HDTV Reviews

Toshiba REGZA 42RV535U 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 04:28:00 +0000

Toshiba REGZA 42RV535U 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

This is my first LCD TV and I'm very happy with it. Spent a lot of time over the last month checking out various 40-47" LCD TVs and finally decided on the Toshiba REGZA 42RV535U because of its quality and price (total $912). Due to my experience with both Toshiba and Samsung I favored these brands but there's no shortage of attractive LCDs to choose from many companies. Samsung costs more and offered no competitive model or price to this Toshiba. I found the Toshiba XD-E500 upconversion DVD player online for $76, which produces an excellent picture on the 42RV535U. Add the $13 I spent for 3 HDMI 6' cables (online too) and I'm watching HDTV for a grand total Of $1001! The non-HD TV channels look good too (I'm on Time Warner cable) and in my small living room the sound (cranked up) has proven to be more than adequate. I have checked up on the Sony HT-CT100 Sound Bar Home Theater and may add it later. I have no Blu-Ray plans for present - will take some convincing and much price dropping for me to participate.

My wife and I physically set up the TV on its stand and placed it in position. If you know what you're doing, the electronic part of the setup should be brief but I took longer fumbling a bit over the cable box/TV accommodations. But all went well finally.

Let me add perhaps the most important thing. Once set up, I restarted the Marvin Gaye at Montreux DVD that I had been using to hook up the XD-E500 and let it rip. What a reward for all the effort of buying this TV - my TV watching will never be the same.

Reviewed By : Thomas E. Williams "diddleydaddy" : Nov 23, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Toshiba REGZA 42RV535U

Pioneer PRO 111FD - 50" Elite KURO plasma TV with built-in network media player - widescreen - 1080p (FullHD) - HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 16:51:00 +0000

Pioneer PRO 111FD - 50" Elite KURO plasma TV with built-in network media player

The Pro-111FD Kuro ('black') certainly lives up to its name. It produces jaw-dropping, deep blacks that make its true-to-life colors look all the more beautiful and stunning. The wide range of user-selectable as well as automatic features that protect it from 'burn-in', largely eliminated this as a concern for me about buying a plasma TV. The Energy Save feature of this TV also reduces the long-standing concern over the cost of operating a plasma TV.

The picture is as bright as it is beautiful, putting it on a par with some LCDs for brightness. The user-selectable automatic light sensor and automatic color sensor work well to automatically adjust the picture brightness/color for different room lighting conditions.

Sound output from the (optionally) side-mounted speakers is excellent, with automatic as well as user-cusomizable settings to adjust the sound for a wide variety of tastes and environments.
There are 4 HDMI input terminals and other outputs, as well as a USB port, Ehternet cable port, and PC input terminal that provided me with a wide range of interconnection possibilities for my home theater set up - with lots of expandability left over.

The seven AV settings (picture presets), except for Optimized, can be customized. There are two 'hidden' modes, ISF-Day and ISF-Night, that will appear if this TV is calibrated through the service menus, and can be locked so the settings can't be changed without accessing the service menu again. Although the Standard AV setting is the only one that can be customized for EACH input (cable, satellite, DVD, BluRay), the other customizable settings that are shared between inputs provide enough versatility to support most tastes - or needs.

Buttons on the remote are somewhat small and some are not backlit, making selection in a dark environment less friendly than it could be. On the plus side, the remote is comfortable in the hand and can be programmed to operate a variety of devices using codes (provided in the User's Guide) or via a learning mode.

This Pioneer Elite is truly a class act. Even the User's Manual, with it's glossy, deep black cover, smacks of class! The absolutely stunning picture on this TV vastly outweighs any minor shortcomings this plasma TV may have. In short, if you love home theater, movies, and watching high def TV, give this Kuro very, VERY serious consideration. It is, without a doubt, worth the price. I have absolutely no regrets about purchasing this fantastic TV and would recommend it to anyone - in a heartbeat!

Reviewed By : GErianne : Dec 13, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Pioneer PRO 111FD - 50" Elite KURO plasma TV with built-in network media player

Viewsonic NX2232W 22-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 16:32:00 +0000

Viewsonic NX2232W 22-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

I've only had this monitor/TV for about 2 months, but from the beginning it has given me spotty performance. I only paid in the mid-two-hundred range for this at Staples, but I agree with the reviewer who said you get what you pay for (at least where this thing is concerned).

My usage for the TV is in my living room. I don't connect it to a PC at all, but wanted the ability to do so when I moved up to a much larger and more expensive digital TV set. The color is good when I am on Hi-Def channels, but I think digital is digital so that's probably to be expected. The color on analog looks washed out on most channels.

I am comparing this coloration to my Acer 22" LCD monitor which I use to watch TV channels on my Media Center PC. Either the PC tuners are better (I have 2 installed in my PC) or the way color is displayed is better on the PC monitor. Either way, it's kind of strange that a regular computer monitor looks better than a TV set. I once had a 19" ViewSonic CRT monitor and it seemed fine at the time.

Another problem I have is the way I lose my digital signals randomly. I sometimes have to turn off and back on this TV just to get them back. It happens even on the strongest of stations--when one digital channel goes, they ALL go. On top of that, I have had this TV get stuck on the channel 1008. There never has been a channel 1008 where I have lived! Once I am stuck on that number, I can change channels, but the number always says "1008". Another sign of bad reliability in my opinion.

But the worst thing I had happen was when my remote control stopped working after only 6 weeks. I originally thought it was the remote, but pushing remote buttons caused my Windows MCE PC infrared receiver to blink red as if it was receiving the signal (this is actually a good test since it blinks even when the remote is not compatible with Windows). I had even bought a universal remote to make sure and that did not work either.

I called ViewSonic (who asked for my address before even giving me any idea they could help--that's got to be some kind of telemarketing thing and I asked not to be put on any lists, but I bet I will be) on a Sunday. It's great that they answer the phones quickly even on weekends, but after waiting for the phone rep to go look up what my problem could be for over 2 minutes, I was told I'd have to pay to mail this TV back and that it was probably the IR receiver in the TV, which I knew anyway. It's heavy and would cost me more than I think it's worth at this point so I declined.

What I did next I only recommend to people who don't mind voiding the warranty. I have a background in electronics so I figured I'd open this thing up and see if I could buy a replacement IR module or receiving LED. Turns out there's this little board right behind the little IR window under the power button. I disconnected it and pushed the power button a bunch of times. I plugged it back into the set, closed everything back up, and turned the TV on. Guess what? It started working!!! And to think they wanted me to mail it in so they could do that.

All of the remote buttons work perfectly from a good distance away so I think maybe the connection was jammed electronically and just need to be disconnected for a second. This repair did take me about an hour, but that's because this TV is nearly impossible to breach. You'll need heavy duty screwdrivers for prying it open and there are quite a few screws, some hidden. After this experience, however, I would not buy another ViewSonic unless it was a plain monitor. They don't know TVs at all, in my opinion.

