Cheap Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 52XF550U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV Discount Review Shop
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I have searched far and wide for the "perfect" LCD HDTV for at least 2 years, and there isn't one. If you think you've found one then do not go searching for Reviews -- and stay away from the heavily-active Forums that discuss these items because you will become discouraged.
The first problem is in knowing what to look for. The next is in knowing what to avoid. The third is figuring out if any of this matters to you, in your situation, for your specific needs.
This Toshiba 52" is the latest iteration of their top-line products. And if you're into minimalism, it's a stunner. The bezel is amazingly thin compared to other sets. Advantage? It allows you to fit a larger screen into your available space, if the conditions are right.
But, ah -- the catch! Next out will be Toshiba's super-light, super-thin sets that are 2" less thick. Can you wait yet another year? You'll never defat the "What's Next" Catch-22.
It has every major feature you could think of, but I won't go into the merits of these because you'll soon find that beauty and "merit" are in the eye of the beholder. If you want easy setup, this TV has it. HDMI? It has 3 inputs and one output. Nice Black Levels -- definitely, yes. Great color accuracy out-of-the-box -- yes... to my eyes. I'm sure a professional reviewer will find fault with this compared to the Pioneer Kuro excellent line of plasmas.
Like every other set, does it come from the factory over-tweaked? Yes. It will take some research to fine-tune the picture. The darn conrtrast and backlight were set at 100% -- which hurt my eyes terribly in a dark room. Is every LCD perfectly glare-free? -- not this one. The reflections of overhead lights are annoying (like reflections off Scotch "Magic Transparent Tape"), but softer than any Plasma or Glass-fronted screen I've seen. The speakers on this set are nearly invisible and perfectly adequate (much more so than my 37" Sharp).
If you insist on looking into the nitty-gritty, please note that -- at this time -- I've been unable to find any professional Reviews on this set. And it's been out there in limited quantities for a few months. Finding it locally may be difficult. Why? Because the guys in the know are snatching these up as fast as inventory comes into stock. My purchase from Beach Audio was very easy and they communicated very well. But they are, technically, not an authorized Reseller. Their Distributor and Amazon both are, and I've been reassured that Toshiba will not simply walk away from their Warranty.
UltimateAVMag.com is working on a professional Review, right now -- due out shortly. AVSForum has a raging online discussion that has most people very excited about this set -- and it has gone on for months with some great insights and advice (even tweaking tips on how to squeeze out the best picture) -- and no "This kills the deal!" discoveries, as happens on so many other seemingly worthwhile sets. These participants are not pansies. They'll eat your lunch when it comes to discussing esoterica about these sets that you never knew existed.
But beware! These Forum settings can destroy the unprepared or uneducated casual visitor by nitpicking the least-likely of all problems, and blowing it completely out of proportion to most viewers experiences. Sometimes, you'll wonder if these participants ever enjoy anything! Ahhh, the joys of fanaticism! Having said that, it is perhaps especially telling about this model that they have not found too many Achilles' Heels... yet. Not too many people actually own this set (I do). When they hit the big consumer stream, this may all change as newer sets rise to the occasion. You cannot stop progress.
When turned to no picture, my set displays "brighter" dark regions in every corner. Some guys find that unacceptable, but I've only ever seen a true black on a Pioneer plasma. And I've never noticed these regions while watching any video or TV images. If these types of revelations bother you -- DO NOT VISIT AVSFORUM!! Your enjoyment of ANY set may be doomed if you read these discussions too deeply. Or if you have a thin skin.
Biggest observation I can offer...
If this is your first "big" HDTV, please beware -- the bigger you go, the worst your "normal" TV channels will look. Unless you invest in a Video Scaler (several thousands of dollars, although Gefen has one coming for HDTV that runs about 0) or an Audio-Video Receiver that includes an upscale HQV Processor (such as Onkyo's TX-SR875, at slightly over ,000), you will NEVER improve regular programming by buying a fancier or larger set. Most homeowners not versed in resolution and scaling issues will be frustrated and angry about this. I think it will become the Number One misleading "thing they never mentioned in the store" -- where they probably only ever viewed demo discs of Blu-Ray movie clips.
You buy an HDTV for viewing HDTV content. NOT for improving SD or sub-par video or compressed cable source material. Blu-Ray movies will be so darned perfect, you may cancel your cable and FIOS and satellite movie bundles and decide to only rent Blu-Ray discs through great services such as Netflix. Local or piped-in HD stations will vary in quality. The good ones will knock your socks off -- but poor video sources are MADE WORSE by large and expensive HDTVs, just as they are by the cheap ones. A few of these do offer better video processors, but there is no easy source to look at, telling you which ones they are. That's where the Forums do help -- some of these guys rip their sets apart and tell you which processors they found inside. Remember I mentioned the word "fanaticism"??
This Toshiba is one of the best LCDs available, so far (at least, until the professional reviews come out telling us Early-Adopters that we're wrong). So stay tuned...
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Cheap "Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 52XF550U 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV" Discount Review Shop
