Panasonic 58 inch JX850BZ 4K LED HDR Smart TV Dolby Vision/Atmos

Product Information

Panasonic does cinematic sheen better than anyone. There’s a lushness to the HX800’s pictures which is immediately engaging. The image doesn’t prioritise LED brightness, but it’s all the more cinematic for that. Colour fidelity is excellent. Even the catch-all Normal viewing mode trades glare for big-screen glamour.

This Panasonic makes good use of its ultra-thin, edge-lit form factor. It combines a wafer thin profile with a cool glass-on-frame design – the panel sits on top of the bezel, rather than be surrounded by it. It looks really neat. For competitive gamers, there’s a dedicated preset which is well worth engaging. Using it we measured input lag at a remarkably low 10.2ms (1080/60). Helpfully, there’s ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) HDMI support, so the screen automatically engages Game mode when a console is detected. The JX800 also combines, for the first time, Android OS with some of the user-friendliness of Panasonic’s my Home Screen operating system. The HDMI spec is unapologetically v2.0, but we do benefit from ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode), which automatically switches in the Game preset when a console is detected.The terrestrial tuner in the UK model is Freeview Play. This means that there’s a full complement of Catch-Up TV apps on-board. Dish-fans will lead to look elsewhere, as there’s no satellite tuner option. In addition to Netflix, there’s Rakuten.tv, YouTube and Brit Box, but no Disney+ as of yet – that's a pretty major miss for anyone with kids, or who loves Star Wars, or who loves Marvel movies… which covers most of us. Panasonic’s edge-lit LEDs still sometimes leak a bit of light close to the edge of the frame and the whole panel could be a little better shielded from its light source. This is simply the shortcoming of mid-range, edge-lit TVs, though. The only way to get beyond that with Panasonic is to make the significant step up to the company’s OLED range. The fact that this is the only place we notice the compromise is credit to what Panasonic has done here. All models down to the JZ850 feature a new version of Panasonic’s own operating system, which promises to be “much more intuitive and much more usable” than before and includes a ‘my Scenery’ feature that lets you display a selection of restful images and videos, or set your own, to match your mood. my Scenery allows you to choose a selection of restful images and videos, or set your own, to reflect your mood or time of day. Perfect for mindfulness sessions or preparing for bed. In addition to photos from LUMIX CLUB, which highlight the beauty of Japan, we also collaborated with LoungeV Studio to provide you with the most beautiful videos to help you relax after a hard day’s work.

Panasonic has bequeathed its previous generation HCX chip to the JX800. It won't offer the AI technologies of the other 2021 models, but it still supports the same array of HDR formats and as the JX850, as well as sharing the equivalent HDR Bright Panel Plus. Panasonic’s brighter Master HDR OLED Professional Edition panel now utilised across two OLED series – JZ2000 and JZ1500 Display type: Master HDR OLED Professional Edition (65-inch and 55-inch models) Master HDR OLED (48-inch model)The HX800 provides a jumping-on point for Panasonic’s 4K LED LCD models, and sits below the step-up HX900 and HX940. But that doesn’t mean that it’s short of premium niceties: there’s support for both Dolby Vision and HDR10+ advanced HDR formats, which enable a screen to maximise image quality on a scene by scene basis. All features are consistent throughout the range except the mountings, the 75-inch has a flexible pedestal, and the smaller models have adjustable feet to allow a soundbar to neatly slot underneath. The JX940 is available from May 2021. Panasonic JX800 (40, 50, 58, 65-inch): Last year's HX800 was an incredible television, offering great mid-spec performance and broad HDR format support at a reasonable price, and we expect the JX800 to do the same. You're making do with a 60Hz panel, and won't be getting HDMI 2.1 ports for those keen on next-gen gaming, but the average television user shouldn't be let down either. Panasonic TV technology for 2021 While the Pana does not have the latest in gaming technologies, its gaming performance is fairly nippy. You shouldn’t buy the Panasonic TX-58HX800 if… Picture wise, the HX800 has a lot to live up to. Last year’s GX800 was a brilliant performer for the price. As it happens, little has changed. There’s the same sophistication to the HX800’s imagery, which belies its edge-lit LED specification.