The Bottom Line: Practical alternative to plasma: priced well below the stratosphere; comparable picture quality to plasma, equal on DVDs; longer lifetime; thin design is a huge bonus. Beware bulb problems!
photorick's Full Review: Sony Grand WEGA KF-42WE610 42 in. HDTV-Ready LCD T...
UPDATE, as of 12.31.2003: After 2 months of use, we've replaced the bulb in this TV twice (we're using a robust surge protector). It's been a warranty replacement, but it's still an inconvenience as it takes a week or so to get the warranty folks out to fix it. Sony has said on the phone that they are having a terrible time with the bulbs, the warranty people have said the same thing, and there are several web forums that detail out the problems, including: http://www.agoraquest.com/viewtopic.php?topic=11217&forum=34 and http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=e5df63e04d12b9f50c5b1ca4ac4bf634&threadid=344550. I would investigate before spending the bucks for this TV. It's still a great picture, but until Sony fixes the bulb problem, I'd stay away.
Original Post:
Now that I'm over the guilt of spending $2400 for a TV, the Sony 42" Wega is a fun addition to the home theatre, and must be at least 2-3 times the bargain of anything else out there. We began looking at Plasma/LCD flat panel because we needed something thin, but were giving up due to the insane prices.
We had made a list of priorities to keep us from going psycho at the electronics store: thin (we have a long, but shallow living room), light (refuse to hire movers to install a TV), HD-capable, and, most importantly, it had to have a GREAT picture for this amount of money. Quality of the built-in speakers was important, but secondary.
About the time we were giving up our search, we came across this thin Sony Wega projection TV that satisfied our list of priorties, and at a moderate price. With about 2 months of use, and even with its weaknesses, I'd still buy the Wega again. At times, it's mesmerizing.
Picture Quality: Using our DirecTV satellite hookup, picture quality on a standard signal is okay but nothing special. In fact, the Wega is not as good as most higher quality tube TVs on standard signals. Some shows look great, others, so-so where you can occasionally notice some blurry edges. Not a big deal to me, but worth mentioning. Now, put in a DVD, and watch out! Holy Canoli! We've watched a dozen or so DVDs - all with fantastic picture quality. The Matrix and Matrix reloaded were incredible. Put in any of the recent Disney releases (Lion King, Finding Nemo) and it's genuinely mesmerizing. In comparing to plasma, with the electronics store playing Monsters, Inc., plasma was no better than the Wega, and they cost 2-3 times as much. Plasma might have a little edge when playing non-animated films, but it's practically inperceptible, and definitely not worth the price difference.
Size/Design: This is what sealed the deal for us. We have a long but very shallow living room, and we needed something very thin. Flat panel would have been ideal, but not worth the cost. The Wega is 14.5" deep - much thinner than the comparable projection TVs. We also figured that even with a panel TV mounted to the wall, we'd need some space out from the wall for speakers, DVD, Receiver, etc. In the end, the Wega may take up about 10 inches more than a panel TV, and maybe 2-3 inches more than a panel TV with audio equipment stored below it. It is very light (the specs on Epinions.com is wrong; this TV is about 75 lbs) - even lighter than our 36" tube TV. As an extra benefit, it really is a striking design and looks great in the room.
Viewing Angle: As with most TVs of this type, the optimum viewing angle is directly in front. It's still good at a 45-degree angle, but starts to deteriorate after that. The picture looks good sitting or lying on the floor, but seems to have less tolerance for viewing from above. You'll want to pick out a TV stand that puts the Wega at about eye-level relative to your favorite viewing spot.
Features: Good viewing options. You can view any signal (TV, Satellite, movie) at 16:9, 4:3 and each configuration has a zoom option. Wide angle shows (e.g., West Wing) look great at 16:9; wide angle movies are even better - blows away the movie theater. It's HD-capable, but does not come with an HDTV decoder/receiver.
Sound: The built-in speakers are pretty good - better than most, but that's expected with Sony. But this TV is a waste of money if you're only planning to use it for normal TV watching; you'll get a better picture and save $1800 if you buy a decent tube TV. This TV is built to be the cornerstone of a home theatre system. I've had speaker systems ranging from a $2000 Bose system to a $300 Onkyo system - either will make all of the difference in enjoying the TV/theater setup.
Nuts & Bolts: Bad idea for casual TV watchers; a dream machine for home theatre enthusiasts; has to be the best bang-for-the-buck by a long margin and a no-brainer for anyone wanting a thin, wide-angle TV with a great picture at a sub-$3000 price.
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