Customer Reviews

Philips 30PW850H 30" Widescreen HDTV-Ready TV

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Just got this television and for under 1K, it does a bang up job. It has an input for you progressive scan DVD player and an input for your 108i HD reviever, plus two more inputs for you VCR and whatever else you might have. The picutre on this thing is awesome!! Even old tapes look good with the line doubling, which lets you pick progressive or interlaced, I find interlaced helps with analog stuff, it takes the jaggies off. Again, for under 1K, an awesome tv.

I purchased this TV in the beginning of March. The picture was great, and watching DVD's in widescreen is fantastic. The HDTV quality is truly stunning. All of this for under $800.

But, if something goes wrong with your Philips unit, good luck.

My TV stopped taking any signal but the digital cable 39 days after I bought it. I could watch cable, but no DVD's or videos. I called Philips with my problem, and after speaking to somebody in another country for an hour, they had no idea what was wrong and I had to have it serviced.

The servicer came to my house under warranty and couldn't find the problem, so two weeks later they picked it up. Three weeks have gone by, and its still not fixed. I tried to call Philips to complain, but was again serviced by their customer service in Jamaica. They cannot do anything except say that the warranty is in effect, and that I can get it serviced. Good luck talking to them through their accents and the delay.

I asked to speak to somebody in the US, and they just gave me an address to write a letter to. It took them over two weeks to respond to my letter.

So after almost two months of being without a properly working television, two afternoons off work to meet service people and a third for when the tv is derlivered back, hours on the phone with their offshore customer "service" people, and a letter to PhilipsUSA headquarters, their total solution was to expedite the repair.

When I finally got someone in the USA to talk to me in response to the letter, they really didn't seem to care much about all of the steps that I had to take to get a problem resolved. I did everything they asked of me, yet Philips was unable to get me a working TV.

What did I do to deserve an malfuctioning TV and all the inconveniences? I bought a Philips TV.

So, while the TV is a good product, their poor service would make me really go out of my way to avoid purchasing another Philips product.

I realize that any product may not be perfect when purchased and may require service, but the lack of concern for the hoops I had to jump through just to obtain a working TV was pathetic.

A company should be judged on how they solve problems when things go wrong, Philips failed me, and they may fail you too.

As an update (June 5th), Philips did end up refunding my money, however, the two month process to do what I asked for originally has really soured me on Philips products and customer service.

I have had this set for about a week. I gave a Samsung similar model back in exchange for this one. It is a stunning set with lots of features and an absolutely high-value performance.

The picture is rock-solid and has an assortment of modes to view it in...i.e. - movie, custom, etc. It doesn't bloom when the picture suddenly gets brighter and the set offers several ways to view the picture, 16:9, 4:3 and various modes in between.

I have always been a fan of Philips' sound. That goes right back to their Philetta table radio from 1954 that I still listen to once in a while. Their speakers are always very clear and pleasant to listen to at any volume. The set offers several sound selections to go with the type of program that's being watched. This is true particularly when one activates the "Incredible Surround Sound" feature that the set has.

The TV holds the aspect ratio setting that the user selects. That means if I watch a standard broadcast show with a 4:3 setting and I turn off the set, when I turn it on again, the setting remains at 4:3 until I choose to change it. The settings I find very thoughtfully placed in the menu. The most common or frequently used ones are right at the top level.

All-in-all, I find this set a great buy. I only question why they put the volume and channel select control (yes, it is combined) on the top of the TV. However, the remote is convenient and I just thought I'd question that item.

From the past, I assume that should I need Philips technical support for this HDTV, I know I can get it.

Positives:

Bought this HDTV Monitor at Costco last week..for a steal $599 after a $100 coupon.

I have been researching lots of HDTV's for some time now, and i havent seen any in this price range .. closest competitor is ranged around $800-$900 range. So i used that extra money to get a Progressive scan DVD+VCR combo from costco ($99.. another steal at that price..after a coupon this week.).. nice component cables (will need those to see best quality video).. And a stand..around $150 .. Surely Need that stand as this TV weighs a ton (125 lbs.).. Dont use wooden tv stands...coz u never know.

