Vizio L32 32-Inch Widescreen HD-Ready Flat-Panel LCD TV
Happy so far
Updated on Dec-26-2007 - Not much updated from the original review.    This review is for the 32\\" Vizio LCD bought in late June 2006.  4 stars because I have used it for 2 weeks (6-10 hours every day) and the TV has performed well so far. Have to see how it does in the next 3-6 months.    Overall, I felt it was the best combination of features I wanted and the price I wanted to pay; + the promised at-home technical support (they have to come through on that).    My Buying Criteria + Review:  ---------------------------    1.) Less than $1000  Prices in the ~30\\" size have dropped significantly in the last 1 year that I felt confident that manufacturers have taken in decent profits on early releases.  2.) 'Decent' size  Since most (probably all) sub-$1000 HDTV's are not 1080p yet, I wanted to buy a TV that I could later move into my bedroom (and not crowd it with a humongous wall filler) once 1080p TV's are cheaper.  3.) HD/ATSC Tuner   I am not planning to get cable for the next few months; can't get satellite (north facing apt). Hence, I need the HD tuner to get over the air (ota) signals. Also bought a Terk HD antenna for that.  4.) VGA input (called RGB on Vizio)  Plan to use my PC as a media server to watch home movies, listen to my mp3 collection and ocassionally surf on the net. The PIP/PBP combination of VGA with other inputs is restricted. This TV can't do PIP/PBP of VGA with ota signals. Viewing RGB & HD OTA won't happen until the TV's have multiple HD tuners.  5.) PIP and Picture-By-Picture (PBP)  A little disappointing that although the Vizio has both, it restricts the combination of inputs allowed in using PIP & PBP.  6.) Variety of inputs, especially HDMI  Would've been nicer if they used DVI instead of VGA for PC input.  7.) No dead pixel policy  8.) Simple instructions/diagram for connecting components    Surprises (may apply to other HDTV's too):  ---------  1. Speaker quality a lot better than I expected. Haven't connected my home theater system to this yet.  2. Looks - silver-black finish is nice, speakers at bottom are less distracting than side speakers. Black border of TV around screen area means that when the content does not fill up screen it blends in with black borders of content. (for ads, widescreen aspect ratio, standard definition channels...)  3. At 40lbs, I can move it around the house very conveniently.  4. Number and quality of over the air (ota) HD and SD digital channels.   5. Remote Control - decently designed, unlike my Yamaha Amp/Tuner, Sony/Aiwa DVD Players. Would've been nicer if it was backlit or had some fluorescent coating.