This Budget-friendly Panasonic Tv Can Replace Your Old One In A Pinch (but That's About It)

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The Panasonic W70B is disposable for $549 (65-inch) and six different surface sizes.
• It's an entry-level LED TV that gets nan occupation done.
• Slow loading times and subpar images are discouraging.

It's unusual, but for this review, I tested a 50-inch type of Panasonic's 2025 W70B Fire TV. (Usually, I trial 65-inch models.) At $349 for this surface size, I spent immoderate clip testing nan W70B, and here's what I tin show you astir it.

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As pinch immoderate TV, I'm grateful for an easy setup -- unboxing nan W70B took little than 15 minutes. I was astonished by nan ace lightweight consciousness of this TV. I would ne'er urge doing this, but I could virtually grasp this 50-inch TV astatine nan halfway apical of nan framework and prime it up pinch 1 hand. If portability is an basal facet successful your determination to bargain a TV, this is simply a coagulated option. 

I've tested countless TVs astatine ZDNET. To stay objective, I request to temper my expectations aft reviewing high-end models. I admit that nan W70B is considered a fund TV, but unfortunately, I recovered that nan W70B's waiflike weight and deficiency of density portended immoderate of its shortcomings.   

By its feathery heft alone, nan TV feels a spot for illustration a toy, aliases a functional prop connected a movie set. That sounds benignant of brutal, but I'm conscionable being honest, here. 

Each clip I powered connected nan W70B, it took respective seconds to coming a workable screen. Unfortunately, respective seconds is excessively overmuch successful nan world we unrecorded successful today. With a beardown Wi-Fi connection, there's small excuse for a slow load and bootup, and nan seemingly never-ending "loading" circle. 

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I conscionable want to move connected my TV and watch stuff. In addition, nan TV needed to download updates, which I was notified "can return 1-2 minutes." After 5 minutes of nary response, it was evident that nan W70B had frozen. No mode of pushing distant buttons made a difference, truthful I had to unplug nan portion to revive it to consciousness.

Adam Breeden/ZDNET

Despite not starting disconnected connected nan champion footing, I wanted to springiness nan W70B a adjacent shake. So I did, opening pinch first impressions and ending pinch colorimeter trial data. A speedy sniff trial for immoderate TV's optics involves intimately watching nan opening credits for a modern movie because they're composed of mobility graphics. 

I opened nan free Tubi app and turned connected "Jurassic World" for an contiguous assessment. The intro graphics looked OK, but you could easy spot nan TV's debased (60Hz) refresh complaint because of nan flimsy judder trailing on moving images. Moreover, these mobile logos are often presented successful beforehand of either a achromatic inheritance aliases nan starlit vacuum of space. Right away, it was evident that heavy blacks aren't happening connected nan W70B.

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As a reminder, this is not Panasonic's top-tier model. It lacks nan HCX Pro AI Processor MK II recovered successful their flagship OLED products. While "Jurassic World" was mastered successful 2K, I was hoping nan W70B would upscale nan movie to 4K arsenic advertised. I can't opportunity it did. 

Watching nan movie, nan dark, distant mountains suffered from what I telephone blotching. That's erstwhile you tin spot ample clusters of pixilation scattering and shifting arsenic nan camera pans. Most group aren't concerned pinch what's happening successful nan inheritance of a movie, but if we're scrutinizing performance, past I request to constituent this out.

Adam Breeden/ZDNET

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Switching to ABC News, nan graphics were clear and agleam arsenic you would expect from a news broadcast. Unfortunately, nan footage of nan talking heads and "live action" shots remained grainy. Honestly, I felt for illustration I was watching a TV from 10 years ago.

Without utilizing delicate laboratory equipment, it's evident that nan W70B is acheronian astir nan edges, and thereby nan viewing angles are not good. You request to beryllium beautiful overmuch straight successful beforehand of nan conduit for optimal brightness because brightness is different area wherever nan W70B struggles. Panasonic claims a highest brightness of 333 nits erstwhile displaying an HDR signal. Our tests showed a highest brightness of astir 274 nits for SDR contented successful Movie mode.

Again, this is simply a fund TV pinch a full-panel LED backlight and nary section dimming, truthful its brightness and opposition are not arsenic precocious arsenic much premium models pinch technologies for illustration Mini-LED aliases OLED. I get that. 

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Further, our Standard mode trial results bespeak that nan show has trouble accurately reproducing colors, peculiarly wrong nan BT.2020 and UHDA-P3 colour spaces. In short, you get what you salary for. 

The bully news is that nan W70B distant comes pinch batteries. It is not backlit, which is different motion of its low-end quality. Now, contempt slow loading times, nan UX is easy to navigate and behaves arsenic it should. For example, jumping from 1 app to different and quickly resuming your show erstwhile you bounce backmost over.

ZDNET's buying advice

If you've publication this far, you surely gathered from my observations that I wasn't impressed pinch nan W70B. Panasonic makes immoderate awesome high-end TVs, but location are different options successful nan aforesaid value range, for illustration nan TCL QM6K, which is cheaper but a amended TV. Or moreover nan Vizio Quantum 4K QLED, wherever you tin return advantage of QLED exertion for nan aforesaid price.

Suffice it truthful say, if you're looking for a fund 4K LED TV, location are amended options connected nan market, galore of which we've personally gone hands-on with. 

How we trial TVs

While testing and researching nan TVs featured connected this list, I and different ZDNET experts kept these criteria successful mind:

• Price: Not each budgets are created equal. And if you're moving pinch a constricted budget, that shouldn't mean you person to settee for a sub-par TV. Each TV exemplary connected this database has been chosen crossed a assortment of value points to thief accommodate different needs.
• Screen size: The astir important facet to consider, aft price, erstwhile shopping for a caller TV is whether aliases not it will fresh into your space. Each champion TV connected this database was chosen because they are disposable successful a wide assortment of sizes to suit different rooms.
• Picture and audio quality: A caller TV doesn't mean much, moreover if it costs an limb and a leg, if it doesn't supply a awesome image and clear audio. Each TV connected this database has been ensured to support various HDR codecs, including HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, arsenic good arsenic enhanced audio package for illustration Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital Plus, and object-tracking sound.

For a much elaborate look, cheque out our extended TV testing methodology.