Reviewed By : airfirehorse : April 20, 2008

Click to see Product Detials & Price of Viewsonic NX2232W LCD HDTV

LG 37LG60 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV, Gloss Piano Black with Scarlet Red

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 16:25:00 +0000

LG 37LG60 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV, Gloss Piano Black with Scarlet Red

I have owned the 37LG60 for about 6 weeks now and I am very impressed.

Setup: Out of the box, everything went fairly well and the packaging was good. The directions for attaching the stand are a bit lacking in that there are two different sizes of screws provided and it is up to the user to figure out which ones fit in which holes. The menus for A/V setup are clear and concise for basic set up and there are a plethora of advanced options for those that want to dive in.

Video: The picture is excellent. At the time I'm writing this, there is only one 37" consumer LCD HDTV that supports both 1080p resolutions and 120hz refresh rates. Visually any HD content played on the set is stunning, and even standard definition looks fine for almost everything. Much better than some less expensive sets that I looked at. There are almost never any visible jagged lines on SD content. The color and contrast were a bit off out of the box but that is normal with HD sets and 2 minutes of adjusting fixed it. I didn't even have time to run a calibration DVD or Blu-Ray yet and I'm already very happy. Just a note for those that are planning on purchasing a 1080p TV; at 37", in order to take full advantage of 1080p (be able to see the difference between 720 and 1080) you need to be sitting about 4 feet from the TV. With smaller sets, the difference is less noticeable. If you are looking to save money, getting a 720p TV would not be a bad idea. That being said, I love the way the 37LG60 looks and would recommend it on picture quality alone.

Inputs: The good news is there are tons of inputs. 4 HDMI, 2 Composite, a VGA for use as a computer monitor and more. The bad news is that I use a Panasonic Blu-Ray player and a TiVo HD with the system, both plugged into HDMI ports and most of the time when pausing or fast forwarding/rewinding content from either player, I get a high pitched clicking/static type of noise coming from the speakers. It is very faint, but I can still hear it. Since this is my first HDTV, I wasn't sure if that was a common problem, but after asking around, found nobody else that had ever heard of such a thing. I contacted LG online support and was told, "I am sorry, I have found out that can sometimes happen with digital but unfortunately there are not any adjustments that can be made for that issue." I'm going to try the Composite inputs to see if the problem exists there as well. It is not loud enough to make me return the set, but this is the issue that keeps me from rating a full 5 Stars.

Sound: The only other place where this TV is lacking is the built in speakers, which work fine for day to day use, but if you want to fully enjoy a movie experience, you will want to buy a sound system to replace the onboard speakers.

Visual appeal: The set itself is sturdy and attractive. The "scarlet" back is beautiful and the edges can be seen from almost any angle. The gloss black front and mirror finish base give it a classy look. I prefer matte finishes on TV's, which eliminate glare from other light sources, but this is easily overlooked, as the set is gorgeous.

Support: LG's online support was prompt and friendly but not entirely helpful in dealing with the clicking/static noise I am experiencing.

Overall, I'm giving the set 4 stars and keeping it in my house. I will edit my review once I've had a chance to try Composite cables.

Reviewed By : Aaron Steffens : Dec 17, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of LG 37LG60, Gloss Piano Black with Scarlet Red

Sharp Aquos LC42D85U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 05:16:00 +0000

Sharp Aquos LC42D85U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

I originally bought a Sharp D64U, and it arrived a little defective. I'm not sure if this is Amazon's fault, or if it's Sharp's fault. I'll go with Amazon's fault as I have suspicions that the TV wasn't entirely new. So, I upgraded and had it replaced with a D85U. However this new TV was also a little defective, as the sound on the right speaker didn't work right. This I think is Sharp's fault, and it makes me wonder at Sharp's quality and durability. So, I finally had this new one replaced as well with the same model D85U, and thankfully this third TV works good so far.

Pros:-Picture looks good-Trim is pretty slim, maximizing space and making it look slick-Very light-Top of the line, with 1080p and 120hz-Price, compared to Samsung and Sony-Returning/exchanging TV's from Amazon.com was easy

Cons:-The remote is long and clunky, looks and feels cheap, and is poorly designed (I might consider giving this TV 5 stars if the remote was cooler)-Quality issues? (Oh and I have not seen any banding problems on the TV)-Based only on reviews I've read, Samsung and Sony have better picture quality and blacker blacks (which you pay for in the price).

Like most people, I did a lot of research in buying a big TV. The consensus that I've found is that Samsung is the best, followed closely by Sony. However, I think that the cost of buying a Sony(XBR6) or a Samsung(650 or higher) will only get you a marginally better product, at a much higher price. Sharp is a respectable brand and this is their top of the line 42in. I got this TV and a free Sharp Blu-Ray player for a total of $1,040 dollars shipped from Amazon. You'd be hard-pressed to find a deal this good. I feel that I have definitely gotten the best bang for my buck.

Reviewed By : D. Yee : Jan 11, 2009

Click to see Price Comparison of Sharp AQUOS LC42D85U

Philips 42PFL7403D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 04:59:00 +0000

Philips 42PFL7403D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV

After a good deal of online research and close looks at competing HDTV models, I concluded that the 42PFL7403D compares favorably to competing models costing 50-75% more and purchased one.

The Philips 42PFL7403D/F7 gets 5 stars because the picture is truly superb. When up-close and viewing Blu-ray content at 1080p/24, the picture on this 120Hz LCD is about as good as HDTV gets at any price range.

Furthermore, when viewing standard (480i/p) TV sources, this set's video processing engine does a respectable job of smoothly interpolating the standard 480 lines of source to fill the 1080 lines of HD picture screen (for those who don't realize it, this takes some serious mathematics and processing power to cleanly scale the viewing area of a video stream by 500% :-). Since most 1080p HDTVs do a respectable job of simply displaying a clean 1080i/p signal as seen in electronics stores, I view this capability as a key differentiator between high-end and low-end HDTVs (although perhaps of diminishing value as HD broadcasts are becoming the norm). In fact, the upsampled 480p picture on this set is comparable if not superior to the picture on my old trusty 32" Sony Trinitron XBR tube TV.

Other positives for me include the 42PFL7403's construction, styling, and audio. The clear Plexiglas around the perimeter directs rather substantial sound to the front to complement two rear-facing woofers. Thus, the 42PFL7403's 30W audio, when properly-adjusted, should be strong and clear enough to satisfy those who haven't decked out their viewing area with a home theater setup and positioned speakers all about the place...

In the US we don't often see Philips' better HDTVs next to the more expensive Sonys, Samsungs and Panasonics outside of Costco or Sam's Club. This "7000 series" model is Philips' top-of-the-line 42-inch TV sans their "Ambilight" feature (I couldn't find a 42PFL7603D in the US other than direct from Philips).

Summary: an excellent TV with top picture quality and styling at a surprisingly good price point.
The remainder of this review gets still more geeky and also lists some gripes about the 42PFL7403D/F7 for those who care...

