Philips 30PF9946 30-Inch WideScreen HDTV-Ready LCD Flat-Panel TV Review

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(More customer reviews)Pros: Attractive unit, decent sound, great size screen, comes with stand and wall mount (most tvs don't come with wall mount).
Cons: Non-HD signals look pixellated. My Direct TV digital satellite feed looks very good, but there are image artifacts that result in occasional blurriness or distortion. It is a minor annoyance. My progressive scan DVD looks excellent, but still not perfect. (I do not have an HD signal as of yet, so I can't speak to how this looks). The manual is pathetic. The INPUTS/OUTPUTS are very weird. My 20" Sony Wega LCD has all that it should, but for some reason, Phillips was really on drugs when it made this unit. In order to get the progressive scan quality, I CANNOT simply connect using a Component cable; instead, I have to use Phillips supplied hybrid cable. In fact, when I first tried the component, I got no image whatsoever... just sound. And although it looks like they have a multitude of imputs, several "share" a slot. It is very weird. And I simply don't understand a TV being built without AUDIO OUT. Speaking of Audio, the unit sounds just fine, exhibiting good volume and separation. But as I try out the different equilizer modes (Theatre, Music, Personal, etc.), I can detect no difference whatsoever.
While I am happy with this TV, I feel that it is overpriced for what it offers; moroever, I feel it is advertised as having more than it really does. This unit would be a reasonable purchase for three to five hundred less (which I'm sure it will be next year). The Sony Wegas and Sharp Aquos are superior, but much more expensive.

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Philips' 30-inch widescreen, high-definition-ready 30PF9946 offers a stunning blend of style, convenience, and quality. Its high brightness (450 cd/m3) and high contrast (400:1) ensure vivid, detailed images from any source, while integrated TV and FM radio tuners offer cable or broadcast reception of all your favorite programs. Hook the 30PF9946 up to an optional DTV receiver or progressive-scan DVD player and you'll enjoy vivid, detailed images from 1080i, 720p, and 480p sources, which render at up to 720p resolution on the set's native 1,024 x 768-pixel screen.LCD technology allows screens to be thinner and televisions to be lighter and more energy-efficient than ever before. The result is television that not only fits on a wall, but fits in places conventional televisions cannot. The 30PF9946's comes outfitted with Digital Crystal Clear technology, a suite of picture innovations including Dynamic Contrast, a comb filter, and advanced, 10-bit processing.A feature called Active Control Plus continually adjusts picture settings at over 60 times per second for all inputs, correcting both sharpness and noise reduction, even adjusting for changes in ambient viewing light.Audio/video inputs include a direct-digital DVI input and a VGA computer input. Onboard Dolby Virtual Surround simulates enveloping surround sound from any 2 speakers.What's in the Box TV, stand, wall mount, remote control, remote batteries, and a user's manual.

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Sharp Aquos LC-32G4U 32-Inch Flat-Panel LCD TV (Silver) Review

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(More customer reviews)Another member of Sharp's unbeatable LCD TV family:
1. Great LCD panel: 32" diagonal, vivid colors, stunning clarity, very good black-level quality, no dead pixels (cheaper brands often have dead pixels)
2. Great styling: looks absolutely beautiful, in the living room or bedroom or your fancy bathroom
3. Lots of inputs: digital inputs, component inputs, PC input. HDTV tuner is not built-in, though, so you'll need a separate HDTV tuner, which is fine since you likely need to get an HDTV cable or satellite service like VOOM anyway
4. Simplicity: the set-top connector box hides all the wires
5. Easy to set up and use
BTW, the "32GD4U" model (with a D) has a built-in HDTV tuner, but it's also hundreds more. This present model (without the HDTV tuner) is definitely the better value.

