Westinghouse LCD TV Review

Model: Westinghouse LTV-27w7
Description: 27" LCD Television, Widescreen 16:9 Format
Resolution: 1366X768 (WXGA)

Includes: Integrated pedestal stand and 20W integrated speaker system, NTSC and ATSC (HDTV) tuners, HDMI high-definition Input terminal, 2 component video, 1 composite video, 1 S-Video connection, PC Input

Color: Black Bezel with silver frame and black pedestal stand

Reviewer: Paul Doran
Date: August 2006

INTRODUCTION

The Westinghouse LTV-27w7 is representative of the growing number of "value" HDTV's that were popular with consumers before pricing on first tier brands started coming down. Recently, the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 has become one of the most popular entry-level LCD TV's for big-box retailers because of its low price relative to brands like Sharp and Sony. Recently, Best Buy, America's largest "big-box" electronics retailer, signed a deal to sell LCD TV's for the budget-minded customer.

The review staff was anxious to review the LTV-27w7 to grade its picture quality against the best LCD televisions from Sharp and Sony to see whether it does indeed merit a "value" rating or if it should simply be designated as "cheap."

PICTURE: 88/100

Out-of-the box the picture of the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 is impressive for a smallish flat-panel television. The picture is set too brightly though, and to regulate this, the review staff went into the user menu to change the picture setting. To our surprise, the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 LCD TV has no default picture settings! Therefore we quickly adjusted the Contrast and Brightness settings for our initial inspection. While this improved the color reproduction, the white balance on the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 was still a little on the red side, or "minus blue."

Because there are no default picture settings on this LCD Television, it is especially important to calibrate the television's picture settings. In order to reach the full potential of the LTV-27w7, we used a colorimeter, a Sencore High-Definition signal generator, and a specialized software suite to calibrate the television to the Imaging Science Foundation (ISF) standard color temperature of D6500K. Unlike most discount flat-panel HDTV's, the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 was able to maintain D6200K-D6750K during calibration. Although it remained "minus blue" throughout the IRE scale, the television did a reasonably good job meeting its calibration goals.

The following table contains the picture settings for the LTV-27w7 after its ISF Calibration. If you own a Westinghouse LTV-27w7, we highly recommend that you use the below settings to regulate the color temperature and white balance for the television:

To move any closer to D6500K would require modifying the television's service menus – a method which could potentially destroy the television if a mistake is made. This is not necessary for this television because it achieves a good white balance for an entry-level LCD television and further calibration would most likely be ineffective.

Like all LCD televisions, the black levels on the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 do not reach plasma television standards, but they are quite good for an LCD flat-panel television. The black levels are good compared to larger screens from other manufacturers, but the small 27" screen has the advantage in this unfair comparison. We tested the contrast ratio to around 500:1 which is good for an LCD flat-panel television, but we would not expect similar ratings from larger Westinghouse LCD televisions. When evaluated for glare resistance, the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 was very average. People who want to use this television in a bright kitchen or office setting might have to make adjustments for screen glare. Based on a visual inspection, the viewing angle for the LTV-27w7 was average for an LCD television – around 120 degrees before degradation in contrast.

The reproduction of high-definition video on the LTV-27w7 is quite good, but the 1366x768 high resolution packed into a 27" frame is quite an advantage. Using our reference Toshiba HD-XA1 and The Fifth Element DVD through the HDMI connection on the LTV-27w7, we noticed some false contouring in several key scenes. These problems quickly caught our attention. Minor evidence of pixilation was present, but we had to really look for it. Westinghouse advertises a 8ms response time for the LTV-27w7, but we think that this might be a bit of a stretch and would guess it is probably more like 12-18ms as evidenced by the units struggle to keep up with fast motion sporting events. For comparison's sake, upper-tier LCD televisions have reported response times as fast as 6ms. Standard-definition programming picture quality on the LTV-27w7 appeared quite good, but consider that the smaller screen camouflages some of its display inconsistencies.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS: 86/100

The Westinghouse LTV-27w7 looks pretty "sharp" aesthetically – pun intended. The black casing and integrated bottom-speaker remind the review team of Sharp's latest line of LCD televisions. Although it is not a completely original design, Westinghouse was wise to make their 27" television as slim as possible for those who want to fit it into a tight space.

The LTV-27w7 includes an HDMI connection for next-generation DVD players and high-definition television receivers. Although we would have liked to see two HDMI connections for the growing number of input sources, it is nice that Westinghouse included one on this budget-conscious LCD television. The LTV-27w7 includes two component video inputs, 1 composite / S-Video input, and a PC Input. Many users are excited about the PC Input because they can replace their computer monitor with this television. This type of application is especially handy in places where space is a premium – like a dorm room!

The on-screen menus allow for much customization, but they can be somewhat difficult to figure out. In the Picture settings, color temperature modes are not labeled "Warm" or "Cool," but simply Color 1, Color 2, and Color 3. During our calibration session, we realized that Color 1 is "Warm", Color 2 is "Normal", and Color 3 is "Cool." This may be somewhat confusing for the average user, however.

The LTV-27w7 includes a Picture-in-Picture feature but surprisingly no Side-by-Side viewing. In our opinion, Picture-in-Picture is relatively pointless with today's televisions without the Side-by-Side viewing because consumers do not want part of the main picture hidden. We expect that few who purchase the LTV-27w7 will use this feature.

The remote control for the LTV-27w7 is quite user-friendly. Although it is not a universal remote, it does offer direct-input selection. This allows users to choose which input they want directly rather than having to toggle through each one.

The LTV-27w7's 2x10 watt speakers are quite good for a 27" television considering that it is not likely to be used in the primary viewing room of the household. However, Westinghouse should consider adding more speaker power to their larger LCD television models.

VALUE: 88/100

Since its introduction earlier this year, the Westinghouse line of LCD televisions has become popular due to their low price-point and subdued aesthetics. While more picture discrepancies can be found in the larger sizes, the 27" LTV-27w7 LCD television is among the best of the "budget" LCD televisions. With its $800 or less price-tag, it is substantially cheaper than top-tier competition from Sharp or Sony. You do, "get what you pay for" in electronic equipment for the most part with better user features, picture quality, and longevity however this LCD was surprisingly strong for a budget piece.

Basically, when considering purchasing an LCD flat-panel television, one must ask if they are willing to pay a premium for top-notch picture quality and functionality. If the answer is no, then the Westinghouse LTV-27w7 may be a good option.

OVERALL RATING (WITH PICTURE DOUBLE-WEIGHTED): 87.5/100*

Rating scale from 70 (denoting poorest quality) to 100 (signifying the very best quality). A rating in the 60s for any particular category of a product review indicates a serious defect which causes the product not to operate properly. Picture quality is double-weighted in the Overall Rating Score calculation.