First, this class of larger 1080p TVs make the quality - or lack of quality - of digital content very clear to the viewer. It's important to know whether you're judging the quality of the HDTV set or the content being viewed. I've read many user reviews of HDTVs that slam the subject HDTV for what amounts to poor-quality content - their "older conventional TV looked better". These claims aren't surprising, because their old sets didn't magnify content encoding flaws by spreading them over five times the original viewing area. The old adage of GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out) certainly applies to modern home entertainment.

I get DirecTV and have their HD DVR (HR22-700) plugged into the Philips 42PFL7403D via HDMI. Like all digital satellite and cable providers, DirecTV compresses the digital signals they deliver to conserve bandwidth. The results of their overly-aggressive compression are clearly visible up close, but the Philips' "digital noise reduction" function appears to do a pretty good job of compensating at all resolutions - things really look pretty good from a comfortable viewing distance.

I do have a few arguably minor gripes about the 42PFL7403...

Gripe one: I currently use only two HDMI inputs to the TV, but there is no way to remove the numerous unused inputs from the rotation of a remote control. So, my DirecTV remote has a "TV Input" button that normally selects the next TV input in a rotation. The first press of this button pops up the Philips TV's list of all 10 inputs, while subsequent presses selects the next input. Unfortunately, the TV takes time with each press to switch to the temporarily-selected input and conclude that there's no signal coming in... With the TV's own remote, one can use the up/down arrows before selecting the desired input. The DirecTV remote can control the TV pretty well, but it's a pain to switch it into full TV mode to change sources, then switch back to controlling the DVR...

Gripe two: The standard setting options like "Movie", "Sports" etc, combine BOTH picture and audio settings, so the relative volume and audio processing emphasis is quite different in each mode. The set maintains a single "personal" settings memory that one can switch back to, but only if there's been no attempt to modify the audio or video settings in "Sports" or "Movie" or whatever... Any such mode modification immediately becomes your new "Personal" settings config. That said, after growing bored with trying out these options, one can certainly adjust the audio to sound good and stay that way. Of course, those with a home theater receiver for audio control won't notice...

Overall, so-far-so good. I cheerfully recommend this TV to my friends.

Reviewed By : B. Meek : Dec 20, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Philips 42PFL7403D/F7

Samsung LN52A630 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 06:45:00 +0000

Samsung LN52A630 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

One thing that always helped me make a decision between plasma and LCD sets was the fact that LCD's used a matte screen to reduce or eliminate reflections and glare. When I began shopping for a 2nd LCD for the home I wanted to go with Samsung as we had excellent experience with our 40" LCD. I was surprised and disappointed when the Samsung models I was interested in had a "new" glossy screen. The LN52A650 and LN46A650 were both sets I was looking at. I really wanted a bigger screen than the 46" but didn't want to spend too much money.

Our TV room has windows on every wall and a gloss screen was just not an option. After an obsessive amount of research I found reviews for the Samsung 630 line. I bought our first set at Ultimate Electronics in Minneapolis and thought I would go again. They didn't even carry the 630 line. Its seems the 650 line is being pushed by most retailers. Had it not been for the reviews on this site and others I would not have known the 630 line was out or that it had a matte screen.

Onto the set. The picture is one of the best I've seen on any TV. Just fantastic. There are a lot of adjustments that can be made to tweak the picture. Many sites I've seen on tweaks actually recommend using standard settings and backing down back lighting and brightness. The idea being real life isn't viewed in dynamic or sport settings on the TV. That's up to the viewer and I haven't found the perfect setting yet though I'm getting closer.

The HD channels are beautiful, crisp, clear and sharp. Most of us still have to deal with some of the standard DEF channels. These channels are OK but a lot depends on the signal you get from your service. We have some that are better than others. Movies are excellent both standard and of course B/R. The 120 HZ is great for sports. Its a matter of personal taste for movies. It gives a somewhat 3-D appearance to movies, making them look like video instead of film in certain situations. Some cinema experts would say the 120HZ detracts from the film feel. I turn it it off for movies, but again this is personal taste.

Some reviews really slam the sound of this TV. In general TV's alone don't usually have concert hall sound. That being said I think the sound on this set is very good with some adjustments. We are hooked up to a big sound system but for every day use the set's own sound works very well. If you look at the slim depth of the TV you really shouldn't expect punchy, deep bass. If you are looking for cinema sound, you really should consider a system to enhance the experience and not depend on this or any flat screen set to take the sound beyond what's normal for most sets. Bottom line here is that for basic viewing the set is just fine and the sound is good.

Set up is easy, the remote is nice and lights up at night. The "Touch of Red" they talk about is hardly noticeable. I had to look hard to see it in the right lighting. Its not like the 650's. The color does appear if there is some backlighting behind the TV. I personally like it but its very hard to notice. It is there though.

I bought the set at Circuit City and they matched the Amazon price which is very good for this set and size.

We have the set of our dreams. Big but not too big, nice looking and well,,,, the picture is unreal! After reading a number of reviews, this set specs out nearly identical to the 650 line. The dynamic contrast ratio is slightly lower 40,000 to 1 compared to the 650's 50,000 to 1, but that is said to be related to the 650's glossy screen in part. C-Net reviews rated the 650 as a "similar product" to the 630 and the 650's picture received an outstanding review. The picture is on par with some of the best plasmas and as good as any other LCD out there according to the review and from what I've seen. The Samsungs have been getting high marks on picture quality and the LN52A630 is at the top. Again don't sweat the contrast ratio in comparison with the 650. The matte screen of the 630 is PERFECT for bright rooms! I stood in the store comparing reflections off of the 2 sets and found that we needed the matte screen. As far as features go, I found them to be adequate. The series 7 and 8 seem to have more inputs and outputs and some other things that don't deal with picture quality. The price jumps and to me is not worth it, but they are very nice. The key to the 630 is the matte screen. Though I should say its not a completely "sandpaper flat" matte finish like some of the older models. It has some gloss that doesn't reflect and by no means is a glossy screen.

Some of this review has been updated since our purchase. I hope it helps people decide between models within in the Samsung line. They are all nice.

If you need a matte screen but still want the 120HZ and new technology the Samsung 630 line is the way to go. Its one of the nicest pictures amongst ALL flat screens to date.

Reviewed By : Gio : Dec 21, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Samsung LN52A630

Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S 19-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 06:40:00 +0000

Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S 19-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

There seems to be a number of strange reviews here that seem to have issues with this TV, none of which appear to own the actual product.

The picture quality on this television is second to none compared to other 19" LCD televisions available today. The sound quality is exceptional considering the size of the unit - the speakers are pointing down and forward towards the base of the unit which is angled to reflect outwards. The speakers are actually rather well sized, with 5Watts of output for each one. You can turn up the bass if needed.

Tuning and menus is much the same as the larger Sony Bravia TV's available.

