Panasonic TH-46PZ81B

The basics

The Panasonic TH-46PZ81B is a 46-inch full-HD (1920 x 1080) plasma TV. With built-in Freesat, it has a contrast ratio of 30,000:1, the new Real Black Drive system and Intelligent Frame Creation. With three HDMI slots, Composite video input, S-Video inputand an SD card slot, the TV measures 1158x747x110mm and weighs 40kg.

The good

Want HD but don’t fancy a pricey Sky subscription? This gorgeous 46-inch Full HD plasma is the first TV to come with Freesat built in – just hook up a dish and you can snatch 1080 broadcasts from the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 from space, all for nowt! Image quality is second to none, with clever processing boosting the Panny’s native contrast ratio to a black-tastic 1,000,000:1. Triple HDMIs and 100Hz processing are a given at this price, and hefty 10W speakers do a respectable job of pumping out Dolby Digital soundtracks. We like... a lot.

The bad

Yes, the 46PZ81 costs more than a weekend in a swanky hotel with champagne on tap and a close personal friend, but will that friend give you a 180-degree viewing angle and a choice of top quality input and output ports? Wait a second, that came out wrong.

The bottom line

The rumours of the death of plasma have been greatly exaggerated – this stunning 1080p TV couldn’t be more future-proofed if it ran on biodiesel made from recycled iPods.