Toshiba 62HM195 62-Inch Diagonal Theaterwide Integrated (1080p) HD DLP Rear Projection TV
Avoid at all cost ...
We bought our 62HM195 on April 1, 2006 and received it on April 14, 2006. On August 4, 2006 (not even 4 months of normal use) the lamp of the set popped.<br /><br />On August 7, 2006, I reported the problem (particularly the disappearing picture and the shattering sound of glass inside the set) to Toshiba.  Adding insult to injury, the customer rep by the name of \\"Don\\" insisted that I must open the back of the TV, to make sure that the problem is really the lamp, before he can send me a replacement part. Luckily, upon further inquiry it turned out that I did not have to move the humongous paperweight from the entertainment unit, because days before my wife had already contacted Toshiba to complain about the set's dimming picture and that Toshiba already agreed to send us a replacement bulb.<br /><br />The TV is great when it is working.  But, Toshiba's \\"Xtreme BLAC technologies\\" is overrated. It is only fine when viewing bright scenes; when viewing dark scenes, it is awful because it degrades the contrast quality of the picture.<br /><br />This TV should be avoided at all cost.  From our experience, \\"Xtreme BLAC\\" really means nothing more than \\"absolute darkness resulting from a short-lived lamp.\\" Page 103 of the Owner's Manual estimates \\"The average useful service life for the lamp is approximately 8,000 hours in Low Power mode or 6,000 hours in High Bright mode.\\"  But based on the reviews of the product here at Amazon, this claim must be way overstated.<br /><br />Our set has practically always been in Low Power mode, thinking that it is the best way to stretch the life out of the bulb.  Our family is just an average TV user.  To disclose our viewer profile, we are a family of 4. I am a lawyer and my wife is a grade school teacher, leaving us no time to watch junk programming.  Our 2 kids also attend the highly gifted program of the LAUSD, so we highly discourage them to watch TV during the weekdays.