The stand on this TV isn't a pedestal because unlike other 19" LCD's, it's intentionally meant to be portable. It has a handle on top, and a swing out base (which is removable if you wish to use VESA mounting options instead) that it uses as a stand. The stand is capable of making the TV perfectly vertical, or defaults to approx 5degrees backwards. The TV is back heavy to prevent tipping forwards, so it shouldn't tip over very easily (I've tried this on a bed, and it's amazing how far you can tip it forward before letting go, and it still tips backwards!).

Like all Sony LCD TV's, the manual indicates a recommendation to tether the TV to either the base or a wall if you use the pedestal, likely to make their lawyers happy. I bought a 40" Sony Bravia LCD a few years ago, and that came with a tether strap that fit this one perfectly - Sony sells the same thing for under 4 dollars on their website. The manual gives suggestions of what to buy from a hardware store instead. At this point, mine isn't tethered, and it works just fine - I plan on using the strap in the trailer for piece of mind.

I personally spent months looking for a decent TV of this size for use in a travel trailer, as well as my bedroom, and all the other TV's I personally tried in different stores had at least one obvious flaw to contend with. Low maximum volume, tinny sound or problems re-tuning were all issues documented in various reviews on Amazon. The Sony, with its unique carrying handle has none of these problems, so I highly recommend it.

The price for this TV used to be half a grand, and now sells for around 1/4 off that price, bringing it into line with equivalent sized TV's making this a worthwhile consideration.

Reviewed By : D. Woodhouse : Jan 8, 2009

Click to see Product Details & Price of Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S

Sharp Aquos LC42D85U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 04:14:00 +0000

Sharp Aquos LC42D85U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

Reviewed By : D. Yee : Jan 11, 2009

Click to see Price Comparison of Sharp AQUOS LC42D85U

Philips 42PFL7403D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 03:28:00 +0000

Philips 42PFL7403D/F7 42-Inch 1920 x 1080p LCD HDTV

After a good deal of online research and close looks at competing HDTV models, I concluded that the 42PFL7403D compares favorably to competing models costing 50-75% more and purchased one.

I do have a few arguably minor gripes about the 42PFL7403...

Overall, so-far-so good. I cheerfully recommend this TV to my friends.

Reviewed By : B. Meek : Dec 20, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Philips 42PFL7403D/F7

Samsung LN52A630 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 03:20:00 +0000

Samsung LN52A630 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

I bought the set at Circuit City and they matched the Amazon price which is very good for this set and size.

Some of this review has been updated since our purchase. I hope it helps people decide between models within in the Samsung line. They are all nice.

If you need a matte screen but still want the 120HZ and new technology the Samsung 630 line is the way to go. Its one of the nicest pictures amongst ALL flat screens to date.

Reviewed By : Gio : Dec 21, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Samsung LN52A630

Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S 19-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 04:59:00 +0000

Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S 19-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

There seems to be a number of strange reviews here that seem to have issues with this TV, none of which appear to own the actual product.

Tuning and menus is much the same as the larger Sony Bravia TV's available.

The price for this TV used to be half a grand, and now sells for around 1/4 off that price, bringing it into line with equivalent sized TV's making this a worthwhile consideration.

Reviewed By : D. Woodhouse : Jan 8, 2009

Click to see Product Details & Price of Sony Bravia M-Series KDL-19M4000/S

Sharp Aquos LC46D85U 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 04:26:00 +0000

Sharp Aquos LC46D85U 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

We have had our eye on Sharp TVs for a while. I started looking at a similar item in walmart LC46SB54U only to find out the reason it was so cheap is because it was only 60hz. So I started looking at the 120hz Sharp TVs. The picture in Walmart was enough to get me started.

I found this model on Best Buys site and was a little concerned there were no reviews of it on here or Best Buy, so I did all my own research. It had everything I wanted; PC input, HDMI, Component in and Optical out. I kept my eye on the prices for a while and finally jumped on it when it came down to $1212 and then we added the free Blu Ray player. AWESOME DEAL!
The TV itself is very handsome. Clean frame with nothing flashy. We used the base for a short time until we picked up a new stand that hung the TV.

Initial impressions; awesome picture. But we knew this ahead of time by finding the same model in the Best Buy store. Picture was either just as good or better than most others on the wall. 46" is perfect for our room.Some mention the sound is weak, I cant comment on this as I do not use the TV's speakers as we are hooked into the home theater all the time.

DVD impressions, I was a little disappointed in the quality. Although this is not the TV's fault I am still using a 4 year old Sony DVD player with 480p Progressive scan. I am told they will look better on the upconverting Blu Ray player.

Still waiting on the Free Blu Ray player, but I imagine it was on back order, so I cant comment on Blu Ray picture yet either.

I also have this TV hooked into my computer via VGA cable to watch movies from the computer. Sure they are not as high quality, but I really cant complain.

The only downside I have found with this TV is there is no clock function to be viewed on the screen. I miss that from my SD RCA 32". The only reason I am giving this TV 4 stars is nothing is perfect and can always be improved upon. I would give it 4 1/2 if that was an option.

I am not disappointed in this TV. We did our research and believe we have found the best product for the money. I have also compared this to my Father in law's HD 60" DLP and a friends 52" DLP and the picture again is just as good or better. You will not be disappointed!

Reviewed By : lbs360 : Jan 7, 2009

Click to see Product Detials & Price of Sharp Aquos LC46D85U

Panasonic Viera TH-58PZ800U 58-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 04:19:00 +0000

Panasonic Viera TH-58PZ800U 58-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

I got this TV b/c cnet seemed to rave about it. I had a TH-50PX600U and that was a nice TV and I'm a big panasonic fan, but this TV I can definitely notice an improvement in quality from my cable HD channels, even though both are from the same 720p signal. In addition, watching Blu-Ray from this is beautiful (I'm using a PS3). I'm really happy with the purchase. One recommendation for anyone owning this TV is to use custom settings and not use the settings that are default.

The rest of the review is copy/pasted from "daarrid" over at

avsforum.comhttp://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1056962

However lets remember that the THX mode can be adjusted!!!! Panasonic's default settings for THX are just wrong. The CNET reviewer, using a completely dark room, adjusted the THX settings considerably upward from their default settings. Just for the sake of example - CNET increased the picture setting from 50 to 100 for their review.

I'd suggest that anyone owning this set start with CNET's THX settings:

CNET's THX settings (completely dark room):

Picture: 100Brightness: 55Color: 56Tint: 0Sharpness: 50Color Temp: WarmCats: OffColor Man.: OffMPEG NR: OffHD Size: Size 2Black Level: Light

Or try My THX Settings (for a dimly lite room):

THX MODE:

Picture: 95Brightness: 62Color: 50Tint: -8Sharpness: 50Color Temp: NormalCats: OffColor Man.: OnMPEG NR: OffHD Size: Size 2Black Level: Light

While I use my Custom settings occassionally - tweaking the THX settings are much more important for everyday use. I use THX 90% of the time. The Custom Mode I created, I generally use ONLY for broadcasts made for TV. Remember THX is a movie standard and does not technically apply to TV shows (although some of these TV shows may also look better in THX).

