Philips 34PW850H 34" Digital Widescreen HD-Ready TV (Silver)

by Philips

Product Details

Supplementary Guide [2.53mb PDF]

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Data Sheet [625kb PDF]

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Product Manual [2.19mb PDF]

• Shipping Weight: 166 pounds
• Shipping: This item can only be shipped to the 48 contiguous states. We regret it cannot be shipped to APO/FPO, Hawaii, Alaska, or Puerto Rico.
• ASIN: B0000AAAO1
• Item model number: 34PW850H
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #404,691 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

The 34-inch 34PW850H HD-ready TV provides true high-definition 1080i picture (16:9 aspect ratio) with 6 widescreen and 4:3 full-screen display. It also features a 3D Y/C digital comb filter, scan velocity modulation, invar shadow mask, and side A/V and S-Video jacks for a clean look.

The 34PW850H's flatter tube provides a wider viewing angle while minimizing reflections for the best picture possible. The special alloy invar shadow mask helps maintain tighter focus and eliminate "color blooming" as compared to standard tubes.

The 3D Y/C digital comb filter separates chrominance (color) from luminance (brightness) information for independent processing to improve picture resolution and minimize distortion, while scan velocity modulation varies the electron beam speed for a more finely rendered picture with improved sharpness. The AutoPicture function instantly optimizes brightness, contrast, color, tint and sharpness settings with picture presets for Movies, Sports, Video games, and weak signal reception. Philips' Eye Fidelity line doubling feature gives you the choice between progressive scan (480p) or a line-doubled (1080i) picture when viewing non-HD broadcasts.

This set has a built-in 181-channel tuner and two built-in speakers (10 watts apiece) that provide virtual surround sound. It's compatible with 1080i and 480p high-definition signals with an optional HDTV tuner. With the AutoSound feature, audio volume levels are automatically adjusted and optimized with the choice of three presets: Movies, Voice, Music plus an adjustable personal setting.

The included universal remote controls all TV features plus virtually all brands of VCR, DVD, cable TV converters and digital broadcast satellite receivers. The 34PW850H has 3 composite A/V inputs (1 side), 1 A/V output, 2 S-Video inputs (1 side), 2 component inputs, and a headphone jack on the side.

Tech Talk
Aspect ratio: The aspect ratio refers to the shape of the video image. Standard television has a 4:3 aspect ratio, which is almost square in appearance. Digital television will have either a 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio, which is widescreen and appears rectangular, looking more like a movie screen and filling more of the viewer's field of vision for a more lifelike viewing experience.

Scanning method: Frames of video are made up of many lines of video that are scanned onto a television screen so closely they appear to be a solid picture. The scanning method can be either interlaced or progressive. Interlaced scanning (also used in today's analog TV), indicated by an "i" in the video format, fills in the odd number lines (1,3,5,7...) and then fills in the even number lines (2,4,6,8...) until the frame is complete. Progressive scanning, "p," fills in each line consecutively until the frame is complete, like a computer display.

What's in the Box
34PW850H 32-inch TV, remote control, 2 AA batteries, and printed operating instructions.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Quality for a great price, November 25, 2003

By 

"domovich1" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Philips 34PW850H 34" Digital Widescreen HD-Ready TV (Silver) (Electronics)

Overall, I'm very satisfied with this TV set. I ordered it from amazon for $1300 with free shipping which was cheaper than anything that I could find on the net. I was thrilled by the features that this tv had. The most important was the 2 Component Video connections. This allowed me to hook up both the digital cable and a progressive scan DVD player. The picture was awesome, and it was nice that ALL my dvd could be watched in wide screen without those annoying bars. Basically, I'm really glad that I purchased this tv set.

PS- getting a home theater with this tv is also a nice touch.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Do NOT buy this from Amazon, June 30, 2004

By 

T. Parker (Huntington Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Philips 34PW850H 34" Digital Widescreen HD-Ready TV (Silver) (Electronics)

