Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 Excellent high-def television with great picture in a compact size November 1, 2008
Todd Post (Arlington, VA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is my third high-definition television and of the televisions I've owned, this television has the best image of all; crisp and clean with vibrant color. br / br /The first thing out of the box I liked about this television is its physical size compared to the screen size. We have a media center, which limits the size of the television which can fit within the opening. Other brands I looked at had cosmetic trims or large speakers flanking their screens, which meant I would have to purchase a smaller sized screen to fit my furniture. The Mitsubishi television however has its sound bar underneath the screen and its trim is very thin, making it very compact for a 46" television. br / br /The picture is absolutely great and as I mentioned before has vivid color and wonderful clarity that surpasses any high-definition television I've owned. I really don't know what else to say about it other than I am really happy with it. The only criticism I have is that occasionally I've noticed some "backlight clouding" in the corners on particularly dark scenes, but it is not there consistently. br / br /I cannot speak to the sound too much because soundbars require three walls to bounce the sound off of to mimic surround sound and the layout of my condo is such that I cannot have that. My living room has an "open design" so there aren't walls in my space to use this feature. That being said, the sound is still pretty good and has some neat features like a nighttime setting that allows you to make the sound directional so it doesn't carry so much into other rooms when others are trying to sleep. It also has a good selection of outputs so if you want to hook it up a surround sound system or stereo instead, you can do that. br / br /Aside from the minor clouding that I noticed, my only other criticism of this system would be that the menus and setup are less than intuitive. I would consider myself generally pretty tech savvy and while I could ultimately achieve what I was looking to do, I might have to do some searching for what I was looking for. My father (who is in his sixties) tried it as well and had some problems such as somehow in setting up the television, he turned on the parental control feature ironically enough and couldn't figure out how to turn it off so he had to punch in a code every time he wanted to change the channel. To me, this wasn't a big deal because I have the television hooked up to my TiVo, so I never need to get into the television's settings too much and use the TiVo remote to change channels, etc. br / br /Overall, I think this is an excellent television and would definitely recommend it. If Amazon allowed for partial stars, I would have given it four and a half stars, as it's positives greatly overshadow the few issues I found and outlined above.
 Let's stay home tonight. September 25, 2008
David A. Baer (Indianapolis, IN USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I didn't used to watch much TV. Ever. Until today. br / br /Sitting in front of of the Mitsubishi, fueled by the bass coming out of the accompanying sub-woofer, and watching The Fifty Best Amazing Catch, I think I see a new recreational habit developing. br / br /The LT-46149 sports a handsome black-and-silver presentation that blends well with a variety of room decors. The picture is remarkably crisp, all that you'd expect in a high-end television and perhaps a little more. br / br /It's the sound that stands out. Sixteen speakers aim to give you true surround sound without all the clutter. It works. If you want an authentic room theatre, you'll want to spend the money for that. But if you want exceptional near-surround sound quality without the expense or in a room that's not big enough or experiences more foot traffic than a purpose-built home theatre, this television will pull it off for you. br / br /An extremely convenient function lets you tweak the out-of-the-box 'sound projector' function to fit your exact room measurements and layout. It all happens right from the remote control. br / br /You'll definitely want to invest in the HDMI cable, which is not included. Without that modest extra investment, you're wasting the machine's capacity. I also recommend you pair this television with a subwoofer. The difference it makes is astonishing and it elevates the television's sixteen-speaker potency onto a whole new platform. br / br /With the LT-46149's superb visual qualities and its cutting edge soundworks, Mitsubishi has placed a new kind of small-to-medium-room television viewing within reach of the sub-room-theatre crowd, of which this reviewer is a card-carrying member. br / br /I think I'll stay home tonight.
