Philips 42PFL3603D/27 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV
Designed for ease of use, this Flat TV features modern design, 3 HDMI connections, a powerful 1080p display and brilliant Pixel Plus HD engine. Making the smart choice in total picture quality has never been easier.
Philips 42PFL3603D/27 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV Accessories
Philips 42PFL3603D/27 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV Reviews
The Sony 40 inch I saw had an outstanding picture, maybe the best, but the Phillips was just as good and several hundred dollars less. Looked at several different LCD HD TV's. Great TV. I love watching sports in HD on this thing.
Sony, Samsung, Toshiba, Sharp. Went to Target, and Walmart to check out the TV's in person. Shopped online at Amazon, Best Buy, Circut City. The Phillips had the best price and as good a picture as any of the others.
Love it.
For example, turning closed captions on and off is a multi-step process; also, there are no dedicated buttons on the remote for each input so you must go through the menu system to switch and you cannot easily program a different remote to simplify this because the TV's menus start at a different spot (your last selection) each time. This is a fine, but not perfect, HTDV for the price. UPDATE: It seems that the TV has a total of four HDMI inputs, not three (as specified). Cons: Remote lacks some features, some loss of detail in dark areas. And one more small (positive) detail: if your A/V receiver lacks HDMI, you can send the digital audio signal from the TV back to the receiver via the TV's coax audio output; this is great because, for copy protection reasons, most hi-def sources like DVD players will not output digital audio (like Dolby Digital, for surround sound) on any additional connections if you're using the source's HDMI connection. But with this TV's digital audio output, you don't have to choose between using the source's HDMI output versus having good surround sound through your receiver you can have both. But overall it's still a fine TV for the price. Though I haven't tested all of them, I see three HDMI ports on the back and one on the side, and the menus show four separate HDMI choices (in addition to the various other inputs).
Summary: If you seek a 42" 1080p LCD by a major brand name and don't need all the high-end features (e.g., PiP, fancy upconverting, powerful surround sound), this is a handsome choice with fine picture quality and is among the very least expensive (under a thousand at the mart of Wal). But this bonus is balanced by several minor annoyances, like too few buttons on the remote, forcing you to go through the menu system for simple, common operations that older TVs handled with a single button push. Brightly-lit HD scenes look simply stunning. Pros: Price, 4 HDMI 1.3a inputs, true 1080p, bright, high-contrast picture, handsome unit. That's a very good thing.
The remote and the menu is really easy to navigate. It's slick, audio is great, almost no latency and the picture is awesome. This TV is the best I've seen on the market. I recommend it.
I'm not super-picky and can't tell some of the picture quality differences that other reviewers can. If I have any problems, I could just return the set. Even though its 178 degree viewing, the picture loses some luster at the extreme angles. I grew interested in the Philips because it was a new model, looked great in person, and was very affordable. I got the TV last week and it works great.
If not, I guess I'm going to have to a 1080p recorder. I purchased the TV from a major warehouse retailer where you have to pay for an annual membership. I get about a dozen HD channels over my antenna and the picture looks amazing when its a true HD signal. My Sylvania 27" analog TV finally bit the dust after 6 years. The picture looks great.
Only problem is sales tax and it came out to $1086 (CA charges 10 electronics waste fee). It looks nice in person and is much better than what I used to look at, so I'm pretty happy with my purchase. Most of the times, when i compare at the store, the brighter TV looks better to me. I'm getting a Phillips upconvert DVD player this week, so hopefully the DVD's will look better.
In fact its even sharper than my DVD player. If you plan on watching the TV from 160 degrees, you might want to get something else. It was only $999 online, and I got free shipping and a 2 year extended warranty. Thanks to the federal government's tax stimulus check, I decided to be a good American and help the economy out and purchase a new flat screen TV.
Anyways, the side/off angle viewing is not as good as a Samsung. With the extra money I saved from not buying a Bravia for $1600, I could get a 27-32" LCD and put it in my bedroom or alternatively, buy a PS3 and a few games. The menu is okay, and the tv changes channels more quickly than the 46" Samsung 1080p and does a much better job with managing the audio levels.
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