TV Reviews

The RCA DS2122 satellite system has outstanding picture and sound quality. Wooo weee - loads of fun with huge amounts of channels to watch.

Downside is supscription prices similar to cable. Worth it for the quality of the pictures and selection.

Can't figure out where to put the soap. Still looking for the button labeled "do the dishes". Guess I still need a dishwasher.

Can this dish go from the freezer to the microwave to the table? I think this system should come with a digital chef or at least a cook book. Will your digital dishes taste as good as real food? Probably if you don't over cook them. Can't wait for digital spoon so I can eat.

This Directv system is wonderful. You can have access to all cable channels, also local channels through the same dish antenna without having to spend extra money for another dish. Also, going from one channel to another is very rapid compared to the other big company. But there is one thing that is not that great: if you live in a place where there is a lot of big storms, the signal will fade and eventually, you'll lose the signal for a few minutes. The samething will happen if you have a snow build up on the dish antenna. But besides that, the Directv RCA system is wonderful. Great value, sound and image!

For all you cheapskakes this is the system for you. It is very dependable.

ATI is not known for its driver development. The card performs well...but installation was a bear...drivers frequently did not work with other devices (USB USR modem for one) I have since upgraded to the 64meg, dual processor, rage and have found that to be a bit better. Dont know if I will buy an ATI card again though

My Compaq 5660 came with a 4mb ATI Rage Lt Pro, what a great board, it's no Charles Atlas mind you but it truly was the little engine that could, or at least tried every single time. But with todays high software demands, the little engine had to be retired to the round house, now his 32mb big brother rules the rails of my computer. I have friends that have spent weeks working around patching problems for their Voodoo boards and it seems everytime I log onto Lucas Arts and other software companies web-sites they're offering the latest patches for Voodoo products, thank God I stayed with a brand I used and trusted. The installation was a breeze (and I'm a computer idiot), visuals are stunning and the performance... well in one word, flawless. And can you believe it, ATI is the only board I could find that offered a TV composite out, great option. Seems Voodoo may have won the marketing battle but in my book, ATI has won the performance war. Bravo ATI, keep up this kind of effort in all the hardware you develope and I'll demand it in every system I buy.

This is a great card for the price. The Drivers are great, especially when you have the latest direct x from MS installed, as well as getting the latest from the web site (It worked fine out of the box with the drivers, but I think it is always best to have the most updated drivers for these cutting edge video cards!) The TV Out option is supreme, I have produced several videos with Adobe Premiere and exported to TV and they turned out great. Also if you ever want to play games out to TV they turn out great also. The Open GL and Direct X support have been superb. The latest games have been awesome looking with some fine resolution support. I can set the options to max settings for detail. I have njoyed this card the past 4 months. (specs I have-pent III 550mhz, AGP 4x, 20gb hd)

Good TV with excellent picture, hook up a progressive scan dvd player and it dosn't get any better. One thing to mention, this tv is advertised here and alot of other places as having a DVI input, IT DOES NOT. Hopefully this will change.

While this product is hailed for its glowing performance in clarity and picture (possessing 1280 horizontal scan lines) and Hitachi being a fine company - I think I should point out to those wary of statistical accuracy that it is listed here as having "DVI-HDCP input" but the downloadable owner manual listed directly below the aforementioned feature clearly shows the 43FWX20B model specifically as not being equipped with the "DVI-HDCP input."
As I have stated, the television is a statistical heavyweight in its class of rear-projection HDTVs but the DVI connection information is critical for those who are looking for that specific feature.