3 weeks after we received our TV, it exploded (we heard a "pop", the screen went blank, and an acrid smell filled the room). And guess what? Amazon DOES NOT HANDLE RETURNS on televisions larger than 27 inches. Huh? Yup, you heard right. If you buy a TV larger than 27 inches from Amazon, they COMPLETELY WASH THEIR HANDS OF IT once it reaches your door. That's it. Done. Thanks for buying. Even if it EXPLODES IN YOUR LIVING ROOM, well, tough. The nice folks at Amazon will simply tell you to call Philips or "check your manual for troubleshooting tips" and, oh, thanks for calling. Where does it say this? It doesn't. You have to find and click the tiny little link that says, "Shipping rates and policies". Never mind that I've bought hundreds of items from Amazon over the past 7 years and that I've never had a problem returning any of them. They expect you to guess that their return policy might be completely different when it comes to televisions and to seek out the information on your own. No where during the entire sales cycle do they ever so much as hint that you can't return it and that they'll have nothing to do with it once it leaves their warehouse. Oh, and what did they do after I sent them a strongly worded letter calling them out on a very bad business practice? They sent me a form email saying that they're sorry I'm unhappy with my new TV but that they can't accept returns and that I check my user manual if I'm having problems. Are you kidding me??? To add insult to injury, the form email stated that I could respond to the email for further discussion on the matter. I did and 5 days later got a "return to sender" email telling me that my email had permanent fatal errors and could not be delivered. Wow. This might actually be the worst customer service experience I've ever had, with any company. Oh, and in case you're curious, Philips finally delivered us a new TV...4 MONTHS after we dropped it off at a "factory authorized" repair shop. Wow, Amazon and Philips - what a team!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful HDTV Set, February 2, 2004

By 

Tintin "tintin75" (Winchester, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Philips 34PW850H 34" Digital Widescreen HD-Ready TV (Silver) (Electronics)

I was just looking for a 28 - 32 in., analog, flat-screen set, , but in no time was I sold on a HDTV. After some research on the Web, etc, I rejected the large, flashy Rear Projection Televisions, which in my opinion are only adequate for "Sports Bars" and the likes (and fall short in the area of picture resolution). I was seduced by the Plasma, DLP projection and direct View LCD sets, but their prices are also very seductive. In the end, the CRT sets still give the best reproduction of color and compete favorably with these new technologies, while at much lower prices.

I eventually settled for the Philips 34PW850H HD, 34-inch, Flat Screen TV. The first thing I noticed was the elegant, Euro-design appearance of the TV. The sleek, silver lines of the set will enhance any room when turned off. Of course, when turned on, the crisp image displayed is quite remarkable. But the improvement of HDTV signals over analog ones is the overwhelming majority of the enhancement in our viewing experience, when compared to any additional gain due to other display technologies. I was a little apprehensive regarding the display of the standard analog channels, but there also, the quality of the images is outstanding.

Hooking up the Television. Inputs. 3 A/V inputs (2 in the back, 1 on the side), 1 S-Video, 2 Components. Output. 1 Monitor.

Picture modes. 7 screen viewing modes: Auto, 4:3, Zoom 14:9, Zoom 16:9, Subtitle zoom, Superwide, and Wide screen...

Picture enhancements: Autopicture (instantly optimized brightness, contrast, color, tint and sharpness settings with picture presets for Movies, Sports, Video games and weak signal reception), and a personal setting, the only option which can be changed.

Digital options. Choice between two different picture scanning modes: Progressive Scan and Interlaced (1050i)

Audio. 2 speakers, 20 watts

AudioSound. 3 factory-set control (Voice, Music, Theater,) and one adjustable control (Personal).

Surround sound. "Incredible Surround" simulates surround from two channels. At least, this is what the manufacturer tells you. "Incredible" in a sense of "bad" is more like what comes out of the speakers. It defies credulity that such a beautiful set, producing such a beautiful picture, could produce such awful sounds. I had to connect the audio output to a pair of hi fidelity speakers, via a small preamp/amp unit, to obtain the "Incredible Surround"".

There are a 3D Y/C digital comb filter and an invar shadow mask.

Clock, timers. As far as I am concerned, a bedroom is to be used for two activities, and watching television is not one of them. However, for those who enjoyed watching TV in bed, there are various controls, which allow one to go to sleep and wake up with the image/sound of the TV.

Remote control. The "universal" remote is easy enough to use and versatile: it even lights up in the dark. But "universal" it isn't. It can only handle the TV set, although some buttons and switches would indicate otherwise.

The price of this unit was average for its size when I bought it in December, and since the end of the year, its price has come down somewhat.

All in all, the 34pw850h is a beautiful set (once the sound is fixed), well crafted, and with the Philips reputation for quality to back it up (at least in Europe). But because of the mediocre sound system, I can only give it a 4-star rating.

Note added June 5, 2007. The TV still works as it did the first day I bought it. In the meantime, I found it to be more versatile in certain areas, such as the different formats of the displayed picture, than any of the latest LCD or plasma sets.
Note added June 6, 2008. Ditto.