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RCA D52W23
RCA - D52W20 52" Theaterwide HDTV-Ready TV |
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Reviews:
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Will I end up giving up the quality for the price???
4 out of 5
Well, if you're reading this review, then it's probably because you're unsure about which TV to buy, or are unsure about weather or not you want to quote "give up the quality for the price." I know because I was in the same situation as you when I went out and bought this TV. I bought this TV about two years ago and it still has the same quality as when I bought it.
To be honest with you, this is not the exact model I bought. I bought the RCA D52W15B, but the only difference that I found when researching the two is that the D52W20 model has a protective screen over the actual screen and has a black strip at the bottom of the TV where as the RCA D52W15B doesn't have the protective screen and has a silver strip at the bottom instead. But what I have found with the protective screen coverings is that when there is light, the protective coating will reflect a glare when viewed at an angle. Without the protective coating, I can watch the T.V. with a 145° viewing range without any problems and still get a clear picture.
The picture quality on this HDTV is 1080i, which makes the viewing experience one that you and your guests will remember... that is if they don't have one themselves. ;) This TV seriously produces lifelike colors and clearly defined images. And along with the many picture enhancements, there is the scan velocity modulation for improved detail and auto convergence, which will keep the picture quality in focus. There are a lot more that I yet to have player around with, probably more than enough for the home theater experience.
One factor you need to take in to consideration when purchasing a DVD player if you plan to own this TV, is to make sure the DVD's quality will match up to the T.V. I don't recommend that you cheap out on the DVD player or you'll bring down the picture quality with it. The DVD player should at LEAST have component video outputs, and I recommend turning on progressive scan if the DVD player has it. Both the component video outputs and the progressive scan will really help increase the picture quality.
There are a lot of inputs that you can choose from to use. There is an antenna/cable input, two sets of standard A/V inputs, two S-video inputs, two sets of component video inputs, and a DVI-HDTV input. The inputs you should use to achieve the best picture quality are the component video inputs for the DVD player(s) and component or DVI-HDTV input for your cable or satellite. The other inputs seriously only decrease the picture quality from what it could be when it's at its best. Also you should keep in mind that when you use the component video inputs, that in order to use the inputs, that you have use component video cables. I recommend using the Monster Standard Cables, but I'm not saying you should buy the best ones they offer. I found some cheaper ones made by Monster Standard for around 20-40 dollars a cable, depending on length. (They sell ones at 120 to "who knows where" dollars a cable too)
As for the construction of this television, I found it to be quite durable and well designed. It might have a thin screen, but the screen or picture quality didn't get damaged when I took a slight fall into the main screen. What a scare for me... I freaked, but all was well... luckily. It was a slight accident I encountered when setting up our surround sound system. But don't try it... I wouldn't take the risk if I were you, and really wish that that hadn't happened. As for the plastic casing, which looks really slick, is also really durable. It might look thin, but its really well made.
One of the drawbacks that I noticed was that the picture quality seemed to decrease when I went from my DVD video inputs to my cable T.V. inputs, which I noticed a quite of my friends TV's did as well. After a bit of research, I learned that for this TV, if you don't have an HD receiver, this set will display 480p, but you can purchase an HD receiver, and then the content can be viewed in 1,080i. Quick fix really. But also keep in mind when viewing any station, that not all the stations have switched over to HDTV, so some, actually most, will not meet the best quality that this TV will produce.
There are a lot of screen choices that you can chose from other than the 16:9 format that the display is. But when the T.V. is in the standard format, 4:3, there are gray bars on the sides that are annoying. In order to enhance the picture quality, they should make them black to make the picture stand out more than the bars. Most wide screen TV's come with black bars.
Overall, I'm really happy with this TV. It's definitely worth the money to buy it. I would say on a five star rating scale I would give this TV a 4.30.
© 2005 - David Chen - All Right's Reserved
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Loved it until it quit......
3 out of 5
Up until 6 months ago I loved this TV. I've had it for a little over two years now and had always really enjoyed watching TV and especially DVDs on it. Was never really wowed by the picture but was certainly never dissapointed. I orginally picked this up as a starter HD/Widescreen TV because I'm really not in any position to take advantage of a serious theatre but thought this would hold me until then and be a really nice secondary TV for an living room or bedroom. Anyways, all was well until I woke up one moring and went to watch a movie and the TV wouldn't turn on. Thought my batteries in my remote were dead so I tried the power button on the TV and still nothing. I haven't watched it in 6 months b/c it won't turn on, I can't fix it myself and I'm 2 1/2 hrs from the nearest Service Center. Finding out now that this is a common occurence for this set and have been told that my best option would be to scrap it and buy a new TV from another company. Really dissapointed and dissenchanted at this point. Oh well, if you buy this TV I hope you have better luck then me.
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Major Problems
1 out of 5
The actual rating is actually a negative-negative star not only for the D52W20 but also for the Thomson customer service. First, the product after 4 months from purchase, the monitor failed. The TV would not turn on and the on/off switch would go through a cycling phase. Sent it to be repaired and found out the HO Transformer is defective. After another 8 months after the repair the same problem occurred with the transformer. I come to find out that this is a well known problem with this model and Thomson thus far refuses to rectify it. Dealing with Thomson customer care is just real bad. Do not buy especially from RCA/Thomson.
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I wish I could give this lower than 1 star...
1 out of 5
The set looked beautiful in the store, so I picked it up. Of course, I neglected to see the open/used/abused models at a discount price placed around the Home Theater section of the store. I go home, plug it in, and what happens? The screen/projector flickers! The color morphs in and out. The color balance, auto tuning, etc. can't do anything to cure the problem. I take it back to (censored store name) and then they told me that about 9/10 of this model get returned to their store for the same reason--HORRIBLE QUALITY! Save your money if you want a bigscreen TV... buy a Toshiba or a Mitsubishi for a long-life tv. Trust me!!!
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The worst service ever!
1 out of 5
I bought mine as a private label from Dish Network.
It developed a hum through the speakers in about 2 months after purchase.
I had to fight with Dish for repairs. First trip, wrong part. Service tech re assembled with old part, then no sound. 2 months later another service with "right" part. Board was installed, no sound. Reinstalled old board, no sound.
Tompson customer service was awfull, they told me to file a complaint against them.
Finally got them to take the set back, and replace with another.
It was a low price, and worth every penny of it.
Buyer beware, don't get this set!
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Buy at Amazon.com
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