As a former salesman of big screens, this one is easily tied for my favorite with the Mitsubishi 46" HDTV widescreen. Mitsubishi has an edge on color and lighting, Hitatchi has the edge on clarity and overall realism due to the most lenses on the market.
First off, this TV is complex, yet simple. Plenty of features and inputs, but simple enough for anyone to use. The Magic focus is a great example. Hit one button and the TV automatically sets the convergence.
Next is the size. One needs to know the stand built for this TV sells seperatly...so that's one thing to consider before you buy. If you get the stand, you'll quickly notice how much easier it is moving a two piece system into your home instead of a solid one piece TV.
While small in comparision to a lot of HDTV's on the market, this TV still looks huge once you get it into your home. And with the quality of the picture, you'll be glad you didn't get a larger TV for the same price from some lower quality brand.
I'll admit, sound isn't the greatest. But if you're buying an HDTV, you should be investing in surround sound anyways.
Another huge feature this TV has that most brands don't is an auto refresh not found on earlier models and other brands. Basically, if you're watching something in 4:3 mode with bars on the side, the TV automatically refreshes the bars constantly so that they don't get burned into the screen. It's constant too so you don't even notice.
Overall, this is a great buy. Compare it to the Mitsubishi. Decide which is better for you. I can guarentee you won't be disappointed.

I purchased the AKAI "clone" of this set (confirmed with distributer it is in fact same set) and the first one exhibited some strange picture issues. Dark scenes would flash brighter then dimmer, color would change to purple on FOX yet the Samsung 1491 I have (little bro. to this one) did not nor did my Sanyo. Called a tech who looked at it scratched his head and confirmed the problems and said he would take it in for 2 weeks and put parts in it. So it was boxed and brought to Sam's and exchanged for a new one. New one still turned FOX purple (don't watch it much anyway) but other issue was not a problem. Mostly the picture was razor sharp and very pleasing. Was truly enjoying the set until the sound went wonky. Ignored it thinking it was the broadcast but it wasn't. Another trip to Sam's!
We decided enough was enough and bought a JVC 32260. Oddly enough in many ways I liked the Samsung/AKAI better but quality control was truly disappointing. I decided on the AKAI/Samsung because I was impressed with the 1491 I recently got, and I've been VERY impressed with my Samsung computer monitor. So these quality control issues truly disappointed and suprised me.
The JVC was easier to set up BTW for good picture and seems to be a very high qulaity product but as I said I still feel I'm missing something (I just don't enjoy it as much as I did the AKAI) when it worked.

With 800 lines of resolution and a flat screen, this 27 inch TV from Samsung is easily the leader of its pack. For those who dont know very much about the technical specs of TVs in this price range, most average roughly 600 lines of resolution. 800 is almost unheard of. The higher the resolution on a set, the better the clarity and crispness of it's picture. I can guarantee you that you will not find another non-HDTV 27 inch flat screen with better resolution.

Most people who dish out the extra bucks for a flat screen television also end up buying a nice home theater system, since the audio on televisions has never been known to output awe-inspiring results. A good flat screen television usually has 10 watts of audio power - sufficient, but like I stated, nothing spectacular. The Samsung TXL2791 has double that, with 20 watts. Still not home theater quality, but at twice as good as the other models in its pricerange, it is definately worth noting for those who do not wish to invest the extra few hundred dollars to improve the sound quality.

With 4 A/v Inputs (One being on the side of the set, towards the front), 1 S-video, and 1 component input, you are virtually assured an ample amount of connections for whatever devices you need to hookup to it.

The remote is simple, yet sufficient. Its a universal remote, so you are able to control your VCR as well.

Overall, I am completely satisfied with this television. (...)

I bought this TV three months ago. So far it has surpassed my expectations.

PROS
Quality - I compared the quality against the Sony, Toshiba, and Sharp and the difference was very little so I focused on the features. The flat pannel picture quality is great. When using with the DVD, the quality of the movie is so good that we are spending more time renting movies than going out. BTW, DVD makes a difference over VHS.

Sound - The sound is the difference of this TV. I did not want to spend additional money on speakers so I chose this one which has a pretty good sound. It has features such as sorround, etc. Not the greatest but it definately does its job for a room which is not that big.

Remote - The remote is very nice with the round button in the center that makes it easy to change channel or increase volume. Features such as predetermined options for different arrays of color (mild, custom, bright) etc makes it easy to change the color.

CONS
None so far

Actually, I cannot really elaborate any further on the rave reviews that this product has already received, except to express my extreme satisfaction with this purchase and to VERY HIGHLY recommend this superb television to those interested in acquiring what is definitely one of the best sets I've ever come across for such a "steal" of a price. Whether it is to be your primary or secondary televison set, grab one while they are still available!

