I bought this tv for 25 bucks, after some haggling. I'm blown away by the picture quality. The fan sucks, but for 25 bucks I can deal with it.

Tube

Awfull build quality

I've owned my F38310 for 30 months and have had relatively little problem with it. Picture quality is good, far superior over any rear projection TV that I have seen. Last week my wife called me at work saying the TV was making a "beeping and whistling" sound and that there was a burning smell coming from it. I told her to unplug the set immediately. A service man came out the next day and made no secret of the fact that these TV's were a big mistake on the part of RCA. He went through the motions of checking a few things and then just removed the whole chassis to take it with them to the shop. Earlier today I received a repair estimate for $1,350! The DM1 module, which is basically the brain of this TV, is gone and needs to be replaced. For a TV that is not even 3 years old, that is absolutely unacceptable! I'm not sure yet how I am going to run with this, but I will put up a struggle before I get handed a bill that big. The amount exceeds 50% of the purchase value of the actual TV, which just boggles my mind. Maybe other owners are luckier and will never have this problem, but reading through the reviews here gives me little indication that this is an isolated problem.

dtv tuner, great picture (sometimes)

heavy as sin, fan running forever and ever, remote is weak and ugly and not lighted, horrible build quality, no outputs, and 1 set of componet inputs c'mon people get real!

i bought this tv over a year ago because it really impressed me at the store i used to work at. little did i know i paid $1,500 bucks for a piece of garbage! i will never ever ever ever ever buy any thing rca or related again! the fan is annoying like the ex-girlfriend you had (always there but never goes away) the weight on this thing is so heavy it crushed my entertainment center like a car driving over a pack of saltine crackers! the picture quality is good when the set works, now i have huge brightness problems, geometry problems and now a bunch of scan lines going across my set like there racing to the other side or something! i will try to get rid of this hunk of crap as soon as i can afford to buy a real tv! and as far as circuit city goes...dont shop there dont even drive by that place i got layed off from there in febuary 2003 because i was the best car stereo salesman in our store (now you tell me what sense does that make?) all of the employes where commisioned untill feb 2003 and on feb 5 the company laid off all of the best commisioned sales asscoites and the rest of the people who didnt get laid off went to hourly. please dont shop at circuit city the corporate management team is bunch of idiots!

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panasonic, hitachi (really like the hitachi, it was just too big) panasonic impressed me as well (no complaints from either one of those companies)

Value

Lousy quality.

I purchased this product from an online vendor on October 25, 2001. I purchased this TV for lots of reasons. Screen format, optical output, the ability to switch from off air antenna, to two cables, to DirecTV, a total of (1) component Video, (3) S-Video/Composite Video on the rear, and one Composite Video on the side. It's equipped with High Def. decoder in front of the off air and the built-in DirecTV Satellite receiver all for about $ 1,800.00. The price included the RCA’s somewhat heft TV stand and the $ 250.00 shipping charge. I connected two DVD players to the component video input on this TV through my Receiver. At the time I was subscribing toe AT&T cable. It took a while before I got permission from the Home Owner association for a roof mounted Dish. That by itself is a long story. My roof line is 48 feet off the ground. Obviously I could not wait till I got some High Def. programming. Meanwhile I watched a lot of DVDs specially “Superbit” format DVDs. This TV has a wonderful picture quality when everything is working. Anyhow, the screen format can be changed under most conditions, except for High Definition programming, and any programming fed through the Component Video input. Otherwise the image on the TV is identical to the source. After three weeks I noticed that the image on the screen did not correspond with the screen format of the DVD that I was playing at time. So I looked into the owner manual, on the Net, contacted Thomson Electric. Nobody knew. Not even the idiots at Thomson. The only thing that I noticed was that initially when everything worked, a 4:3 aspect ratio size blank grey image would appear in the center of the screen if the Component Video input was selected on TV, just before it detected the signal from the DVD player. Now the image is shifted to the left and has a very pronounced shadow. I did enjoy the High Def programming though, once I got the dish installed. Then, the images started to freeze, the TV would reboot itself, and it would cycle through the process over and over. So, I contacted Thompson Electric about the problem. They told me that the problem was a DirecTV issue. DirecTV in turn, check the cables and tested every thing. They even replaced the dish. This is a short version of the story by the way. Ultimately, I was referred to an RCA service center. When I talked with the service technician, he thought that he knew what was wrong with the TV. Anyhow, he showed up, took the back cover off and immediately pointed at the power supply module and three swollen capacitors. He said this was a common occurrence with this product. At this point I had been calling Thompson Electric and DirecTV for 4 months. No one at Thomson Electric ever mentioned this issue, not once. They finally extended my warranty for another 6 months. That extension expires on April, 25, 2003. Today is April 24, 2003, I just got a call from the 2nd service center today that Thompson referred me to. This is after I ripped them a new one yesterday for ignoring me for 6 months. The technician tells me that he doesn’t know how this thing is supposed to behave, but he’ll look into it before he’d come over. He indicated that he has to send e-mails back and forth with Thomson’s tech support. They are not reliable, they don’t return calls he says. I was told the same thing by the first service center they sent me to. The store owner told me that he often thought that Thomson Tech support staff didn’t know what they were talking about. I have been calling this woman for six months and leaving her a message every 2 to 3 weeks. I finally talk to her yesterday. She tells me that she was told by tech support back in January of this year that there was nothing wrong with the TV. I asked her why she did not bother to call and tell me that back then since I’d been calling her every 2-3 weeks. I got the silence response. Anyhow, I am now talking to a guy who is in “ERA” at Thomson, whatever that means. I am not holding my breath. I have one thing to say. Thomson is owned by the French, need I say more. So if you are considering buying an RCA brand product, think again. Their products are as good as their words. . I say we boycott any entity that treats it’s customers like this.

