HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was very good. It did a very good job displaying the fine detail of HD content. We did note some added edge enhancement processing, but it wasn't distracting. Color accuracy was very good, with flesh tones in particular, looking natural. Contrast—the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites—was good, so images had depth and dimension. Black level was generally good, though not as dark as better performers on the darkest scenes. The brightness level was good (with the backlight control turned up), making it a suitable choice for most rooms. In scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, the model did a very good job producing a smooth transition without distinct, coarse bands. There was slight display non-uniformity that created brighter cloudy areas most noticeable on very dark scenes (or in the black bars of a letterboxed movie). We routinely see this issue with LCDs and severity can vary from model to model. Film mode operation for HD film-based content was excellent, with no visible jaggies along the edges of objects during motion scenes. Deinterlacing was very good, with minimal jaggies visible when converting 1080i video content, such as from cable, to the display's native resolution.
VIEWING ANGLE. This Insignia has a wide viewing angle overall, better than that of most TVs. It will provide the same picture quality, with fewer problems than most TVs, for typical viewing conditions—say, if your family is seated across a long sectional or in chairs off to the sides. With dark scenes this model didn't fare quite as well. When viewed from the sides, the depth of black levels varied depending on the vertical position of the viewer's head. As we moved closer to the screen this limitation became even more apparent, especially if seated on the floor looking upward where black levels brightened significantly.
MOTION BLUR. This Insignia TV has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. This is better than average for LCD displays with the basic 60Hz frame rate. This model does not include a blur reduction feature.
SCREEN REFLECTIVITY. Though not as mirror-like as on some models, this screen surface is glossy and therefore susceptible to reflections from a nearby lamp or window. It does a good job reducing glare from ambient light and maintains contrast in a brighter room environment.
SOUND QUALITY. This model has fair sound quality with below average performance. It's acceptable for typical programming, but shortcomings become obvious with movie soundtracks and music. Bass was lacking as was treble detail, and the overall sound was a bit thin and closed in. The volume from its speakers was limited—just adequate for a smaller, quiet listening environment, and quality degrades at the highest settings. Also, at higher volume, dynamic compression kept the sound from distorting but also limited the clarity of peaks in loudness, which can be a bit distracting on some audio content. If sound quality matters to you, you might want to add a soundbar or other external speaker system—but if this smaller-screen set is a secondary TV, you might find its sound quality acceptable.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. Insignia includes a traditional IR, button keypad remote for control of basic functions. The high contrast labels on the buttons make them easier to read in a dimmer viewing environment. The TV's stand is 22 inches wide.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV does not provide access to the Internet.
CONNECTIONS. This model has two HDMI inputs—one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one composite input, and no component input one USB port, a coaxial digital audio out, a headphone out.
WHAT'S INCLUDED. A quick start guide. A remote control with batteries. No printed manual is included.
