A few months ago, I decided to upgrade from my current 32 inch Toshiba Regza to a slightly bigger TV. After aiming for a 40+ inch, I discovered this TV on Amazon for $600 and decided that this would be a great upgrade. A couple days later, and I received the TV and I have had a chance to test it out. Does it hold up?
PROS:
-The image quality is excellent and quite beautiful for 46 inches. Just make sure you are the proper distance away (About 8 feet).
-Sound is excellent. It is clear and the TV can be quite loud if you want it to be.
-HDMI cables are easier to plug in then my previous Regza. In the past, I had to plug them under the device at a downward angle, which was awkward and frustrating. This set allows you to plug it straight in.
-120 Hz mode is great for animated videos and if you like your shows or movies to run at a faster frame rate. It isn't so hot for games, but there is a game mode option that turns off 120 Hz mode and lowers it to 60 Hz if needed.
-The TV itself feels well built and has a nice black gloss look to it, while the back has a nice metal finish with quality looking ports.
-There is a USB slot on the side for viewing saved videos and pictures on the TV. Great for home movies or if you have some videos from the net that you want to watch.
-Somewhat of a small update, but I bought a Blu-Ray player and several Blu-Ray movies and tested them out via HDMI. It ran beautifully and had no major problems, so if you are in the market for HD movies and want to mainly use a Blu-Ray player to watch things, then this is a very decent TV.
CONS:
-You cannot sit too close to the TV without getting eye strain. It is generally recommended that you are at least 8 feet away from the TV to get the best viewing experience. I had to move my furniture around in my room. I tried it from 5 feet away, and games look pixilated from that close to the TV. This isn't too much of a problem if you put it in a living room or larger room, but it might be too big for a small bedroom or apartment.
-There are very few options with adjusting the TV. You can turn off the 120 Hz mode if needed, but the menus are a little confusing (They are set up like my old Regza) which is kind of disappointing.
-Not wi-fi capable, meaning no Netflix out of the box. You will need to get a blu-ray player, Roku, or video game console capable of using it.
-I am not a big fan of the stand that comes with it. It has a similar glossy finish to the rest and is in a football shape, but attracts dust like crazy. It also isn't the easiest thing to install and even with the screws it still jiggles around a bit too much.
-Even though there are 3 HDMI ports, one of them is on the side and does not look all that great if you have more then 3 devices. I really wish it came with 3 back ports and 1 side port and not the 2 back ports it comes with.
-I am not sure if I am just doing this wrong, but the game mode setting "resets" to off every time I turn it to another input. This might be able to be turned off, but is kind of important if you do not want 120 Hz mode for games.
OTHER:
-I tested my PS3, 360, HD Netflix, and several upscaled DVD on the TV. Like I stated above: my PS3 and 360 were great as long as you were roughly 8 feet away. HD Netflix worked just fine, but it depends on the show and when it was made. Animated shows tend to look better, while older shows might look a bit "meh", especially if they were filmed back before 2000. DVD, sadly, do not hold up nearly as well as they used to on my 32 inch. They are still quite watchable from 8 feet away, but you can defiantly tell the graininess now. To be fair, it depends on what movie and when it was made: more recent DVDs tend to look and play much better while older ones tend to look fairly grainy.
-This obviously does not have 3D capabilities, but at the moment it is not too much of a con to really count it as one.
-The TV is pretty big and heavy. It weighs about 50 pounds and is quite wide, so you might need some help if you cannot lift easily or have a smaller frame.
-If you want to turn off 120Hz mode, go to Menu > Picture Settings >Advanced Picture Settings > ClearFrame and turn it Off.
What is boils down to is this is just as it advertises: A 46 Inch HDTV. It is not a super TV that has internet and various other bells in whistles, but a TV for people who want a decent quality TV for a excellent price. This is a steal for the $600 I paid for it and I have no regrets whatsoever.
Toshiba 46G310U 46-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV, BlackSlim tv with a great picture. I have dish network with an HD DVR box connected through the HDMI cable. I have also tried my new Blu-Ray player with HDMI cable. The tv has a great picture. I am very picky on picture quality and I would recommend this tv to anyone.
The tv screen also does not have a bad glare with room light or sun coming in from the windows. We have alot of sunlight that comes into our great room and the screen performs well. You can see the picture clearly day or night.
The only reason I did not give the tv a 5 star rating is for the lack of HDMI inputs on the back. There are only 2 on the back and a 3rd input on the side but you can see the cord when it is plugged in. If you have only 2 devices with HDMI cables then you will be fine.
Buy and you will enjoy!!!
The TV was to replace a 46" Toshiba DLP television.
I recently purchased the G310U and actually really enjoy it. So far, I think it's a great tv and has a good bit of potential. At the $599 price point, I think it's almost impossible to pass over when looking at other televisions.
Things I've noticed:
The stand is a little on the cheap side. It has two tabs that sit in the base of the tv and is secured with 4 screws. Even with the screws, it still feels slightly unstable. I do feel that it is secure, but I would feel better if it were a little tighter fit.
The tv will automatically adjust the picture size based on the incoming signal (native, stretched, 4:3, etc.) which is a very nice feature.
This tv is currently connected to a TERK HD antenna with a signal booster and out of the box, scanned and found 16 channels. I know that the channels depend on the closeness to the stations, weather, etc, but the time this took to scan, label, and setup was rather impressive.
The initial setup itself was rather simple, straightfoward, and easy to go with.
The inputs on the back are definitely further to the edge of the tv than they could be. Running the wires and attempting to hide them behind the small neck support was tough. With a simple 3' HDMI cable, one of mine felt a bit stretched and needed to be switched around. I can still see it from the front of the tv, but it's a minor inconvenience. I do think the inputs could be closer to the middle of the tv.
Being able to switch and dial back between 120Hz and 60Hz is a very helpful feature. It appears that the tv tries too hard at times to adjust the refresh rate, but having the feature is nice.
Overall, a good tv.'
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