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This 32-inch, HDTV- and PC-compatible LCD television is a strong member of Sharp's stylish AQUOS line, and it'll make an even stronger addition to your home theater. The Advanced Super View LC-32G4U is versatile enough to handle wall or table placement, computing or home-entertainment uses. The 1,366 x 768-resolution LC-32G4U offers a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio to match your favorite movies, and high-definition video resolution up to 720p (progressive-scan) when connected to a DTV set-top box/receiver (not included).The set includes 2 detachable, high-aperture aluminum speakers powered by 10 watts per channel. At less than 3 inches deep without its detachable speakers and a mere 3.5 inches with speakers affixed, the set is as unobtrusive as a big-screen TV can get.A handy PC Card slot lets you record still images and video on a PC Card and view them on the TV, and Sharp's proprietary Quick Shoot video circuit ensures a lightning-quick response time of less than 16 ms for smooth-as-silk video and gaming graphics.LCD screens offer a number of benefits over CRT monitors and televisions, including general ease of use, freedom from eye strain (no screen flickering or radiation emissions), quiet operation (no high-pitch "flyback" noise, an issue with CRT TVs), accurate image geometry (no curvature distortion or susceptibility to magnetic interference from, say, speakers), long screen life (no risk of image burn-in), space savings, and light weight/easy positioning. They also tend to be cheaper and, to some eyes, slightly more natural looking than their plasma flat-panel counterparts, which usually "spec" higher (higher brightness, higher contrast ratio).The LC-32G4U's Advanced Super View/black TFT (thin-film-transistor) screen offers exceptionally wide (170- by 170-degree) viewing angles and an extraordinary contrast ratio of 800:1 for super-black blacks. Its high brightness (450 cd/m2) ensures wide dynamic range for vivid colors, great depth, and realism. You can place it anywhere--near windows, doors, or other light sources--and its picture will remain vivid. And, with its 60,000-hour lamp life, the backlight life is long enough to give you viewing pleasure for many years. A built-in 181-channel, drift-free PLL synthesized tuner lets you plug your TV antenna or cable box right into the LC-32G4U and start watching.Being too thin to house its many connections, the LC-32G4U comes with a stand-alone AVC System: a set-top box that houses all terminals, minimizes clutter, and preserves the panel's austere look. Connections consist of 2 high-definition component-video inputs, 1 DVI-I (Digital Visual Interface-Integrated) input, 1 HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) input, 3 composite-video inputs, and 1 S-video input. An audio/video output (composite- and S-video with stereo analog audio) facilitates hookup with a surround receiver, DVR, VCR, or other destination.DVI-I is a direct-digital DVI terminal capable of transmitting both analog and digital video data. HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is a lossless, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface to link any audio/video source (such as a set-top box, DVD player, or AV receiver) with your TV or monitor. HDMI supports standard-definition (SD), enhanced definition (ED), or high-definition (HD) video, plus multi-channel digital audio--all using a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports up to 8-channel digital audio, with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements. What's in the Box LCD TV, detachable speakers, AVC system (TU-GA1U-S set-top box with all terminals), table stand, and a user's manual.

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AOC L32W961 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV Review

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(More customer reviews)Whatever you buy, you always want to get the most out of your money. So when I saw an LCD HDTV for only $330 in RadioShack. I had some doubts about whether it was a quality product. Especially since there is always concern about buying a brand name that the average consumer knows little about. Then I did some research on the. They are best known as Envision and are the world's largest display manufacturer of high quality monitors and are a leading brand in Europe. After seeing this close up in a brightly lit store. I knew if it looked good there it would play well in my living room. However it was playing with a blu-ray demo dvd. So I needed to see how it played in my home using cable TV. Knowing that Radio Shack has a 30 days No Hassle Refund Policy helped to reassure me with my purchase.
A nice feature is that the base also allows the unit to swivel for a good viewing angle at any position in the room. Although to be best appreciated I would recommend sitting about seven feet away from the TV. After that your viewing angle should be fine from anywhere in the room.
The AOC L32W961 is a 720p HTDV, but handles 1080p Inputs and will upconvert your standard definition DVDs using a uponverting DVD player. The 32" widescreen display that delivers an accurate 16:9 aspect ratio and up to 1366x768 resolution. This new model now has three HDMI connections which should be enough for most users. If not,you could always purchase an inexpensive HDMI adaptor to add more inputs.
I attached the TV to a HD cable box and an upconverting DVD player using two HDMI cables from [...]. The remotes source button allows instant access of each connected component. Channel switching from SD to HD channels can be somewhat slow. However that is common with most HDTVs and HD cable boxes. The menu is easy enough to use to tune the picture and sound to your preferences. Using the remote , you are able to individually adjust each sound and pictures menu control with out having the entire menu on screen. Out of the box I raised the sharpness and lowered the backlight level. I adjusted the color temperature to cool and set the video noise reduction to off. The only time I have to make any adjustments is when I switch the backlight control up or down a few notches depending on the amount of light in the room at the time. The AOC has an auto contrast detection which automatically and accurately adjusts the picture. With the auto contrast detection set to on, the AOC's brightness and contrast controls seems to have little effect on the picture. The sharpness control does a fine job without adding any video noise. The picture is very detailed with the sharpness turned up just half way.
Overall ,the AOC32961 shows extremely accurate color, with excellent brightness and contrast. The 6ms response time means the screen has no trouble with fast-moving, full-motion images. This is very important feature for watching sports or action movies. HD TV cable programming looks phenomenal. I get vivid color, and a bright and well detailed picture on this set. DVD's upconverted to 108oi/p look very well defined. The sound is a bit low with DVD's but it can still be set to adequate level for a standard size room. There's also a headphones input for private listening. The AOC also has a VGA input for use as a PC monitor. I have not used it that way. However I have seen videos of it on [...] showing it working very well as a PC montor.
Switching between your various devices (DVD player, Cable Box, PC, TV) is extremely easy thanks to a source buton on the remote. Which brings up a list of the AOC's inputs. The current active input is higlighted in yellow. There are also buttons on the remote for each individual source input.
The AOC L32W961 delivered very detailed black levels when I watched The Dark Knight DVD on a 1080p upconverting Panasonic DVD-S54 DVD player. While watching the night scenes shadow detail was very good. I could easily make out details in the Batmans black suit as he stood in the darkness. The AOC's accurate color helped make the different fles. Felsh tones very accurate. The few sunlit outdoor scenes from The Dark Knight look very bright and sharp. The Audio is better than I expected and sounds best using the "movie" preset setting.
AOC seems very conservative when it comes to their specifications. However, I wouldn't be overly concerned with specifications. You will really need to see this TV and try to compare it to the major brand models costing about $150 more. If you do a blind test comparison, where you're not told which one is the more expensive. It would be difficult to tell the difference between the others. You might even pick out the AOC as the one you like the best. This AOC HDTV is rated among is rated among the top 10 LCD HDTVs by Consumer Reports. In addition to everything else this AOC HDTV earns a Energy Star logo. Tech Support by email is very good. I had a question about closed captions using HDMI cables and it was answered the next day. They also have a group on facebook if you need to contact them.