Here are my custom mode settings again (already posted). Use these settings for TV shows and/or movies shown in a bright room:

CUSTOM MODE:

Picture: 85Brightness: 50Color: 34Tint: -7Sharpness: 50Color Temp: NormalCats: OffColor Man.: OnMPEG NR: OffHD Size: Size 2Black Level: Light

Reviewed By : G. Lavery : Oct 25, 2008

Click to see Product Detials & Price of Panasonic Viera TH-58PZ800U

Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 42XV545U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 10:09:00 +0000

Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 42XV545U 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

With the price drops of LCD TV's over the last 6 months I knew it was time to make the leap from my 10 year old Sony 27" crt TV. I researched all the top models and this one had all the features of the very best units, and at a remarkably low price compared to other TV's in its class.

I trusted the Toshiba brand, and saw a larger version (46XV545) in a local store. So I ordered this 42" model for Christmas, and headed out of town for a short 4 day vacation expecting the TV to arrive after my return. Then the weather delayed airline flights out, finally got to my destination, then weather delayed returns, but the new TV was going to make it all better for those great football games after Christmas.

Day after Christmas, got the TV all set up, excitement was rising, ohhhhhh nooooooo! a big 6" gray stripe running vertically down the screen. A defect! But the images on either side of the gray stripe were stunning. I called Amazon and easily arranged a replacement, but with the holidays, it was going to be a while. And weather messed that up again with the mountain passes closing about the time my truck was to arrive.

I did get to learn all the controls and settings, and watched the football games and movies around that darn gray stripe. But the images I could see were great, that 120Hz eliminated all blurring as far as I could tell, no matter how fast those running backs were running. Sound was very good for built-in speakers, but it also has every type of audio output jack you might want to hook to a true surround sound system.

Today, the replacement arrived. The 'white glove' boys packed up the old set for return, unpacked and setup the new TV, and all was good with the world. The screen was perfect, the images stunning. The HD channels were beautiful, and amazingly, that SRT technology renders the non-HD input to near HD quality. You can keep the default settings and get great viewing, or spend 5-10 minutes reading about various settings, and get super viewing. All very easy to adjust.

I hooked up cable, vcr, dtr, cable hd box, and they all worked as expected, you can program in the quick-launch buttons to switch between the various inputs, and programming favorite channels takes about 3 seconds per channel.

Oh, one comment to ponder, when looking at various models, I always ran my hand over the top of each LCD unit to see how much heat was generated, and some models were pretty hot. This Toshiba runs cool compared to other models, which translates into less power used, in fact in their power saving stand-by mode, the manual says it only uses 1 watt of power.

In summary, Amazon had no control over a defect, or weather delays in shipping, and they handled the replacement 'no questions asked' on a Saturday morning, with an easily understood voice on the phone that spoke my language. The price was the lowest possible, and the TV is absolutely great!

Reviewed By : D. Rambow "blue sky leader" : Jan 9, 2009

Click to see Product Details & Price of Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 42XV545U

LG 37LG30 37-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 05:57:00 +0000

LG 37LG30 37-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

I bought this one a couple of days ago for $600+taxes. For some reason, both I and my wife thought there was something wrong with it, very good image quality but somewhat dim for our tastes - in all fairness, we still watch many channels in standard or digital definition.

So, we bought a better one, a Samsung 37'', 1080p, NC550... According to all reviews, it was supposed to be better, a lot better, it was a 1080p for God's sake!. And, as we soon found out, this one was not "dim" by any measures!

I have calibrated the LG (do a search on google), and tried to do the same thing with the Samsung but I could not find any websites with the needed calibration information. I tweaked the settings on Samsung for hours on end. After 6-8 hours of watching both TVs, side by side, on a variety of channels (HD, Digital and Analog - I have not tried to hook them up to my laptop, though nor played any games on them!!!), the decision was somewhat easy. Incredibly, unexpectedly, the LG (37'', 760p) was significantly much better than the Samsung (37'', 1080p etc.). The image was much clearer and warmer, more pleasant to the eyes, the faces on both SD and Digital signals much clearer, more... "acceptable". On an HD signal alone, we could not see any significant difference at all (again, we both liked the LG but it was just an a preference by now!). We watched both of them, the same channel, the same cable signal, at the same time ... I know it sounds incredible, but we both liked the LG more.

The price was not an issue, the Samsung was just a $100 more (at Brandsmart USA). I was totally surprised: I thought the Samsung would blow us away (it was SAMSUNG, 1080p!!!. 5th generation after all), but it so turned out that the image on the LG was way much better. My wife kept telling me: I like the LG more, but if you think Samsung is better, then it is up to you! It took me hours to finally give up a "better" TV, the Samsung (1080p), for the LG (720p), but I did it. Now, when we watch TV (LG), we love it!

I have my doubts, but I am open to the remote possibility that some "calibration settings" on the Samsung could offer an image equal or even better in quality than the one on LG. I would be very, very, very surprised though...

We've also had a Plasma, 42''. Hitachi, TV in our Living room for 2 years now. Excellent TV, on all signals... The LG is not "better" is a bit different...

I suggest that you buy two of the Tvs you like, bring them home, set them up in the room you like, watch them side by side, and THEN decide. Otherwise, you don't know how good (or bad) your TV is! What you watch in the showroom and EVEN THE TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS are only an INDICATION of what your TV would look like to your own eyes in your own room.All the best!

Reviewed By : Gilbert V. Lepadatu : Nov 26, 2008

Click to see Product Detials & Price of LG 37LG30 LCD HDTV

Toshiba 15LV505 15.6-Inch Widescreen LCD TV with Built-in DVD Player

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 03:15:00 +0000

Toshiba 15LV505 LCD TV with Built-in DVD Player

If you are looking for a very small LCD TV, this is a nice product. If you have room for a 19", by all means I would go for the larger screen. Keep in mind that, even with the abundance of digital and high def signals out there today, many channels/programs will be broadcast in 4:3 format. Since this TV is a 16:9 profile screen, a 4:3 display will appear that much smaller on this 15.6" screen.

However, if you have a tight space, like on a kitchen counter under cabinets, this TV is perfect. It included a built in DVD player, which is a nice perk. The picture is vivid and HD display on it is excellent. At this size there is absolutely no reason to go for 1080p. For a 15.6" screen, or even a 19", 720p is fine.

At this screen size, Toshiba's competition tends to be "store brands" or no-name brands. This is the lone high quality name brand TV in this class (size).

What included in the box:* 15.6" (measured diagonally) flat screen TV.* Attached stand.* Remote control.* Power cable.

The TV comes with a QAM tuner so you can pull any unscrambled analog and digital TV signals from your cable company. The TV accepts coax and ColorStream conponent connections.

PROs:* Vivid picture* Fully adjustable backlight and picture format, as well as all the usuals (brightness, contrast, audio, etc.).* Excellent sound.* Matte finish screen reduces glare so screen is viewable in bright and low light situations.

CONs:* Tuner is fairly slow when switching stations.* Stand is not adjustable for different angles or height.