Works OK out of the box.. hooking up to regular cable.. You can improve video quality by selecting the "weak-signal" video option .. (one of the nice features in new TV's).

Digital cable looks much better..and HDTV Digital cable looks fantastic.. just like you see in showrooms. Has option to select 4:3, 14:9 , 16:9 , subtitle Zoom & wide screen ..for video. Audio is nice.. with auto vol. level.. for those loud Ads. in TV.

Negatives:

Manual is OK.. could be better... Remote says it is universal.. but not true.. only few models of dvd,vcr, cable box work with that remote.. Also keys are not positioned ideally for a Uni remote..

Its a 30" wide screen.. so it looks as big as a 27" regular unit only.. just a bit wider .. for someone who are comparing the units side by side. (So it will look smaller compared to a reg. 30" flat tv)

Remember..Its an HDTV monitor..! and not an hdtv tv .which means you will need extra equipment if you plan to use it with outdoor hdtv antenna. Most of the new cable & satellite tv provide HDTV cable boxes.. which dosent need any new equipments.. except some cables..!

It does not have any DVI inputs or any HD15 /VGA (Computer) inputs ..like some newer TV's.. but this should not cause problems to regular use. And most od the regular inputs (component, composite & S-Video ) are on the back of the unit , only one at the side.. causing some inconvinence to hook up Gaming units..

I havent heard any Humming or noise in speakers so far.. or any problems with colors (white looking like yellow tint).. Though, the tuning menu for picture & sound blocks the TV view if you are changing it while watching some live games.. Not like other units with the settings on the bottom of the screen, so as not to block the view..

Weighing in all these Pro & Cons ... i feel its a great buy at this time.

If you're in the market to buy a HDTV and don't have a lot of knowledge about the technology or money to spend, the Philips 30PW850H is the answer!

I have done a lot of research on the Internet about the different HDTV models out there before purchasing the Philips and, needless to say, it was the best decision I've ever made. My main objective is to get a HDTV to replace my old analog TV and be able to watch DVD movies in widescreen format. The picture is so much sharper now even when I watch a regular programs and, if you have cable that broadcasts programs in High-Definition, it would truly makes you wonder how you could go without a HDTV this long! Real-to-life image is all I can say! And for less than $1,000 (I got mine at Bestbuy for $899) is a steal!

In conclusion, if you want to save yourself from a lot of hassle figuring out what HDTV model to get and/or get more bang for your money, do yourself a favor -- Get this HDTV now!

I bought this tv over a year ago for $800. The pictures is nice and the only picture problems I have is because I have basic cable. DVD picture is definitely nice. I haven't had any major visual problems. I only have two problems I would like to add to all these others:

1. TV has a long start up, which Philips considers normal (under 20 sec). I believe it usually at least takes five seconds to start up.

2. If you accidently hit the off button on the remote and try to turn the TV back on quickly, the TV locks up and will stay in "half on" state. The green light is on, but dim and there is no picture. To get the TV out of this state you have to get up and unplug the TV and plug it back in. This sucks since we have a big armoire that we have to move a bit to reach the plug.

I recently decided to upgrade my tv viewing experience but I did not want to go crazy in the wallet nor buy a product that may be outdated relatively soon. After seeing this tv advertised rather reasonably around town and online, I did some further homework and went through a refurbished company which also involved me getting some additional information. Costs may continue to go down but as of this date, getting a 30" widescreen, flatscreen, HD ready with a fine picture and a quality manufacturer starting under $1,000 (and likely to find considerably less) with more than enough connections for the average user - this is a steal!
First glance (upon plugging it in) I was overwhelmed and to know that I can use this for HD as well was the icing on the cake. Plus, the features (6 screen sizes) and sound options make it more enjoyable for each user and their respective programming.
With technology heading more and more in the direction of digital and widescreen formats, and without having to take up an entire portion of your living room, if you do not want to go overboard but still want the advantages of today's televisions, then this my friend is the place to start.
Truly satisfied and look forward to football season next year.
(opinion may be somewhat above average due to reviewer never owning more than a 19" tv set prior to this one)

