Vizio L32hdtv10a 32" HDTV LCD TV

This is a great LCD HDTV. The emphasis being that it's a HDTV. To be able to get a HD tuner at this size is amazing.

Key points in buying a new high definition television which should be the deciding factors in why you choose a certain set:

1) Size – No mater what people will tell you about how picture quality should be the most important deciding factor in choosing a TV you must understand no one wants a very clear picture at 20" compared to a clear picture at 56". The size requirements of the installation will then determine how much you can fit and you budget will give you what you can spend.
2) Budget – No one wants to spend 2x the cost for a TV that is marginally better in picture quality compared to the next competitive brand.
3) Picture Quality – If it looks horrible, it will defeat the main purpose of the TV as you have to look at it constantly. This applies to both the video quality and the cabinet look.
4) Inputs and Resolution – inputs can be added later with a good switcher but resolution could be a huge factor if you want to user certain types of HDTV signals.

Some Specs
-31.5-inch viewable diagonal area
-1366 x 768 pixel resolution
-Signal Compatibility: 1080i (HDTV), 720p (HDTV), 480p (EDTV) and 480i (SDTV) / TV tuners: 1x ATSC (off-air), clear (digital cable) and 1x NTSC standard (off-air, cable)
-16.77 million colors
-800:1 contrast ratio
-8 ms response time
- >170? horizontal and vertical viewing angle
- Two coaxial RF (for DTV and TV), one HDMI with HDCP, One RGB PC, two component Y/Pb/Pr, one S-Video, one composite video plus stereo audio
- 43 lbs with stand / 38 lbs without stand

-Picture Quality is descent and HD content is acceptable. Dvd is good using the DVI to HDMI upconverted using my Oppo Digital OPDV971H DVD Player

I am comparing this to the Sony Bravia KLV-S32A10 32" (without tuner) and the black levels are way better in the Sony. The amount of tweaking in the Vizio is very limited to the Sony in that Sharpness can only be changed in increments of 25, 50, 75, 100%. It is also extremely hard to fine tune the picture using the AVIA Guide to Home Theater dvd because the picture setting window takes up a large portion of the screen which you need to adjust the set. The main reason one would want to tweak the picture of a brand new or broken in television is because a lot of the televisions sold on the floor today are set with extremely high contrast ratios and deeper reds to catch the attention of window shoppers. Most LCD televisions don't have the red push problems found in rear projections televisions from the early days of high definition sets. This set out of the box does need some tweaking of the contrast and color but not as much as my rear projection television did. The amount of adjustments largely depends on your source of playback (dvd player) and your viewing environment. Luckily for my setup, I didn't have to change it too much from the factory presets, but it was bothering me that I couldn't fine tune the picture more in one step increments versus 25 step increments.

-Controls are poor if you want to use this with a universal remote but the underside of the remote feels very nice. Control is difficult since changing inputs can be changed by pressing an input button to cycle through or by hitting a "direct" button on the remote. The cycling isn't handled well by harmony since it's so slow to cycle. Using the direct method would have worked but one button would have a dual function say (DVI/DTV). So the universal remote has no way of telling which input it is in. The unit also doesn't allow for skipping unused inputs nor does it allow for renaming the inputs.

-The speakers on the bottom were one of the major deciding factors since this TV has to go into an enclosed cabinet. Not many LCDs have the speakers on the bottom which makes it very hard to find a set to fit in some standard bedroom cabinet.

-Overall look of the case isn't as nice as other LCD tvs but at this price range, who cares considering the picture quality can handle HD content. The Sony has the option to tilt the unit but Vizio doesn't.

-Inputs are very nice with multiple components but only having 1 HDMI port. The coaxial plug for the HDTV is very close to the housing which makes it pretty hard to get secured tightly with the coaxial cable for HD content. The HD tuner doesn't have a "meter" to determine the optimum direction to point your direction antenna. My radio Shack Accurian HD set has a meter so tweaking the direction to get the channels you really care about. The PC input (no cable included) is very good. Vizio has the ability to scale down to the standard 1024x768 for my ibook to use. The Sony doesn't scale down so my ibook has these huge black bars on the sides to make up for the size difference. Watching a lot of video footage or even surfing the web using this as a PC monitor is very good.

Final Thoughts
I would strongly recommend this LCD HDTV easily as a secondary television only due to the fact it's only 32". Even if this was the primary TV, the picture quality is outstanding for the price and should not be overlooked for any first time HDTV buyers. Just the fact that this set is so much cheaper then the competitors yet still has the build quality and features of the more expensive TVs makes this a great buy. The Vizio brand very soon will not be considered an "off brand" for long if they continue to product high quality/low cost HDTV sets like this one.

UPDATE July 2007
I've had this TV for about 14 months and have only logged in about 100 hours maximum. I turned on the set the other day and it emits this loud tone that can be heard about 10 feet away. It can be heard with the volume at zero or if muted. The noise continues also on all the inputs. This is very frustrating to have a tv that hasn't even gotten much use out of it (mainly dvd tv series watching) and for it to have this problem. From this experience I will NOT be buying Vizio again and will have to lower the overall score.