Overall, this is a nice TV for the price and has many of the functions you'd want. An adjustable stand would be nice but at this size its not a necessity. I'm not sure why the tuner lags as much as it does, taking approximately 2-4 seconds in between channels. If you channel-surf often, this will annoy you.

I would have rated this a 5 had it not been for the slow tuner.

Reviewed By : B. Colonna : Nov 24, 2008

Click to see Poduct Details & Price of Toshiba 15LV505 LCD TV with Built-in DVD Player

Samsung LN52A860 Ultra-thin 52" 1080p LCD HDTV with 120Hz

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 04:01:00 +0000

Samsung LN52A860 Ultra-thin 52" 1080p LCD HDTV with 120Hz

I have had this TV for 4 days so far, and I can't say enough positive about things about it. The set up was easy, and the amount of control you have for the picture settings is very in depth. The extra warranty of the 860 (18 months instead of 12 months for the 850) is a nice perk. The blue TOC (Touch of Color) is barely noticeable, it really looks black/graphite grey unless you look very closely. The good news is that the 'halo effect' that some owners of the 750 have complained about is non-existent on the 860. I also love the swivel stand because I did not wall mount this TV even though it is exceptionally thin.Plugged in my HD cable box and new Blu-ray player via HDMI and everything has worked perfectly so far. The picture is stunning, and there are so many functions and features that I just haven't gone through all of them yet.On the flip side, there is a lag if you are using the little circle dial on the remote. Better off just clicking up, down, left, or right instead of spinning the dial around and waiting for the TV to react.I don't have surround sound yet, but the TV speakers aren't too bad. Hard to rave about fake surround sound from tiny TV speakers, but that's expected.Overall, I would recommend this TV without hesitation this to anyone looking for a new 1080p LCD TV.

Reviewed By : J. Wutt : Sep 20, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Samsung LN52A860

Mitsubishi WD-73736 73-Inch 1080p DLP HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 03:12:00 +0000

Mitsubishi WD-73736 73-Inch 1080p DLP HDTV

Review: I have had my WD-73736 TV for about a month now and I absolutely love it. Originally I found that it did need some color adjustment as the blues were too strong. I have not changed it around that much other then deciding what was the best picture mode (changed from Brilliant to Bright) along with changing the color temp (from cool to warm).

When I first powered on the TV, I did notice some "screen door" effects that seem to be inherent to DLP televisions but after living with it for a while I don't even notice it at all. The picture is larger than life and extremely bright (much more so then the display had when in the store - especially compared to the flat panels). I have viewed the picture on the following sources:

1080i HDTV via HDMI (Verizon FIOS): Excellent. However, with a TV this size you start to see which channels skimped on the budget (*cough*...TNT....*cough*). On the good HD channels the picture is amazing. On the ones that did it properly (FOX, NBC, etc) it is great. I hate to say it, but you start to see how bad some of the actor's skin is because the picture is so large...lol.

480i SDTV via HDMI (Verizon FIOS): Good. Since having a rather large selection of HD channels to choose from I do not watch much SD programming. Still, when the mode of the TV is set to narrow (4:3 - bars on the sides) the picture is good. Not great, but I would not expect much from SD once you have watched HD.

1080p HD BluRay via HDMI (Sony Playstation): Truly Amazing. I have only watched one movie via BluRay (Resident Evil: Extinction) and was completely floored. I cannot claim that the difference between 1080i and 1080p is that great, but having a disc encoded for HD is obviously better than a broadcast channel. I have played a few games as well and the picture is amazing. I did notice one or two jagged lines, but I cannot say if that was the source material or the TV. Nothing crazy though.

480p via Component Video (Nintendo Wii): Very Good. Originally I had my Wii hooked up via composite and it looked pretty bad. I quickly ordered a component video cable and was much happier with the picture. I think a lot of the issue is that I got so used to HD that Wii's lesser SD picture was just not as good. With the new component cable the picture has improved dramatically, but has jagged lines (that is the Wii, not the TV as others have reported the same).
The thin bezel (1/2") around the TV makes the picture look even larger and less cluttered and is one of the main reasons I was drawn to this TV (not to mention that a comparable flat panel would be $26,000!). The funny thing is, on my stand it looks like a flat panel to me as all you see is pretty much screen.

All in all I am so happy I made this purchase (as is my wife). I now have been spoiled and my next TV will have to be even larger ;)

Pros:- Amazing, bright, clear, sharp picture- Does not take up a ton of space - depth is only about 17"- Minimal distance viewing requirements (I am about 10' away)- Light weight ~ 95 lbs.- Very handsome cabinet- Auto-sensing inputs (only enables an input if there is something plugged into it which prevents you from having to scroll through unused inputs).- Variety of picture settings (not that I can figure them all out ;) )- Bargain: $2,200 for 73" of screen. Can't go wrong with that!

Cons:- Switching between inputs takes a few seconds- Speakers are a joke. I think I would get better sound out of a Pringles can! Having a home theater is a must.- Lamp gets hot. Not much of an issue if you have clearance around the TV (manual suggests 4") but if you have this built into an enclosure it may need additional cooling.- Vertical viewing angle: I have this on a rather tall stand and the picture looks it's best when the middle of the screen is at eye level. My review is viewing the TV from my seated position but it could be even better if I had a lower stand.- Long power-up time on energy saver mode: I read that the power consumption when off for the "quick" power mode is quite a lot so I switched to the low power mode. It can take up to 30 seconds to get a picture. Since I only turn the TV on once a day I was ok with this to save a few $$$ in electricity.

Summary: I could not be happier with this purchase. The only thing I would do differently is buy a bigger model (if they made one) as the 73" isn't as overwhelming as it was a month ago :)

Reviewed By : Project Guy : Sep 16, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Mitsubishi WD-73736

Sony Bravia S-Series KDL-40S4100 40-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 04:56:00 +0000

Sony Bravia S-Series KDL-40S4100 1080p LCD HDTV

I consider my self pretty low tech and wanted to leave my review for people who may be in the same boat as I am. I wanted a larger TV and I wanted simplicity, quality and not to wonder if it was all a waste.

Well I am super satisified with this TV for the following reasons.

1. Easy to set up. I don't have cable and it just scanned for all the HD and analog stations and that was pretty much about it.2. Great sound. I don't have a stereo system to hook up to and so it was important that the TV's speakers could, well, speak for themselves. They are very good.3. Picture is super and seems to adjust itself to suit whatever type of input (HD, Analog, DVD, Video) is coming in. People Don't look short and squat. Everything looks great, and full size and I don't have to do any adjusting when I change a channel.

Note: I will say that using a standard video tape produces an okay picture, but I assume this is the same for every TV. When I play DVD using my computer and connect to TV with HDMI cable, picture is excellent. So just using the antenna cable is not good enough with my current DVD player. I will likely update it or just play it through my computer.

Also, as other reviews say, set up (base mount) was easy. Slide it on base and tighten four screws.

