Toshiba 26AV502R 26-Inch 720p LCD HDTV Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Note: I purchased this 26" LCD TV one week ago. As I am waiting for the cable company to upgrade my service, this set is simply receiving a standard cable signal without benefit of a converter box or High Def signal. Many LCD owners consider the signal source a major factor in image quality -- so I want to be clear on this point at the outset. Also, my DVD player is more than 5 years old and does not upconvert.
PROS:
Easy to install base pedestal. Four screws (provided) and a phillips head screwdriver are all that's needed. Instructions were clear and straight forward. Hooking up the coax cable took only a minute.
Superb remote control. Layout is intelligent and intuitive -- a pleasure to use. Glows in the dark (bright!) Sleep timer button is well placed on the upper corner and easy to access without even looking. Easily one the best designed remotes on the market and a pleasure to use.
Picture and sound set-up controls are very easy to understand. Owners manual instruction very clear and straightforward.
Sound is excellent. Very good quality and volume. Treble, Bass, and Balance controls are easy to use if you choose. For it's size and likely application -- a bedroom or a small den -- the sound is really quite good. This set has forward facing speakers -- not down firing as many LCD sets have.
Picture is fair to good. Live TV broadcasts such as news programs and talk shows appear brighter and with better, cleaner colors than movies -- especially films with dark scenes. DVD programs appear much better. (Please note again the standard coax cable signal source I am presently receiving)
2 HDMI inputs and multiple others. More than enough for most applications.
CONS:
Picture not as sharp as I would like, especially broadcast TV as opposed to DVD (standard DVD). Also, I am noticing scenes go from dark to light and back for no apparent reason. This could be due to a setting which may be improperly set .. but I've tried it both ways but see the same effect.
One other frustrating scenario for example: multiple camera shows. For example, a news program where you have an anchor in the studio and a reporter in the field. The anchor looks pretty good but the field reporter might look a bit green or orange. Other sets even this out, the Toshiba does not.
Conclusion:
For the money, this is probably the best value on a 26" LCD TV on the market today. Prices under $[...] are out there. If you are an "average" TV viewer, you may find this set to be just the ticket for your bedroom. But, if you have a critical eye, you may find the tuner or signal processing unit on this set a bit under par compared to Sony and Samsung -- perhaps more sophisticated technology, but which also carry price tags of $[...] and more higher.
Once I get a better cable signal, I may amend this review. Indeed, I will decide whether I am keeping the Toshiba or spending the extra money for the Samsung 26". So please "stay tuned".
UPDATE: Yesterday I installed a Panamax PM8-HT 8-Outlet Power Line Conditioner and Surge Protector. The image quality of this TV increased markedly! Panamax PM8-HT 8-Outlet Power Line Conditioner and Surge Protector

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26" widescreen HDTV (16:9 aspect ratio)
High-gloss black finish
Built-in digital (ATSC) and analog (NTSC) tuners for over-the-air TV broadcasts (antenna required)
Built-in QAM cable TV tuner receives unscrambled programs without a set-top box (cable service required)
CineSpeed 8-bit LCD panel (1366 x 768 pixels)
10-bit digital video processing
DynaLight dynamic backlight control for improved contrast and black level
Built-in stereo speakers (10 watts x 2)
multibrand remote control
picture settings memory for each video input
2 composite video (1 rear, 1 side)
1 S-video
2 component video (accepts signals up to 1080i)
2 HDMI (accepts signals up to 1080i)
PC input: analog RGB (D-Sub 15-pin)
RF input for antenna/cable signals
Optical digital audio output for Dolby Digital
Energy Star compliant (new standard)see our article on TV power consumption for more info about this and other testing standards
Detachable stand
Wall-mountable (bracket not included)
Dimensions: (WHD) 26-1/2 x 18 x 3-3/4 In.
Dimensions: (WHD on stand) 26-1/2 x 19-7/8 x 9-1/4 In.
Weight: 21.8 lbs. with stand
Warranty: 1 year parts & laborcarry-in service

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Sony Bravia L-Series KDL-26L5000 26-Inch 720p LCD HDTV, Black Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Bought to replace a smaller-screen TV in our bedroom. The larger size is much appreciated, but the quality of the picture is beyond any I've seen. We have had other LCD HDTV sets, but this one far exceeds the picture quality of our other sets. Easy to set up. I got a wall mount for this size set and the entire installation took just a few minutes. Highly recommended and worth the extra money.

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Sony Bravia L-Series HDTVs provide vivid 720p resolution and dynamic contrast ratios of 13,000:1 (the 26-inch model) and 13,000:1 (for 32-inch model), with several versatile sizes perfect for the budget-conscious consumer or anyone wanting an HDTV that works well in the bedroom, kitchen, or office. Bravia L-Series HDTVs have a wealth of HD connections, including three HDMI inputs. Each HDMI input transmits uncompressed digital video and multi-channel digital audio on a single cable, so you can expand your home theater system without a lot of messy wires. Also included is a PC input that lets you use your HDTV as a computer monitor. If you need to streamline your HD components further, the Bravia L-Series HDTVs feature Bravia Sync technology and are compatible with optional Bravia Link Modules such as the Bravia Wireless Link, which wirelessly streams HD video and audio from your A/V equipment to your HDTV from up to 65 feet away. You might expect that more features mean more power consumption, but Bravia L-Series HDTVs include a Dynamic Backlight Control which automatically controls overall image brightness to help the TV exceed ENERGY STAR 3.0 standards.

