Customer Reviews

Sylvania SRT702A 7-Inch Dual Tuner Portable LCD TV

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I had a pocket portable TV for years in case of emergency. It ran on AA batteries and was always dependable during power outages or storms.

With the advent of digital TV it was rendered useless and have been watching for a replacement for a while now. When I found this one on sale and even with the bad reviews it was one of the best so I tried it.

I worked for a long while attempting to tune channels without success using the included antenna. I finally hooked up the roof antenna to it and successfully programmed all the local channels (and I live in the middle of a big city with 30+ broadcasts). I replaced the included antenna and still got 'no signal' on every station whether indoors or out.

Otherwise--
The TV is larger than I really wanted but does have a good picture quality. The menu is done well. The buttons require a lot of pressure, more than I would expect on something like this. Also, for a portable I would have liked a better protective layer over the screen. This one will easily be scratched. Sound is par for something smaller, so for this size they could have done better.

The battery is a rechargeable, similar to a cordless phone. You can open the battery compartment but cannot access the plug to remove/replace without taking it apart. Why would they even design it this way? So I can expect that when an emergency comes, I the battery will be low and would have to charge it in a car with the included 12v plug. But since I can't get it to work, guess I don't have to worry anyway.

Wait for a model that has better reception, higher gain antenna or some advancement that enables you to actually receive a station.

After much research I ended up purchasing the Sylvania 7" Portable LCD TV, SRT702A through WalMart for just over $51. The unit came in a sealed box with two boxes inside (Well packaged).

Inside 1 box was the TV unit and instruction books and the other box contained 100-240vac 50-60 hz to 12vdc 1.5a power supply, 12VDC Car adapter, 1 AV input adapter cable, 1 screw on whip antenna, 1 cable / antenna cable adapter (F-male quick connect to F female), 1 ear bud style headset, Adjustable stand / mounting hardware, and a small FULL function remote control with Batteries (2-AAA).

On the left side of the unit there is a "power switch" that must be on for the unit to work or to charge the battery.
This unit has TWO AV input jacks! AV1 and AV2 that are selectable through on unit menu button or the A/V button on the remote. Having two AV inputs is a nice feature if you are using this unit for Security or other needs that require more than one input. The down side is that it only comes with 1 adapter cable. Finding one after market might be a problem. The instruction were acceptable with the normal disclaimers and usual long list of DON'T do warnings.
All features and settings are accessible using the remote or through buttons on the unit. (You don't have a problem if you loose or forget the remote). The remote can power on the unit but the slide power switch must be on. It is easy to tell if it is on, there is a red LED on the front along with a charging LED.
Picture and sound quality is good.
I am in a BAD digital area, The tuner did not detect any stations, But my regular TV didn't find any when on rabbit ears.. But when I connected the unit to an external antenna I got the same number of stations as I can get with my big TV.
I have no feedback on the battery life as I haven't had time to test it. The manual does not make any claims as to battery life. The battery does appear to be replaceable, it is located under a pop off cover on the back of the unit. Other reviews I read suggested 90 to 120 minutes runtime on battery.


I plan on using this as a security monitor more than a TV but it is nice to have the TV option if we loose power. It supports both ATSC and NTSC so it works with Analog cable system and digital off the air. If you use it in the Cable mode you can select Auto, STD, IRC or HRC.

All in all not a bad 7" portable TV-Monitor with a full function remote. Suggest shopping around for best price.

Good TV, Works well right out of the box. Remote is a little small and slippery.

Don't get me wrong, it is a nice tv, with good picture and good reception, not heavy and comes with all the cables to attach any peripherals, however, it does not have a USB port, big let down. Item was returned and money back was received. If you don't care for the USB port, you are getting a good tv.

I am mostly adding this review to warn people the TV does not have a card reader or USB input. In general, the TV performs decently. Its tuner is not as good as the best set-top converter boxes (Zenith, Channel Master). This TV has two valuable features missing from at least one other 7" portable TV: an Auto zoom mode, and a channel scan-add setting. The Auto zoom mode lets you see widescreen (16:9) shows filling the screen while keeping standard (4:3) shows in their proper shape (with black bars on each side of the screen) so you don't have that awful wide-stretching look. (You can also pick Wide or Normal manually as well.) The channel scan-add mode lets you scan for new channels without erasing the list you have previously stored. The resolution of this TV, 480x234, is typical for this screen size, and will look coarse if you view it up close. Overall, it is a good TV for under US$100.

Before you think "poor reception" is unique to this TV, be sure to carefully understand that digital TV reception is different from the old analog type, where you could get snowy pictures from almost any piece of wire attached to a TV set. Digital TV reception is mostly an "all or nothing" fact; you will either get perfect, snow-free and ghost-free signals, or a completely blank screen. The antenna included with this TV, like the antennas included with ALL small portable TVs, is of very little use unless you are right near the TV stations. DO NOT depend on these short, single-rod antennas for ANY real reception except in rare, lucky situations. The minimum antenna you should plan to use is a true pair of "rabbit ears" made for your indoor TV, and they can work fairly well with this or other portable TV sets.

In general, the Sylvania TV performs decently. Its tuner is not as good as the best set-top converter boxes (Zenith, Channel Master), but is about the same as other 7" digital sets. This TV has two valuable features missing from at least one other 7" portable TV: an Auto zoom mode, and a channel scan-add setting. The Auto zoom mode lets you see widescreen (16:9) shows filling the screen while keeping standard (4:3) shows in their proper shape (with black bars on each side of the screen) so you don't have that awful wide-stretching look. (You can also pick Wide or Normal manually as well.) The channel scan-add mode lets you scan for new channels without erasing the list you have previously stored. The resolution of this TV, 480x234, is typical for this screen size, and will look coarse if you view it up close. Overall, it is a good TV for under US$100.

I ordered this TV for the USB and SD capabilities as advertised. I did all the research on this product to make sure I was getting what I was ordering. I found a manual online that showed the product with an USB port and SD slot. And I was confident that I would get what I ordered because the seller was Amazon.com LLC. Boy was I disappointed when I found out that they sent the wrong TV. AT least it is a TV with the same model number, but without the advertised USB and SD capabilities. I have had a bait and switch before on Amazon.com, I never expected it form the parent company themselves. I guess I need to spend more time on Nextag and Yahoo Shopping. I'll definately look at mu options on those two sirtes before ordering on Amazon again. Is that overreating? I'm a little upset. And I won't get my refund for 10 days or more.

Living in the middle of Dallas, TX with over 40 HD channels over the air, it picks up 0, even outside. After buying a $30 powered antenna, I was able to pick up 4, but the antenna is so large and powerful it is larger than the TV itself, and still only 4 channels.

Works good for my bedside table. one problem; cannot connect with the setup code for this unit to set up my digital remote

This is a great TV. It has a beautiful picture and the sound quality is wonderful if you are using earphones. It gets 12 channels over the air here in New Orleans. It even picks up channels inside an all metal construction trailer.
I think they should edit their description of this item. It has NO USB or SD SLOTS as advertised. This is a great unit without those things. Picture quality is great!!