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Sony WEGA

Superb HDTV performance and also DVD progressive scan rendering. Neither of these two sources require you to use the "Fill" function of the receiver. If these are your primary sources for watching TV then this is definitely the receiver for you. It blows away any projection TV now on the market.

This set was made by RCA right here in the states. They are owned by Thomson... a French company. Need I say more???

Okay... here's the real scoop on the RCA 38" HDTV wonder set. I've been using mine for well over a year. My son has one too. Forget the crap about the fan running, no video outputs for taping, 216 pounds (plus another 117 for the stand), slow menu system and being prone to power supply failure. You knew all that before you bought yours. Annoyances, yes, but the performance of the HDTV portion of the receiver is, in a nutshell... superb! That's why you bought yours. That's why I bought mine! However, enough accolades about this piece of junk... let's talk about it's REAL performance. On air NTSC signals are delivered in very low resolution. Not too noticeable in 4:3 aspest ratio but when you hit "Fill" to expand it to 16x9, the picture really softens up... annoyingly so. And speaking of "Fill", the linearity settings on this television are so far off that I wonder if the technician at the factory was on anything when the controls were set. When the screen is expanded horizontally, there is a compression in either the left or right side of the screen (mine is on the left... my son has his on the right). But the very WORST characteristic of this television is seen when you expand it vertically. The screen is so over scanned that everything looks stretched. To understand what I am saying, let's say you are watching a globe of the world in the 4x3 aspect ratio and it is a perfect circle. Expand it horizontally to the 16x9 screen and you have an elipse... slightly compressed at the very left edge of my screen. To watch broadcasts this way would make everyone appear short and fat, so RCA gives you the option to also expand the vertical, losing a little at the top and the bottom, but bringing the picture back into the proper perspective, at least in theory. However, on our receivers, when you press the vertical expand control, the receiver so overexpands the screen that the globe described earlier now looks like an egg. And a great portion of the original screen has been relagated to nowhere land. The remote is adequate, but the power from the IR transmitter is so low that the TV has trouble receiving the signal if the remote is more than 15 feet away. I had to program a learning remote to get by this malady. Finally, most people don't know that the set will reset itself when unplugged from a power source for more than 20 minutes. This reset may solve any squeal, hum or audio noise problems that you are experiencing. My son's set initially had a an annoying buzz in the audio but the reset totally solved the problem. This set has been discontinued by RCA and you can now get it for a little over a grand... not bad for a TV that initially listed for $4,200!

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SONY 45" XBR Hi-scan projection receiver... forgot the model number.

Picture is nice. Plenty of combination S-Vid/Composite INPUTS (VCRx2, Front, DVD(including Component), Aux) Can stretch 16:9 broadcast channels to fit screen.

Analog channel 6 now causes the TV to "RESET" and power off. The repair guys is coming out today and I'm hoping for good news. The delay during tuning is irritating. The remote control loses it's programming all the time and I have to use another remote for the VCR. Wish it had video outputs. It's heavy. It collects a lot of dust on the screen. I can't hear the fan since my computer s sitting next to it; but I can with the computer off.

Got mine July 2002. I get most local channels over DTV and find that the volume changes between the analog and digital versions of the same station. I don't know if it is the station or the TV. Really miss the Guide Plus that was on our previous RCA TV. Especially since none of our local broadcasters are broadcasting their own program schedule.

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Think I'll buy HD-Ready next time instead of integrated. Then I can buy a good receiver and keep it around through multiple monitors.

Built-in DirectTV HD tuner. Picture quality in DTV and HiDef modes. Off-axis visibilty, pixel density (dot pitch) MUCH better that projection and plasma.

24/7 fan noise. Picture drops out for 1 second every 20 minutes. No outputs!!!??? for a VCR, etc. What were they thinking???? Don't try to hook up a SonicBlue or TiVo to it, you can't. These HUGE gaffs reduce this otherwise excellent tv to average.