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Toshiba 26SL400U 26-Inch 720p Ultra Thin LED HDTV, Black Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I just got this tv a couple days ago, and its pretty nice. The picture is very bright when you take it out of the box, so you might want to dim the backlight some to reduce this, and save power too. The picture is great with this tv, the colors are great, and the led backlighting makes the dark areas real nice compared to regular lcd's which tend to have bright blacks. I hooked this up to my computer and it works great, it actually looked better than my 1080p computer monitor. One problem i had overall with this though is the speakers. They dont have much depth to them, they dont have much bass but have too much treble which I find a bit annoying. This tv works great for the bedroom, or if you hook it up to your computer too. Worth the buy!

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26" 720P 60Hz HD Ultra Thin LED TV

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VIZIO M261VP 26-Inch 1080p LED LCD HDTV with VIZIO Internet Application, Black Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Wanted a bedroom TV that had full 1080p, network interface and Yahoo! Widgets (or similar capabilities). Most other TV manufacturers offer this combination of features only in models of 40 inches or larger -- I wanted a smaller size for a simple bedroom TV.
First, the good things... Very nice picture that remains clear and viewable even from way off angle -- this is its strongest feature. Also, the built-in Yahoo! Widgets include being able to view movies or listen to music ordered from services such as Netflix and Pandora without an outboard box. Further, one of the Widgets brings in TV Guide over the Internet, which is helpful if your cable company can't seem to successfully transmit a TV Guide (or similar function) over their own cable. I also found the remote control to actually be pretty good in the sense that the different buttons are of different shapes and sizes that you can actually find the correct buttons to push by touch without looking at them.
Second, the OK thing... I have to echo, to some extent, some of the other reviews that criticize the audio -- it's not really that bad, but I've had other LCD TVs of similar size that did better. I must say, though, that the audio is clear, so you won't find yourself unable to understand what someone is saying when they're speaking softly, and the speakers output a full enough range that you won't find yourself wondering where an instrument disappeared to when listening to a piece of music. I have encountered other small TVs (both old CRT types and current-day LCD types) that have had audio far, far worse than this -- some were so bad that the whole casing of the TV would vibrate when certain instruments were played in a piece of music -- this TV definitely does not have anything like that problem.
Third, the problem... It actually crashes! This has to be the weirdest thing I've ever experienced or have ever said about a TV, but this thing actually crashes to the extent that it completely ignores the remote and its built-in button controls, and can only be brought back under control by unplugging it! I'm guessing, but I think it's a simple case of overheating, because the crashes occur after it's been on for a number of hours to the point where the back side feels awfully hot. The heat is a little surprising, since this is an edge-lit LED TV, and not one that uses CCFL backlighting. Also, it doesn't seem to matter whether you use any of the Widget applications, or not -- the crashing occurs even when you do nothing more than feed it video from a cable box or other source. So, the crashing doesn't seem to be precipitated by running any particular Widget application.
Fourth, some missing information... It is not made clear on Vizio's website or even if you download a PDF of the user's manual, but this TV comes with an external brick-type power supply. This item caught me by surprise as most LCD TVs of this size (in my experience) have the power supply built in. This is not a big deal, unless you intend to wall-mount it, in which case, you'll need to decide what to do with the brick power supply.
All-in-all, I would be perfectly happy with this TV if I didn't occasionally need to unplug it in order to bring it back from crashing. It's this weird crashing behavior that is actually causing me to consider returning it.


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VIZIO's M261VP 26" RazorLED LCD HDTV with VIZIO Internet Apps puts the best of the web right on your TV screen, giving you the convenience of on-demand movies, TV shows, social networking, music, photos and more at the push of a button. Setup and use is easy with the M261VP's built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi and standard Ethernet connection to the Internet. It also features RazorLED backlighting for brilliant clarity in a razor thin design that is only 1.34" without its stand.
An amazingly slim 1.34" HDTV profile.

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VIZIO M260VA 26-Inch Class RazorLED 720p LCD HDTV, Black Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I bought this Vizio because I needed a decent sized tv that was relatively cheap but would also fit into a dorm room. The picture quality is excellent and the difference between this tv's 720p and other 1080p is negligible. At first colors looked a little washed out on my 360 but after fiddling with the tv/xbox settings it now looks superb. The size of the tv is also nice...it is lightweight and is super slim. The only thing that could be improved on is the speakers which imo are still a lot better than most tv's in this price range/size. It sounds a little hollow and could use more bass but overall it isn't too bad (it helps to turn off srs surround and switch to rock equalizer). Volume also isn't too big of an issue with this tv like on other tv's since this has front facing speakers as opposed to rear speakers. There is also very little lag or ghosting at 8ms and 60ghz refresh rates. Highly recommended if you are looking for a tv that is cost efficient and has good picture quality.

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With only a 0.86" thin profile and a maximum depth 2.37", the VIZIO M260VA RazorLED 26-inch LCD HDTV offers crystal clear images, brilliant color, rich detail and deep contrast - all in a sleek razor thin design with black and white bezel color options. This LED backlit LCD HDTV also includes a digital ambient light sensor ensuring that you will always have the best picture and most efficient energy savings by adjusting the brightness based on the lighting conditions of your room. Enjoy ultimate connectivity with two HDMI inputs and when you're not watching TV, the M260VA can be used as a digital picture frame to enjoy a slideshow with your family and friends.
An amazing 0.86" ultra thin profile at its thinest point.

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