Panasonic announced its new flagship OLED TV, the LZ2000, at CES 2022 today. It’s available in 55 inches, 65 inches, and, for the first time, 77 inches — the latter of which we’re told to refer to as the Master OLED Pro — Cinema Size.
The LZ2000 features built-in sensors that will detect ambient light — and, more specifically, the color temperature of that light, which can change during the day. (That’s assuming you’ve got natural light coming into the room, of course.) The sensors work with the HCX Pro A.I. processor to automatically change things up to “ensure a natural picture.” Or you can keep doing things manually, if you prefer.
The A.I. is now also able to automatically detect what you’re watching to optimize the picture and sound “more seamlessly.” There’s no word on how granular we’re talking, or whether Panasonic can determine what exactly what you’re watching. But it says it can distinguish between sports and a high-quality film.
Specs of note include HDMI 2.1 and variable refresh rate capable of 120Hz in 4K resolution. Dolby Vision is on board (as is Dolby Vision IQ), along with HDR10+ Adaptive, and HLG Photo. On the audio front, there’s Dolby Atmos and Panasonic’s own-branded 360° Soundscape. For those who really like to dial things in, you’ll be able to choose from three modes — Pinpoint, which lets you direct sound to a specific point; Area, which broadens things out a bit; and Spot, which boosts things to one person while still allowing others to hear.
Panasonic also is including its latest “highly evaluated smart TV OS,” which it calls My Home Screen 7.0. It’ll support “all major video streaming services,” as well as new accessibility features and a “myScenery” function that has calming images from and Joy Foundation — beautiful airborne scenery.
Gamers aren’t left out here either. The LZ2000 has a new Game Control Board feature that puts all of the game-specific settings in one place and on top of the game itself, so you don’t have to back out to change things up. It’ll include basic information like frame rate and HDR metadata, a dark visibility enhancer, HDR tone map, input lag and the refresh rate, and a viewing mode that lets you change things up and see what it looks like in real time. Also, input lag has been reduced to 60Hz.
The LZ2000 will be available in Europe, Asia and Japan.