My old 27" JVC gave out after several years (was a 2nd TV and not used all that much) and I was forced to do some research. I kept hearing the name Toshiba... So I thought I would try it (Sony was out of my price range). I've had it for 4 months now and couldn't be happier! I am in a rural area, using an antena and still get very sharp pictures. As an example how good the picture is: each year during the holidays I have the same group over and we watch an old video that we all enjoy. After the video was over several people mentioned how vivid the colors were and how sharp the picture was compared to other years! I have recently attached a VCR/DVD player to this TV and the picture is awsume! This TV is now my main TV and I plan on very soon buying a 32" Toshiba for a second TV.
Enough said, in closing, I think it's a great buy!

Bought this to replace my aging 15 year-old 26" NEC in my den. Didn't want a set with enhanced side speakers since an external receiver/sound system works 100x better. Was first interested in flat screen models; however, this Toshiba's screen is nearly flat, especially when compared to other brands with standard screens. In fact, the image looks better than some flat screens (not talking about flat panels - have a 20" one in the bedroom and it is awesome), which seem to have a concave image. Also, the flat screen TVs have larger overall dimensions. Picture is excellent and the component in works great with my DVD player. Front video is excellent with my Dreamcast. Audio out is connected to my receiver - not all brand models have an audio out. Bought at Best Buy for only $230 - not sure why some people have a beef with something they bought at Best Buy - they don't make the products. Anyway, well worth the money; especially when I had paid $600 for the NEC.

SOME OF MY SHOWS,WHETHER ITS A DIGITAL RECORDING,VCR TAPE OR LIVE TV,BLACKS OUT FOR AN INSTANT AND DOES IT EVERY TIME DURING THE 90210 SHOW INTRO.....PLUS THIS UNIT ALSO DOES NOT HAVE INTERNAL S-VIDEO SWITCHING,SO WHEN YOU HOOK IT UP COMPOSITE VIDEO NO LONGER WORKS.PLUS MOST CABLE BROADCASTS DONT HAVE A HIGH RESOLUTION SO THE PICTURE ONLY LOOKS GREAT ON SOME SHOWS.....PHOOOEY!

I purchased a 20 inch Toshiba about eight years ago and it is just as picture perfect as the day I brought it home. I considered buying a flat screen TV because the set faces the sun. Decided to wait for better deals on HDTVs or flat screens, but I'm perfectly happy with this model. A temporary adjustment is required to the antenna since I don't have satellite connected yet; the picture is a little grainy if you don't adjust the dial on the antenna. Once it's tuned, the color is very bold and the sound has good quality. DVD movies are awesome! Toshiba is an excellent manufacturer. Found very good deal on this purchase.

When I first purchased my toshiba tv I kind of knew what to expect, But when I first turned it on I was blown away, The colors was excellent, The picture was bright and clear without being blinding as some tvs are,The black level balances very well with the rest of the picture without giving the picture a murky look. So with a few small adjustments for my living room it was great.The sound was pure and clean and projects across the room very well, Even at higher volume levels the sound remains crisp and clear.For someone on a small budget this tv is priced at a good price too.I compared many brands(rca.jvc.sony)and they are all good tvs, But the toshiba has that little something extra that makes it stand out above all the others.So for price and quality I would recommend this tv above all the others.
I'M SOLD.

When it was time to purchase a new TV, I shopped around with the intent of getting something in the 32-35" range. I knew about Vega's, but thought they would be too expensive. However, once I saw this model I was hooked. The price was a bit higher than other models, but the picture quality was just incredible. The flat screen and rich color quality made other models look "conventional".

There are several other features on this TV that make it worth the extra money: - It offers a 16x9 enhanced mode that make DVD watching incredible. There is a very noticeable difference between watching DVDs with this feature and on a standard TV. - The "fake" surround sound is actually pretty good. I haven't picked up a true surround sound system and was pleased to find this TV manages to fake it quite well with just 2 speakers. It's really good enough for watching most movies. The only thing missing is deep bass.

