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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Toshiba 46XV540U is great!!, January 5, 2009
I purchased the Toshiba 46XV540U at my favorite volume wherehouse store for $1199 one week ago. I originally planned on buying a Panasonic 42" 1080p Plasma, but after discussing Plasma panels with some video engineers at work, I was NOT convinced that it would be free from image retention (burn-in), especially since I watch a lot of 4:3 programming and I didn't want to lay awake at night worrying about having left-right bars burned into the screen. Then I set my mind on either a Sony W4100 or Z4100, but my local wherehouse only had a 40" Sony. The 46" cost too much. I settled on a Sony because I own a Sony 55" SXRD, which I find stunning, and as good as any Plasma or LCD, and it's 120Hz and 1080p/24 display. Then I saw the Toshiba, which stated that it had similar specs as my SXRD. After obsessing and doing extensive research, I decided to buy the Toshiba. I was hesitant since I really liked what I saw on the Sony LCDs. Out of the box, the Toshiba looked good, but the levels needed to be toned down. I initially used a THX DVD (any DVD that is THX certified, like Toy Story, Monsters, Inc), and the disc has a THX setup menu that will help you adjust any TV to look pretty darn good. Later I used the Video Essentials DVD for further adjusting. After setting the color, tint, brightness and contrast, I couldn't be happier. One of my biggest necessities of any HDTV is that it displays SD (standard def) channels well, and I'm happy to say that this Toshiba does a great job. HD on my Charter cable looks stunning in 1080i. Blu-Ray is jaw-dropping. I also watch a lot of sports and the 120Hz option looks great, and from what I've read in test reports, the Toshiba handles this better than Sony, and I condider the Sony better than Samsung for this. Anyways, the Toshiba colors are excellent, it gives deep blacks, I don't see any pixel blurring or lag and fast motion on sports looks rock-solid. AND, this 46" Toshiba cost about $500 less than a similar-sized Sony. The speakers in the Toshiba give satisfactory audio, especially for my bedroom, where I have this set. The image looks pretty good even at extreme angles. The screen is matte-finish, which is essential in my opinion to control reflections. The bezel of the Toshiba is gloss black. I would have preferred a satin-black bezel, but no problem. The Toshiba remote is well laid out. I recently owned a Toshiba 50" CRT rear projection set and I loved the remote on that set because of two things: 1) Mute does a half-mute first, then a full mute with a second press. Half-mute allows you to turn down the TV if answering a phone but you can still hear the sound. 2) The Channel Return will actually return you to a previous Input. So, if you are watching a DVD then switch to a cable channel to check out a football score, you can immediately return to the DVD by pressing the RTN button without the need of it bringing up the numerical menu or cycling through the Input options to get back to the DVD. This new Toshiba remote keeps these two great functions!! The 46RV540U is a terrific TV!
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