Customer Reviews

Sharp Aquos LC32D43U 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In my opinion, the Sharp LC-32D43U and LC-32D42U provide the best overall value for the money, when compared to comparably priced 720p native resolution LCD TVs.

I have owned the Sharp LC-32D42U for 4 months now and I couldn't be happier. The Sharp LC-32D42U and LC-32D43U 720p TVs are identical, with these exceptions: The 42U has a low-gloss frame with a silver base while the 43U has a high-gloss screen frame with a black base. (The 42U is a lower cost warehouse version and the 43U is a higher cost department store version.)

One downside to these Sharp TVs is that they reportedly do not do well deinterlacing or recognizing 3:2 pulldown when fed 1080i signals. However, when fed their native 720p signals, these TVs perform beautifully. Some reviews also mention subpar standard-definition 480i video processing (I rarely watch analog TV or VHS); fewer picture adjustments than many LCDs (this has not presented a problem for me); inability to change aspect ratios with HDMI sources (this won't bother purists who appreciate a movie director's intended aspect ratio). When fed a 720p signal from a cable or satellite box, HD reception looks great. (Sharp also recommends that the 720p output setting be used with Blu-Ray and HD players.) I have not experimented with the computer input, but most people report being satisfied with it.

In spite of its faults, the main attraction of these two Sharp LCDs is that they produce outstanding picture quality with 720p input: Deep blacks, vivid contrast, accurate colors and a very fast 6ms refresh rate which makes a big difference during fast motion scenes. When viewed next to comparably priced Sony, Samsung and Toshiba LCDs with 8ms refresh rates during fast panning and other fast motion scenes, the clarity of the Sharp TVs is vastly superior. This fast refresh rate is also the reason that many gamers prefer the Sharp TVs.

Unlike several other LCD brands, all of the Sharp digital processing (automatic brightness, enhanced picture contrast, black level expansion and digital noise reduction) can be disabled. The LC-32D42U can be found in the $700 range, making it a much better buy than its higher priced fraternal twin, the LC-32D43U. Also, the industry trend toward low-gloss LCD screen frames (such as the one found on the LC-32D42U) makes good sense, because black matte screen frames do not reflect room light or show dust and fingerprints.

Admittedly, the Sharp TVs do not have the greatest sound. However, the Sharp TVs can be configured to variable stereo audio output (simultaneously muting the TV's internal speakers) and the volume level of external self powered speakers (I am using an Altec Lansing 3-piece computer speaker system) can be controlled with the Sharp remote. Wireless headphones can also be used, with full volume control from the remote and the TV also has an optical output which can be used to direct digital sound to a surround sound receiver.

Make sure you carefully examine the picture using the actual unit you will buy, and if you are mail ordering it, make sure you have a good return policy that allows returns for screen defects. Sharp will NOT replace units that have even very noticeable flaws. I have a unit with a region of dim pixels the size of a pea, and they consider it to be 'within spec', and WILL NOT replace it. I made the mistake of taking it to the authorized repair facility, instead of returning it to the vendor immediately. It took them four weeks to finally shoot me down, by which time I could no longer return it to the vendor. Now I own a very expensive television that makes me angry every time I watch it. NICE JOB SHARP!!! They will definitely be at the bottom of my list for my next purchase. Too bad, I used to like their sets.

We have had our TV for about 3 weeks. At the time we made our purchase we thought we were getting a top of the line TV for considerably less than what we would have to pay locally. After installing it we had some issues which turned out to have nothing to do with the preformance of the TV. I was able to work out these issues by email. Sharp support via email is fast and to the point. They know their product and the issues customers are likely to face.

Shortly after our purchase I noticed the LC32D62U on the Amazon website which offered 1080p resolution. I had been told that the 1080p is quite a bit sharper. I tried hard to find the flaw in the LC32D43U but couldn't. I noticed the complaint of one reviewer about the time delay in going from a regular channel to a high definition channel or vice versa. I didn't see it. In the final analysis I have nothing to criticize about the LC32D43U. The picture is as sharp as any LCDTVs I have seen in the stores. The physical design is excellent. We use a component set up so do not depend on the TV speaker system. I have not seen a better deal for this quality anywhere else.