Exceptional, right out of the box September 24, 2008
Great Faulkner's Ghost (Washington, DC)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
I have used this Mitsubishi LT-46149 1080p LCD HDTV set for three weeks, and am more impressed with it the more I use it. br / br /Without doubt the greatest strength of this set is the exceptional quality of the picture right out of the box. It's bright, clear, noise free and extremely well lit in both HDTV and standard definition presentations. This is not a TV for videophiles who want to spend hours playing around with to get the ultimate cinema like picture with fine gradations of contrast and ultimate color accuracy. Unlike my Samsung, it does not provide advanced video controls for elements such as gamma (middle grayscale), black level, dynamic contrast, RGB tweaking, edge definition et cetera. If I am willing to spend a little time customizing the picture for every different DVD I rented or own, I believe that I can usually get a slightly more impressive picture with the Samsung. On the other hand, the Mitsubishi will give me about 99% of the quality without having to do a single adjustment. I would say it's something like the difference between a Porsche with an automatic transmission and one with a six speed manual. Purists will eschew the automatic, but for 99% of the population the automatic transmission will get them to well above the legal speed limit with a lot less fuss. br / br /Another high point is the exceptional quality of the sound system. The "Projector Sound System" of 16 speakers blows away the Samsung in both clarity and fidelity, but it really needs the subwoofer to demonstrate its truly exceptional quality. I like to watch opera on DVD, so initially I set it up so that the sound would play through my high end, vacuum tube audiophile stereo set rather than the Mitsubishi sound system. I soon found that I was getting a more realistic effect using the Mitsubishi's TV's own sound system with the subwoofer. This is because the Mitsubishi "Projector Sound" uses a sophisticated audio matrix system to synthesize convincing surround sound effects that can be customized to the room, a feature lacking in my admittedly very good audiophile two speaker stereo system. br / br /Another feature that I absolutely love is the 480i "Stretch Plus" format that my Samsung unfortunately does not have. It's exceptional for watching non-letterbox programming in the most realistic possible manner on widescreen. I use Stretch Plus for watching all of my favorite non-letterbox DVDs, such as The Wire, which was shot in 4:3 format (non-letterbox) instead of the more common 16:9 widescreen that is becoming more popular today. Normally, you can watch these older TV shows in 4:3 format, which keeps the picture undistorted but that leaves large black areas on either side of the picture, or you can watch them in wide format, which has the unfortunate effect of squashing and stretching faces and bodies etc. to fit the screen. Mitsubishi has done an incredibly clever thing with "Stretch Plus," by keeping the aspect ratio more or less undistorted in the middle of the screen where most of the action happens, and subtly stretching out the corners where you don't notice the distortion most of the time. It's a lot harder to describe than to watch, but let me tell you that if you own a large number of non-letterbox DVDs, this makes them a lot more fun to watch. br / br /More than anything else, I am impressed with the robust engineering and design of this set. Instead of adding a lot of bells and whistles than 99% of the population will never use, Mitsubishi has put its money into an exceptional sound system and excellent out-of-the-box video picture that will please anyone looking for a top quality HDTV set. I am very happy with this set and would recommend it to anyone except the dyed in the wool videophile who wants to have every possible tweak possible to the picture. For everyone else, this would be a superb choice.
