Hotshots on the LCD Range

Sony
KLV-32S550
This stout little TV takes on the responsibility of being an entry level offering. It has a blockish rectangular, straight-edged bezel, and the frame has a matte black finish panel, while the stand is a glossy black.

It has a very good UI and features the new Bravia Engine 3.  The panel is bright and the extreme whites dazzle. The backlight should not be kept too high: it can make dark parts cloudy. Greyscale stays at 6500K; pure blacks are decent; colours are deep and slightly oversaturated in all of the RGB, but this actually does the image good, especially in skin tones. Nature scenes look vivid and have depth. Detail and motion do not bring up any serious jaggies or edge distortions. In DVD video there is a little moiring.

FOR: Very bright, healthy contrast. Good options in UI to calibrate.
AGAINST: Expensive.
Price: Rs 42,900
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 3.5/5
Features: 1/5
Ergonomics: 3/5
Performance:3.5/5
Warranty:3/5
Overall Rating:2.5/5
Value for Money:3/5

Image: Sony

Samsung
LA32B530P7R
Aesthetics-wise, this TV is simple, yet classy: clean design, glossy black exoskeleton, thick glass sleeve along the bottom border for added effect.

One of the best things about it is the fact that the menu offers parameters that result in a good image: white balance, gamma, black level adjust, dyamic contrast and variable backlight. Of course images look very sharp and crisp due to the higher definition of the panel itself.

Greyscale-wise, it is a sober, decent performer, with its black levels being its Achilles’s heel - they are not so deep. There are no tinges and colouration.

FOR: Full HD panel. Very good parameters in the UI to calibrate. Whites are quite pure even at high contrasts. Very little clipping at high whites, thus brightness is clear and vibrant. Reasonably priced.
AGAINST: Weak blacks.
Price: Rs 44,000
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 4/5
Features: 4.5/5
Ergonomics: 4.5/5
Performance:4/5
Warranty:3.5/5
Overall Rating:4/5
Value for Money:4.5/5

LG
32LH20R
This ‘clean’ TV comes out of the box with huge stickers shouting feature names. Stripped of all this, the design is nice, with a glossy black finish all around the bezel.

The UI is nice, with satisfactory controls. Dynamic contrast level has a slight lag in adjusting different screens, which can irritate while gaming. Contrast on its own is not bad if set above 90 levels, but it is not extremely bright. There is no bleeding and haloing of whites. Blacks are not the strongest: the low black bars in our tests were indiscernible. Right from our word processor to intricate test patterns, all the movement was highly commendable. The IPS panel can be credited for this.

FOR: Aesthetically very pretty. No bleeding and clipping of whites.
AGAINST: Slight lag in dynamic contrast adjustments. Weakish blacks.
Price: Rs 38,000
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 3.5/5
Features: 3.5/5
Ergonomics: 4.5/5
Performance:3.5/5
Warranty:5/5
Overall Rating:4/5
Value for Money:5/5

Hitachi
L42S02A
Quite basic-looking; could use a bit of pizzazz. A glossy black bezel, with an old-fashioned speaker grille. The back panel is bare, with the input terminal window facing downwards. The Hitachi LCDs ensures better viewing angles.

Black levels are average. We had to raise the brightness to get any detail in low blacks. The whites though are pretty accommodating, with no real clipping or blooming even on higher contrast levels. Colours should be kept at ‘normal’ temperature, and at 50 or less in the colour setting. Another good thing was the detail, and of course the viewing angles. All these features  combined makes the image really sharp and well focused, from a wider range of viewing.

FOR: Good viewing angles. Very good detail and sharpness due to the IPS panel.
AGAINST: Average blacks.
Price: Rs 41,000
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 3.5/5
Features: 2/5
Ergonomics: 3.5/5
Performance:3.5/5
Warranty:1.5/5
Overall Rating:3/5
Value for Money:3/5


VU
LC-32P69
A neat 32-incher with some ritzy embellishments on the front panel that make it a winner when it comes to looks. The finish is glossy, with a nice round LED on the bottom panel, under a metallic strip that runs across. The power-on switch is virtually hidden on the bottom side of the frame.
The UI is a simple, centrally laid-out gray affair. There aren’t too many parameters available. Blacks are really weak; on our brightness test, we had to raise levels to see low black bars and by then everything looked faded; hardcore movie buffs and video guys might not like this. The detail and motion aspect is very good though, no real artifact or moiring problem in native 720p material. Colours and white levels better than average. 

FOR: Good design. Colours quite accurately saturated.
AGAINST: Not many parameters to calibrate. Weak blacks.
Price: Rs 38,000
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 3.5/5
Features: 1/5
Ergonomics: 3/5
Performance:4/5
Warranty:3/5
Overall Rating:2.5/5
Value for Money:3.5/5

Philips  
32PFL5609
From the 5000 series, this model is curvaceous, with rounded corners and glossy black finish. A small, simple, white power LED on the left corner, and that’s about it on the bare bezel.
The TV has a setup wizard, which runs a set of images in 2 different settings and you have to choose which one is suitable. It then tries to calibrate according to your preferences. It doesn’t do the best job, but it’s really interesting. From here on, the UI menu is not so extensive for manual calibration; not even half as many parameters available as, say, the Samsung. The only slight flaw in performance is a warmer than normal colour hue. Reds seem oversaturated. Pure black levels are deep and impressive. An automatic light sensing preset adjusts brightness according to ambient light.

FOR: Full HD panel, very good contrast, Nicely saturated colours.
AGAINST: Expensive.
Price: Rs 47,900
Ratings:
Build Qualities: 4/5
Features: 4.5/5
Ergonomics: 4/5
Performance:4/5
Warranty:2.5/5
Overall Rating:4/5
Value for Money:3.5/5