Hitachi L 37 V 01

Author's product rating:   

How is the Picture Quality?	Good
How is the Sound Quality?	Good
Ease of Installation	Simple
Range of Features	Excellent
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Cheap, good picture, many connections for peripherals
Disadvantages:	The name for brand snobs, not the most attractive TV

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The Hitachi L37V01 HD LCD TV is a full High Definition television. That means it can display in 720p, 1080i and 1080p modes, unlike a lot of 'HD Ready' TVs on the market which only manage 720p. This means that you get a crisper image from devices which support these resolutions, such as the Xbox 360.

I saw this TV on Amazon for under £500, and thought it looked like an excellent deal. I was slightly nervous about buying it, as there were very few reviews available online, but after taking the Tv from its securely packaged box and setting it up, I'm pleased to say there are no problems at all.

The quality of the materials used on the TV itself look and feel high quality, but the remote seems a bit cheap, although it's sturdy enough for everyday use. The picture from the freeview was good, and the automatic channel finder was easy to use and worked well for both freeview and analogue stations.

The picture can appear a little grainy at times if sitting very close and watching standard TV, but that's to be expected with a 37" screen, even an HD one.

The picture when playing games on the Xbox 360 at 1080i resolution is amazingly crisp. Lighting effects look very impressive, and I started noticing details in games that I hadn't spotted on my old TV.

The connectors for the TV are on the back and face downwards to allow it to be mounted on the wall with the brackets included in the box. The connections are as follows:
VGA Input
Subwoofer Output
PC audio inputs
Audio line out
Component audio inputs
Component video (YPrBr) Inputs
2 x HDMI inputs
2 x Scart inputs
TV aerial socket

There is also a panel on the side of the TV with a headphone socket and audio and video inputs for connecting devices like camcorders and digital cameras.

A VGA to VGA cable is also included so you can connect to a PC or laptop.

Overall, this is a very nice TV which allows you to get the most from your HD peripherals. The quality isn't quite the same as one of the more premium brands, but neither is the cost!

This might not cut the mustard for Audio-Visual perfectionists, but for anyone wanting to upgrade to HD it comes highly recommended.