Doggone Awesome September 23, 2008
H. Johnson (Bella Vista, CA USA)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Really, my wife and I were in no hurry to upgrade to HDTV. Yeah, most of our friends had taken the plunge months or years ago, but we reasoned that our two old picture-tube TV's were still plugging along, so why bother? Then our bedroom TV went belly-up, and we installed a small, basic LCD TV to replace it. We found ourselves watching TV more and more in the bedroom. By golly, there really was something to that high-definition stuff. What really prompted us, though, was our recent installation of indoor plumbing. Suddenly, we felt inspired to modernize our lives. br / br /Just kidding about the indoor plumbing. I felt a little bewildered by the choices in HDTV: LCD, plasma, rear-projection, front-projection, or picture-tube. (Picture-tube TV's aren't going away just yet, as new models are available in HDTV.) Of all the HDTV options, LCD and plasma have dominated in sales. br / br /LCD and plasma both have their pros and cons. LCD TV's tend to be brighter than plasma models, with less-reflective screens, so they usually offer better viewing in brightly-lit rooms. They tend to be lighter, and they use less power. They also aren't prone to burn-in from static images such as those from video games or computer displays. That's an important consideration for us since our son plays video games. br / br /I've leaned toward getting an LCD TV for a good while, but with earlier models, the cons gave me pause. Just a couple of years ago, when I first began cruising the big-box stores, plasma TV's definitely had the edge in "wow factor." They were better at displaying dark colors and contrast, and unlike the "old" 720p LCD's, I noticed no blurring of motion with action scenes or sporting events. Plasma TV's looked better at an angle than did LCD's, and they usually cost less than an LCD of the same screen size. br / br /For us, however, the real deal-breaker with plasma TV's was the fact that they were decidedly inferior to LCD's in a brightly-lit room. Our living room is very bright during the morning hours, so that weighed heavily. br / br /Enter the Mitsubishi LT-46149. The idea of a top-quality LCD HDTV with an integrated sound system really beckoned us, because we have a small, odd-shaped living room. Never mind the fact that we wanted to avoid exposed wire, and we weren't happy with the idea of snaking wires through walls or floors. The real problem was that, given our living room, a surround sound arrangement of separated speakers was just impractical. Thus, for years, we've settled for a basic stereo set up with our old analog TV. br / br /The LT-46149 has good sound right out of the box, with its included 16-speaker array. Add a modestly priced subwoofer, and it really does approach the quality of a top-notch array of separated speakers. We have a friend who lives nearby with a cost-is-no-object surround system at his house, with an ideally-shaped living room and hardwood floors. The room looks as if it was designed with an audio buff in mind. Does our Mitsubishi TV with the integrated sound system match up to our friend's? Well, no. But it certainly approaches the quality of sound he enjoys, and the experience is close enough that I'm glad that I didn't choose his route. I suspect lots of folks moving into HDTV would feel the same. br / br /As for the viewing experience, I've found it superb. The limitations of LCD TV's had already been largely whittled down with the the progression from 720p to 1080p, and to my admittedly non tech-geek eye, the LT-46149 looks to be at the top of today's LCD HDTV's. The color accuracy looks spot-on, the contrast seems right up there with plasma TV's, and there seemed scarcely any loss of viewing quality when changing viewing angles. I saw no blurring during action scenes, whereas it's evident on our bedroom LCD TV. Also, the cost difference between a plasma HDTV and an LCD HDTV has narrowed considerably since I first starting comparing them. br / br /As other reviewers have mentioned, the LT-46149 offers a wonderful display, even with non-HD sources. My eight year-old son was awe-struck the first time he played a Wii game on the new HDTV. Then, we borrowed a friend's Blu-Ray player. Sheesh, the results were dang near stunning. br / br /The LT-46149 has satisfied our desires for a home theater system, and then some. If you're looking for a top-notch home theater experience, and you can't or don't want to run wires to speakers arranged around your room, it's a great choice.
