Hannspree XV37 JT02-37E2-000G

.../> ==----------Who Are Hannspree?----------==
Hannspree originates from parent company HannsG, which is one of the world's largest LCD display manufactures, making LCD computer screens. Each screen incorporates the very latest in LCD technology, offering vibrant colours, fast response times and great design - all the computer screens the household are made by this brand and due to their consistent quality and value for money, I had no hesitation ...
...you'll be greeted by the Hannspree logo, and a fuzzy screen - a very good sign. Then it's just a simple case of going into the menu and scanning for channels, and making sure the SKY+ or whatever you have works through the SCART correctly.

You probably won't need to look at the manual once.

==----------Design----------==
Visually, it wouldn't look out of place in any room and looks much more expensive than it ... more

Well, good old reliable- the CRT TV(boxy ones) has just kicked the bucket - a little too early if you ask me, as it was only 5 years old and conveniently the 5 year warranty had just expired. So, left with no choice, we decided to take the plunge and buy an LCD TV, after much shopping around, this is what we ended up with, a 37" LCD tv that completely dwarfs that of a 28".

First things first, what does it offer? Well it just so happens I've listed everything it has below, which I will explain later

----------Features & Specifications----------

SPECIFICATIONS
Screen Size: 37"
Resolution: 1368 x 768 WXGA
Contrast Ratio: 1200:1
Response Time: 8ms
Aspect Ratio: 16:9 (Widescreen)
Viewing Angle: 176/176 degrees
2x HDMI Inputs
2x SCART
1x Composite CVBS
1x S-Video
1x Component
1x VGA
1x PC Audio Input
1x Audio Input
2x 10Watt Stereo Speakers
HD Ready: 720p,1080i

FEATURES
Powerful Scaling and Zooming Engine
2D Comb Filter
De-interlace Image Enhancement
Colour Temperature Adjustment
OSD Function
IR Remote Control
Sleep Timer
Teletext Pages
Channel Return
Will work with all existing Sky, Sky+, Virgin Media and Freeview boxes

----------Who Are Hannspree?----------

Hannspree originates from parent company HannsG, which is one of the world's largest LCD display manufactures, making LCD computer screens. Each screen incorporates the very latest in LCD technology, offering vibrant colours, fast response times and great design - all the computer screens the household are made by this brand and due to their consistent quality and value for money, I had no hesitation when buying a Hannspree branded TV.

---------Where To Buy & Price----------

You can find this TV all over the internet, which is where we got ours at a promotional price, of £399 which really couldn't be refused. I don't think this TV can be bought on the high street, and this is most likely due to the less well known brand.

----------Setup & Installation----------

The TV is quite heavy and awkward to lift if you're setting it up alone. The handles on the back are a great help, but the TV is top heavy so make sure you're not wearing anything that could damage the screen in anyway when lifting it because if you're lifting it from the front, it will no doubt be resting on you.

Once it's all up on its podium taking pride of place in your living room however, setup is a breeze. Everything is simple to plug in and clearly labelled if you really don't have a clue. As soon as it's plugged in and turned on, you'll be greeted by the Hannspree logo, and a fuzzy screen - a very good sign. Then it's just a simple case of going into the menu and scanning for channels, and making sure the SKY+ or whatever you have works through the SCART correctly.

You probably won't need to look at the manual once.

----------Design----------

Visually, it wouldn't look out of place in any room and looks much more expensive than it is. The screen is surrounded by a high gloss piano black finish that complements the screen massively - like that of more expensive brands, such as Samsung.

All of the ports are located underneath a panel at the back of the TV, which does keep everything neat and tidy if the TV's in the centre of the room. It can however, be a little difficult to access when the TV is against a wall in the corner of the room, resulting in you clambering around, trying not to accidentally push it on the floor. Unfortunately the RCA ports (The yellow, red and white jacks) are also under this panel, which means it's not as quick and easy it could have been for plugging in a camera to show a picture slideshow for example. I can see why they've placed them under here, there's no other place for them to go really, due to the curved nature of the TV's sides.

On top of the TV, are buttons for menu, channel, volume and an enter button, allowing you to perform the main functions of the TV without a remote should you wish.

The speakers are at the front of the TV, just below the screen as opposed to along side the screen. I was concerned at first that the speakers wouldn't be separated enough to seperate and produce stereo sound effectively enough, but thankfully they're fine - more about this later.

Stand
This is probably the worst part about the TV visually. It doesn't look bad, but the quality feels a lot worse than the rest of the plastics used on the TV, which is a bit of a let down. You're not going to notice unless you touch it and I'm sure no one will be doing that anyway, but once you know its there its quite annoying and hard not to notice. It doesn't make me think anything less of the quality of manufacture, because everything else is sturdy and feels expensive, it's just a shame that the stand couldn't match. It's like walking into Buckingham palace and finding that there's nothing but bare floor boards with scattered newspapers and tramps lying around the place - only on a much much smaller scale.

---------Screen / Picture Quality----------

The TV comes with a 37" LCD displaying at 1368x768, it is however available in a 32" version, displaying at the same resolution.

Response Time
I've watched sports on it like skiing/tennis and have found no visible ghosting, which is something LCD's typically suffer with. This is due to the 8ms response time. For those who don't know, ghosting basically occurs when an object moves fast across the screen, and due to the technology of LCDs displays, it has difficulty in displaying it without blurring. It even copes well when used with a games console with still no visible ghosting.

