Customer Reviews

Hitachi 51SWX20B 51-Inch 16:9 Projection HDTV-Ready Monitor/TV

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Bought this HDTV in early December 2002. Prices have gone UP since. We are very happy with this unit.

DVD progressive-scan picture quality is flawless. I challenge anyone to see more detail in a film like "The Last of the Blonde Bombshells" (an HBO film shot with HD equipment): I can safely describe every scene as of "photographic quality". "Shrek", "Matrix", "Moulin Rouge", and "Moonstruck" are also fantastic.

UPDATED Sept 2004: The (cable box) HD picture we see from home is fantastic. "Pinch me, is this real?" HBO is best, then HD1, then NBC, then CBS, then ABC.

Lets face it, if you spend this much on a large screen TV, you will want to fill the screen edge to edge, and the six aspect-ratio settings let you do just that. We choose 16:9 (1.85:1 "widescreen") viewing most of the time. Breathtaking stuff!

When you watch 4:3 images (1.33:1 "full screen") you can expand the image to fill the screen, but the distortion bothers me. So we mostly watch those at the "Zoom1" setting, which provides an edge-to-edge viewing experience with some cropping. I prefer cropping to the grey or black bars that otherwise frame the image.

Compared this 51" to the 57" Hitachi and was surprised that the 57" picture quality was better, considering it uses the same elements. I thought that picture would be grainy or washed out, but it was also superb. However I could not justify the additional cost - and this 51" screen fits our basement viewing area well.

I am very happy with this HDTV watching 50/50 DVD and satellite TV, but I am hunting for the best HD receiver to complete our video experience.

For sound, we use an RCA 700W surround system. Despite small satellite speakers, the sound is incredible large, thanks to a large subwoofer. The Hitachi's 40W speakers provide good sound, though, and we usually set the volume at 50% while watching movies. They fill in nicely in the mid to high-range frequencies.

I strongly recommend this set and challenge anyone to find a better quality image for the money.

this tv has the best picture of any projection tv i have ever seen, and give many a tube tv a run for the show as well. i have seen alot of them, as i deliver for a tv and appliance store. the price i paid for this item is unbelievable as well. so needless to say i am a very happy hatachi watcher. dvd quality is out of this world, i have pioneer 600 watt surround sound w/5 disc changer hooked up through red blue green on both units. just switched from cable (clear picture aint so clear) to direct tv the picture from direct is much much better. when not using the pioneer, the sound still sounds good from the hitachi. even though i got a tremendous deal it is well worth the regular price.

I checked other systems and frankly this one was the clearest picture of all. Expansions capabilities are also quite diversed. One negative side is that the input ports are low (close to the floor) thus needing longer cables than otherwise needed. Asides from that, overall a 5 star.

I am very impressed with this set. In comparing the quality of the picture with other manufacturers the picture far exceeded their capabilities. This set far exceeded my expectations and I am happy I bought it. It is even better than I thought it would be by seeing it in the store.

I have this tv and the picture quality is great. One exception.
in two and a half years I had to change the crt's twice. I had "screen burn". Hitachi does not back them up at all. I never played vidio games or put up pictures from a camera. I was told the instant you turn the set onyou start the procces no matter how long you leave the set on. Just normal watching constitue misue and Hitachi would not cover the repair. Why would I spend this kind of money to watch tv and it be concidered misuse. Thats what I bought the tv for watching.