Sony Bravia KDL-46S2000 46-Inch Flat Panel LCD HDTV
Great Sony LCD TV, made in Japan!
After researching, shopping around, and trying numerous LCD TVs, I decided to go with the Sony KDL46S2000.  <br />  <br />Some background on my shopping experience before I go into this TV. I first bought a Phillips 37\\" LCD from Costco in March for about $1800. It was OK but the picture wasn't that great. I returned it and bought a Sony 40\\" LCD (KDL40S2000) from Costco for $2350 last month. The picture was significantly better than the Phillips and I was pretty happy with it, except I wished it was a little bigger. Soon afterwards, I noticed that the price of the 46\\" Sony LCD (KDL46S2000) dropped significantly on Amazon. I waited a couple weeks until the price dropped further and finally bought it for $2550. I can't be happier with my choice.  <br />  <br />First of all, the KDL46S2000 is a lot bigger than its 40\\" sibling. More importantly, the 40\\" Sony that I bought from Costco was made in Mexico. After the KDL46S2000 arrived from Amazon, I was ecstatic to find out that it was made in Japan! Just that in itself was worth the extra $200 that I paid for it, not to mention the extra 6\\". It is extremely difficult to buy Sony electronics in the US that are actually made in Japan these days, and I'm really happy that this one is made in Japan. All the other TVs I've looked at, like the Sharp 45\\", are made in Mexico.  <br />  <br />As far as picture quality is concerned, I compared this TV to the Samsung 46\\" and the Sharp 45\\" at Circuit City and I liked the Sony the best. Samsung's colors are too strong and I don't like the piano black frame since it reflects like a mirror. Sharp's colors looked better than the Sony but the picture didn't seem as sharp to me.  <br />  <br />Comparing connectors, Sharp had the best combination of connectors (2xHDMI, 2xcomponent). Sony only has 1 HDMI and 2 component videos, which is barely enough by today's standards and will probably be a problem in the future. An extra HDMI would have been perfect but at least Sony has a PC input that can be used as component video, especially on gaming consoles like the Xbox 360 (you just need the right cable). Samsung has 2 HDMI but only 1 component video, which is not any better.  <br />  <br />The Sony remote was a little disappointing since my old Wega Trinitron has a better looking remote, but I guess most LCD remotes look pretty bad anyway. Still, Sony could have made it look better. At least its functionality is very intuitive. <br />  <br />Another weakness on this TV is that you can't change aspect ratio (the wide display options) when displaying HD signals from the HDMI. I'm not sure if you can do this on the Sharp or the Samsung.  <br />  <br />In conclusion, the KDL46S2000 is not perfect, but I think at $2550, it's the best buy out there right now. The fact that it is made in Japan just makes it that much better. Sony is coming out with the KDL46V2500 next month, which offers full HD (1080p) and has 2 HDMI inputs with pretty the same looks as this TV. On paper, the KDL46V2500 is a lot more \\"perfect\\" than the KDL46S2000, but will likely costs at least $1000 more than the KDL46S2000. Sony already has the KDLXBR2 out, which costs even more. So if money is not an issue, I would go for one of the new full HD models. For me, I think the KDL46S2000 is perfect at $2550. In a few years, I'll get a bigger full HD model and put this one in my bedroom.