So, in case you couldn't tell, I've been thrilled with this TV. For what you get the price is reasonable (especially if you can live without picture-in-picture, which this model doesn't have) If you're looking into this model (or any of the other Vega's for that matter) I would also recommend checking out the matching stands. They fit the TV perfectly and match the silver/grey color of the unit.

I love this TV. I recieved it as a Christmas gift and it is awesome. I don't have any problems with the sound as I have the sound run through my stereo surround system (Harmon Kardon). The picture is outstanding and I do not have the wave effect that some people have been experiancing. I had to return my first one because of damage during shipping, but it was worth the wait. Everyone is amazed at the picture quality. The menu is user friendly, it auto programs very fast, and it has enough video hookups to allow you to attach just about anything you want to . My only gripe with it is that it is ridiculously heavy and long (please measure the depth of the shelf you want to place it on). Overall, this is a great buy for the price.

My husband and I are not heavy TV watchers, but we watch a favorite show or two and lots of DVD movies (Netflix, anyone?)
Our Sony Wega 32" TV was one of our first purchases after moving into a new home, and it was an easy choice. We have a large room with a very high ceiling where we watch our Wega (with Bose Surround Sound speakers), and suffice it to say our place is THE place the family comes to watch new releases or favorite movies.

I have no complaints about the Wega. The unit is classy, the performance is unequalled to any other TV I've ever owned or watched, the picture is walk-into-the-scene sharp and the price was right.

The set I received had some problems. The user convergence of 9 point convergence, could not fix the edge convergence problems. The TV as it was originally received had screen tilt of about 3/4" to the right. The picture size was not adjusted to fit the screen (too big), and when picture was centered according to instruction manual, I noticed uneven presentation between left and right side of the screen.

I had service technican come out to fix the above noted problems. Technican found that he had to manually adjust the RGB guns as well as use the service screens(software adjustments were not enough), and even after gun was adjusted, the edge convergence was not very good. The 64 point convergence screen does not allow technican to adjust the bottom and the top row of cross-hairs(very strange). So, after all these adjustments, it looked better, but, still the convergence was not very good at the edges. When each gun displayed the grid separately, some of the gun could not be made to display straight lines on some of the lines, especially the bottom line.

I have other issues with this unit such as poor and insufficient manual, RF inputs that forgets channel memory when switching from cable to broadcast, and two RF input requirement of having same type of input (cannot have RF of cable, and regular broadcast), poor PIP adjustments/control etc.

But, basically, this unit is going back.

I recommend that you stay way from this unit. The factory settings were horribly out of spec. There must be QA problems at Panasonic. My experience with Panasonic has not been that great in recent years.

After several purchases of Panasonic, this will be my last.

When I bought this TV in fall '03 it was by far the best value for an HDTV. Value is very subjective. I moved up from a fairly low end 27" tube to this. Compared to that, the picture is great. Compared to plasmas and LCD (direct not projection), it is certainly flawed. From 10 feet away the difference is noticable but unimportant. The only time I am aware of picture flaws is during credits. For some people that might be important and if it is I suggest spending the big dollars for a plasma or direct view LCD (or wait).
For the rest of you, TV viewing habits are important. We do not watch TV (no cable, no antenna), just DVDs via a progressive scan player. 3 to 5 every week. If most of my viewing was regular (non-HD) TV, I don't think the widescreen would make sense (nor can I tell you anything about the built in tuner or PIP because we don't have a use for them).
I have yet to see another name brand HDTV of this size in the just under eleven hundred dollar range.
I'd recommend this set for those who plan to use it mainly for DVDs and/or get HD programming (cable/sat.) and are not videophiles. As an analogy, we moved from a used Ford Fiesta (or old 27") to this Honda Accord V6 but if you currently own a Corvette, you probably should look into a Ferrari. Makes sense?

