Customer Reviews

Toshiba 56HM195 56-Inch Theaterwide Integrated (1080p) HD DLP Rear Projection TV

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Picture is excellent on HD, very good on DVD and good+ with standard definition. Haven't noticed any rainbows, but may not be sensitive to them. No better value in 1080p right now. Time Warner brought two identical cable cards and one of them works fully. Very nicely stretches (not distorted) to fill the screen in one of the sizing modes. Built-in TV guide (free) is as good as the cable guide, but is a pain to customize channel order. Picture quality and sizing options are better with the cable card and with the TV guide you can dump the set top box or move it to another TV.
I was hesitant to order online, but delivered safe and sound in less than 2 weeks. Check your credit card for free warranty extension to 2 years.

Pros: Incredible HDTV picture, very good sound, easy to setup and navigate menus. DVD picture is solid, analog cable picture isn't bad. Very easy to switch screen size. Broad viewing angles. Not heavy and pretty narrow, so fits easily in rooms.

Cons: Fan runs constantly - doesn't interfere with viewing but audible in quiet room. Widescreen/letterbox DVDs still show black bars on top/bottom, albeit smaller.

Overall: Very happy with purchase. Bought this over 50in Plasma, and I'm glad, because the size makes a big difference.

I bought my TV in April 2006 and it has a beautiful picture. I added an X-box 360 and was even more pleased with my decision to get a 1080p television. Yesterday I was watching a show and I heard a loud "POP", then my picture went blank. As it turns out the Toshiba representitive had me do minor surgery on my TV to remove a lamp unit that had gone out way before it's time. They say you should get anywhere from 6000 - 8000 hours of life per bulb, but I can assure you that I barely got to 400 before it popped. Now they are honoring the warranty and sending a replacement unit and I am pleased that at least the turnaround is quick, but I wished I had known of the problems they had with some of these particular models. The Toshiba representitive said that they had a small glitch in the lamp units for this model and would be sending me the "New and Improved" lamp to replace my old one. So in closing I just want to say that if you choose to go with this model TV make sure to register online ASAP and if offered buy an extended warranty.
I hope this was helpful.

I have been through a few HDTVs untill I finally stuck with this solid set. I had the Samsung 1080 but standard channels were horrible, the same held true with a Mitsubishi 720p untill I finally picked the Toshiba 56hm195. The HD channels are spectacular (even throiugh cable box) and regular analog channels look very good. The only thing I really knew about Toshiba was that they made a ton of medical equipment and have made big screen TVs for the longer then most do. After checking out the TV through online reviews (high scores with consumer reports, product of the year with several publications )and spec sheeets this TV offered the better over all picture quality on all types of signals. I use a Sony upscale DVD player and the picture quality is very near HD (Of course using good quality DVDs). I run my home theater through my Yamaha system with JBL speakers and there is no lip sync problems at all. I have noticed a few rainbows with are smaller then the mitsubishi rainbows. This set offers all the inputs you need. There are a few things this set doesnt have, like individual color control, but Toshiba doent put alot of bells and whistles to keep the coast down to make the sets very affordable. When you switch inpts,i.e. hmdi to componant, this set remembers the color settings for each input. This is a good feature that samsung and mitsi did not offer, it prevents from constant playing with the color control. Highly recommended ! Even the guys at the TV store are happy I havent been back to complain.

I spent six months researching the many different types of technologies and HD televisions available for my Home Theatre before deciding on this unit. NO REGRETS.
My digital satellite receiver primarily only delivers 480i and despite this the picture is outstanding, crisp and clear no distortion even when standing close. I rely on terrestial HD channels and the unit easily programmed both the ASTC and NSTC tuners. The 1080i and 720p channels are incredible. When just listening to music I input a flash card with my vacation photos, in Jpeg format, and watch the slide show, one of many great feature.
I narrowed down my choices to this unit and the Sony 50" XBR. You have to understand I currently own six Sony televisions. I cannot say this television surpasses the XBR but is certainly it's equal without spending those extra thousands. This is the second HD Toshiba I have purchased and am glad I did the research before just defaulting to the top Sony unit as I have done in the past.
A word of caution, this unit has a resolution of 1080x1920, the key feature TalenX technology. Toshiba has a number of units with similar model numbers most of which do not have this technology.
This television rounds out my home theatre and my wife, a true sceptic, reluctantly admits my home theatre investment was well worth the price.

