Projection-TV Reviews

I've owned this HDTV for 1 year and 6 months. I won't get into too many details about the TV's specifications. The picture is good; the sound is good; and there's a smorgasbord of customization features.

Now let me describe the three problems I have with it:

My model comes with a plastic cover over the screen which causes some glare from light sources. This cover cannot be removed without taking the TV apart. Newer models of the same TV don't have the cover, so this may not apply to all prospective buyers.

After using the TV for a while I noticed these curved black lines across the middle of the screen. They're largest at the edges of the screen and get smaller as they approach the center until they're nonexistent. They're always there but aren't easily visible. I was practically looking for imperfections before I saw them and they're unnoticeable against dark images.

Finally, there seems to be something wrong with the color. I don't know if this is a growing problem or if it's been there all along. The bottom-left corner of the screen has a blue shift to it and the top-right corner has a red shift. It's as if the red & blue color convergence is out of adjustment. Manually changing said convergence doesn't help much. It might've always been like that and I just didn't notice before, I don't know.

These two problems may simply be flukes to which only my TV suffers. Also, keep in mind that I am a videophile perfectionist and my reviews for such products are strict.

I have had the tv for about 6 months now. It has a great picture! I generally use my surround sound when it is on. I have Dish Network HDTV and get some local channels that broadcast in HDTV too thanks to the 811 receiver. You will never go back to "regular" tv again.

This HDTV Monitor is worth every penny, it shows a clear bright picture, and it takes up little room, easy to setup and use.
Football, movies, or just good old TV....all looks better through this.....enjoy.....I am

I placed an order for a Toshiba 40H80 on July 8th and my television arrived just a few days later on July 12th. There was no physical damage to the box, but after opening it and plugging it in the TV would not turn on. Although the television never worked Toshiba said they do not have a policy of replacing products. They will only repair a defective item. I called every authorized service center in my area (one was on vacation) and the other two were both working on another Toshiba widescreen HDTV doing the same thing as mine (power light comes on solid for a few seconds and then blinks - no sound, no picture)and could not figure out what the problem was. My television could not be picked up by a service center until July 23rd at which point the technician told me that based on his experiences dealing with Toshiba it would be optimistic of me to hope my TV would be back in my home, working, in two weeks. Still, regardless of the fact that my TV never worked and should not be expected to work a month after it was delivered, Toshiba refuses to send a replacement. Eventually the TV will be repaired and brought back to my house. I will have a broken machine that has been hauled out of my apartment, down a flight of stairs, strapped to a trailer with no packing materials, driven across town, REFURBISHED, and then made the same trip back into my apartment. I paid for a new machine and will have a beat-up, refurbished machine. Toshiba is not interested. I would like to include impressions on picture and sound quality, etc....maybe in a couple of months, eh?

Ok, I know that the title is harsh and I don't intend to be mean, but if these people have problems with the picture they must be lame. I have had my 40H80 for over 2 years and it has been absolutely flawless.
The most critical thing with any RP set is to converge the colors and set up the tv properly. After the initial convergence was done the set held a perfect picture. Only after I had to move the set did the picture need to be re-adjusted. My buddies Mitsubishi needs converging every couple of weeks. The Toshiba filters and mirror assemblies are the highest quality available for a set under $6k.
I have a High Def DirecTV set up and when tuned to HDNet or the PBS HiDef feeds every single person who has seen it is blown away. Even my buddy who has the top of the line Mitsubishi projection admits that the true color and viewing angle are better with the Toshiba.
I cannot recommend this set enough.
There are no weaknesses with the Toshiba. If you do not like the stretched image of an NTSC feed, then you can just keep it on 4:3 format. But when there is a quality DVD in widescreen with 5.1 sound or a true Hi Def feed, you will be blown away. The only downside is that you will never be able to enjoy a lesser picture again, like at bars, neighbors, etc.
Hope this helps. Research knowledgable resources before you buy any electronic item! Never rely on a salesperson or their opinion!

I love this television. The picture quality is incredible, the sound is great. The size is perfect for me - I live in an apartment with a smallish sized living room, so there isn't this monstrosity taking up every inch available. It is easy to operate, and the instruction manual couldn't be easier. The different picture modes really make it adaptable to my preference. great buy.

