Canon Puts Efficiency On Press
-
"I was smart to buy the larger set!!!" on by joecaro
Pros: Picture clarity excellent from 10 or more feet away.
Cons: No objections yet.
Summary: I purchased this unit 3+ weeks ago and have it connected to regular digital Dish, and local HD signals. I'm certainly not a vidiophile so all the technical stuff is lost on me. I can say that the local HD signals are outstandingly crisp and clear, and the Dish signals are outstanding, though a little less crisp, but clear and pleasing. I am happy with the color, and the sound. I do not see the distortion when looking at the picture from the side, even when I am way off to the side. The picture and color is consistent, although when one gets way off to the side the picture fades, but I am not going to be viewing from such an extreme angle anyway.
When I compared this side by side with other brands, and the 42inch Vizio, which I originally went to buy, the 46 incher, in my opinion, was as clear and crisp and true as the 42 incher, and compared favorably with other brands, except a Sony model, which turned out to be a 1080p set and a 40 incher.
I would say, that it you were going to sit very close to the set then you might notice the advantage of the 1080 models in the 46 inch size, but it seemed that from about 12 to 15 feet away there was no major difference visible to me, other than the 1080 set seemed marginally brighter, but was more than twice the price .
I am more than pleased with it. -
"You get What you Pay For!" on by TooMuchTech
Pros: Super Price - Big Screen - Super Bright
Cons: Contrast & Blacks are Horrible, Crackles & Pops!
Summary: This LCD was a Bargain. After much research, I got mine for $1,699 at Costco (they were running a $200 off coupon from normal $1,899 price). Got it home and suffered only a minor back injury from carrying up my stairs.
I bought a LCD instead of a Plasma becaus I have a very bright environment -- lots of windows. And this LCD is bright! When I turn it on at night, the whole room glows. However, the blacks are very poor. I think a problem with LCD is that light leaks through the pixels and blacks are never super black -- and the resulting contrast is poor. When the kids are watching cartoons -- this TV is awesome. When I am watching movies or darker atmosphere TV shows - you miss out on A LOT of detail as the darker spectrum is super muddy. One thing I have learned - good contrast is just about the most important thing for watching movies, and this LCD TV lacks. Oddly, it also crackles and pops for about 5 minutes every time I turn it on. I assume it is warming-up, but it is annoying. But it is cheap! So if saving a few hundred dollars is worth more than seeing every detail - especially in darker atmosphered features - go fot it. -
"If you are looking to buy a 40"+ LCD TV stop reading now and go to the store now to buy this." on by feadog00
Pros: Picture quality, price, easy zoom modes, flexility w/ speakers, great look
Cons: no fiber optic audio input.
Summary: Take CNET's review with a grain of salt. If it doesn't say Panasonic or Pioneer it can not be a good TV to them. The company is in it's infancy and I think that scares CNET reviewers away from giving it a proper review. I recently viewed this TV as Sam's Club and recommended it to my parents who were in the market for a 42-50 flat screen tv. I had originally suggested a plasma for picture quality but after viewing this at the store I strongly recommended this LCD for the low glare . I installed the TV yesterday with only standard definition DirecTV and progressive scan DVD player. I was impressed by the quality of the standard def picture. No it was not perfect, but any time a standard definition picture is stretched beyond 36" you should expect some degradation. Channels showing college football that were obviously filmed in high defination looked great. Popped in one of the Lost Season 1 dvd's to check out the DVD picture quality and was floored. DirecTV is installing the High Def next week. I would give the TV a 10, but I have not seen it show a high def picture, but could only imagine the quality. Anyone who is in the market for a LCD or Plasma 42"-50" should strongly consider going with this model. $1700 at Costco with coupon (got the last one 4 days before the sale ended. One of the employee's said that Vizio can not make the TV's fast enough to keep the store stocked). And if you buy it from Costco and are not happy with it just return it for a full refund. It's a no risk purchase, but I can almost guarantee you won't return it. The only question you should have with this TV is to get the 42" or 46". If you are less than 10' from the viewing area I would suggest the 42" anything further I would suggest the 46". The 46" unit provides a great middle ground when a 42" is too small and a 50" is too big (situation my parents faced).