I bought this TV based on the reviews and I must say that it actually EXCEEDED my expectations. The HD 780p/1080i picture is absolutely outstanding. Ran a DVD in using one of the HDMI connections and the picture was quite impressive. The only minor drawback is that the 480i digital cable picture could be better. Even with that, I am very pleased with this TV and would highly recommend it, especially at the price. If you are looking for a quality HDTV and do not want to spend a fortune, stop looking, your search is over. The 56HM195 will fit the bill nicely.

I bought this tv just 2 1/2 months ago and was really pleased with it until we heard a loud popping noise and the screen went black. Come to find out, the lamp blew. We had only watched it for maybe 500 hours. When I called Toshiba they said they would get a new lamp out and would take 3-5 business days. They sent it FedEx and it never arrived. So now I've been without my tv for over a week now and have to wait while Toshiba does an investigation into FedEx.

Overall, we have been happy with this tv. It has a beautiful picture, especially the cartoons that my kids watch on it and we haven't even hooked up the HD yet. But I would recommend buying the extended bulb warranty if you buy this tv. On the other hand though, I have just been reading other reviews on this tv and saw 3 reviews that said their lamp bulb blew out in a short time. So, I would ask Toshiba about this before buying one to see if it is some kind of defect or something. I plan to call them back and make sure that this won't happen to us again in another 2 months. Had I known about this bulb problem, I probably would of looked at another brand to buy.

I bought this TV at the end of June 2006. Immediately, I noticed problems with it...

-Similar to other reviews, I learned that this is NOT a true 1080p TV! The maximum accepted resolution to either the component or HDMI inputs is 1080i. It took me 3 calls to Toshiba to get them to admit that. That being said, a 1080i signal can be de-interlaced from 1080i60Hz to 1080p30Hz, but just be sure you know what you're getting.

-I've had lots of problems with the component inputs on the TV. I know that the problem is in the TV because I've since run the same component outputs into an AV receiver, which then sends its output to the TV with and HDMI cable. The problem disappears when I do this. With both sets of component inputs (from multiple sources), I am able to see faint horizontal noise/interference lines. This noise is always evident, but is most easy to spot on darker (but not completely black) pictures. Occasionally, when turning on the TV and cable box at the same time, the picture will be completely messed up. The best way to describe the way it looks is to imagine the picture split into 6 smaller pictures, shaded pink/purple and scrolling sideways across the screen. Finally, for the first 10-15 minutes after the TV is turned on, a dark flickering pattern cycles sporadically through the picture, located towards the center and top of the picture. This flickering is most noticeable on a picture that is brightly colored. Again, all of these symptoms disappear by using an HDMI cable, but it shouldn't be necessary. I spoke with some authorized repair folks who suspect that the digital board (the board encoding the component signal to a digital signal) is at fault.

-The fan is very loud and runs often.

-I have also read multiple accounts of people having issues with the fan noise and interference. There is even speculation that a faulty fan could be putting out an RF interference signal, causing both of my current technical problems with the TV.

-Less than 3 months owning this TV, the bulb blew. There was a known fault with the first round of bulbs. Toshiba sent me a new one and it has lasted for over a year. I would assume that new models come with the better bulb.

+The picture (when there are no other problems) is very good. It's bright and crisp.

+Many HDTVs have a latency problem with video games. This one does not, so that's a plus.

Bottom line: I strongly caution you against purchasing this TV especially if you want a true 1080p TV. The other technical issues I've experienced might simply be the result of me receiving a lemon, but I can't say that I've been as happy as I would like with this TV.

$200+ lamp will have to be replaced every year with normal veiwing. If a game system is connected (PS, XBOX, Wii) and used lamp will need replacement every 6 to 8 months or so. Toshiba knows this and warraties the original lamp for only 1 year. The only way to make the lamp last is to not use the tv. In that case, leave it at the store.

We bought this TV from a local bricks & mortar in May and have been delighted with it. Great picture, great color, etc. BUT last night there was a loud pop and the screen went black. The lamp blew after a little more than three months. Luckily we bought the extended warranty and a repair guy will be out on Monday to replace the lamp.

I would encourage you to get the extended warranty to cover the lamps that Toshiba has had problems with for about a year with these LCD TVs.

The TV overall would get 5 stars, but this lamp blowing after a few months brings it down to 3 stars.