ViewSonic VT2430 24" LCD TV

The ViewSonic 2430 is the third TV I've owned under this brand name.  Happily the first two performed well enough I didn't hesitate to purchase this particular model as it fit my needs to a tee!

I've been looking to replace a 20 inch CRT (tube model) we've been using in our breakfast nook.  Although that TV was still functioning, trying to live with the glare coming off a bay window was a continuous nuisance which prompted me to consider replacing that set with something less reflective.  That is a major advantage of an LCD product, its screen absorbs rather than reflecting light.

I wanted to get the largest set I could that would fit the stand we were using yet not overwhelm our small breakfast area, 24 inches seemed to be an ideal size.  Last fall I purchased a Samsung and wound up returning it because of very poor sound quality and a rather steep retail price.  After viewing many other sets I discovered that sound is a major problem in any TV under 26 inches.  For some reason most manufacturers seem to think nobody cares about the audio quality as long as they get a decent picture.  Mind you I wasn't looking for concert hall performance, just something a little better than a clock radio!

Unfortunately all too often it's impossible to judge the sound quality of a TV in a noisy retail environment, particularly when there may be eight or 10 others that are operating nearby.  I tried to listen to the ViewSonic before bringing it home.  While it had a nice picture, there was no audio connected so I couldn't test it before hand.  The set looked pretty good and it was $150 less than I had paid for the Samsung last fall, so I decided to give it a try.

Setup was incredibly easy, the only thing necessary was to peel off some of the protective covering and snap on the swivel stand, no tools required.  The menu system was easy to use without referring to the included manual.  It only took about six minutes for the set to cycle through the autotune feature for all the available cable channels Digital and analog.  This is a 1080P model which in theory provides the highest level of resolution and will support a blue ray player.  It can also double as a computer monitor since it contains the necessary inputs for same.  However there is only one HDMI (carries digital video and audio in one cable) connection, I consider that to be substandard for today's needs.

Once the set was functioning (setup with straight cabIe, no box) I immediately noticed two things.  As expected sound quality was substandard, I was also disappointed with the digital tuner.  A week before buying this TV I had purchased a new digital DVR.  That product found several more digital channels then the ViewSonic and didn't experience the picture breakup I encountered with the ViewSonic.  Once more I was disappointed with my purchase and considered returning it.  However since there aren't that many 24 inch sets available and the price was below market at $299, I decided to see what I could do to make it a little more functional.

The set includes a headphone jack along with the other connections at the rear.  I connected a pair of old computer speakers that were just hanging around and they worked perfectly, so much for complaint number one.  I couldn't do anything about the problems with video breakup but using the DVD recorders tuner on the weak channels solved that issue.  In other words the sets performance forced me into a compromise that seemed to make sense because of a very competitive pricing situation.  If this was my primary set I probably would have returned it.

Under the circumstances I don't know that I could recommend the set to others.  Picture quality is good, skin tones appear natural and grass looks green not artifical as I've seen in some other products.  I would expect most others would more than likely use a cable box for their picture source, that would cancel out my complaint over the weak digital tuner.  The sound problem would still remain however, perhaps I am a little more fussy than some who might not mind the tinny hollow sounding audio.  Given the price I was able to purchase the set for it certainly would have to be high on anyone's list.  Just beware of the limitations.