Panasonic brings VRR and 4k120 support to 2021 OLED TVs with update

Panasonic is releasing firmware for its OLED TVs this year: the JZ980, JZ1000, JZ1500 and the JZ2000. This update is also available for the JX940, a 4K LCD TV. This displays 4k120 in full resolution and VRR can be combined with 4k and HDR10.

The improvements added in firmware version 3.124 only work through a so-called ‘4K120Hz Bypass Mode’, which the user must manually enable in the picture settings menu. This bypasses the various image editing functions, which is comparable to Panasonic’s Pure Direct mode.

The variable refresh rate functionality works between 48 and 120Hz. There is still a limitation: if the HDR standard Dolby Vision is used instead of HDR10, then 60Hz is the maximum value for VRR.

Panasonic has equipped its high-end TVs this year with features specifically for gamers, but there was a major limitation in that area. Once VRR was enabled or 120 frames per second combined with native 4k resolution, only half of the vertical resolution was used. This issue of halved vertical resolution became particularly well known when it played on Sony’s XH90, a 4K LCD TV from last year.

This is most likely due to the capabilities of MediaTek’s HDMI 2.1 chipset, which can be found in many televisions from different manufacturers, such as those from Philips, Sony and Panasonic. Often a separate, extra chip is needed to solve the problem of the halved vertical resolution; otherwise restrictions may apply. That is also the case with this year’s Philips 806 OLED TV; TV reviewer Vincent Teoh noted that despite the lack of an extra processor, this model can display 4k120 at full resolution, but only in monitor mode and without auto low latency mode and VRR.

Panasonic JZ2000