I wouldn't buy another JVC product if they were the only company on Earth. I purchased my TV in Nov of 2002. It had to have a part replaced in Feb 2003! Of course, it had to go in the shop for two weeks until the part they ordered was received.

In all, there have been about 5 service calls, with 2 trips to the shop.

First, the TV would shut itself off. No, I didn't have the AutoOff function turned on. Then we noticed the clock was way off all the time (it would lose several minutes a day). Then, sometimes when we turned the TV on, there would be sound with no picture. We had to unplug the TV for several minutes, then try again.

Finally, after all that, the TV appeared to be fine, until recently when we noticed the menu would go all pink. The picture was fine, just the menu was off. I was afraid this was a symptom of a larger problem, so I made yet another service call. Once again, the TV is in the shop, and has been since Dec 1st.

Now my initial warranty period is over. I expressed concern to JVC but, in typical fashion, they spouted the company line.

Question: how many times does the TV have to break before JVC realizes that they sold me a lemon and should replace it?

Warning: never buy from JVC. They are crap.

A beautiful machine, we spent days doing our research and decided on this model. The size is perfect, the picture is outstanding. The only drawback is the gaurd does give off some glare. We stood back and watched the customers go by it, to see what the reaction to this model would be, they stopped everytime to watch this model in action!
Watching DVD's is a whole new experience and an exciting one!

I've recently purchased this rear projection television and I'm very impressed to say the least. I've owned a Samsung 40 rear projection prior to this, which was also a very good TV, but nothing compared to this JVC bad boy. Some nice features include a DVI jack for future (some present) digital connections, a center channel input (although I've tried it and the sound is less than acceptable, perhaps its my receiver), numerous multiscreen displays including dual tuning for split screen, and most importantly exceptional picture quality. I believe it's the internal line doubler that creates such sharp pictures, or so they say. The clarity is really astounding for a projection TV, and what's more, the clarity is not limited to HDTV broadcasts, but the picture on regular cable is amazing as well. Let's face it, most of us do not spend most of our TV viewing time having access to HDTV broadcasts and receivers. Albeit a fortunate handful, but for the rest of us this television has excellent picture quality across the board. I highly suggest watching the Monsters Inc. dvd with a player using component connections. The clarity is breathtaking, many picutres truly appear to be 3 dimensional. But instead of relying solely on reviews, go out to your local electronics store, and take a look for yourself at this television against other manufacturers. And don't listen to large chain store electronics sales employees, they don't know what they're talking about. Happy shopping!

My Panasonic PT-51HX40 broke in just over 2 years. It is $500 to fix and the repairman says that the problem with the amplifiers and resisters on Panasonic TVs are common. Why no recall? Avoid big screen panasonics!!!!

This Tv is incredible! I was having an extremely hard time trying to decide whether I should get HDTV ready or just buy it all in one. After debating and shopping for several hours, I had it narrowed down to 2 different tvs. I decided on the 51 inch rather than the 56 inch because the 56 would not fit into the bedroom. I have a pretty killer set up in my bedroom, after spending about an hour rehooking up everything, I turned on the tv and was truly amazed by the picture quality. As I was watching the Fast and the Furious on DVD I was like baffled I felt as if I was there! The component video cables deliver the sharpest picture I have seen! These cables put the S-Video to shame! I mean yah they run like 60 bucks for high quality monster component video cables but are highly reccomended with this tv. I totally give this tv a 5 stars. In short this tv is worth every penny! Im completely happy with the product! This makes my bachelor pad complete with the High Def in the bedroom!!! Thanks to this TV I am LIVING IT UP~!!!!

This Tv is incredible! I was having an extremely hard time trying to decide whether I should get HDTV ready or just buy it all in one. After debating and shopping for several hours, I had it narrowed down to 2 different tvs. I decided on the 51 inch rather than the 56 inch because the 56 would not fit into the bedroom. I have a pretty killer set up in my bedroom, after spending about an hour rehooking up everything, I turned on the tv and was truly amazed by the picture quality. As I was watching the Fast and the Furious on DVD I was like baffled I felt as if I was there! The component video cables deliver the sharpest picture I have seen! These cables put the S-Video to shame! I mean yah they run like [amt] for high quality monster component video cables but are highly reccomended with this tv. I totally give this tv a 5 stars. If you're a single guy and have this tv in your bedroom I mean nothing else would say living it up!