Colours and Viewing Angles
Colour representation is good, offering a variety of presets to choose from including user function when you can adjust the colour, contrast and brightness yourself. Only thing that must be said, is the fact that colours can seem slightly more washed out when you're sat side on to the TV, despite its viewing angle of 176 degrees, which makes me think that this isn't strictly true. This isn't a significant problem as the majority of angles display the colours correctly, looking vivid and rich.

Contrast Ratio
Contrast ratio is perhaps one of the most important things when shopping for a LCD TV, it basically means, the blackest black from the whitest white. This TV has a contrast ratio of 1200:1, which isn't the best these days, with the most expensive displays reaching around 15000:1. For the price of this display however, I think it's pretty reasonable - the blacks are black and I think you'd only be able to see the difference if it was directly alongside a TV with a higher ratio.

Aspect Ratio
The aspect ratio is the format the images are displayed. This is 16:9, which means it's wide screen. Due to it being an LCD, there are no black gaps around the image like you get on a standard TV, which means you get a full picture. The TV has zoom functions which allow you to zoom in on the picture should you wish. It automatically detects what aspect ratio the images are being output at, and will switch accordingly. I found this annoying, as some programs are still displayed in 4:3 (standard TV aspect ratio) believe it or not, which means the TV adjusts to display it in a black box in the middle of the screen to keep its aspect. I therefore changed the setting from "WSS" - the auto switching mode, to "Full" which makes any aspect ratio display fullscreen. Even on 4:3 programmes, I have found setting this to full in no way affects or stretches the image.

SD
I've heard rumours that HDTV's don't display SDTV (Standard definition) that fantastically, this however seems to cope rather well. Displaying sky/analogue/digital etc as if it was a standard television. However, if the broadcast is particularly poor quality - like video footage filmed on a home video camera for example, the TV picks up on the imperfections due to the size of the television.

HD
The HDMI inputs at the back allow the TV to display HD picture when connected to an appropriate source such as SKY HD, Virgin HD, or an HD DVD/Blueray player. The TV is HD ready, supporting 720p and 1080i resolutions, but not the "Full HD" 1080p. Due to the lack of HD subscription and HD broadcasts, I've not managed to see how HD broadcasts look, but normal DVD's display fantastically, giving clear and vivid pictures. Giving that the display is generally good, I hope/presume that HD will look outstanding.

Computer Display
Like many HDTV's this also has a VGA connecter, which allows you to connect your computer/laptop to the TV to use it as a large monitor. I've tried this a couple of times, and the results are quite impressive, everything is clear, and it is literally like a bigger computer screen. This is particularly useful if for example you wanted to watch any online videos or videos you've downloaded in iTunes on a big display.

----------Sound----------

Much like the picture, the TV comes with preset sound configuration, including music & movie. A problem with other LCD TV's I have found is poor sound quality, due to the comparatively smaller space that the speakers must be fitted into. Now obviously no TV sounds fantastic, and this is no exception. For an LCD TV however, these speakers sound better than what I've heard from other LCD's - especially when set in Movie mode. The bass isn't fantastic, and sounds better on some programs than it does on others. It's certainly not adequate to get the full benefit of a DVD for example but is more than suited to TV programs. Most of us, especially those considering a LCD TV would have a DVD player with home cinema anyway, and there are connections on the back to plug the TV into the home cinema, though I've not tried this but from past experiences, I'm not too sure if it will work in 5.1 unless connected through an appropriate DVD player/audio receiver.

----------Freeview?----------

It was all going well up to this point. Unfortunately, this TV doesn't have an inbuilt Freeview receiver. Those annoying adverts keep telling us, when buying a new tv to "get set for digital" and ensure that the TV does have a digital tuner by looking for the digital tick or whatever it is.

When buying this however, we knew that it didn't feature one, but weren't too bothered as we use Sky+ mainly anyway, and planned on getting an additional Freeview with hard disk at a later date.

I can see how this could be a disadvantage for the users that don't have any other means of receiving a picture after the switchover, but basic Freeview boxes are available from as little as £15 and Hard disk Freeview boxes from as little as £85, and given the price of the TV in the first place, it doesn't seem like much of a sacrifice.

It would obviously be better if it did have a Freeview tuner, and I can see that Hannspree will be losing a lot of sales because it doesn't.

----------Ease Of Use----------

An important part of any TV or indeed any home entertainment device is simplicity.. and this is pretty simple. Setup is a breeze as mentioned previously, and everything is logical and clear. The instructions - should you not know what to do are easy to understand, and take you through setup and general use step by step.

Remote
The remote follows the unusual thin and long design that so many other LCD manufactures have, but despite this is comfortable to hold. It's very light but feels durable. The buttons have a nice feel to them and offer all the functions that you could possibly want to adjust, and then some more that you probably won't even use.

This isn't so much about the TV's remote, but remotes that come with SKY. As sky users will know, you can program the sky remote so that the volume buttons on it change the volume on the TV, therefore removing the everyday need for the TV's own remote, meaning you only have one to fiddle with. However, this TV is not supported by SKYs remote yet, and is said to be added to the sky database in Q1 of 2008. This means that you wont be able to use your sky remote to change the volume until sometime in 2008.

----------Overall----------

I'm pleased with the TV. I don't think you can find a better deal for this size of television and this quality for this price. The lack of Freeview can possess problems for people but it can be easily rectified, and in my opinion you shouldn't let it deter you from buying this TV, especially if you're on a budget. Due to the lack of Freeview, lower quality stand and potentially difficult to access connections I can only give this TV four stars.

Thanks for reading! 

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