In terms of fundamental specs, the LC32D43U looks modest on paper compared to the 46" 1080p 120 khz monsters that the big box electronics companies want us to aspire to, but in the real world, this set provides a pleasingly vivid image that does serious justice to good sources. True, 32" looks deficient next to the monster sets on the Best Buy wall, but I was surprised at the great level of detail that this size gets you without squinting - as long as you're at an ideal distance (5-8 feet) you won't need to strain your eyes to see every whisker and wrinkle on a newscaster's face, every football player's number. Also, for those new to the HDTV shopping game, the 720p resolution is really indistinguishable from the more impressive sounding 1080p until you reach much larger sizes (and you have your hands on the rare media that actually takes advantage of such resolution). So while the basic specs don't impress, they should be more than adequate for 5 - 10 years of viewing without being leapfrogged by the Joneses... especially given the pleasing quality of this set's image.

Given high quality sources like a Blu Ray movie or fast-paced, high-res videogame like Burnout: Paradise City, I was impressed with how well the LC32D43U handled some of the more vexing issues LCDs face. With the fast pixel response time, fast action scenes didn't seem to cause any detectable blur. Black areas of the screen, while at times not quite as revealingly detailed as some of the most high-end sets, displayed a pleasingly deep shade of black. If you change the settings to the most mild color temperature, the color is impressively accurate, never begging the picky viewer to mess with the color settings... All in all, I have found it much more of a struggle to find images that do justice to my TV than the other way around.

There are a few minor let-downs. The speakers are useless for anything but low volume watching when you don't want to wake up spouses/kids/roommates. I plugged this TV's audio output into the line input of an unused Klipsch iPod dock and thought they made a nice match, doing justice to the image quality. As I mentioned, black levels are nice and dark, but the detail in those dark areas of the screen can fall somewhat short of the highest end Sonys at times (not nearly enough to be worth nearly double the price, at least for me). The remote is solid and functional (I especially like the customizable "favorites" buttons that let you quickly access 16 of your favorite channels), but not as intuitive as, say, your Tivo remote - common functions are spread out all over the 10-12" remote, forcing you to do a little bit more hunting and pecking to operate than would be ideal.

All in all, this is an excellent and attractively designed TV at a great price, producing vivid images, yet compact enough to not dominate a room. If you're not trying to be the neighborhood Superbowl destination (I'm sure there's someone on your block with a wall-filling Sony competing for that prize), you can't go wrong with this great set.

If you are reading this then you are probably hoping for a nice concise review so I will do my best. Overall it is an amazing set, my first flat panel and LCD. Used as a TV w/ high-def cable and theatre with upscaling DVD player, and Computer monitor.
Pros
-Clean high contrast picture with bright colors. looks great with high def TV and upscaling DVD player.
-Easy switching between inputs from button on top of panel or from remote, although I have not found an input switch on any other universal remote like cable.
-Good speakers for a TV, low distortion even at highest volume, and plenty loud.
-Settings like color and contrast are super easy to set and reset.
-intuitive menus
Cons
-A little bit of warm up time (about 5 seconds to turn on)
-Slower switching between inputs. If you are like me and go from the computer to the dvd to the cable constantly it takes a few seconds to switch.
-In a brightly lit room dark scenes seem to get washed out.

I was looking at the latest Samsung model as the competitor
Hope this helps.