Like many other reviewers I wanted to research as much as I could before I bought a new TV set, especially online. I found a website that offers refurbished Phillips products at beyond bargain basement prices so I decided to go with them. It was shipped to my door almost 1 year ago and I love the TV so far. It is indeed a heavy piece of equipment but then again, what tube television this large isn't? In fact, like RCA's I shy away from big TV's that are light because I tend to think they are not built well, and when I saw one opened I did not like what I saw. I have not used the HDTV signal yet since I really don't need it that badly but soon I will try the HDTV antenna with an HDTV box. Remember, as other reviewers have said, this is an HDTV "ready" TV so you will need an external HDTV decoder to view HD signals.

With the TV hooked up to my basic cable the picture looks fine, not great, not bad, but that is all because I am viewing an analog signal on basic cable. It will never be that great coming from an analog source but with that said, it is still a quality picture that I have no complaints about so far.

I have my DVD player hooked up with some quality component video cables running into the HD input. My DVD's look excellent but for those of you who are not too familiar with them the aspect ratio can be different. There is anamorphic, which is usually 2.35:1 and then the widescreen, which is 1.85:1. If we do the math you will see that the anamorphic will not fit perfectly in ANY mode, 21.15:9, whereas the widescreen 1.85:1 will fit pretty well on 16:9, 16.65:9. There was one reviewer who complained about the screen chopping it off, well, that is why, so blame it on the movie industry:) The one time where I saw HD quality TV was when I was watching some extra features on Sea Biscuit. All I can say is, WOW! Well I can say some more actually, it was a phenomenal picture especially when you are used to analog cable! One last note on adjustment, you have the ability to adjust the picture up and down when viewing an analog signal in a widescreen format. This way you can have it cut off the top and bottom equally so it really isn't bad to watch 4:3 TV in a widescreen format without much stretching.

Now, about the options of the TV. For the most part I am very happy with the remote and the adjustability of the TV, but there are a few little annoyances. One is the fact that you cannot directly choose which input you want to use. If you are watching TV and want to watch a DVD for example, you must cycle through Input 1, Input 2, and then you will get to the CVI. Then to go back to TV you must cycle through Input 3 and Input 4. I have learned to push the button 3 times in a row so it will go directly to the right input but it is an oversight on their part. The remote works fine and I have yet to find the need to use the buttons on the TV itself so I can't comment on those.

So, in the end I am very happy with my TV. It is a widescreen TV with a great picture at a great price. Just remember, this is an entry level HDTV so it might not have the up-converting, built-in HD box, etc., but what you do get is a great TV at a great price. I would always suggest that people looking to buy this TV should visit some showrooms to see it in action before buying.

I got mine at Costco for the rock bottom price of $699 and with no sales pitch for extended warrantys. The picture looks good, especially with a progressive scan DVD, but I disagree with the other reviewers about this being the best picture quality. I beat my market research to death, and I think the Toshiba is better quality, and Sony at the top. However, you'll pay more for those too. This TV for me is a holdover until the flat screens loose another $2K in price, at which point I'll still come out ahead and have a nice hammedown for my parents. The only real complaint I have is the delay in flipping between channels is too long, but I gather from other reviewers this is standard on this TV. But like I said, if you want five stars, then you'll have to pay extra for it.

I purchased a 'renewed' television from Philips Outlet. The purchase came with a 90 day warranty. Shortly after one month, the television began spontaneously turning off. I took the unit to an authorized repair shop as Philips directed. After 45 days and many phone calls, the repair shop returned the television and said it was fixed; however, when I brought the TV home, it was not fixed and I experienced the same problems. I contacted Philips and the repair shop immediately. Following another month of the repair shop waiting on Philips for direction (wondering if they should attempt a second repair or replace the unit) and many more phone calls, I was recently told by Philips that my warranty had expired and they would no longer fix the problem (even though the problem that occurred when it was under warranty was never fixed).

When the TV works, it's nice. But I want to warn others about Philips customer service. I'll never buy from Philips again...