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Toshiba 37WLT68 Review |
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Reviewed: 16 March 2007
Design
The Toshiba 37WLT68 is certainly not the most beautiful LCD on the market but it will lend an air of understated chic to any living room.
Features
Connectivity on the Toshiba 37WLT68 is excellent, with a class leading 3 HDMI inputs backed up with PC input, Component video input and 2 scarts. There is also digital audio output for Dolby Digital 5.1
Screen size & shape: 37in 16:9 Tuner: Digital Sound system: Stereo Resolution: 1366 x 768 HD Ready: Yes Contrast Ratio: 3500:1 Brightness: 500cd/m2 OTHER FEATURES: M100 Active Vision processing, Active Vision processing. SOCKETS: 3 HDMI input, 2 scarts (1 RGB), composite video input, S-video input, PC input, CAM slot, Digital Audio Output.
Toshiba is gaining a fine reputation for its proprietary image processing technologies. Toshiba's M100 Active Vision processing is the latest addition to the arsenal. M100 has been designed to double the refresh rate of the UKs 50Hz signals to increase the TVs frame rate.
M100 technology is part of a growing effort by LCD manufacturers to combat fast motion display problems which is a bugbear of this screen format at the moment.
The Toshiba 37WLT68 also sports Active Vision processing which boosts the sets colour, sharpness and contrast and for reducing noise levels.
Rounding things off, the 37WLT68 has a digital tuner, and can accept 1080p ultra-HD format through its HDMI inputs.
Performance
The 37WLT68 is a fine LCD, but perhaps not quite as impressive as the rest of the Toshiba range. It has a lot to live up to with such a good pedigree behind it, but disappoints with poor black levels. Not so very long ago, we wouldn't have had any complaints, but alongside today's white hot competitors, the black levels look a little washed out.
The 37WLT68 is a fantastic High Definition performer, but Standard Definition again, disappoints. Remember that SD is still going to form the majority of your viewing schedule for broadcast pictures, and the 37WLT68 is shown up a little by the competition. Pictures are just not as crisp as we have seen for SD on some other LCDs.
M100 technology however, works, and works well. Fast motion scenes look cleaner and smoother than the 37WLT68s competitors, and this is a major plus point for the screen especially if you are an avid action movie viewer. The blurring which is a traditional LCD fast motion problem is vastly reduced.
Noise suppression on the 37WLT68 is excellent and even though we were disappointed by the screens black levels, a good level of detail is retained in the darker scenes.
The major positive for this screen and what we have come to expect from Toshiba are wonderfully reproduced colours with wonderfully subtle blending and natural tones.
Audio performance from the 37WLT68 is above average but not outstanding. It produces a convincing quality of output with clean well rounded sounds at lower levels, let down only by a lack of bass at the top end.
Conclusion
The 37WLT68 is a good screen and is frustrating in that just one area, black levels, prevents it from being a very good screen indeed. Innovative technology for handling fast motion works well, and if black levels were up to it we would be looking at a class leading LCD.
