Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Overall, I am very pleased with the quality of the picture on this TV set. I have it hooked up with an HDMI cable connected to Comcast's (Motorola) DVR box.Comcast has several "HD" broadcast stations, although true HD programming is still very limited.I would suggest you program your own preferences (called MEMORY) rather than use one of the preset Toshiba setups which are either too bright (Sports & Movie) or too dark (Normal)I have my preferences set to levels between the Movie and Normal settings and find that I do not have to change them too often.I also have set resolution to 1080i, but will sometimes switch it to 540p on some analog stations or older programs as the interlace scan lines are sometimes very obvious and progressive scan works better.Amazon claims in the product description that this set includes 2-tuner PIP, but I do not believe it does as there is nothing in the documentation that references this, nor do I see any PIP button on the remote or in the menu setup.
**** UPDATE*****I checked with Toshiba customer service and was informed that 2 Tuner PIP IS NOT A FEATURE on this TV set!!!There are not 2 Tuners, nor is there any PIP!!!They also informed me the set is manufactured by TOSHIBA in the USA and not Orion as some reviewers have suggested!*******
While overall, I have a positive view of this set, there are some drawbacks:
The 4 different theater-modes for the picture on analog/normal stations really distort the picture and/or cut off the top and bottom.Full screen mode keeps all of the data at the top and bottom but people tend to have fat squishy faces.
The TV does NOT have a Menu button on the set...so if you lose or break the remote control, you are stuck...there is no other way to choose source, picture size/quality, or other settings!This is a major drawback!
The Remote Control that comes with the set is supposed to be a universal remote, but it has no code for the Motorola box comcast uses, nor does it have any buttons for DVR controls, so it is necessary to keep 2 remotes around.
I would also STRONGLY recommend you try to get this at a local store with their own delivery company.The company Amazon used for my delivery was horrible.I was NEVER directly contacted by the company when my set arrived in their warehouse.I had to make a toll call 4 different times to finally get delivery over a week after the warehouse received it from Amazon, and 13 days After I ordered it from Amazon.com.Amazon claims that the "premium delivery service" they use, for which you add $100 to the price, "use protective equipment such as floor mats and doorjamb padding to prevent damage"There was no evidence of this when they made my delivery, and one of the two people sent was an older gentleman who had a great deal of trouble lifting the merchandise, almost dropping it a couple of times on the way up the stairs. They also DO NOT set up the TV for you.They will plug it in and hand you the remote, and that's it.If you do not know anything about hooking up, make sure you get it from a dealer who provides a set up service. Amazon also does not do any follow-up on how the delivery service was which is very surprising to me.
So to sum up, I'd give the TV about 3 and a half-stars
The price 4 stars
and Amazon delivery service 0 stars.
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Product Description:
Big-screen TVs don't have to have huge cabinets. Toshiba's surprisingly compact 34-inch TheaterWide TV just happens to offer unusually rich and sophisticated image enhancements, too. The two-tone silver/gray 34HF85 is fully high-definition-ready, accepting the full range of NTSC inputs: 480i (standard-definition, interlaced), 480p (EDTV, enhanced-definition progressive), and high-definition 720p and 1080i video signals.
The set boasts not merely 2 high-definition-ready ColorStream HD component-video inputs, but a pair of HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) jacks for direct-digital connections with a DTV set-top box and one other high-def source (such as a satellite receiver). What's more, its FST PURE fine-pitch flat picture tube not only looks great, it also minimizes unwanted reflections from room light and increases viewing angles while enhancing picture linearity.
Improving standard interlaced signals (like composite-video outputs from a DVD player, cable box, or VCR), Toshiba's CrystalScan HDSC upconverts all signals to high-definition 1080i resolution or user-selectable 540p (progressive). A 3D Y/C (4 MB, 10-bit) digital comb filter with Vertical Contour Correction ensures sharp, clean pictures from RF (older VCR, laserdisc) and composite-video signals.
A shadow mask is a thin sheet of perforated metal behind the screen that restricts electron flow, each hole in the sheet corresponding to a single pixel. An Invar mask uses an alloy that's especially resistant to the high temperatures generated by the electron beam, allowing in a brighter, clearer picture.
DFine high-speed VSM (velocity-scan modulation) improves definition at picture edges by slowing the CRT (cathode-ray tube) beam's horizontal scanning during demanding work and speeding it up when scanning easily rendered sections, like broad dark areas. Finally, Cinema Mode (3:2 pulldown reversal) circuitry identifies original film-based content from DVDs, then reassembles the frame sequence to more accurately reproduce the original 24-frame-per-second material.
As standard video amplifiers increase the gain of the video signal, video bandwidth tends to decrease. This eliminates the higher frequencies, reducing resolution. The 34HF85's wideband video amplifier maintains the higher frequencies, enabling higher resolution and greater sharpness and detail.
The set's array of great features includes 2-tuner PIP (picture-in-picture), by which you can view one TV channel and one input side-by-side or even two separate TV programs simultaneously. The set also includes auto channel setup, channel labeling, input labeling, channel lock, favorite channel, last-channel recall, and auto mute when you stumble upon a channel with no signal.
Dual ColorStream HD component-video inputs (Y, Pr, Pb) provide the ultimate picture quality from high-resolution component-video signals (as from compatible DVD players or satellite receivers). And, with direct video input selection, you can directly select inputs from the remote's numbered keypad instead of having to scroll through all of them.
Two sets of rear AV inputs and a set of front AV inputs (all including S-video) foster easy connection with a camcorder or gaming console, and a rear AV output lets you hook the set up with a surround receiver.
The set's stereo speakers are powered by 5 watts per channel, and SRS WOW processing combines 3D Sound (simulated surround sound from any stereo audio) with TruBass low-frequency enhancement, and Focus (which clarifies voices).
HDMI is a lossless, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface to link any audio/video source (such as a set-top box, DVD player, or AV receiver) with your television. HDMI supports standard-definition (SD), enhanced definition (ED), or high-definition (HD) video, plus multi-channel digital audio--all using a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports up to 8-channel digital audio, with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements.
What's in the Box
Television, remote control, batteries, a user's manual, warranty information.
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