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AOC 32"w LCD HDTV with Digital ATSC clear QAM tuner built-in and HDMI & PC Input - The AOC 961 television series is our newest for 2010. The 961 series builds from our last model by offering and improved design and great picture and sound quality, with crystal clear high definition performance with a 20000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. The 32" is great for those who are looking for the best in value and performance. With inputs such as HDMI (3) for the best connectivity and NTSC(National Television System Committee) is the analog television system used in the United States, Canada, Japan, Mexico, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, and some other countries./ATSC tuners with Clear QAMQuadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) is a modulation scheme which conveys data by changing (modulating) the amplitude of two carrier waves. These two waves, usually sinusoids, are out of phase with each other by 90" and are thus called quadrature carriers hence the name of the scheme. for high definition signal reception and even an R/L line out you'll be ready for the 2009 digital TV revolution.

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VIZIO E3D420VX 42 Inch Class Theater 3D LCD HDTV with VIZIO Internet Apps Review

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(More customer reviews)I was impressed with how well this TV produced flawless 3D effects without any ghosting at all. 3D Blu-ray movies appear brighter and even more rich in color through the polarized glasses. As opposed to some of the active shutter glasses I have tried out, the lightweight polarized glasses are less strenous on both the eyes and the nose they rest on. The TV also works well with the PS3 and generates an immersive 3d gaming enviroment. While I was easily able to link my computer to it through the hdmi port to play my downloaded 3d content, I was a little dissapointed that I could not access 3d controls while trying it on the RGB port. I also could not find a way to make it work with nvidia's 3d vision. However, I am hopeful that Nvidia will provide support for this TV in a future driver release. The TV can normally autodetect 3D content but when it doesn't you can push the 3D button on the remote for easy access to the SBS, TB, or Sensio 3d settings. The wireless setup was very quick and easy and involved no more then picking out my network and typing in my password. I also really like the one touch buttons for VOD, Netflix, And Vudu. The full QWERTY keyboard on the reverse side of the remote allows for painless browsing of online movies and TV shows. In conclusion, for the features, screen size, quality and price of this TV set, it's a fantastic bargain and I fully endorse it.
IMPORTANT NOTE -- When using the TV for gaming, make sure film mode is off or you will experience massive input lag.
Update: after a bit of tinkering I have found that the TV works flawlessly with IZ3D drivers on the interleaved setting, you don't even have to put the tv in 3d mode for it to work and it produces some truly amazing pc 3d gaming immersion. Don't even bother with nvidia 3d vision its a dead end on this tv, the IZ3D software works with both ati and nvidia cards.

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3D Technology Checklist
This product is 3D-related. To help you get a great 3D experience, use the checklist below to ensure you have everything you need. 3D viewing requires:

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