the same as the TX-32LZD80 but it has a built-in Freesat tuner. I also bought a 5 year extended warranty from Richer Sounds for another £50.

It was a doddle to set up, ...
...aerials into it, switched it on and it automatically started searching for both terrestrial and Freesat channels, and within two minutes it had found the lot. After entering my post-code which it uses to sort the Freesat channels and answering a couple more set up questions away it went and 30 seconds later I was watching BBC HD.

Picture and colour quality is superb especially on HD, sound quality is very good too and the remote control ... more

I consulted Which? magazine before buying my first LCD HD TV and the Panasonic TX-32LZD80 came highly recommended so I visited Richer Sounds to get one but unfortunately they had just sold the last one in stock. However they had one left of this newer TX-32LZD81 model at just £20 more at £499.95 which I understand is the same as the TX-32LZD80 but it has a built-in Freesat tuner. I also bought a 5 year extended warranty from Richer Sounds for another £50.

It was a doddle to set up, I simply plugged in my existing terrestrial and Sky satellite aerials into it, switched it on and it automatically started searching for both terrestrial and Freesat channels, and within two minutes it had found the lot. After entering my post-code which it uses to sort the Freesat channels and answering a couple more set up questions away it went and 30 seconds later I was watching BBC HD.

Picture and colour quality is superb especially on HD, sound quality is very good too and the remote control is well laid out and straightforward to use. This set is also state-of-the-art technically as it is 1080p ready so will work with blu-ray DVD etc and it has a comprehensive complement of socketry and it even has a built-in Freeview tuner. As I intend to retain Sky TV it will be necessary to have a dual LNB fitted to my Sky dish so that I can receive both Sky and Freesat. At the time of writing there are around one hundred TV and radio channels to be found on Freesat but only one, BBC HD, broadcasts full time in HD, plus there is an occasional HD broadcast by ITV.

It is well worth shopping around for this model as the price varies considerably between £500 - £800. 

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