In the Labs: 3D TVs, smaller LCD sets, first 2010 models

Consumer Reports News: March 31, 2010 12:21 PM

The Panasonic TC-P50VT20 3D LCD TV.
Photo: Panasonic.com

Our indefatigable engineers are at it again: They're busily testing a new batch of TVs, ranging from high-end, cutting-edge sets to small, lower-priced models you can use in your kitchen or office.

In the upper tiers, we're putting two 3D TV sets—the Samsung UN46C7000, a 46-inch LCD priced at $2,600, and the 50-inch Panasonic TC-P50VT20 plasma TV ($2,500)—through our full battery of tests and will be including them in our next Ratings of HDTVs. (Ratings are available to ConsumerReports.org subscribers.) While we've already given you our first impressions of their 3D performance, we'll soon tell you how they stack up for overall picture and sound quality compared to other HDTVs.

We don't often test small screens, but there is a place for them, usually on a kitchen counter or a corner of a desk. We've got three, all LCDs: the 19-inch Auvio 16-912, $199 at Radio Shack; the 19-inch Toshiba Stainless Style 19LV612U, which incorporates a DVD player, $350; and the 20-inch Viewsonic VT2042, $299.

Two larger LCD sets are of particular interest to us. The 42-inch Vizio SV422XVT and 46-inch SV472XVT, an LED-backlit set, are the first with that company's VIA (Vizio Interactive Apps) apps platform and a unique Bluetooth remote with a slideout QWERTY keypad. They also have built-in WiFi.

The rest of the LCD group includes two of the first-available 2010 Sony models, the KDL-40EX500 and KDL-46EX700, an edge LED model; the Toshiba Regza Cinema Series 40XV648U; and the Samsung LN46C630. On the plasma side, we have three 720p models, the LG 42PJ350 and 50PJ350 and Samsung PN42C450, as well as a set from Panasonic's new entry-level 1080p line, the Panasonic TC-P46S2.

Check back in a few weeks for full Ratings and test results (available to subscribers).

—Eileen McCooey