picture quality, inputs, easy of operation

control is a bit fumbly when switching between external gear

I bought this tv to replace a 36" toshiba that was about 10yrs old. The old 36 is still going strong and has a relatively good picture but would not fit in the TV cabinet in the new house I had just purchased. I have been extremely pleased with the unit. I have a cable HD feed and the quality is outstanding. I work in the broadcast industry and as broadcast engineer and I'm surrounded by all types of Sonys. For the broadcast monitor side they are tops but as TV's go I can not justify the price difference for the XBR. I also have satellite that I inject using the s-video plug and the quality on that is phenomenal as well. Of course the analog cable signal is nothing to get excited about and I think that this TV actually amplifies the poor quality so don't get upset if you have analog and go in on the component side the picture will disappoint, if at all possible with analog use the s-video. I'm also using a HD component in for my Xbox and there too the quality is beautiful. In closing both my toshiba sets are and have been worth every penny, I would highly recomend this unit.

Flat screen is great on the eyes. Since this years models are out, I was able to convince the saleman to let me have this at the current internet lowest marked price.

I wish it had more than two component video connections. Also I turned the sound off and am using a reciever. Manual says you can use TV as center channel as part of surround system but guy at Toshiba help desks admits that there really is no way to hook it up to a reciever as of yet since it line input in and will not take an amplified signal. Will only work if you center line output on your reciever. Wouldn't sound matched anyway so it probably is just as well.

I also started out wanting a Sony but due to space limitations with my built in Entertainment cabinets, I went back and did more research. I decided dollar for dollar this was a better buy. I liked the picture in the show room as much as the Sony but their color calibration was really awful. After reading several reviews that warned about the factory calibration, I decided to buy it. I used a calibration DVD from Sound and Audio and the colors and contrast are now wonderful. Did not find this tricky at all. Actually quite simple to do. I do not see any problem even in the DirectTv and Tivo screens. Looks beautiful even with the digital satellite and no HDTV signal. 480p is also amazing. I can't wait until I can afford the HDTV reciever or satellite upgrade. I love the picture.

Similar Products Used:

Sony Wega, Samsung, Panasonic

Picture, Sound (Cinema Series), Features

None yet

After living with a 12 year old 20" Zenith, that in its day was a top of a line model, I decided to break the bank and get a flat screen HDTV Ready TV. I looked at many models including Sony, Samsung, RCA, etc...After visiting 3 or 4 electronics stores in my home town and ready a lot of review sights on the net, I discovered the Toshiba line. After spending many hours comparing to the above mentioned brands, I felt that this TV had an excellant if not better, in my opinion, picture than the Sony. The other brands did not make the cut. Anyway, I would highly recommend that you either have the set delivered or have a strong friend help you as this beast is a heavy one. I also purchased the Toshiba SD 3750 DVD player w/progressive scan the same day. This was also after lots of research and reviews on the net. Just go out and check out the specs, the picture in combination with the HDTV ready TV is astonishing. I highly recommend Toshiba products. This size TV works great for our 15' x 25' livingroom.

Price

Everything else

Problems of color balance and distortation.

Picture quality- particularly with DVD. Looks. Sound quality.

On-Screen menus. Remote ergonomics.

Shopped around for a HDTV compatible set to replace Mitsubishi 27" set which was going to children's room. Looked at Panansonic , Sony, Hitachi, Samsung, and Loewe sets. Loewes are great but very pricey; Sony nice but overpriced; Samsung had great picture but question reliability-- too many comments on this website were negative; Hitachi good but lacked flat screen in this price range. Toshiba has solid picture quality even with regular cable tv so long as good signal . DVDs look great on this set (using Toshiba SD3205 ) . This set has great connectivity for inputting various sources -- component video, S-video, antennae, etc. Sound quality is much better than my old (1990) Mitsubishi stereo TV, though the MItsu has a great picture ( superior to Sonys I have seen)and has been extremely trouble-free over the years. I decided on this Toshiba based on combination of picture quality ( as good as most though perhaps not as clear in HDTV mode as the Samsungs which I found to have sharpest in this price range), looks (has nice cabinet and matching stand is recommended) , great sound quality, and reasonably priced. Remote control is quite versatile but with rather poor ergonomics. On-screen menus are good overall with some exceptions ( such as favorite channel programming, parental lock/ v-chip programming--can't get this to work!?). I haven't bought an HDTV receiver yet so I can't comment much on performance in this area except what I saw in store displays which I found to be as good as any and better than most, nor have I tried it with a progressive-scan DVD yet.

