my first LCD television (non-DLP)
Written: Dec 20 '08
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Pros: Very good value, from a high quality manufacturer.
Cons: Sound quality could be better.
The Bottom Line: A brand to be reckoned with, offering good quality for outstanding prices. The only TV manufacturer I would say that about.
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| dalesky's Full Review: Vizio VX32L 32 in. TV |
I believe that many people think Vizio is a 2nd rate company. Their lower price points are not due to lower quality however. Vizio has had the goal of producing the most LCD sets in the world. They already have met that goal, and should stay there fairly easily. It is that goal, not lower quality that drives the prices for Vizio. The owner is a Chinese American by the way, with headquarters in Irvine CA. Their products are aimed at giving good value at a good price. I just wanted to clear that up before beginning my review.
I purchased this set about one and a half years ago. Since then of course the price has dropped quite a bit. My philosophy when buying almost anything electronic is to not look back. Get the best price you can, and never regret not having waited for a lower price. That aside, I have absolutely nothing to regret about this purchase. It has always performed like new.
This size TV is not that well suited for HD viewing. Here's why I say that-- Yes, you can certainly tell a difference between High Def (HD) and Standard Def (SD), but at this size the picture just doesn't impress like a larger screen will. When I hooked up an HD satellite box the picture was definitely better than it had been when using a non-HD box. At a comfortable viewing distance of about 10 feet though, the screen is just a bit small to really appreciate the high quality picture. The standard definition picture is impressive though.
When I 1st got this set I did buy an upconverting DVD player, and connected it via the HDMI cable to the TV. Now, that gives almost any DVD movie a nice picture! Near HD quality, good sound, and easy hook up.
Upconverting refers to the ability of a DVD player to electronically enhance a regular DVD (not Blue Ray) to HD quality. In fact, upconverting creates a picture with higher resolution than this TV actually supports. More on that later.
HDMI refers to a single cable that carries all of the audio and video information. Before HDMI the best you could do was with 5 separate cables, called component hookup. 2 of the 5 cables were for sound, and 3 for video. With HDMI it just was made much simpler, and allows the highest quality picture and sound.
Just a couple of words about HDMI cables- They Are All The Same! Do not waste your money on expensive name brands. Try monoprice.com or amazon.com for good pricing. Less than 2 years ago you could buy cheap cables almost anywhere, but every retailer has increased prices dramatically, knowing that everyone now need them.
The response time isn't the quickest, but again, with this small size it really won't be noticeable. It is 8ms, compared to many sets today that are in the 3-5 range. This refers to the speed with which a screen displays movement. It also is not the highest resolution, with 720P, instead of 1080P. This is a measure of the number of the lines of resolution, and higher is better, but again, larger screens do make a difference. 720P is where high definition starts, so if you have an HD signal you will see a wonderful picture. Many lab test reports I have read of LCD sets show that almost no one is able to tell the difference between 720P and 1080P.
Speaking of lab tests, many comparison reviews say that the Vizio 32 inch is a good value, but not a stand out TV, picture-wise, with a decent but not great picture. I personally have been very satisfied overall, and when viewing an HD signal quite impressed. DVDs are wonderful on this unit, at least with an upconverting player.
If you have a choice of input resolution, choose the 720P over 1081i. The 720P is actually HD, while the 1080i is not. the i refers to interlacing, and the way that works is that only half of the signal is on the screen at any one time, so it cannot be an HD image.
As to specifics about this TV: The VX32L has plenty of inputs, including two HDMI, two composite, one S-Video, two sets of components, and VGA. The on-screen menus are easy to navigate with the remote control.
There are also separate RGB controls for custom color settings. The unit offers picture-in-picture display, and it has channel, power and volume buttons on the front, and a set of inputs on the side, particularly handy for a game console. You are able to zoom the picture, and freeze it. Setting adjustments for picture and sound are quite comprehensive, with more than most of us will need I suspect. Sometimes a lot is made about these adjustments, but the average user won't typically care, in my experience. I have not found the sound enhancements to be useful.
In a nutshell, (albeit a rather large one), here are the specs-
Supported TV Formats 1080i, 720p, 720i, 480p, 480i
Native Panel Resolution: 1366 x 768
Supported PC Resolutions
1366 x 768, 1024 x 768, 854 x 480, 800 x 600
Panel Type: 32" Diagonal*, 16:9 Wide Screen,
Color TFT Active Matrix LCD Panel
Anti-Static and hard coated surface
Pixel/Dot Pitch: 0.51mm (H) x 0.17mm (V)
Display Compatibility: HDTV (1080i) Signal Compatibility: 480i (SDTV), 480P (EDTV), 720P (HDTV), 1080i (HDTV), 1080P (Full HD) Response Time: 8 ms
(typical) Colors: 16.7 million Brightness: 500 cd/m2 (typical)
Contrast Ratio: 1200:1 (Typical) Viewable Angle: 178° (horizontal and vertical)
Inputs
RF (F Connector for internal tuner): 1
HDMI with HDCP: 2
Analog Stereo Audio for HDMI Inputs: 1
Component YPbPr plus Stereo Audio: 2
Composite Video: 2
S-Video plus Stereo Audio: 1
Computer RGB plus Stereo Audio: 1
Service Port: 1
Outputs
Analog Audio out (RCA): 1
5.1 SPDIF Digital Optical Audio: 1
Headphone (Stereo Mini-Jack): 0
Closed Caption (CC) V-Chip 3D Comb Filter Zoom
Freeze, thru Component YPbPr, VGA or HDMI
HDTV: , thru HDMI or Component YPbPr
Computer: 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768 , 1366x768 via RGB
Sound enhancement:
Color Temperature: 6500K (standard), 5400K and 9300K
Color Fine Tuning: Independent Red, Green and Blue
Audio: Built-in 10W x 2
Lamp (LCD) / Panel (PDP) Life: 60000 hours
Removable Base VIZIO Warranty One Year Parts & Labor Free Lifetime Technical Support
You may find this model has changed since these reviews began, with the current model being VW32L. The look of the set has changed a little since the reviewed model first came out. I find the latest version to be nicer looking than this one.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 600
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Epinions.com ID:
dalesky
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Location: Murrells Inlet South Carolina
Reviews written: 133
Trusted by: 11 members
About Me:
Love to cook, explore the Internet, read and watch movies on DVD. Ain't technology Grand?
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