On top of the fantastic giant remote that Panasonic showed off yesterday at their big media event, they also unveiled the new Z1 series plasma, which uses a tech called WiHD for wireless HDMI connections capable of transmitting a full 1080p signal across a room.The TV itself is just an inch thick, which makes it incredibly light (for a plasma) and makes it much easier to wallmount. The WiHD wireless tech does need a line of sight connection, although it won’t be interrupted by you blocking the direct line of sight, and has a range of about 10 metres.
Also packed into this 54-inch monster are a 40,000:1 native contrast ratio, 600Hz sub field drive technology for smoother motion, 24p cinematic playback, x.v. Color, an Anti-reflection filter, THX certification, and a heap of connectivity options through the wireless adapter.
Alongside the TV they were showing off some pretty stylish speakers as well. Although we didn’t get to hear them crank the volume, they feature some downward facing subwoofers and look sensational.
There’s no price or energy star rating yet for the Z1, but that’s probably because it won’t launch in Australia until September. Considering we’ve heard that it was going to cost $US6,000 in the US, I imagine we’ll be looking at close to $10K locally. And that’s not too bad when you look at all the cool inclusions in the specs. Now if only they could hide the butt-ugly wireless receiver on the bottom left hand corner of the TV, it could be almost perfect…