After four weeks of good use my Aquos locked up and became inoperable. The buttons on the TV and on the remote didn't work and I received no picture. Since the Sharp help line is not available at night and the manual had no suggestions to deal with this problem I had to unplug the TV to turn the unit off.
The next day we contacted the help line who referred us to a local authorized repair shop that was not too interested in our problem. When I called Sharp again my complaint was "escalated" to someone who walked us through a complicated reset procedure. Sharp advised that the problem was with the cable provider and a signal problem the provider was having with several digital channels. The cable provider has categorically denied they had anything to do with this issue so I called Sharp to try to get an idea of whether I had a defective unit. Again Sharp blamed it on the cable provider, stating they had received "several hundred calls" on this issue and were currently "in negotiations" with the provider about the problem. I was warned not to tune in the digital channel that assertedly caused the problem.
The set is functioning well now but I still don't know whether this unit has a latent defect or if the cable provider is the source of the malfunction but I will be watching the calendar to make sure the unit is operating satisfactorily when the warranty expires.

We love this TV. It has a lot of nice options, like turning off the screen in case you just want to listen to one of those digital music channels from the cable company, and automatic brightness adjust that senses the light level near the TV.

It really shines watching high-definition channels, though. The blacks are black, colors are vibrant, and greys are pretty faithfully rendered, from what I can tell. A certain chain electronics store had this TV on display on a wall with about 50 or 60 others, so we could see for ourselves how it blew the competition away.

Delivered in time in perfect condition. Everything went smoothly. Picture quality is great. For analog channels from cable, picture quality improves significantly with amplified antenna. Off the air digital channels reception is also excellent.

First of all, I love the design of the TV couldn't be happier. From there sharp's sleek tv continues to impress when you turn it on. It has some of the darkest blacks and vibrant colors I've seen on any HDTV, for any price. Even though it's only 720p I really can't tell the difference between this and full-HD at this small of a size, for the price. Sony does make some really nice screens that are also really expensive ( : Maybe it's just me, but I don't notice a whole lot of difference until the screens get larger.

Being a semi-broke college student, this was a big splurg for me (old tv died...) and in my opinion this tv is about as good as it gets for price/performace ratio. I read a few reviews saying it has sub-par standard tv processing and I guess I see it when compared to a true HD source, but I've been so used to regular tvs that I don't know how they can complain... besides cable is going HD in a year or two so it won't really matter soon.

One of the big reasons that I was first interested in this is the VGA input that many HDTVs don't have. I can plug my xbox 360 and my laptop in to play games in HD. I was blown away what games/movies really look like when you can see all the details. The 6ms refresh rate is great for gaming and movies alike. I've never noticed any lag whatsoever that's due to the tv. It's a bit small for multiplayer, but that's besides the point. The optional OPC (on picture control) feature has a light sensor that can automatically adjust the backlight according to the shadow levels in the room. Not only does this extend the life of your tv, but it's much easier on the eyes at night. Very nice feature.

The speakers are a bit small, but I really can't complain about the sound despite that. For movies/games I use my stereo and only use the speakers for watching TV. The TV does have optical and component output while muting the tv speakers if you so choose. It has a medly of input/outputs that should more than satisfy most (HDMI, VGA, Component, S-video, etc.). I think my only real complaint is that switching between sources is a little slow and changing channels is slower than I would like, but I tend to be impatient with things like that. Don't get me wrong there are better tvs out there, but if want a premium tv without the premium price this is the way to go.

Bottom line: quality picture & fast refresh time make it one of the best LCDs for its size at a good price

Just purchased this unit and have a blown pixel. I don't know if it came out of the box this way or if it just occured after 3 weeks of usage. In anycase, I looked this up on google and it seems to be a not so uncommon problem with some SHARP LCD's. I am a bit frustrated, but atleast the blown pixel is on the bottom right portion of the screen and not dead smack in the middle. I called SHARP customer service and was on hold for about ten minutes. The service rep was pleasant and responsive. She offered me a few options to fix my problem. We documented this problem and will request service if I see more dead pixels appear in the future.
All in all, this television is good. Blow pixel seems to be the luck of the draw with LCDs. I also own a SAMSUNG 42inch plasma which I think is excellent.