Every day brilliance

Panasonic delivers a bright-room LED TV that sports fans and gamers are going to eat up, says Steve May

-  Steve May

AV INFO

PRODUCT: 50in mid-range 4K LED TV with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision

POSITION: Below Panasonic's JX940 LED model, and its JZ series OLED sets

PEERS: Samsung QE50Q65A; LG 50NANO806

Panasonic typically lures movie fans to its 4K screens with cinematic image processing offering judiciously judged contrast and peerless colour accuracy. But for its JX850 line, the brand has taken a different tack, accommodating sports and gaming fans with Bright Panel Plus technology for punchy daylight viewing, and unapologetic image smoothing.

This gives it the feel of an all-rounder, and effectively positions the JX850 as a tempting alternative to upper budget 4K LED flatscreens from rivals Samsung and LG. That's not to say it doesn't also have Hollywood on its mind, with Panasonic speccing the brand’s much vaunted HCX Pro AI processor, and including FilmMaker mode with Intelligent Sensing, to give your movie nights a leg up.

1. Panasonic's My Home Screen 6.0 interface features a new overlay UI

A size for everyone

Available in 40in, 50in, 58in and 65in guise, this feature-heavy mid-ranger is competitively priced. Our sample is the 50in model, which can be taken home for around £630.

Despite that moderate price tag, the overall design and finish of the 50JX850 is pleasingly upmarket. Like previous Panasonic mid-level TVs, it sports an ultra-thin bezel, with the panel set atop (rather than surrounded by) the frame itself, creating a 3D relief which catches the light. The glass sits on a wide, central plinth-style pedestal that looks a little more bold than the circular, swivel mounts of some of the company's OLEDs.