Toshiba 19HLV87 19-Inch LCD HDTV with DVD Player | List Price: $599.99
Discount Price: $349.00
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Brand: Toshiba
Binding: Electronics
Features: - 3 - 2 Pulldown Cinema Mode
- Digital Cinema Progressive
- 3 Mode Picture Size Adjustment
- Disc Play - DVD/DVD-R/DVD-RW/CD/CD-R/CD-RW/VCD
- DivX/WMA & MP3 Playback
Good DVD TV Combo Lousy Documentation [Posted on 2008-01-08]
I got this tv (floor model) for $250.00 including MA 5% sales tax at an electronic store going out of business. I don't watch a tremendous amount of tv, so just wanted a basic flat screen LCD HDTV for watching news, and some shows. This unit is replacing a 12 inch color tube tv bought in the early 1990's.
The tv performs well overall with both cable and dvd playback. I did not experience any major problems, or notice the sound of the DVD player being louder than any other dvd player.
My chief complaints are regarding the manual, the rca connections, and remote control.
The manual is not very well written. It took some time, probably 15-30 minutes, to figure out how to program the tv. I connected it to a coax output from a standard Comcast cable box. And when you turned it on, nothing happened. The manual as well as the on screen menu were not intuitive to set up the unit for the first time. Again it took trail and error, and I'm not sure how the manufacturer did this if they did any sort of usability testing. They should have put this in front of 50 people, and watched how consumers try to set up the unit.
Similarly the connections are not very well labeled. When I got a Comcast HDTV box with RCA cables (they were out of the HDMI boxes) it took some trial and error to get the connections in the right place. Also in the input, we had to set it up to HD Color Stream for it to pick up the cable box. There is no large picture describing what the cryptic sounding connecters do, and again they were not clearly marked.
The remote control is not bad, but again like many manufacturers, has a dizzying array of cryptic buttons. For instance there is one called "shuttle" which doesn't do anything obvious and its difficult to know what it means. There is also a button that you would think changes something related to audio but nothing happens when you push it.
One nice feature which is unit has, and which is not on all units, is a VGA connection for pc or computer equipment. I will probably use this as a monitor for a 12 inch screen laptop. Also once you press the input button on the remote control, you can easily toggle the various input methods.
For $250.00 I still think I got a bargain. I'd be open to learning about other HDTV DVD combinations or even just LCD HDTV's in this size range that people may think are better. E.g. 19 to 26 inches.
In conclusion I'm not disappointed with the product, but there are some elements of the experience that could be better. I've looked at a number of reviews, and if I had to do it all over again, I'm frankly not sure what other make/model would have the features I've noted in this smaller form factor. Generally Toshiba has a good reputation. I'll update the review if anything significant changes. I specifically bought the item with a credit card that doubles the manufacturers warranty so if you have such a card I would recommend this for any large purchase.
I'm rating it 3 stars for now but it could be 3.5 or 4. Again I'm not sure if the manuals, connections, and remotes are any greener with other manufacturers. One can only hope, but I don't know.
Nice dresser-top TV for the bedroom [Posted on 2008-02-28]
I bought this for the bedroom. I dont know why others are having problems with the built in DVD player, because mine works perfect and I've had no other mechanical problems. The TV is light-weight and does not take up a lot of space on the dresser which is why I bought it. I can easily move it aside when dusting the dresser. It's very good at picking up digital channels even with a regular antenna. I can only give it 4 stars for picture quality. When watching local channels you have to sit in front of the TV and look at the screen straight on. Otherwise,if you look at the screen from an angle, the colors & contrast seem faded. It is not the TV's fault, but the type of screen cover the manufacturer has put on the TV. However, when watching DVDs, the colors & picture clarity are AWESOME from any angle. I now enjoy watching DVD movies in bed. In summary, it serves it's purpose for watching TV in bed before I fall asleep and not taking up much room on the dresser. I would recommend it for the bedroom, the kitchen, or where space is limited. I would not recommend this for the living room.
Toshiba 19" LCS HDTV with DVD player [Posted on 2008-03-23]
This is my second Toshiba LCD HD Television with DVD player. I bought this item for the kitchen so that I can watch while I cook and there are some DVD that I enjoy the my spouse does not like. Great product.
Locks up and must be unpluged to be reset [Posted on 2008-04-05]
I purchased this unit for a guest room because my mother in law was coming to visit. By the time she came, it was past the 14 day return period for defective product. We only then found out that when changing channels, fast fowarding the CD etc. the unit would lock up and go to a black screen. You couldn't even turn it on or off. The controls on the set or the remote wouldn't work. If you unpluged it for 10 minutes, it would then work till it locked up again. As it was going to be a lot of trouble to send it to Toshiba to fix, I thought I could live with it. It got worse and I finally sent it back. Last night I went to Fedex to pick it up and it worked for a whole 10 minutes before locking up again. This time even unpluging it for over an hour didn't help. In total because it is in the guest room it probably doesn't have 20 hours total use on it.
I purchased it because I wanted a brand name that wouldn't give me trouble and Sony doesn't make small TVs any more. I paid $500. Even when it works the DVD sounds like it is tearing itself to bits and the controls take forever to do something after you push a button.
I now suspect that instead of getting a brand name TV I paid a brand name price for a third world junker with a brand name glued on to it.
It was so new when I got mine that there weren't any warnings on the internet. Now there are a lot of people that have the same problem I have and one guy says he has sent his back twice with no results!!!
nice combo TV [Posted on 2008-05-02]
lite weight and portable. we use it in our RV. Sturdy stand and nice picture. love the slot DVD player. the two combined, really saves space!
well made. we like the dual tuners. nice combo TV!
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