Similar Products Used:

none.

Cheap

Bad focus in the corners, color distortions and concave horizontal and virtical lines. It appears that Toshiba is using crude inexpensive technology (this is according to the TV technician) which might explain the cheapness

Review for the Toshiba 32HFX71 Review Summary: I started out wanting a Sony XBR HDTV set but it was $800 more expensive than its competitors. Sony has an arrogant disposition regarding street pricing, which pushed me to choose between Panasonic & Toshiba. I spent most of December looking at what was available in direct HDTV sets. Future Shop had four of these 32 HDTV’s running side-by-side. SONY, Panasonic, Toshiba and Samsung. Initially I could not see much difference between the Sony and the Toshiba picture, certainly not enough to warrant the extra $800. I chose to go with the Toshiba, which I ordered on Boxing Day. In retrospect I am not sure that I made the correct choise. I had my first set delivered in late February due to the fact that the Toshiba 32HFX71 were on back order. I have now had two Toshiba sets for about 3 months; the first set was replaced by the dealer (The Bay) due to an uncorrectable color distortion plus distortion/focusing in the corners. This showed up when the Satellite programs menu was displayed, this problem does not show up with a moving scene. Moving scene''s are all you see on the display stands in the shops. The second set is a little better but still not good. The technician that came to my home to try and rectify the original problem said that the Toshiba calibrating picture controls were tricky and crude verses the Sony XBR. To cut a long story short he could not correct the problem, hence the second set. As I said it was better than the first set but still not good because the vertical & horizontal lines are concave the focusing in the corners is bad. Unfortunately you only see this problem when you display the satellite program display menu. When seen with a crosshatch pattern generator it’s horrible. I am trying to decide whether to send the second set back for a full credit or swap it for a Sony and pay the difference much as I hate to pay the extra $800.

Similar Products Used:

Sony

Excellent picture through component inputs, acceptable sound, decent styling and good value

Defeatable scan-doubler may be nice to reduce digital ''noise'' on weak cable signals.

I always wanted a Sony XBR set. The thing is, they''re expensive, and the matching stand is very expensive ($450CDN). Around November last year, I heard that Toshiba was going to make a 32" HD-ready set. I had a look at the 36" set, compared with the XBR, and was quite impressed. So, I ordered one. Two weeks later, I got it home (with the generous help of my brother - the set is 165lbs). Before critically viewing, I set up my own ''preference'' picture using the video essentials DVD... the presets that come with the set are ridiculously over-bright and over-contrasted. If the set looks bad in the store, make sure that you check the contrast and brightness settings. I feel that the Toshiba compares quite favourably with the Sony XBR, which, I must admit, is still the reference standard for 32" sets. It''s better (in my opinion) than the panasonic and the samsung sets. Actually, I even prefer the reds on the Toshiba to those of the Sony (which appear orange), though the Sony has better black rendition. I''ve had the set now for about 5 months, and have been very happy with it. Using the component inputs, even a non-progressive scan DVD player like my Sony DVP-S570D looks great. The set''s internal scan doubler and 3:2 pulldown do a very good job - no artifacts or ''jaggies''. Over regular cable, the picture is so-so. I didn''t expect miracles with a poor signal, so I wasn''t surprised. I haven''t tried a true HD feed yet, so I can''t comment on the 1080i performance. The sound is ok - an internal pair of stereo speakers plus a 4" sub (well, maybe a woofer is more appropriate) provide adequate sound for cable. It''s actually much better than most tv''s, but a home theater fan will want ''real'' speakers. So, all in all a decent product. If you want the Sony, but don''t like the price, have a serious look at the Toshiba. You may be surprised at the value. I''d give it 4.5 stars for value. 4 stars for performance, because I think the Sony XBR and the Loewe sets slightly outperform the Toshiba, albeit at a much higher price.

Similar Products Used:

Auditioned Sony XBR, Panasonic, Samsung