I bought this TV three months ago and like everybody said before, TV has to be carefully adjust. This TV has a high contrast and default picture is too flashy, too much color but once ajusted, very very nice. Also, convergence is easy to setup with the nine points adjustment, but for best adjustment, better go into the service setup menu where you have a generated color bar where it is much more flexible to setup convergence instead of the nine points adjustment in the customer setup menu. Very happy with this TV and watching a DVD with it is simply unbelievable

I have owned this set since June 11, 2002. It first broke on January 4, 2003 and was not repaired until February 10. Samsung admitted they had 'parts availability problems.' Then, on July 6, 2003, it failed again and as of August 6, 2003, remains dark with again, 'parts availability problems.' Samsung can not promise me ANY date it will be working, can promise no date for delivery of parts and generally does not follow-up or return telephone calls. I have hired a lawyer since after $1800 - they have very poor customer and warranty service - spend the $200 and buy a Mitsubishi.

Let me point out first that I'm a former Sears employee who had to sell these things on a daily basis. And I say former so that no one thinks we're out for higher commission, because Samsung paid about the best.
The fact is, though they look great when working, these TV's just don't last. We actually had a Samsung rep/repairman tell us one time that they are notorious for blowing out almost exactly at the three year point.
Second, while the picture is bright and clear, Samsung uses no form of screen refresher. While this isn't a huge problem if you're watching widescreen DVD's or a high definition signal in 16:9 mode, prolonged viewing in 4:3 mode burns bars into the sides of the TV. Expecially since instead of black bars, Samsung uses gray bars.
In the end, you get what you pay for. There's a reason you pay more for TV's like Hitatchi, Sony, Mitsubishi, etc. If you must buy this TV though, do yourself a favor and get the extended warranty if it's offered. It will be worth whatever you spend on it.

THIS SAME SAMSUNG IS SOLD AT BEST BUY AND CIRCUT CITY FOR 300.00 LESS.

I purchased this in April. It is now mid-June and already the FM & TV signals have failed. Can only pull in AM ...which I never listen to! Have tried twice to contact the company (e- and snail-mail), but they don't seem to be listening and/or responding. Hoping to be able to submit a more positive review of their customer service and this product soon ...

Let me start out by saying I don't own a t.v..I do have 12 pocket sized radio's of assorted descriptions,,,,
I bought this one because c.crane said that it had the best am reception of any small radio ,it had a speaker,and it was digital, all of this looked appealing,,,
I live on the fringes of the Seattle radio market, AM is flakey here at best this little gem gets stations I dident even know about before and the FM is as good as any of my sonys.The other realy nice thing is that the battery life is much better than my other digital {a sony that ate two AA'S every three days}this one seems to go two weeks or so,maby because it only runs an hour if I forget to lock out the buttons and it gets bumped on in my bag ,the little speaker works well although it's size lets it get over run by any background noise, it sounds good and I was amazed that a 1"speaker could make that much sound
Now for the downers ,,, the offset earbuds: sounded good but I tye a knot in my cords so that the earpieces stay together then just ware one side so I can still hear whats going on around me, silly cords wouldent lay right,also the buttons are defenitly layed out for a right hander ,I'm a lefty so my thumb covers the readout when im serfing,,, now the only real complaint ,, the memery only changes foward, it can auto scan in reverse but there is no bouncing back and forth, to go back you have to set it to autoscan,then reverse the direction, then stop it when your selection comes around ,,,its quicker to just use the tuner ,I was realy bummed over that because that was why I wanted a digital
All in all I give it 4 stars,, its a realy nice little radio , sounds great,recieves everything,eats like a bird , and dont weigh much,,this is the most cash ive ever droped on a radio and after two months it still seems like it is worth it ,,,,, now if I could just get them to ask me about the buttons ,,,,,,,,,:),,,,<:3O~~~

This is my second of this model I have owned. I bought the first one at radio shack many years ago. I was afraid that I wasn't going to be able to replace it and was glad to see Amazon was carrying it.
It performs all functions well. The first one I had lasted for years and was put thru a lot of abuse. I even had the on/off control repaired at radio shack. The earbud connector is worn out on the first one from thousands times of removing the buds.

Besides function and size the most important feature to me is that it uses AA batteries. This size battery will last for may hours vs. another radio I had that used AAA batteries. I stay away from any electronic that uses AAA batteries, thay just don't last.