To begin, I noticed that there were quite a few reviews from a year ago and saw that many of these reviewers paid well over $1,000 for their Vizio 37-inch LCD. As we probably all know, the prices of plasmas and LCDs are continually dropping (and I sure am glad I resisted the urge to buy one a year ago!). As of this review, the price of this TV is well under $1,000 at every place I can think of where it's sold.
I'm not usually keen on buying what I think of as "off brands" because they almost always are a pile of garbage. Still, walking down the aisle and comparing the Vizio to the likes of Sony, Sharp, Panasonic, Philips, and JVC left me with the impression that the Vizio was, hands down, the best value. The only TV with the better picture (in my humble opinion) was that of a Sony costing twice the price. The Sony only edged its performance, however. The "look" and "feel" of the Vizio also seemed on par with its "brand name" competitors. Thus, I bought the Vizio.
I knew well enough that when I got home this TV wouldn't perform as it did in the store since I have no HDTV channel subscriptions at the time. Overall, though, I was not disappointed. The hook-ups were a breeze too. I've heard now and then that certain LCDs and plasmas lack even the most basic of inputs (one I've heard didn't even have a cable input), but rest assured that the Vizio has plenty of connections. I'm especially fond of the additional audio/video connection at the left side of the panel. We have a "roaming" Nintendo Gamecube that sometimes docks temporarily at this location before retreating back into my son's room, and the side inputs surely prevent timely and cumbersome hookup of temporary components as video game consoles, camcorders, etc.
While I've had it only a month, I can at least say that I suffered no "out of the box" defects. I continue to be weary since Vizio is a new name, but am actually relieved to see a few Vizio commercials on television. To me, that bears the mark of a legitimate company that intends to stay in business. Seriously, when was the last time you saw an advertisement for an "off brand" like Spectre, Mintek, iLo, Trutech, or Durabrand? I mention these names because they represent the latest slew of junk brands that have replaced such previous names as Apex or Cyberhome. I've e-mailed Vizio's customer service support on two occasions and have received a prompt and informative response, so this speaks volumes about the company's reputabilty to me!
In short, I am very pleased with the performance of the Vizio in my new media room. Mmmmmhmmmm, that sure sounds good to say! Between you and me, my media room is . . . ahem . . . a recently converted bedroom. It had only one small window, so my chocolate brown wall paint and heavy curtains achieved the movie theater effect quite nicely. One needs only a gallon or two of paint and a few dark window treatments to achieve a budget-friendly home theater. With the substantial savings the Vizio offers, I can now afford one of those nice new "theater seating" sofas I've seen recently.
**** Update **** I found that code "10030" works for programming a universal remote. The Vizio website lists "0030" but the aforementioned code is what worked for me. Strangely enough, this code is actually a Samsung code. Funny that, because I overheard a salesman the other day mention that Samsung is the parent company of Vizio. If true, then that's a good thing.
Reviewed By : Frankland S. Strickland
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