Cabinet a beauty and pix quality great, but I have had continued service problems with my unit. First the convergence was a problem, In house service attended twice to fix. The screen saver has bowed and does not fix well. On Oscar night the unit stopped working and I have been waiting over two weeks to a part. Poor quality and poor service from Pioneer. The unit has been out of service more than in service.

If I could do it over again, I would go with the Mitsubishi. I saw them physically next to eachother in a store and knew I had made a mistake. The Elite is really nice though and very functional, the only serious irritant being the "gray bars" on the side of a 4:3 standard TV signal (because the screen is actually 16:9 - wide screen). I called Pioneer and asked if there were any possible way of getting rid of them and they said "why would you want to?" My response was of course "would you like to watch a movie with gray bars on the top and bottom?" Alas, you cannot change the gray bars. That being said, this is a great TV with very sharp images when watching DVD's. But, if you plan on watching alot of VIDEO TAPES -DO NOT GET A REAR-PROJECTION TV! They are un-watchable, grainy and just all around horrible. Something about a picture tube (a regular TV) makes tapes much more watchable. If you do plan on watching tapes, I recommend the Sony Wega 32", 36" or 40".

Couldn't be happier w/ this TV. Great picture and very reliable. Would recommend to anyone.

Bought my new Sony and in less than four weeks did not work. Calling Sony just left me with buzy signals. Finally got through and they gave me no help, finally got fixed and is broken again after 6 months........WON`T buy another Sony.....

The TV quality on this Projection TV is so good that I often forget it isn't a tube. Sony's are always superior in quality and this TV lives up to the Sony name.

Agonized for many months deciding on a rear projection TV formy house and compared just about every model available (except forHDTV models) and found the Sony KP-48V80 to be the best out there. Keep in mind that the picture quality is only as good as the incoming signal (many stores have projection TVs connected to DVD players only, be sure to view TV with other sources when comparing). True, the Sony is the most expensive analog for it's size out there but there's a reason for that. This TV can't be beat (except maybe by the XBR rear projection series). END

i saw the other review and was confused. our tv has a gorgeous picture and awesome sound (of course we hooked up 6 surrond sound sony tower speakers to it, with a dvd player too! ) we have only had the tv for a few weeks, so the other review kind of scares me. but everyone says hitachi is a superb brand... i even quizzed the online guys at 800.com about this brand and they say it is very good. this set has popping colors and a special dark black screen that seems to be more resistant to damage. we love it...price is so low i thought it was a mistake. great set...so big we had to completely rearrange our tv room - now that's my kind of problem!

I purchased our Hitachi 50" about 4 years ago and it has been great. No repairs. Everything we could have wanted in a projection tv. We did hook up a surround system and subwoofers though. We were so impressed we purchased a brand new Hitachi 50" Projection TV for the bedroom today. Now we own 2 and hope we have as good of a record with repairs as we did with the first one.

I have been looking for a projection tv for about 6 months, None have been have been the right price since now. I could not believe that I actually found a picture in picture projection with component video in. I Love it I mostly use with my dvd player and DSS system. Which is mostly digital picture. Another thing is that I was very anxious to get it so I called amazon and talk to a representative. They were so nice and gave me all the information I needed.

I found this TV to be way too much, the picture in picture musy run through a VCR, and the actuall picture it's self I found to be very blurry. However the sound quality from this TV is unbeatable

This tv, although I just got it the other day, is just about what you should expect from a $1500.00 60 inch television. It takes a while to fine tune the video controls to get the picture just right, but once you do, you'll be very happy with the $1500.00 you spent on it. This is Hitachi's introductory model and is just that. Although it lacks alot of the features of Hitachi's higher end models it performs quite well. I do, however, recommend getting a plastic shield for it. This will do two things, 1: protect it from just about anything and 2: get rid of the lines that you see and greatly improve clarity. It also has a number of inputs on the back including a set of component video jacks which is great if you have dvd player. I've added a Toshiba 6109c dvd player with integrated 250 watt DolbyDigital 5.1 and DTS decoder to it. Plus a set of Klipsch Quintet speakers. All in all for the money, this is the best buy in town. You can't find a 60 inch anywhere near the quality of this one for this price. I would definately recommend it to anyone in the market for a quality projection television. If you have a little more cash, you should probably upgrade to Hitachi's SBX model, which incorporates and auto-convegience system and a included protective shield.

