vertically flat screen, incredible picture sharpness & color, lots of inputs

price (but you get a lot of value for your money)

Well, I just got out of college and now I'm making a lot of money as a software engineer. First thing on my want list (other than my own home) is a home theater. The first thing I bought was this TV. Got it on sale at Fry's Electronics for $500. That's a lot of money for a 27 inch TV; the only thing that's more expensive is Sony Vega. But when I saw this TV next to all the other's at Fry's, my eyes were immediately drawn to it and I knew it was the one I wanted.

The screen is not totally flat like Sony Vega's. But it only curves in one dimension (horizontal). You can still watch it from very obtuse angles. The razor sharpness and color when watching DVD movies can't be beat (use a good S-video cable, because with this TV it makes a difference). Even analog cable looks good on it. I also like that it has 2 S-video inputs (one for DVD and one for dish). My DD receiver doesn't have S-video, but it doesn't matter with this TV. (Also has 3 other RCA inputs, one in the front for a camcorder or computer).

I liked this TV so much I went and bought a Panasonic DVD and VCR too. My audio receiver is Yamaha HTR-5140 and my speakers are Energy Encores. The result of all ths is a great looking and sounding system that does movies and music with equal aplomb. I would recommend this TV to anyone who doesn't want a huge set and yet doesn't want to sacrifice image quality.

Similar Products Used:

13" Magnavox

Picture
versatility

No Component Video

Best picture ever seen on a direct view set no matter what the price. Menu very easy to use. Would highly recomend. Lots of inputs.

Similar Products Used:

Sony, GE

Great picture.

None

This television set is great. Hook this baby up to any DSS or DVD player and you will see what I mean. Sure you can go with a new Sony Wega that does have a flatter screen and slight picture quality improvement, but the Panasonic GAOO is not far off. These few improvements just don't justify the $1200 CDN and up price tag. Especially when you can pick up this TV for $899 CDN.

Go check it out for yourself you won't be disappointed.

Similar Products Used:

Sony Wega, Toshiba Cinema Series

I couldn't find any.

Not as good as my Sanyo 25 inch.

Huh? I did not care for the quality of
this television. I prefer the Sanyo
televisions over this one. I find
super vhs inputs and rca style
connections highly overrated. I don't
find the price or the quality of this
set compares to the overall high
quality of the Sanyo sets. By the
way, how do i hook up my dvd to my
set? I think my tv sounds really good
through my Realistic pro logic
receiver and Bose 901 speakers.
Nothing beats Realistic or Bose, they
make the best components in the world.
Did you know the man who invented the
radar invented the radar detector?

Similar Products Used:

White Westinghouse vcr, Curtis Matthis
televisions, Orbitol dvd, realistic
receiver

Colour, sharpness, depth of black and contrast, variety of inputs and the ability of the cabinet to blend into its surroundings.

Audio section, lack of front inputs and screen reflection.

This is actually a review of the Panasonic Gaoo CT-27XF37C, which is not yet listed on this database, or perhaps only a Canadian version. Lists for $999 CDN. Got it for $849 CDN at Future Shop.

I bought the 32" entry level Sony Wega first. It lasted only one day at home. The Wega had a terrible picture. No amount of adjustment could correct the clay-like appearance of all images. Its cabinet was too big anyway - that silver and black finish and straight lines dominated the room.

The Gaoo, on the other hand, has a natural and very sharp picture. The blacks, oooh the blacks. Contrast is what makes picure quality in my book, and the Gaoo's solid blacks make for great contrast. I've never seen such blacks in a picture tube of this price range. The factory setting is, of course, way too high and should be knocked down a few notches. The cabinet, with its soft compound curves and "stone" finish blends into any surroundings. In the store this finish looked a bit cheezy but worked well at home. Yeah, the screen is not flat like the Wega, and thus reflects more light, but that's a small price to pay for the superior picture quality. It would be nice however if there were inputs in the front and if the audio section was of the same quality as the picture.

Similar Products Used:

Sony Wega KV-27FS12

Clarity, color, life-like viewing

Geometry, slight overscan

The Panasonic CT-27SF35 is amazing in picture quality compared to other competing models, even the recent Sony WEGA line. I needed a high quality TV but hate the space-wasting monster sizes and weights of 32+ inch CRT TVs. I also wanted the freedom to move my TV myself. The 27" superflat Panasonic fit the bill (but barely - still a large unit). The 800 lines of horizontal resolution is evident in this next-best-to-HDTV unit. In my opinion, the 27" superflat (especially the 35 or 36 high-end series with 3-D digital comb filter) produces a better picture than its larger 32" and 36" brothers, due to the smoother finish of compressed scan lines covering a smaller surface area. Overall, the best pre-HDTV money can buy, including WEGA.

I picked up this TV in the Spring of '99 and it's the best 27" TV I've ever seen. I looked at the 24" WEGA, but the 27" is what seemed the ceiling in terms of size for my small dorm room. This TV has impressed me since day one. I got it for just under $600, and picked up a 3-year warranty on it from Circuit City. (Hate that store, but the only thing in the area at the time!) DVD performs incredibly and my digital cable system looks fantasic. Even the sound performance is quite good. It is now implemented in a complete DTS/AC3 DVD-powered system and I'm very pleased. My next upgrade will be to the 32" version at the end of the year. I highly recommend this TV to anyone in the 27" TV market!

clarity,flat screen,blacks(shadow detail)

poor color rendition(yellowish hue and pushes the color red)

I had this set isf calibrated and although it improved the picture it also amplified it's only major flaw. That flaw is poor color rendition, reds too saturated and it has a yellowish tint that threw off the color green. Although I wouldn't recommend this set for home theater, I'd certainly recommend this set for regular viewing for it's excellant resolution, and although inaccurate, punchy colors.

Similar Products Used:

Toshiba cn36g97

Picture quality, sound

Minor problems in color scheme adjustment

Although I did overpay a few bucks for it at Tweeter I am not complaining. This TV is definitely one of the best in its class. So far I had no problems whatsoever with this set besides tiny trouble with red color adjustment. Sometimes red bleeds a bit into the surrounding space and I wasn't able to get rid of this by simply playing with picture/color settings. Quality of sound is very good. It also has plenty of inputs/outputs which I am going to need when I finally splurge for DVD-player, some decent HT furniture and connect my existing A/V system (Yamaha RVX-795a etc) to the television. I hope that when I route the sound thru my Boston Acoustics speakers it is going to make it even better (I am told it supposed to become MUCH better).

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic 13", Sony 20", some Zenith and Sharp models