Anyway, I'm sure I'm missing 75% of the features of this baby, but for the "simple cave man HD TV Guy" I am completely satisfied.

Also, TV doesn't make any buzzing or humming noises (hey, that stuff bugs me so I thought I'd add it).

Good luck with your purchase.

Reviewed By : David A. Elkes "Fedman" : July 29, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Sony Bravia S-Series KDL-40S4100

Pioneer PDP-5020FD 50-Inch 1080p KURO Plasma HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 04:58:00 +0000

Pioneer PDP-5020FD 50-Inch 1080p KURO Plasma HDTV

After 4+ months, TV still rocks. Though I'm somewhat hampered by Time Warner HD, with an abysmal selection of channels, I'm still very happy with my purchase. The only thing I've had any second thoughts about is whether I should have sprung for the Elite, at about a grand more. Pioneer kind of screws the consumer this year with the base line Kuro (6020 and 5020) as they remove all of the second level of picture adjustments). But still the TVs performance is terrific. I have, however, had the gray scale professionally calibrated. It cost me a few hundred bucks and you need to make sure the person who is doing it has the appropriate software and has done a few of these before. And while the results are subtle, I can notice them. There is an improvement. Can only be done in movie mode, but improves the gray-scale and colors to some extent too. It just creates a more natural tone to the picture and removes a bit of the "haze" or "reddish/yellow tint" as I like to call it. Well worth it if u can find a good technician

I have been researching HDTVs for what seems like forever, until this month when I finally pulled the trigger. You cannot go wrong with this TV. This is my first HDTV, but I consider myself fairly tech savvy and somewhat of an audiophile. That said I don't have any history with HDTVs so can't compare this TV with anything I've owned in the past, but rather friends' TVs or in store comparisons.

The negatives on this TV are as some may have already discovered; an inability to more finely calibrate this TV yourself, unlike the 5080 of last year or the Elites. That was kind of a downer given how much you pay for it. On the flip side, if you have it calibrated, I believe the professional can adjust these settings. Not 100% sure yet, but I may give that a shot at some point. Why would you want to adjust these settings at all from the way they come out of the box? Well, according to a few reviews, as well as the CNET review, Reds and Greens are not 100% accurate. This may be difficult to determine through the naked eye of most viewers. But I can say that Reds appear a little heavy to me. Greens look fairly accurate to me, but again according to CNET they were off a bit too. We are not talking about anything that is a deal breaker here by any stretch. Ask someone with an untrained eye and they'd probably wonder what the heck you're talking about. Anyway these are about the only negatives about this TV that I can find, if you consider them "negatives." Assuming you have it calibrated, then there are NO negatives to this TV.

Positives are many. Outstanding picture quality, and probably the best SD picture you can find or have ever found from an HDTV. Far better than what I've seen on any LCD thats for sure. DVDs scaled to fit this picture look almost HD. HDTV content is outstanding. You cannot find better black levels. The Panasonics have really improved their sets, but still the Pioneers are better, you can see the difference even if it is subtle.

Another thing to note, when I first got this TV, for the first week or so, I was worried that the picture was just a little dark. Plasma is definitely darker than LCD, and I thought hey, you can't have the best blacks and brightness all in one TV right? True, sort of. What you need to do after a break-in period (I have no idea whether break-in is even necesary on plasmas anymore, but some do) is set the TV to Movie Mode, then calibrate from there. Movie mode produces a brighter picture. I think most people are so accustomed to a super-bright set (read: LCDs) that produce very inaccurate pictures and tones that Movie mode might look dull to them at first. Your eyes will adjust, trust me. And you will slowly realize that once calibrated, the Pioneer produces a picture that is about as close to a movie theater screen as you can get.

Once in movie mode, use the following settings:Contrast: 38Brightness: -1Color: -5Tint: 0Sharpness: -15

Pure Cinema

Film Mode: AdvanceText Optimization: Off

Power Save Mode: Off

Orbiter: Mode 1 (All screen size modes except Dot-by-Dot)Mode 2 (Dot-by-Dot screen size mode ONLY)

Feel free to tweak from there as you feel necessary. But that is the so-called reference setting; I assume what a technician would set to produce the most accurate picture.

Once you're set in this, again, give it some time for your eyes to adjust to it, and you will see a truly outstanding real to life image. Film content is about as close to a move screen as you will get in my opinion.

Other cool features are 1)An optical output for audio 2.)Home networking feature to display Videos and Pictures from your PC right on your plasma. This works very well and is pretty intuitive. 3.) Great sound right out of the factory speaker. 4.)A very nice stand that is already attached.

I was recently in a Best Buy and looked at the new Panasonics, which are very good, side by side with the Pioneers. But I still think the Pioneer produces a better picture overall. I haven't seen a calibrated Panny, so not a perfectly fair assessment.

Hope this helps, good luck!

Reviewed By : JC "jeffhcb" : July 26, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Pioneer PDP-5020FD

Samsung LN40A630 40-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 07:39:00 +0000

Samsung LN40A630 40-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

Wow. This is a beautiful set - image quality is stellar - off-air and dvd source, 480, 720, 1080 all great. D-TV signals are amazing. Even stronger analog (i.e. old style NTSC) off-air signals look great. Audio clear and accurate. I've had it about a week and first impressions are really strong. Matte finish really helps if placement is near windows. This is a technological marvel. Menu's are clear, features are great, beautiful looking - I have to say touch of color is realllllly subtle, you can pretty much ignore this - it is classy without needing any extra gimmicks like this. Fast action/sports look great. Lots of tweaks to get a picture you will be happy with.

It is reasonably light weight, has swivel stand, viewing angle is excellent. It is like a jewel! Extremely well engineered. As of today, I think this set is at a price performance sweet spot. Samsung seems to really understands LCD video. If you are average person trying to find a good panel, you should be very happy with this one.
Reviewed By : nuts about music

I picked up this TV from Circuit City just before Labor Day. It is basically the same spec-wise as the 650 series. The only differences are 1 less HDMI port (3 instead of 4), a contrast ration of 40,000:1 rather than 50,000:1 and no infolink. For those who don't know, Infolink allows you to hook up the internet to the back of your tv via an ethernet jack. You are then able to pull up news, weather, and stock info from USA Today. This is all it lets you do though. Infolink does not allow you to download firmware, view web pages or anything like that. This is a great TV. 120Hz is amazing. It almost make it seem like the characters are right there in the room with you when you are watching blu-ray movies. The quality picture is great, the menu system looks nice and is easy to use, and for those who like lots of control over picture settings, to get their picture just right, this tv has a ton of different adjustable setting options, allowing you to adjust the backlight level, the black level, 120Hz processing level, gamma, white space, color space, color, contrast, brighness, sharpness, defeatable edge enhancement, and more
Reviewed By : M. Phares "mmphares"

Click to see Product Details & Price of Samsung LN40A630

Toshiba REGZA 40RV525U 40-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 03:43:00 +0000

Toshiba REGZA 40RV525U 40-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

BackgroundWe decided a while ago that we wanted to upgrade all tube TV's in our household with decent wall mounted HDTV's. So we started of researching and initially bought the Samsung LNT series. This HDTV @ 1080P had a great price point for the specifications listed (contrast, resolution, available ports).The second brand we bought was the Sharp, more specific the aquos series. Again, very similar to the Samsung although a bit more pricy and not necessarily as nice looking.We then ordered a Marantz from the Philips outlet and boy was that a pice of junk. Cheap but it had sever ghosting and was impossible to use. That one moved to the family room.

