kingtj's Full Review: Zenith D52WLCD 52 in. HDTV-Ready TV
I bought one of these sets a little over 1 year ago at Best Buy, because it was the largest screen TV I could find in my price range at the time (around $1100). I'm not sure if this model is manufactured anymore, but RCA seems to offer several very slight variations of the same set under such models as the D52W23 or D52W20. (The D52W23 is currently on sale at Best Buy for only $899.)
I have to say that so far, my set has worked well for me - BUT, as I've researched the set quite a bit on the Internet, I've discovered that these RCA projection sets are very unreliable as a whole. HDTV repair technicians can regularly be seen quoting such things as "The RCA sets come in for repair more than any other brand I've seen." and "They use second-rate parts."
Given that, you may want to steer clear of one of these. But, if like I was, you're sucked in by the low price and features for the $, read on.
First of all, these RCA sets seem to have better than average sound quality. For me, that's not a really big issue because I run mine through a Dolby surround stereo system anyway. But if you're going to use it "stand alone", this set will have better audio than many projection sets on the market.
The chassis itself is fairly well thought-out too. It looks "slimmer and sleeker" than many projection sets I've seen, and is easy to move around the floor since it's on rolling casters. There's no need for an expensive "TV stand" either. (That seems to be a tactic to trick consumers into paying more than they think they're going to pay for a given big-screen TV. With many models out there, you need a $150 or so matching stand to raise the set to the viewing height you'd expect it to be at to watch it from your couch.)
Of course, the most important feature is the quality of the picture. In this area, I think this RCA does impressively well. There are a few smaller issues that may bother some people - but in my opinion, you need to be shopping for $3000+ sets, not sets around $1000, if you really expect to be rid of these "nitpicky" problems. (EG. Some folks complain that in certain circumstances, you see a bit of "shadowing" when a bright object moves along a mostly dark/black background on these RCA sets.) When watching DVDs or satellite TV though, most of my friends are very impressed by the brightness and clarity of the picture.
The only complaint I've had with my set is I have a 3 year old daughter, and she smeared a freezer pop or something similar on part of the screen. I figured it would be no problem to just wipe it off. Wrong! Mild soap and water didn't get it all off, and even Windex didn't seem to work. Now, I've got this "blotch" that's very visible in the middle of my screen against certain backgrounds - and really looks bad. Worse yet, it appears some water managed to drip down the screen and around to the back side of the plastic screen, leaving a stain/splotch on the bottom edge of the screen that won't go away.
I found that www.tritronics.com sells replacement parts, including screens, for this TV. But it looks like it's well over $350 to order another one, after shipping! Ouch!
I'm told that the D52W20 is the same as my D52W15 except with a "screen protector" over the front of the actual plastic screen. That's probably what I needed!
Replacement Projector Lamp for Panasonic Rear Projection Television. Works with Zenith RPTV models: D52WLCD, D60WLCD, E44W46LCD, E44W48LCD, M52W56LCD,...More at Laptops for Less, Inc.
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