Toshiba 42X3030DB Review

Overall Rating

Delightful looks
Amazing picture quality on 1080p (Playstation 3 and Blu Ray)
Easy to use
Great sound quality from built in speakers
Good Standard Definition (SD) Pictures

Only 2 HDMI slots.
Optical Out from TV is from Freeview Tuner only

I researched and researched LCD and Plasma TVs and came to the conclusion that there is never going to be the perfect LCD TV so I took the plunge. The Toshiba 42X3030DB has received very good online reviews and the price of £879 (before using Quidco and any vouchers) seemed very reasonable.

Pros:

The TV looks fantastic with an understated elegance. The stand it comes with is unobtrusive and sturdy. Set-up is very easy and with the help of online sites such as www.avforums.com you can optimise the picture without having to buy an expensive calibration kit.

The Freeview SD picture seems very good to me with the Grand Prix looking fantastic (albeit with Lewis not winning).
The SD picture has been reported as average by professional reviewers but as an amateur I think it is very good. The TV is also capable of receiving analogue pictures if you don't yet have Freeview.

The High Definition (HD) picture is phenomenal. This TV is capable of playing 720i, 1080i and 1080p (which is currently the highest resolution available). I have a Playstation 3 and looking at digital photos on the screen is a revelation. The colours and detail are astonishing.

I wasn't convinced that Blu Ray would be that much better than normal DVDs but when playing Blu Ray disks I was blown away by the clarity, colour and detail. You certainly don't have to be a professional TV reviewer to notice the difference. Whilst Blu Ray disks are currently expensive they, like DVDs before, will reduce in price. They are worth the extra money for the cinematic experience you have.

The TV copes well with fast movement, and exhibits none of the vices of early LCD TV (smearing and the like).

I cannot fault this TV's picture in SD or HD.

The sound is also very good, so much so that I disabled my surround sound and used the TV speakers when watching the Rugby World Cup. The depth of sound is very good, with none of the tinniness often associated with these TVs.

Cons:

The instructions are basic and don't explain what some of the advanced features actually do (eg what is Black Stretch?). Luckily there are very helpful and knowledgeable people on www.avforums.com to decode these options. That said, the instructions are perfectly adequate to get the TV up and running.

The digital optical out from the TV is direct from the Freeview tuner, so if you are playing on your Wii/PS3 or watching a DVD you need the output from that device to be plugged directly into your surround sound system which is a little annoying.

It would have been nice to have 1 more HDMI input.

The Bottom Line - this TV is excellent value for money, delivers great pictures in SD and astonishing images in HD. Coupled with great looks and very good sound I cannot recommend the Toshiba 42X3030DB enough.