Samsung's Best HDTV's - Click Here
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- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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4.5 stars
"Surprisingly nice, great price & handy features"
Pros: LOTS of inputs, universal remote, good 'nuff picture, cheap!
Cons: An unproven brand. Regular and HD tuners have separate inputs
Summary: We bought a Magnavox 17" LCD tv with built-in DVD at Circuit City last year, and plunked down for the three-year warranty. Good thing, because after 11 months the DVD croaked. Circuit City took their own sweet time evaluating it (2+ weeks) but then gave us a store credit to replace it.
This Polaroid 26" costs less ($550 on sale at Circuit City) than the other TV did last year, and we like it much better. The picture, while maybe not quite as perfect as the Sony and Samsung models, is fine... especially when the TV cost $500 less than comparable-size models.
Some things really set this TV apart. It comes with a huge array of inputs, including a basic set of video/audio in on the right side of the monitor for easy access. It comes with both the component video and regular video cables in the box. It comes with a nice magnetic screwdriver for mounting the base.
Best of all is the remote control, which doubles as a universal remote to control your DVD, VCR, cable boxes and audio system. I easily configured it to control our JVC DVD player - the manual includes codes for a large number of manufacturers.
The remote is laid out very logically and feels like a quality piece. There are buttons to do the things you expect to be able to do, and they are located where you expect to find them. A quick-change button for the aspect ratio is nice.
I like that the audio-out is synchronized to the TV audio so I can control both at once. This makes muting for a phone call a one-button job. Some reviewers have criticized the audio. It is okay, but for watching movies I augment it with my stereo.
It is too bad that the regular TV tuner and the HD tuner have separate antenna connections. I will need to split my antenna signal to feed both. The HD tuner itself seems to do a bang-up job receiving stations in this marginal corner of NC.
It is obvious from this model that Polaroid is making a serious entry into the TV market. The features, ease of use, and quality are higher than expected for the price. A great value!
(I did plunk down again for the three-year warranty since longevity is yet to be proved. Even with the $140 warranty, though, this was much cheaper than Sony, etc.)
