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Panasonic's traveling road show for its new 2010 product line came to Los Angeles this week, and we were there. Most of the products shown or described at the event were first announced at last January's CES, where the featured attraction was 3D, with other new products taking second billing—if not in Panasonic's eyes, then in the eyes of most attendees. It was not that the new products were uninteresting; far from it. But 3D was king of the video mountain at CES 2010.

That was not the case here. There was no discussion of 3D at Panasonic's LA event, apart from a description of the 3D plasma lineup and a demo using one of those new sets—in 2D. The upcoming Panasonic 3D Blu-ray player was not in attendance either. Another Panasonic event, focused on 3D, is planned when the 3D products are ready to show up in stores—likely late this spring.

For 2010, Panasonic offers the usual bewildering variety of new HDTVs. The company's new plasmas includes significant refinements to its NeoPDP (new plasma display panel) technology. A new louvered screen filter deepens blacks and minimizes reflections, and a new pre-discharge control is said to drop the idle voltage on the pixels to zero or near-zero. Up to now, a pre-discharge idling voltage has been needed to keep the pixels ready to fire as rapidly as they must to generate an image, but this prevents a black-screen image from being fully black. Together, these two new developments are major contributors to Panasonic's "Infinite Black" technology.

In addition, the top-of-the-line, 3D-capable VT25 series includes Dual Scan, a feature that addresses the pixels in half the time of single-scan sets to allow 3D operation. Also exclusive to the VT25 line are new Short Stroke phosphors that respond much faster with 60 percent less persistence than previous generations. Both of these features enable 3D and also contribute to a significant reduction of plasma's already low motion blur on 2D sources—an effect clearly visible in a side-by-side demonstration with last year's G10. The VT25 series also offers a 96Hz refresh rate for 24fps sources.

All of Panasonic's plasma sets are said to meet Energy Star 4.0 requirements, consuming far less power than last year's models (see photo above), and they are free of any lead and mercury. To my knowledge, however, plasma sets have not used lead for years and have never used mercury. (The mercury-free point is obviously aimed at CCFL-backlit LCDs, which do have mercury in their fluorescent tubes.)

Release dates on these new sets are not yet available. The lineup, from top to bottom with key features shown, includes:

VT25
1080p, 50"-65", prices TBD, 3D-capable, Infinite Black Pro*, THX-certified, Viera Cast (WiFi-ready with optional adapter), video calling on Skype (with optional camera), Viera Link with (optional) home-networked camera, Viera Image Viewer (video and photos)

G25
1080p, 42"-54", $1200-$2000, Infinite Black, THX-certified, Viera Cast (WiFi-ready with optional adapter), video calling on Skype (with optional camera), Viera Link with (optional) home-networked camera, Viera Image Viewer (video and photos)

G20
1080p, 50" and 54", Prices TBD, Infinite Black, THX-certified, Viera Cast (WiFi-ready with optional adapter), Viera-link, video calling on Skype (with optional camera), Viera Image Viewer (video and photos)

S2
1080p, 42"-65", $900-$2800, anti-reflective filter, Viera Link, Viera Image Viewer (photos)

U2
1080p, 42" and 50", $600 and $800, Viera Link, Viera Image Viewer (photos) C2
720p, 42"-50", $600 to $800, Viera Link, Viera Image Viewer (photos)

*Infinite Black (G20 and G25) includes an advanced, louvered screen filter and pixel pre-discharge control. Infinite Black Pro (VT25) adds Short Stroke phosphors.

Panasonic has also added new LCD sets to its lineup (prices and delivery dates TBD). At the top are two new LED-LCD models in the D2 series at 37 and 42 inches. These sets offer edge-lit LED illumination for a thin profile, IPS panels said to provide better off-axis performance, 120Hz operation, and a proprietary iPod dock.

Panasonic's five new Blu-ray players (not including the upcoming 3D model or a BD/VHS combo unit) include two portables and three home models—the DMP-BD45, BD65, and BD85 (prices TBD). All of the home units are said to feature ultra-fast boot and load times. The BD65 and BD85 bring Viera Cast to any connected HDTV (the BD85 can do so wirelessly with its included WiFi adapter). The BD85's clock-stabilizing HDMI Jitter Purifier is said to improve Blu-ray sound, and its Adaptive High Precision 4:4:4 processing is said to produce higher effective color resolution. The BD85 also includes superior parts in key areas, together with a selectable "Tube Sound Simulator."

Three of Panasonic's complete home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) systems—the SC-BT730, BT330, and BT230—include Blu-ray players as part of the package. Panasonic has also entered the sound bar game with two new 2.1-channel sound bars. The SC-HTB10 is designed to match the physical width of 37-inch sets, while the SC-HTB500 is intended for 42-inchers.