While its competitors have already started releasing ultra-expensive 8K televisions, Panasonic is opting to stay within the 4K HDR sweet spot a little while longer, announcing a huge lineup of 4K OLED and LED-LCD televisions for launch in Australia over the coming months.
Kicking off with its flagship 4K OLED television, the 65-inch TH-65GZ2000, Panasonic announced that its set will boast the "world’s first built-in upward-firing speakers to support Dolby Atmos" when it launches in September at $8,299. The TV's audio system will be tuned by Technics engineers.
The manufacturer also announced three more 4K OLED models, with its 65-inch TH-65GZ1500U and TH-65GZ1000U televisions and 55-inch TH-55GZ1000U telly arriving this July.
Along with its top-tier OLED sets, Panasonic also revealed a number of LED-LCD panels for release in 2019, starting with its 4K Premium model, the 75-inch TH-75GX880A, followed by several other sets in its more affordable GX Series. You can check out a full price list below.
Transparent OLED is as futuristic as it sounds
At its launch event in Sydney this morning, Panasonic did tease one futuristic television which won't be hitting stores any time soon, unveiling its prototype transparent OLED technology in Australia for the first time.
Looking like something out of Steven Spielberg's sci-fi classic Minority report, the prototype TV on display looked like a pane of glass that could suddenly display content as soon as it was switched on.
While it was incredibly impressive, it's hard to imagine a scenario where this kind of technology would be necessary. Also, without a black background on the panel, its unlikely this type of OLED can reach the true black levels that the display technology is known for.
That said, it was undeniably cool and we can't wait to see where Panasonic will take this tech in the future. You can check out a picture of the television below.
Soundbars and 4K Blu-ray players
Complementing its 2019 television range, Panasonic also revealed its latest range of soundbars, starting with the flagship HTB900 and continuing with the HTB700, HTB510.
The HTB900 and HTB700 soundbars are notable in that they're the first ones that Panasonic has released which support Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. Both soundbars also support 4K HDR passthrough and Google Assistant when paired with a Google smart speaker.
Meanwhile, the the HTB900 and HTB510 both include built-in Chromecast functionality for audio, allowing users to stream music to the soundbars from their smart devices. Pricing and availability can be found below.
While other manufacturers have abandoned the format, Panasonic has remained committed to 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray by announcing a new UHD-ready player in the DP-UB150GN-K, which supports HDR10+ and HDR10, Dolby Atmos and K 60p/50p/4:4:4 output.
The UB150GN-K has been priced at $279 and available to purchase now.