Simply awesome video and sound technology September 21, 2008
Jerry Saperstein (Evanston, IL USA)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
The name doesn't exactly set the blood rushing through your veins and your pulse pounding: Mitsubishi LT-46149 LCD Flat Panel HDTV. br / br / But from the moment you see the picture, even with an ordinary digital cable or DVD signal, you're going to flip. I certainly did - and the picture was only the beginning of the fun. br / br / If you're looking for a super-fast and concise review, here it is: superb video and beyond-belief sound. br / br / And a lot of bells and whistles that I'll get into. After a few minutes with the LT-46149, I was thinking of Blu-Ray and HD cable, both of which I had little interest in until shortly after turning this unit on. br / br / It was delivered via Amazon's White Glove service, which is a real convenience. They give you a delivery time window and then call when they are about 30 minutes away, a nice touch. The delivery service unboxes the unit - which is a marvelous thing, because the box is quite large. They mount the panel on its stand, make sure it works and will remove the box, if you like. Overall, it takes the pain out getting this unit into your home. br / br / Before I get into the really fun part, all the features of this unit and the user experience, I have to comment (profusely) on Mitsubishi TV's customer and support: it is absolutely outstanding. Even though it is based off-shore, the representatives speak flawless, almost unaccented English. They listen carefully. They ask questions. When they don't know something, they say so and get an answer. I don't know if they're working from a script or not, but they sure sound interested in you and your problem. You've probably guessed already that I encountered a problem (defective user - me) and had to call. Outfits like Dell could learn a great deal about treating customers well from Mitsubishi. br / br / The unit itself is stylish. A very thin bezel around the screen. Even though the screen is much larger, it seems that the unit isn't as wide as the 37" conventional TV it replaced. It's only a few inches thick from front to back. br / br / On the bottom of the screen is an unobtrusive bank of small speakers behind a grille - which you'll soon learn is a dynamite feature. br / br / 1080p resolution is 1920 x 1080 pixels. There is 1080p upconversion. br / br / Setup is simple and fun: input sensing is good at recognizing what device you are attaching and letting you identify it by name (i.e., DVD, DVR, etc.) br / br / The picture is magnificent - and remember, I don't have Blu-Ray or HD. The grandkids were over, so I put the Pixar "Cars" DVD on and sat transfixed with them from beginning to end. The video is simply stunning. br / br / Mitsubishi boasts of a number of video related features, like their Smooth120Hz Film Motion which virtually eliminates judder (image vibration in fast action scenes). Film Mode corrects movies filmed at 24 frames per second. The "Deep Color" feature, Mitsubishi says, renders billions of colors - and I believe them. There's also a feature called "xvYCC (Extended YCC Colorimetry for Video Applications), or "x.v. color"" which they claim expands the color range beyond what the eye can recognize. I'll have to take their word on that one. br / br / The LT-46149 (I love the way that name just rolls off my lips) has several other video related features. The three level brightness adjustment allows for viewing in bright, sunlit rooms to darkened rooms. "PerfectColor" gives you surprisingly fine control over color adjustments, though I haven't found a need for it except to experiment. br / br / The second huge feature of the LT-46149 is the Integrated Sound Projector (ISP). Remember those 16 speakers I mentioned? Well they can be aimed and balanced for a specific room size and acoustics. Mitsubishi says ISP delivers true 5.1 sound and that the sound is delayed at varying intervals to each of the 16 speakers. br / br / With a relatively inexpensive sub-woofer, the sound is truly fantastic. Makes you want to turn it up to the point where the neighbors complain and the spouse leaves, but does it ever sound great. br / br / Obviously I am very, very impressed - and will shortly have HD cable and a Blu-Ray player (probably as part of a Playstation 3 - this unit cries out to be used as a game display). br / br / The picture and Integrated Sound Projector are the big stories here. Fantastic is not too strong a term to apply from a person who hasn't paid much attention to LCD TVs before. br / br / There are lots of other features, like a plethora of inputs: 2 coax, 3 composite video, 2 component video, 4 HDMI, S-Video, USB (for flash drives and digital cameras), AVR audio output, sub-woofer (shared with the AVR) and digital audio out. br / br / After a couple of weeks, I am still enthralled with the LT-46149. I keep trying different DVDs of material from different eras just to see how the unit handles them. Last night, for example, I watched "Victory At Sea", a famous TV documentary series from the 1950s, compiled entirely from black and white film from the 1940s. The 1080p up conversion really does work, even with mediocre input like this. Amazing. br / br / I live, breathe and eat technology. It is how I make my living. I am not the most easily impressed guy around. The Mitsubishi LT-46149 is very cool - in fact, awesome - technology. br / br /Jerry br /
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