-
"Great Picture, Great Features, Great sound" on by Supratrboo
Pros: Sound Quality, Picture Quality, Price, Clarity , Viewing in Bright enviroment
Cons: None that I have found
Summary: This one of the best HD units that you can purchase for the money. I was considering the purchase of the P50HDTV plasma from Vizio but with a brightly lit room this served me better. The picture quality, viewing angle, inputs, sound quality rival that of a $5000.00 Pioneer Unit. I would highly recommend this model to anyone looking for a great HDTV.
-
"2nd Rate TV; Spend the Extra $$ and buy a Sony or Samsung" on by SizRoch
Pros: Price and Nice Hardware to Look at (when turned off)
Cons: Too Many to List
Summary: For someone who simply wants to use, say, cable TV and connect directly to the coax connector (without a set-top-box or using component cables), this is not a bad TV if you don't end up having any problems. For everyone else, steer clear.
The user reviews are good here, but, I would imagine that the good feel about the price is overshadowing the deficiencies of the unit. Here are my observations after using the set for a few weeks:
1. Vizio as a company is 2nd rate. I wrote what I felt is a fair review (better that this one here) on the Vizio GV46L. Vizio chose NOT to post it on their website. If you view the posts on their website, they are suspiciously hand-picked and all positive. That should be a clue about the mind-set of Vizio as a company.
2. Their tech support is beyond a joke. After attempting to call on several occasions during peak and non-peak hours, I have never been on hold for less than 1 hour and 45 minutes.
3. When you do finally get to talk to a tech support specialist, you realize that they have never even seen nor used the TV. They are researching a knowledge-base as they talk to you. Beyond a joke.
4. The specs say the Vizio GV46L will support both cable and OTA. True. However, you have to pick one or the other! Unbelievable. There is only ONE coax input. When talking to Vizio tech support, they are miffed why anyone would want both. Well, if you don't know, then ignore this deficiency; you just don't know what your missing especially if you're an NFL fan who can get games in multiple markets like within the DC/Balto markets.
5. Want to use one of the two HDMI connectors? Video works but NO AUDIO.
6. Sound - not bad; the sound actually exceeded my expectations. However, consistent with many of the other quirks of this unit, the lowest volume level can be too loud. This means the difference between a volume level of 0 (no sound) and 1 (the lowest level of sound) is greater than any other TV you've listened to. Quirky.
7. There are too many quirks within the unit to mention. For example, there is the ability to have picture-in-picture where you can select the audio of either the main pic or the smaller pic. If you select the smaller pic, you can't adjust the volume (but you can mute it). Quirky.
8. The reports of snap, crackle, and pop when the unit is turned on and off are true. The condition gets worse (not better as Vizio wants you to believe) over time.
9. If you set the backlight to low, the unit hums. Vizio says they're working on it; but, indicative of the low quality that went into this unit.
Bottom Line: If you are technically competent, you'll regret getting this set; especially since 1080p sets are now hitting the market. The price of the GV46L is tempting; but, for me this set is going back. I rarely agree with CNET's reviews, but, on this one they were actually generous. The Sony and Samsung 1080p units are priced way to high right now, but, I suggest waiting until they drop. And, they will dramatically over the next few months as other competitors offer the same features.
To Vizio Management: You deserve credit for coming a long way and competing in a tough market; but, integrity needs to be part of your mission. When a customer posts a review on your website; post it. Otherwise, they'll expose you. When your competitors are including multiple coax inputs, understand why instead of thinking you're smarter than everyone else; you missed the boat on this one BIG TIME. Improve and TEST your inputs and menuing system; eliminate the quirks. And, fix your tech support by adding customer support and knowledgeable tech support staff. Your price point is excellent; but you have some things to fix. This post should be a topic of your next boardroom meeting.
Write a Review
