Toshiba 42H83 42-Inch TheaterWide HD High-Definition Projection TV
Fantastic value, and easy to set up even for novices
Thanks in great part to the helpful other reviewers on this site, we selected this set after about a year of research on HD-ready tv's.  Prior to checking this out, I'd looked mostly at flat-screen 36-40&quot; CRT's, but since most of the best-reviewed were Sony, and I've had bad recent experience with Sony electronics (an expensive 5-disc DVD player that completely died 1 month after the 1-year warranty expired...which I'm reading is all too typical these days), I decided to seriously consider alternatives.<br />My spouse &amp; I decided impulsively to toss our Christmas lists out the door last December and instead splurge on a big-screen tv as a mutual gift to each other; it was to replace our 10-year-old 27&quot; stereo Zenith CRT.  Having the reviews/specs in my head for the few models I'd narrowed to, we went to the showroom of a large local retailer who had dozens of brands and models so we could compare, and yes, as another reviewer noted, this Toshiba had the clearest, sharpest picture of any other RPTV's its size.  Though a bit concerned about the &quot;black&quot; issues of RP's that others have commented on, we just couldn't overlook the value for the price.  Plus, we have a very small space -- barely 12 feet from one wall to the other in the viewing area we favored -- and the narrow depth of RP's meant we could get a 42&quot; screen where with a CRT we'd probably have to go smaller.  (But it's true; there is a slight graying of the blacks, evident mostly on non-HD signals and from our PS2 when playing DVDs over its standard cables.  My spouse doesn't notice it.)<br />Right out of the box, we thought the picture looked great.  But, as another reviewer noted, it looked even better after playing with the foolishly-easy menus.  And it had stunning sound; crisp in the upper ranges (i.e. dialogue), solid midrange, and a rather surprisingly impressive bass.  We've since hooked it up through a new A/V receiver (Yamaha HTR-5650 -- very nice also, although a bit more brilliant &amp; less mid-rangey than I'm used to), and are even happier.<br />Pleasing remote, with larger, intuitively-grouped buttons, backlit.<br />As one of the other reviewers mentioned, there are several screen appearance settings, and I agree: The one that stretches the edges of non-HD images does so imperceptibly.  The tv knows when you switch to an HD station, and adjusts accordingly, so we leave it on that setting at all times.  Wonderful.<br />As for the glare that the disgruntled reviewer mentioned: We hate overhead lighting, especially in our viewing room, so we can't comment on that.  We have ambient, 40W incandescent lamps, one stationed above-right and others to the sides of the room.  (If you have overhead lighting, get a dimmer on the light and maybe that would solve the problem, if there is one.  Who wants to watch TV or a movie while there's an overhead light on, anyway? :-)<br />There are tons of hookups on the back of the set, so if we wanted to, we could hook VCR, DVD, PS2, cable, etc. directly to the tv instead of going through the A/V receiver.  We just ordered a Toshiba progressive-scan DVD player (&amp; of course component cables) from Amazon today, and can't wait to get it &amp; hook it up.  (We've been using our PS2 to play DVDs ever since our Sony DVD player died, and have been waiting for progressive-scans to come down in price before replacing it.)<br />And just wait 'til you see HD on this set!  Our local cable company provides an HD receiver &amp; the DVI cables &quot;free&quot; (well, their usurious monthly fees subsidize that), and we get several channels in HD.  Jaw-dropping clarity.  We'll even watch shows we have no interest in just to be transfixed by the amazing picture, and this unit with its great price is a fantastic, value-crammed way to experience HD.<br />Footnote: As mentioned before, this unit can shine as a stand-alone, but we have it hooked into a home-theatre setup that we've built over the years, that includesthe Yamaha HTR-5650 (which replaced an older Pioneer A/V), a DCM center speaker, 5-1/2&quot; Advent front speakers, Sony 5-1/2&quot; rear speakers, and a Sony SAWM500 subwoofer (overkill for our little room, but the smaller one was out of stock so we got a discount...being a Sony we are nervous whether it will last, because we love it -- rounded, customizable sound, great features including a 20Hz basement, good price).<br />One little watchout re the universal remote: Our cable box is labeled a &quot;Pace&quot; brand, which the Toshiba owner manual doesn't show as a programming option.  Closer scrutiny of the back of the box showed it was made by Pioneer, so I programmed the Toshiba remote for the Pioneer setting that successfully turned on/off the box.  Later we discovered it somehow squirrels the cable box when using certain commands, so that the standard cable picture was loused up, &amp; HD was completely deactivated.  (To correct, we'd have to disconnect the cable box from its power supply to reset it.) We've never had the problem again once we stopped using the Toshiba remote to control any cable-box functions on this hybrid, private-label box.the Yamaha HTR-5650 (which replaced an older Pioneer A/V), a DCM center speaker, 5-1/2&quot; Advent front speakers, Sony 5-1/2&quot; rear speakers, and a Sony SAWM500 subwoofer (overkill for our little room, but the smaller one was out of stock so we got a discount...being a Sony we are nervous whether it will last, because we love it -- rounded, customizable sound, great features including a 20Hz basement, good price).<br />One little watchout re the universal remote: Our cable box is labeled a &quot;Pace&quot; brand, which the Toshiba owner manual doesn't show as a programming option.  Closer scrutiny of the back of the box showed it was made by Pioneer, so I programmed the Toshiba remote for the Pioneer setting that successfully turned on/off the box.  Later we discovered it somehow squirrels the cable box when using certain commands, so that the standard cable picture was loused up, &amp; HD was completely deactivated.  (To correct, we'd have to disconnect the cable box from its power supply to reset it.) We've never had the problem again once we stopped using the Toshiba remote to control any cable-box functions on this hybrid, private-label box.