Hitachi 32LD9000 32" LCD TV

I'm a little surprised to be writing this review of our new Hitachi 32LD9000TA2 LCD television set today. After all, it was less than two years ago that I purchased our last TV, a 27 inch JVC set. We've been very happy with that TV, but when I bought it, we were still living in the United States, where we only needed an NTSC tuner. Our JVC set has the NTSC tuner, but it doesn't have a PAL tuner, which is what we need now that we live in Germany. Because we were hoping to watch local TV as opposed to buying an expensive satellite for the Armed Forces Network, we decided it was time to buy a multi-system TV.

Like many other military families posted overseas, my husband Bill and I do a lot of shopping at AAFES, our military discount store, especially since the dollar is currently being pulverized by the euro. Shopping at AAFES vastly limits our choices, although back in November, we did find a JVC LCD TV that we wanted to buy. Unfortunately, even though the JVC model was on sale, AAFES didn't have it in stock and after waiting for three months, we finally decided to buy something else. That's how we came to own the Hitachi 32LD9000TA2, a very nice and reasonably affordable multi-system television. It's a good thing we bought it when we did. Once again, we got the last one in stock.

I didn't find it too difficult to coax Bill into stepping up from a conventional standard definition tube TV. While he was in Iraq last spring, I took the opportunity to pay off a significant amount of credit card debt, which left us with more disposable income. The Hitachi was selling for $899.99, which is considerably more than what we spent for our JVC TV. Truth be told, we could have bought another big box TV for about half of what we spent on the Hitachi. But, as I reminded Bill, those big, heavy, tube TVs have gone out of style and are rapidly being replaced by LCD, plasma, and projection TVs anyway. At AAFES, the vast majority of televisions are either LCD or projection models. And besides, they're a hell of a lot easier to carry and look pretty darn cool.

We bought it!

So, we brought home our new multi-system Hitachi TV, which has a tuner that is compatible with NTSC3.58, NTSC4.43, PAL, N-PAL, M-PAL, PAL60, and SECAM. That means that, yes, we can now watch local television on our TV. And, when it's time to go back to the States, we can watch TV there, too.

Another feature that attracted us to the Hitachi is the fact that it automatically detects proper voltage. After a rather shocking experience plugging in my new computer before switching it to the correct 220 voltage, I wanted to make sure our new TV was capable of handling German juice. Thankfully, it is, and there are no switches to remember to flip. In fact, this TV comes with an array of power cords and plugs that make it compatible with just about any electrical system in the world and they are very easy to connect to the TV. At about 36 pounds, this TV is also much easier to lift and move than our 100 pound JVC big box TV is.

What's in the box?

Our new Hitachi LCD television came with a remote control, batteries, a BS power cord, stand, and a huge user's manual translated into English, Chinese, Japanese, and Russian.

Getting started

We set up the new TV, installed the batteries in the remote control, and then made the decision about which kind of plug we wanted to use. We live in a German house with 220 volt electricity, but we have an American style power strip and transformer by the TV to handle other electrical devices like DVD players and VCRs. It turned out the European plug was easier to use, so we went with that. Bill hooked up the cable and we turned on the TV.

The Hitachi has a High Definition Multimedia Interface, which, according to the user's manual, is a next generation interface which will allow one cable to be used to transmit all video, audio, and control signals. This TV also has a response time of just 8 milliseconds. It can be used as a TV or a computer monitor. The TV can be set to English, Japanese, Chinese, or Russian. There's also a timer menu, which allows users to set the TV to automatically turn off or go into standby mode at a specific time.

Picture

The picture on this TV is beautiful. It's clean, crisp, and precise. I thought I was happy with our JVC, but the LCD screen on the Hitachi 32LD9000 really blows it away. One thing I've noticed and really like about this TV is the fact that the screen minimizes glare. There are a lot of large windows where the TV is. With our old set, it was hard to watch on a sunny day because of the glare. We don't have that problem with this TV, because the screen isn't shiny and doesn't reflect light.

Sound

This television is equipped with stereo and matrix stereo sound and horizontal speaker orientation. The setup allows users to control the TV's bass, treble, and balance. Matrix stereo sound allows users to mix the sounds so that there's an illusion of virtual surround speakers. The TV also has dynamic bass, which allows for enhanced bass sound. I'm very happy with this TV's sound. It's very clear and precise. There are two speakers, each powered at 10 watts. I used extra speakers on our big JVC TV, but that won't be necessary for this set. The sound quality is excellent.

Beware...

This television has only an analog tuner. That means that after February 17, 2009, it will no longer receive over-the-air broadcasts without a converter box because the United States will be switching from the NTSC system to digital broadcasting. This is not likely to be an issue for us, since we're in Germany and expect to be here for at least two more years. For those who are in the United States, this television should continue to work fine, as long as users have cable or satellite services. The TV will also continue to function with DVD players and gaming devices. At this point, we mostly use this TV to watch DVDs anyway.

Also, be aware that this TV is not energy star compliant and though it is capable of receiving high definition programming, a separate tuner is necessary.

Warranty

The Hitachi 32LD9000 is, generally speaking, not for sale in the United States. Perhaps that's why I didn't find any information about a warranty online or in the user's manual. That doesn't mean that a warranty doesn't exist, it just means that I didn't find information about one. Hopefully, that won't be an issue for us, but it's too soon to tell.

Final thoughts

So far, Bill and I are loving this new TV. It looks great in our living room, with its black and silver display. It sounds great, with its powerful speakers and matrix stereo sound. It offers a great picture, too. I'm guessing that this TV is not widely available in the United States, but we're glad to know that we will be able to use it there once we move back home. For now, at least, we both agree that this $900 TV was a good investment, even if we will need a separate tuner to get high definition programming.

Technical specifications (taken from bhphotovideo.com)

Display

Screen Size (Diagonal) 32"

Aspect Ratio 16:9

Pixel Resolution: 1366 x 768

Brightness: 500cd/m

Contrast Ratio: 800:1

Response Time: 8ms

Viewing Angle: 178 degrees

Video

Video System NTSC3.58, NTSC4.43,
PAL, N-PAL, M-PAL, PAL60
SECAM

HDTV Compatibility: Yes (Requires Separate Tuner)

TV Scan Lines SDTV: 480i
EDTV: 480p
HDTV: 720p

TV Tuner NTSC-M, SECAM B/G/D/K1, PAL B,G,H/I/D,K

CableCARD Slot: No

Speaker

Sound Stereo, Matrix Surround

Power: 20W (10W x2)

Orientation: Horizontal

Input/Output Connectors

Inputs RF Coaxial: - x1
Component: - RCA x2
S-Video: - x2
Composite: - RCA x4
HDMI: - x1
15-Pin D-Sub -x1

Outputs Composite AV - RCA x1
Headphone Mini-Jack - x1

Control Port: No

Convenience

Picture in Picture(PIP): No

Digital Media Slot: No

Remote Control: Yes

Tilt/Swivel Range: Not Specified By Manufacturer

Wall Mountable: Yes

Power

Power Requirements: 110-240 VAC @ 50/60Hz

Power Consumption: 135W

Energy Star Compliant: No

General

Dimensions (WxHxD) W/ Stand: 31.1 x 23.1 x 12.2" (79 x 58.6 x 30.9cm)

W/O Stand: 31.1 x 21.7 x 4.7" (79 x 55 x 12cm)

Weight W/ Stand: 42.3 lb (19.2kg)
W/O Stand: 36.4 lbs (16.5kg)

Cabinet Color: Black and Silver

www.hitachi.com