Toshiba 42Z3030DB - 42″ Widescreen 1080P Full HD LCD TV

As 42 inch TVs go this one isn’t very big. Actually, let me re-phrase that, of course the screen is 42 inches but what Toshiba have managed to do is wrap that screen within an impressively slim frame which means it actually takes up little more room than an average 37 inch screen. Bit like the Tardis, except it cant travel in time and space…erm and its not actually bigger on the inside.

However, it does do quite a lot of other stuff. There are 3 v1.3 HDMI sockets supporting the ‘ultrarapture’ 1080p/24fps, useful when viewing blu-ray discs at 24fps for example. The contrast ratio claims to be an impressive 15,000: 1 which ought to (but surprisingly on SD at least it doesn’t really deliver) produce some good black levels, but where the picture on this TV really excels is with its rendering of colours, which are seen to be impressively rich and vibrant. A 100Hz refresh rate helps significantly with the screens smooth ability to deliver smooth images with little blurring on fast motion scenes. However impressive as this set is with High Definitions Sources, it is reported to let itself down with Standard Definition, with the picture through the native digital tuner being quite blocky and noisesome.

Still a decent 42 inch screen for around £820 though.

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Specification:
Screen Size: 42 Inches
Tuner: Digital & Analogue
Resolution: 1920 x 1080
Contrast Ratio: 15,000: 1
Brightness: 500cd/m2
Features: Dynamic Contrast, 1080p,5:5 Pulldown for 1080p/24fps playback, Noise Reduction, Digital Tuner with 7 Day EPG Support, 100Hz
Connectivity: 3 x v1.3 HDMi, 2 x RGB Scart, Component Video, Composite Video, S-video

Source: What Video & HD TV , Toshiba