Although we had to take off the "automatic" controls for picture - this 60" is just as sharp as our 36" at 8'. We have added some rear channel speakers which did not improve much on the already excellent surround sound. This is really a 2 - 3 room TV -- you can watch it from anywhere you can see it. The only draw back is you must have a VCR for P.I.P. but for the price it cannot be beat!

The only problem I have with this TV is that when in compnent 1 HDTV mode through charter I have to keep it in the cool 1 color setting. If I don't the color gets real bright then real dark in and out. Other then that this TV is great no complaints exspecailly for the (970) price tag I bought it at!!!!!!

I do not have a problem changing the aspect ratio on progressive scan DVD's as a previous rater suggests. The one catch I had was that this TV has two sets of component jacks (Red-Blue-Green and two audio jacks). The CATCH is that component 2 cannot be used for DVD. Hence, our Digital TV box (Comcast Cable) must be used in component 2 and the DVD must be hooked up to component 1. This was not in the manual. Also, when I put my cable in component 2, it did not work until I hooked up a DVI cable from the TV to the comcast box. Not sure why. But looks great all the same. I have a Panasonic progressive scan DVD and typically set the aspect ratio of the TV to "DVD" which allows me to adjust the screen to take up the entire screen. Looks fantastic in progressive scan DVD playing. HDTV, I guess it depends on the signal you are receiving, does not allow for changing of aspect ratio. The Masters golf tournament was awesome, although an LCD in HDTV would blow it away, it still makes HDTV worth the price. I get Phillies games on HDTV and I cannot change the aspect ratio (bar at top and bottom) and I dont think its the TV's fault. The Masters as in most HDTV stuff takes up the entire screen. I found everything else about this TV to be satisfactory, it is not as deep as some big screens and does not overtake a room. The small shelf it sits on that comes with the TV houses the Comcast box and probably would fit the DVD player but that is it. You will need to put your Sound Receiver and any other component elsewhere so be aware of that when you go out and spend money on cables. I use a DVI cable that came with a Dell flat screen and it works great. Monster DVI cable ($129!!) would be overkill. I also use GE componnent cables which had I gone with Monster brand cables all around I would have spent an extra $300!!

We have had problems with the tv, but have not had any problems getting it serviced. Works fine now.

With this tv you can have top of the line performance with out the top of the line price. I have had mine for a few months now, and I would recommend it to anyone. The ONLY reason I gave this tv 4 stars is because of the component inputs. It has 3, but 2 of them are dedicated to High Definition. Meaning ONLY high definition components can be used. (like HD satellite) DVD players are NOT High Definition! So really it is like only having 1 component input. Kind of a pain when I have my Playstation 2 hooked up using components. (recommended) Now there is no place for any dvd player. That is why I got Samsung's HD931. It has a DVI output that will go right into the DVI input in the back of my tv. (see what I mean about top of the line!)
The tv is simply great. I highly recommend getting satellite service, and the Samsung HD931 to take advantage of what this tv can do.
Good luck!

I have this TV paired up to a Samsung HD-953 DVI DVD player and the picture is terrific. This television is a beast, so make sure you do your measurements. It's a piece of furniture in its' own right. The set up is easy, and there are many, many useful inputs on the back. USE the DVI and you will achieve an excellent picture. This is a digital HDTV television, so the hardware interfaces much more positively with a digital input. I had one bit of trouble with the door on the bottom of the cabinet, and Samsung sent me the WHOLE door. I've had terrific experiences with their products in general. You cannot buy more television for this price.

i really like this giant tv good quality and price go and check it out for urself.