Bought this to be able to watch the 16:9 DV tapes I shot in Nepal. At our old apt we got 8 DTV signals on rabbit ears. Picture was noticably superior to projection and plasma systems. Price was ok. Performance is no better than any other TV when watching regular 4:3 cable or off-air tv BUT when watching DTV or even better HDTV (1080 lines) this baby shines.

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None

Nice picture, DTV tuner inside.

Horror stories about Power supply failures and limited support for repaid. A friend has had his for 9 months and the power supply failed. The dealer told him the TV was toast and offered a limited substitute of $1500 off on any other tv. Scarry. After reading these reviews, I am waiting for that fateful day when my tv craps out.

I bought the TV over the web. So far it has been bulletproot. Picture is good, Direct TV experience is awesome. I am a veteran DTV user and prefer it over cable. TV is heavy to place, manual sucks.

Picture is great when watching an HDTV program. The constantly running fan is actually quite soothing to listen to.

It seems to have power problems that may not be repairable, from what I understand. It concerns me that they are now being sold as "refurbished."

I bought the RCA F38310 in November of 2001. It is now being repaired- there is a constant whine/hum coming from the back of the set, and the screen flickers off and resets itself- at least, it used to. Now the TV will not turn on at all. I am waiting to hear from the shop whether or not it can be fixed.

HDTV signal is outstanding, and not having to fork over another $500+ for an external HD receiver is even better. Pick it up with an amplified internal antenna. All major networks (other than FOX, but who watches Fox anyway?) are broadcasting HDTV shows now - as long as your local stations have stepped up to the plate and are passing along the HDTV broadcast. In my area, everyone except CBS is doing this, so HDTV programs are becomming more and more common. Optical sound output - crystal clear digital sound from every program you watch if you have an external reciever. DVD via the Component input - a "Progressive Scan" DVD player is a must. You'll get DVD pictures that look sharper and more clear than they ever did on the big screen cinima.

DirecTV, DirecTV, DirecTV. The manual is a bit lacking, but gives the bare requirements. No video output, but you knew that. This thing is heavy, but you knew that also (just pay the $20 for delivery from your local shop and let someone else sweat over it). Oh, and if I haven't made it clear - the DirecTV signal is HORRIBLE and they should be sued blind for false advertising every time they mention "crystal clear" digital pictures in their commercials.

I got a Panasonic 47" Projection set HD "ready" but no HD tuner. I also picked up a DirecTV system, figuring I'd get "really good" reception with satellite over my previous Cox cable. NOT. DirecTV picture was very disapointing, more on that to follow. Was not happy with overall picture, and eventually went back to Circuit City, who finally agreed to allow an exchange, even though I was technically 5 days past the allowed time for returns. My RCA F38310 was delivered a couple days later. Firstly, I plugged in an indoor amplified antenna and tuned to my local PBS station that broadcasts a demo in HDTV. Outstanding. Beyond words. If you have never seen TRUE HDTV, it will blow your socks off. It looks 4x better than any DVD. Once you see HD, everything else will look like B&W "I Love Lucy" re-runs. Nuff' said on that. Then I plugged in my new progressive scan DVD player, using the YBR "component" inputs with a $100 (my gosh that's EXPENSIVE!!) Monser cable. Well worth it. DVDs were incredible also. However, the DVD must have the "Enhanced for Wide Screen" stamp on it, otherwise it's not so good. I now pass over DVD's in my video rental store if they're not in widescreen. The user's manual is about a 4 on the 1 to 10 scale. You can plug it in and hook it up, but that's all you really need. If you need more advise than that, you'll have to spend a weekend in BestBuy looking for an intelligent salesperson. DirecTV - a nightmare - especially for an integrated unit. The installers were at my house FOUR times before it was even installed right, and even then, I found on a second check that the system was not grounded as per the manual. The DirecTV broadcast picture? Thier commercials make me sick. "Digital Quality" ?!?!?!!?! Okay, there is no "snow" or "speckles" in the DirecTV feed, but it's like watching your show through a fogged shower door. Fuzzy Fuzzy Fuzzy.... and soft too. Absolutely no detail. (And adjusting the "sharpness" doesn't help a bit). Even in the Full "square" mode, you can see all the little 1" digital squares that are sent to the dish. My Cox cable was much better. Even my broadcast analog "snowey" picture off my $2.50 rabbit ears looks better than the visual disaster broadcast by DirecTV. I have a 32" Panasonic I got at a yard sale for $150, and the DirecTV looks fine on that set... it looks MUCH MUCH MUCH better than on my new $20

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Panasonic 47" Projection - picture looked bad. This RCA is MUCH more clear. Additional Products: -Panasonic DVD-RP56 Progressive DVD -Sony STR-DE675 Dolby Digital / DTS receiver -Sony Remote Com