Ignore the "haters" reviews if you want the true skinny on this incredible, must-see-it-to-believe-it television. After copious research, my husband and I were 99% sure this was the TV we wanted...but there was one problem. There wasn't a store in our entire state that had one on the floor for us to see in person. With a purchase this expensive, that poses a giant obstacle. Do we buy it sight-unseen? Yikes! (We live in Michigan, and when I called Mitsubishi's general service line, I was told there was a store that had one on the floor...in Tennessee.)
Ultimately, we did buy it sight-unseen...directly from Amazon. (I would be cautious about buying it from any of the shadier internet appliance dealers, though - even among Amazon's own 'marketplace' sellers.) The set arrived very quickly, but we did have a problem: thin vertical lines running across 90% of the screen. I called the special number for Laservue owners and spoke directly with a real, live human being in California right away. They immediately arranged to have my set replaced with a brand-new set and have the faulty set shipped back to CA so they could examine it in person. For the incredibly low price for which we purchased this TV from Amazon (under $4K), I didn't mind a bit. Even in the few days it took for the new set to arrive, my husband and I watched the defective set with something approaching awe. The sharpness, the black levels, the otherworldly quality of the color when set on 'Brilliant' mode...it's indescribable. I'm so incredibly glad we didn't settle for a plasma with their distractingly reflective screens or an LED-LCD. The Mitsubishi Laservue leaves them all in the dust.
The new set arrived and "glorious" is a decent word to describe the picture quality. And if you're watching something in HD? It's like you can reach right through the screen and touch what you're seeing. I had to laugh when I found my husband utterly absorbed in a cooking show (something he NEVER watches), and when I called his name, all he could manage was to whisper "It all looks so delicious!", never once taking his eyes off the screen. I know what he means, though - you feel like you can actually smell and taste the food that is seen on this set.
The set itself is really slim and the case is beautifully sleek. I understand you can hang the Laservue on the wall, but since I've never been one to want to hang my TV on the wall itself, that didn't matter one way or another.
I can understand how some people are frustrated, having thought that this technology would be more widely available from other manufacturers by now and therefore more cost-competitive. I can even understand how some people hear the words "rear projection" and scoff at the notion of a television that is a rear projection selling for over $5,000.00. But I can tell you from firsthand experience that this television is worth every dime of its current price, and the angry reviews are written by people who don't own one and probably have never even seen one. Take them with more than a grain of salt.
Could we have afforded this television at its current market price? Sadly, no. I do hope that Mitsubishi will expand production so that brick-and-mortar stores that want to sell them can have them on hand, and that they consider expanding the Laservue line to screen sizes both larger and smaller. If they did so, I can't help but think they would have a runaway success on their hands, especially if they could come down in price even a bit. I also hope that other maufacturers jump into this technology with both feet and give Mitsubishi a run for their money.
But make no mistake - this television is so good, it makes every known superlative adjective seem banal. Mitsubishi rightly provides a level of customer service for this incredibly expensive TV that one would expect, and after having dealt with them, I can vouch for their commitment to complete satisfaction for the customers who are willing to take the plunge and buy a Laservue. But at that price, they'd darn well BETTER, right?
Still, if you want the kind of television that makes people's jaws drop open when they come over and makes everyone in your family grin like a mindless fool every time they watch it, consider the Mitsubishi Laservue. You *won't* regret it.