I've always been of the opinion that technology should improve your life.
Whether it's in a small or a life-changing way, the technology should enhance and enrich you and your surroundings.
It's no hyperbole to say the Panasonic OLED LZ2000 65" TV is, for me, one of those life-changing technology moments.
I've missed the boat on OLED TVs so far and was not prepared for the leap this model offers in viewing experience to older technologies.
The 65" screen is nice and big and from the front to the back of the TV, there are only three inches, making it a deceptively thin piece of kit for such a powerful output.
It's easy to set up, too, once you get the slightly heavy base out of the box and carefully slide the screen out as well. There's a lot of caution needed for the TV itself, as the sides house the television's speaker systems so there's not really a lot of room for error.
In some ways, I'm glad this set wasn't going up on the wall because I'd worry about the amount of manhandling needed to do it safely and efficiently, even though it's a relatively light 29.5kg in total.
The simplicity of set up instructions made it easy to start up as well - intuitive and simple once the Wi-Fi was connected, there's probably only 10 minutes from box to power up before you're away. And with a handy box on the back of the TV to collect all cables and encase them in one place, there's much to be said about how the design has covered the bases.
The first sign of something clever at play here was Space Tune, an auto tuning system that works out the distance from your TV to your nearest walls to ensure a balance for volume. It emits some pretty horrific static when this feature is being started and set up, so make sure pets and potentially cranky family members are out of the way.
The 360° Soundscape Pro, which consists of an upfiring speaker behind the screen, two side-firing speakers and a speaker array along the bottom panel, is easy to set up and can be adjusted during many viewing hours if you're unhappy with its output.
With a slew of apps already installed, all easily accessible from the menu via remote, once the basics are set up there's no holding back.
What's not to like
I'm not going to lie, the ease of access for the TV's HDMI points continue to be a major problem for Smart TVs in general and in this case, Panasonic's really done nothing to ease the load.
Especially if the TV is to be wall mounted, the accessibility of the only three HDMI ports down the bottom and off to the side is beyond tricky, and potentially could damage the screen as grubby hands pore all over it. Certainly, when you set up the device, it pays to work out what you're going to connect from the get-go, and adding in new devices via HDMI cabling could be a bit trickier (even with the attached pedestal and the ability to swing the TV around).
Very occasionally the sound has gone a little fuzzy and dipped in quality - though bizarrely, it's been only with one show on Netflix - Nailed It. With a dip in and out, the sound's been lost a couple of times on this show alone, something which despite fiddling with all the varying options, I've not been able to solve. Though this is definitely an outlier, it's just been an odd one.
Bizarrely the stream takes around 30 seconds to crystallise on Live TV. The quality of the display at this point is fuzzy and distorted, which made me worry the loan TV was broken. But as I scrambled to try and find the instructions to troubleshoot, the picture sorted itself. It's not a major issue, but for those who want to watch "normal" TV, it's definitely one to be aware of.
What's to love
There's no denying the gorgeous clarity of this OLED screen and when it's running 4K content, it is utterly stunning.
At times, it's akin to being in the front row of a stage play and seeing the actors so close you can touch them. There's no sense of motion blur in any of the action and the crispness of what is on the screen was life-changing viewing for me.
It seems insane to say a TV can change how you view things, but with the screen running to the edge of the already sleek TV, there's nothing but picture for you to gorge on.
Watching a 4K Blu-ray is incredible on this. Watching A Quiet Place Pt II crystallised some of that love - from the opening scenes where a meteorite soars through the skies, the resolution is astonishing. Coupled with the sound that made it seem like thunder was rumbling above (much to my cats' horror), this was superlative viewing.
Different modes for displaying what's on screen give you a chance to watch in different modes, but Dynamic has been the viewing mode of choice with everything just looking pixel perfect.
Gaming also saw the Panasonic soar as well, from the Norse rugged vistas of God of War: Ragnarok on PS5 to the pixel-heavy Pac-Man, the TV popped with colours and vibrancy, revolutionising how games look.
There is a game mode setting in the television's display offerings, but this made it a little duller in terms of colour, so the dynamic setting was perhaps the best, especially given the output was 3840x2160. It's stirring stuff that really does showcase the best the TV can do.
With an incredibly swift and responsive UI, there appears to be no lag as I zipped between apps, changed shows randomly and skirted around its various options. With the usual voice-activated assist and quick reacting keypad, the remote is a packed one, but one that works well.
The verdict
Retailing at around $7000, the Panasonic OLED LZ2000 65" TV may not be the cheapest set on the market and it may be hard to justify given the cost of living crisis the country seems to be enveloped in, but in all honesty, if you're serious about watching television or streaming movies and playing games in the best quality you can find, you really can't go wrong with this set.
It feels like this is the kind of television you can buy, set up and use for many years without having to be troubled with the need to update as industry standards change.
It's been a glorious, life-changing experience watching television with the clarity of an OLED screen of this quality. It really is a magnificent set that has an ease of operation and a quality that radiates from more than just the screen.
Newshub was provided with a Panasonic OLED LZ2000 65" for the purposes of this review.
