I've had HDTV in my home off and on since 2000. In 2002, I got a 27-inch LCD flatscreen TV that I used with a set-top tuner to receive off-the-air HDTV broadcasts. It worked pretty well and I still use this setup in my bedroom. However, a 27-inch TV is a little small for viewing HD broadcasts and I also wanted to take advantage of improvements in receiver technology.

I therefore replaced my old HD setup with the Vizio Gallevia GV47L 47-inch LCD TV. I bought it at Costco with a great coupon for $1,650, which is far less than any other 1080P set that I researched. The GV47L is now selling for $1,699 at Costco, without a coupon. This is a great price for a 1080P HDTV.

What It Is

The Vizio GV47L is huge! It has a 47-inch (diagonal) flat LCD screen, perched above a removable speaker system. The whole thing is supported by a table mount; a wall-mount bracket is optional. The Vizio GV47L has a feature that I waited to get: It can display signals from 1080P sources, which is the highest form of HDTV that you can get in your home today. I'll have more about this in a moment.

The Vizio GV47L has a lot of useful inputs, including two digital HDMI inputs. It also has component video and VGA inputs for other forms of HD signals. In addition, it has a few analog video and S-video inputs. For sound, the Vizio GV47L has stereo speakers and a 20-Watt subwoofer.

The box and the specifications state that this is a 1080P display, with resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. However, for computer inputs, the maximum resolution is 1366 x 768, which I found a little disappointing. I was hoping this would display computer images at 1680 x 1050, as that would make for an excellent image. No such luck, however.

The screen refresh rate is specified as 8 milliseconds, which is fairly quick. I don't really see any on-screen ghosting from fast-moving images on the Vizio GV47L that would be caused by a too-slow refresh rate. I do see such artifacts on my older 27-inch display.

I have not actually used this TV to display a 1080P signal yet, since I don't have a suitable source. Again, more about this in a moment.

How It Works

Oh my god, this thing makes closeups of people look so big they scare my cats. I receive off-the-air HD signals, which works great on the GV47L. Its digital tuner (referred to as ATSC after the Advanced Television Standards Committee) is much better than the ATSC tuner in my old set-top box and there is only occasional breakup and signal loss. Most of the time, the HDTV images are the best pictures I have ever seen in my home.

Despite this being the latest generation of ATSC tuner and the fact that I have a good-quality rooftop antenna and live no more than 15 miles from several digital television transmitters, I still occasionally get severe digital breakup on some channels, rendering them unwatchable. This seems to vary with the weather. However, most times I can watch a network program in HD (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, PBS, etc.) with little or no signal loss.

HD images on the Vizio GV47L are clear and bright -- if you haven't seen a good HD setup, you don't realize what you are missing. I have the TV right next to a big picture window and the GV47L has no problems dealing with daylight. Another reviewer complained that the black level was not low enough but it is fine on my unit. I am by trade a television engineer, so analyzing picture and sound quality is my job. No consumer display is perfect but I'm delighted with the pictures I get on the GV47L.

Colors are strong and the contrast is sharp as a tack with a typical HD signal. The GV47L has excellent controls for the display and I found that the factory settings were not to my taste -- they had too much color and contrast. I set up my own setting and the GV47L has now held this properly for more than five months.

I've been watching HDTV for many years and have an insider's understanding of how the technology works. Some signals are going to look pixelated and blocky if there is lots of fast motion and the entire image is moving. There are not enough bits in the digital transmission stream to prevent blockiness if most of the picture is changing. I do see such blockiness on the Vizio GV47L, just as I see it on other HD sets. However, the level of blockiness on the GV47L is no better or worse than any other decent set out there.

The unit's sound is mostly good, except that there is a low-level buzz in the audio whenever the TV is on. Using the on-screen menu, I can switch the speakers off, which I do when using my surround-sound system. However, I use the TV's speakers for most off-air viewing, and that means this soft buzz is present. It's not a big bother but it will really annoy some people. The internal subwoofer doesn't really go deep but the overall sound balance is natural and pleasant for typical TV viewing. You will want a home-theater system for really serious audio impact.

Standard definition images look pretty good on the Vizio GV47L but not nearly as good as HD images. Standard definition looks fine when watching a station's digital signal and it is transmitting a standard definition signal. Switching to analog reception at that point brings up a picture that is noticeably lower quality.

The unit's remote control is a little fussy about the angle it works at, and I could not get this so-called "universal" remote to work with any other of my components. The remote also has LOTS of tiny buttons, most of which are lettered with low-contrast legends. As soon as a button is pushed, all buttons light up and are much easier to read, but the backlight turns off quickly, usually before I find the button I was looking for. If you're a baby boomer and are finding it hard to focus up close, you won't be thrilled with the GV47L's remote control.


There are several forms of high-definition TV available today. The highest form is called 1080P, for 1,080 horizontal lines that are progressively scanned. The only way to get this image format today is to use a high-definition DVD player, and I don't have one of those. Off-air signals are either 1080i (for "interlaced") or 720p, both of which look excellent on the Vizio GV47L. It switches among these formats seamlessly, too. And it's good to know that I can get a 1080P DVD player in the future and it will work with this Vizio TV.

December 24, 2008 Update:

I have been using the Vizio GV47L for nearly two years and it continues to work very well. My only persistent complaint is the low-level audio buzz that I mentioned above. Otherwise, this TV is just about perfect.

February 1, 2010 Update:

I've now had this TV for three years and I use it for at least three hours a day, often more. It still looks and works great, and I have no desire to trade up to something with newer technology. It still has the same audio buzz but it really doesn't bother me much. I continue to be very pleased with the Vizio GV47L and I'm glad I've had it all these years.

Summary

Believe it or not, it was my wife who lobbied for a 47-inch LCD TV. I'm now glad that I have the Vizio GV47L, as it has worked very well for my five months of ownership and it looks beautiful.

I downrate it only for the low-level audio buzz that I get, as well as the somewhat frustrating remote control. Otherwise, I strongly recommend the Vizio GV47L 47-inch 1080P LCD TV.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 1,650