The Panasonic TX-26LXD80 doesn't get off to a great start on account of its being, well, just a bit ugly.

Its shaping and unusual bulk (it protrudes further than some 40in+ TVs) are both pretty clumsy.

There's nothing clunky about its connectivity, though. For with its three HDMI outputs, component video port, PC interface and even an SD card slot, it's a flexible TV in terms of what you can hook up to it.

Feeble feature count

It's reasonably flexible with its picture adjustments too providing, among other things, noise reduction tools, a 3D colour management system and a genuinely useful selection of picture presets.

Before getting stuck into the 26LXD80's performance, it's worth reflecting on its £490 price. Being among the most expensive TV in its class, it's troubling to find that it doesn't carry Panasonic's classy V-real image processing, or any 'extra' features such as the JVC model's integrated Freeview+ PVR.

Basically, the Panasonic TX-26LXD80 needs to blow us away with its performance if it wants us to swallow its price.

Sharp Freeview pictures

Yet while it's certainly not a bad performer and even a good one at times, it isn't quite the bee's knees.

Starting with the good news, its pictures are exceptionally bright. Colours are fulsomely saturated, too, making the 26LXD80 a decent gaming machine, and ideally suited to the sort of bright, studio-based fodder that constitutes much of daytime TV.

The 26LXD80's Freeview performance is very impressive, too, with the upscaling of Freeview to the screen's 1,366 x 768-pixel resolution being handled unusually well so that pictures look sharp, natural, and relatively noiseless.

However, this talent can't blind us to a few general picture quality shortcomings. For instance, although colours are rich, they're not always totally natural, especially where skin tones are concerned. There's a tendency to add a yellowy tinge from time to time.

Disappointing HD performance

We were also underwhelmed by the 26LXD80's handling of HD, which just didn't appear with the sort of detail and sharpness witnessed on the best of its rivals. Not helping here is the appearance of resolution loss over moving objects.

High-definition pictures look strangely noisier than we'd expect too, and finally, the 26LXD80's black level response isn't the best, leaving a distracting grey-blue cloud hanging over really dark scenes. Black levels deteriorate further, too, especially if you watch the TV from the side.

Turning to the Panasonic TX-26LXD80's sound, there's some good clarity to be heard, and no distortion even at high volumes. But bass is minimal, and vocals can be overwhelmed during action scenes.