Finally we needed the 4th TV and wanted it for the kids' XBOX 360 and PS3 experience in their gameroom. When checking over Thanksgiving we wanted to get another Samsung as that was the best one in our experience but no good deals were out there and most that had them were out of stock on the reasonable deals.So we ran into the Toshiba 40RV525U as the cheapest 1080P 40" HDTV with (supposedly) a fast screen rate for gaming.

About the 40RV525UFirst of all this is NOT a REGZA from Toshiba, which is more high end than this item. However, this TV does look good with its black piano laquered front bezel (although it is not as shiny as the Samsungs but less wobbly in its reflection, so it is equal in aesthetics).It comes with 3 HDMI ports. Very important for the furture as the switch boxes are trouble in our experience.What we noticed MOST during the reasearch into this item is that Toshiba is not very forthcoming with specs other than Gamer Mode being great for next gen console requirements, 1080P and the number of HDMI ports. Even downloading the manual for spec sheets gives you nothing on contrast or the milliseconds is requires.We took the gamble since the item was hundreds cheaper than the next best thing and are VERY happy with it. The contrast ratio is not as good as a Samsung since you need to put the contrast and brightness up a bit but there is no ghosting or fuzziness when playing XBOX or PS3. We have noticed the same issue another reviewer had: the XBOX does not produce sound when connected via HDMI but this is a known XBOX 360 NXE issue and not a Toshiba one. The component cable connection is great and the screen looks wonderfully crisp.

Another few comments: the side buttons are very plasticky but luckily hidden. The remote is simple and effective (not a button laden brick) and most of the interface is VERY simple to navigate through. Make sure you switch the gamer mode on as it is of by default. It does make a visible difference.

Pros:Great piece of technology at 1080P for a very low pricepoint3 HDMIPlenty of other connectionsGamer modeLooks very sleek and expensive

ConsLittle heavy compared to Sharp and SamsungLack of information on contrast ratio and other key specs (but it is excellent in what it delivers so not really a ding)Wallmount screws are placed relatively far aparts so if you want to adjust screen horizontally you will need to buy a wide mount. Samsung has the mount holes really close together, as a contrast.

Reviewed By : Rick V "Bargain hunter by day, shopaholic at..." : Dec 17, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Toshiba Regza 40RV525U

Mitsubishi L65A90 65-Inch LaserVue Rear Projection HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 04:53:00 +0000

Mitsubishi L65A90 65-Inch LaserVue Rear Projection HDTV

I've seen this product a number of times on its way to retail. It has the widest color gamut I've seen to date on an HDTV, and the picture literally pops off the screen.At the price and 10" deep?It'll earn itself back in less than 8 years of use of a plasma television, and this High Def TV is looking like the wave (of laser light that is... ;-) the future.I look very forward to having this surprisingly space-saving 65" in my home, and more? I look forward to never having it dim. I've changed out the bulbs in my SXRD displays from Sony at such cost and hassle--that the sound of a TV that has an Unknown-But-Very-Long life-expectancy with no bulb change is welcome and lighter on the wallet.I wondered if this day would come--and it has... Laser Television.And it's impressive to watch.
Reviewed By : Rick Raymo "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" : Nov 3, 2008

I don't actually own one, but I have seen the picture in person and it is breathtaking. If money is no object for you, then please, go ahead and buy it. But if you can be patient, you should be able to buy one for at least half the price in two years. These tv's actually cost less to manufacture than plasma's and LCD's. Like any new whiz-bang product, they jack the price up to ridiculous levels on introduction to farm the rich people that can't wait, then on to the next tier and so on until they finally hit the schlubs like us. When it hits 3 grand for the 65 incher (probably in two years) I'm gonna pull the trigger and get one. My 4 year old 65" Mitsubishi 1080i rear projection will do me just fine 'till then.
Reviewed By : Deborah M. Mccormick : Dec 12, 2008

Click to see Product Details & Price of Mitsubishi L65A90 LaserVue

LG 37LG50 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

noreply@blogger.com (Best Buy HDTV) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:09:00 +0000

LG 37LG50 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

Updated June 17, 2008: This is our second flat-screen LG TV. We bought a bigger unit for downstairs and just picked this one up for the Master suite. We've hung it on the wall, using the HDMI connection. We love it.

Pro:-Very light (~35 pounds) and super thin (~4")-Remote is nice and feels good in my hand-I like that the power button is on the front (cleverly hidden into a piece of the silver trim that runs along the bottom) and input, volume and channel can be changed from the right side/edge. This is handy when the remote goes missing or it's far away.-Excellent black, and contrast. I personally think it produces the best (blackest) black, and doesn't wash out-Rated for 60,000 hours of use (that's 2500 days if you left it on all day every day or 20.5 years if you had it on only 8 hours a day)-3 HDMI connects, we are using 2, plus it does has USB 2.0 so it can power more advanced devices, presumably for things like "thumb drives" for viewing digital photos (although we've not tried anything like that yet)-Fast and easy set-up/install (hung on the wall)-Speakers are hidden-In case it wasn't clearly described in the tech specs you've seen elsewhere, this is a 16:9 widescreen LCD HD 1080p TV (that's full high-definition)-Warm up time is short, maybe 3 seconds or so-Very wide viewing angle, looks great in a big space when seated to the side of the TV-Good for Blu-Ray (although we don't have it... our DVD player does "upgrade" our DVD signal/picture, but it's not true Blue-Ray)

Con:-Full sound, but in my opinion with the factory settings we didn't get as strong of a center channel as we would like, which usually contains the primary dialog. This led us to ramp up the volume to compensate and would not have been an issue if we were hooking into our stereo for surround sound. Since we did not do this, some trial and error with the sound settings was required for us to successfully mitigate this problem.

Neutral:-Tip: when looking for a wall mount, don't pay more than about $75. This unit is light, and anything big and fancy is probably going to lead to a financial soaking!-We haven't used the stand, sorry. It looks ok I guess, but can't review it since I haven't used it.-Tip: I can't confirm this, however the HDMI cable box I got from my cable company responds much faster to channel changing that our other regular HD box did before we traded it in when we got our TV. The old box would randomly pause for 1-8 seconds as well. We've not had this problem with either HDMI cable box we've gotten.-Tip: Play with your settings to get the best sound, don't rely on the factory settings.

Bottom line: The LG HDTV line is very good as a whole. This unit is no exception, it's awesome. We highly recommend it.

Reviewed By : Kate and Mike : May 18, 2008

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