My Sony 57" Big Screen Projection Television KP-57HW40! Why It Is Terrific!
Written: May 16 '02
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Pros: Clear picture, many features, attractive
Cons: Expensive
The Bottom Line: Sony has done it again, with an excellent product and a great picture.
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| sweetsue_98's Full Review: Sony KP-57HW40 57 in. TV |
Only one other time did we have a “big screen” television, and it had been left in a house that we purchased. It was an older model, had a poor picture, and when we sold the house we left it for the new owners. When shopping for a new home, I became rather fascinated with the huge television we saw in the house that we recently purchased. Since there was a second family room, perfect for this “media” room, I was hot for the program to get one, as the 19” TV that was ours didn’t quite fill the bill.
We discussed our priorities, and decided we would go shopping. Previously when we had looked at them, we always thought that Sony had the best picture, so our inclinations were leaning in that direction. We visited a local electronics store, and all of the big HDTV’s were in one area, with a beautiful video playing of Nova Scotia. The salesman was helpful, but we decided to look some more. After looking at several stores, we had the serious discussion to go home and talk about it. There was no point in making a hasty decision.
We actually had settled on the 51” version of this model, but when I called the other store that had a large selection of Sony televisions, the price difference to move up to the 57” was only about $250, so we decided to take the plunge and “go for it”. They would deliver for free and set it up complete with a Sony DVD player, which I will review at a later time.
The big day came! My first reaction was “how are you going to get this down stairs?” I was assured that there was no problem, and before I knew it, they had it all hooked up and were giving me instructions on operating it.
My second reaction, after how physically big the TV was, moved to how large a 57” wide screen actually is. I would recommend that this be put in a large room for best viewing.
Some of the main features that convinced us to make this purchase were:
1. It is the wide screen with the 16.9 aspect ratio. Although there are some better prices on the big screen TVs, the wide one, with the HDVD becoming the standard in the next few years, we wanted the right shape of screen.
2. Sony has the best picture in my opinion. Part of this outstanding picture resolution can be attributed to the Hi-Scan 1080i Chassis, which I have already discussed is HD ready, and projects six times the picture detail of your regular televisions. No doubt you will notice the difference even when you are not watching a DVD.
3. CineMotion is an attribute that give you smooth picture movement for movie playing.
4. If you want to watch two programs at once, the Twin View feature lets you have two programs side by side. Although one is more than enough for me, some people might want to watch two football games at the same time, and this would work perfectly.
5. The sound system is TruSurround™ Virtual Dolby® Surround Sound Audio Effect with speakers in the front and back of the base unit. There is also a Steady Sound feature which insures that you don’t get those loud burst of sound when a commercial comes on.
6. We do not have any small children, but for those of you that do the Parental Control feature lets parents block inappropriate shows.
7. The remote control is one that looks more complicated than our cell phone, and the buttons do glow in the dark. We actually use the remote currently only to turn the TV on and off, as the remote for the digital TV box operates the channels. You can however, do just about anything with this remote from muting, to setting the sleep control, adjust the volume, display your favorite programs, set up for playing video games, and turning on and off the “twin view” feature. This is one elaborate remote control that does everything. When the television was set up in our home, it was left on the “factory settings” and we have not had a need to change anything at this time.
Most people that are going to be looking for a new big wide screen HDTV will not want every detail about this system, nor understand them. The most important thing is that this television is an excellent product, it is attractive in the room and does stand alone, so there is no need for any “entertainment center type furniture“. It has a terrific picture, and even better when watching a DVD. We are 100% satisfied, very happy that we got the 57“ versus the 51“. The television weighs 168 pounds, and measures W/H/D52 1/4" x 54 1/8" x 27 1/4".
I want to add that when you go shopping, try and stay away from the “fast sell” type stores with the music blaring. This is an expensive purchase and you want to let the television sell itself by looking at the quality of the picture. Take your time, ask questions, and then go home and think about it.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $2500
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sweetsue_98
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