Philips 34PW850H 34" Digital Widescreen HD-Ready TV (Silver)
A Beautiful HDTV Set
I was just looking for a 28 - 32 in., analog, flat-screen set, , but in no time was I sold on a HDTV.  After some research on the Web, etc, I rejected the large, flashy Rear Projection Televisions, which in my opinion are only adequate for &#34;Sports Bars&#34; and the likes (and fall short in the area of picture resolution).  I was seduced by the Plasma, DLP projection and direct View LCD sets, but their prices are also very seductive.  In the end, the CRT sets still give the best reproduction of color and compete favorably with these new technologies, while at much lower prices.  I eventually settled for the Philips 34PW850H HD, 34-inch, Flat Screen TV.  The first thing I noticed was the elegant, Euro-design appearance of the TV.  The sleek, silver lines of the set will enhance any room when turned off.  Of course, when turned on, the crisp image displayed is quite remarkable.  But the improvement of HDTV signals over analog ones is the overwhelming majority of the enhancement in our viewing experience, when compared to any additional gain due to other display technologies.  I was a little apprehensive regarding the display of the standard analog channels, but there also, the quality of the images is outstanding.  Hooking up the Television.  Inputs. 3 A/V inputs (2 in the back, 1 on the side), 1 S-Video, 2 Components.  Output. 1 Monitor.  Picture modes. 7 screen viewing modes: Auto, 4:3, Zoom 14:9, Zoom 16:9, Subtitle zoom, Superwide, and Wide screen...  Picture enhancements: Autopicture (instantly optimized brightness, contrast, color, tint and sharpness settings with picture presets for Movies, Sports, Video games and weak signal reception), and a personal setting, the only option which can be changed.  Digital options. Choice between two different picture scanning modes: Progressive Scan and Interlaced (1050i)  Audio.  2 speakers, 20 watts  AudioSound.  3 factory-set control (Voice, Music, Theater,) and one adjustable control (Personal).  Surround sound.  &#34;Incredible Surround&#34; simulates surround from two channels. At least, this is what the manufacturer tells you.  &#34;Incredible&#34; in a sense of &#34;bad&#34; is more like what comes out of the speakers.  It defies credulity that such a beautiful set, producing such a beautiful picture, could produce such awful sounds.  I had to connect the audio output to a pair of hi fidelity speakers, via a small preamp/amp unit, to obtain the &#34;Incredible Surround&#34;&#34;.  There are a 3D Y/C digital comb filter and an invar shadow mask.  Clock, timers.  As far as I am concerned, a bedroom is to be used for two activities, and watching television is not one of them.  However, for those who enjoyed watching TV in bed, there are various controls, which allow one to go to sleep and wake up with the image/sound of the TV.  Remote control.  The &#34;universal&#34; remote is easy enough to use and versatile: it even lights up in the dark.  But &#34;universal&#34; it isn't.  It can only handle the TV set, although some buttons and switches would indicate otherwise.  The price of this unit was average for its size when I bought it in December, and since the end of the year, its price has come down somewhat.  All in all, the 34pw850h is a beautiful set (once the sound is fixed), well crafted, and with the Philips reputation for quality to back it up (at least in Europe). But because of the mediocre sound system, I can only give it a 4-star rating.  Note added June 5, 2007.  The TV still works as it did the first day I bought it.  In the meantime, I found it to be more versatile in certain areas, such as the different formats of the displayed picture, than any of the latest LCD or plasma sets. Note added June 6, 2008.  Ditto. Note added October 8, 2012.  Well, my TV is kind of small next to the prevailing TV sizes nowadays, but it STILL performs like 8 years ago, and of course, now it's in HD! Note added March 30, 2015.  I gave up and bought a 50 in. LED TV.  But the Philips TVworked flawlessly until the last minute!  It kind of broke my heart to let it go, but...it was so heavy!