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| Date Reviewed: 04/22/2006 |
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 I started experiencing problems with our picture f ... Strengths: NA
Weaknesses: NA
Summary: I started experiencing problems with our picture freezing and then screen would go black. Thought it was our cable service but after having them out 3 times it was determined something wrong with our TV. It took Sharp almost 1 week to get someone out to check our TV. This was back in March and we still don't have our parts replaced. Very disappointed with Sharp and won't buy another product of theirs.
 100% of People (4/4) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 08/23/2006 |
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Strengths: (1) Outstanding picture clarity. (2) High-quality sound. (3) Aesthetic appeal of TV. (4) Good price-quality nexus. (5) Clearly marked video/audio inputs. (6) Good range of options for CC subtitles.
Weaknesses: Early Impression: Owner's manual is unimpressive and not particularly helpful during the setup process.
Summary: At the outset: I am a very careful shopper and, given that we are a single-income family with a child, careful about spending money. I paid 1170 dollars for this TV and am happy to have done so, because I feel I got my money's worth.
So, if you're deciding to buy an LCD flat-screen TV, and you're reading this review, you're probably pondering at least 3 questions: (1) What's the best brand? (2) What's the best size? (3) What options will I want on the TV?
Here's how I decided to buy this one. I started with size, thinking about the room and setup where the TV would be placed. We didn't want to be dominated by a movie-screen sized set in a smallish room, so the 32" screen was the best choice. You may also have noticed that prices of 32" sets have dropped quite rapidly over the past 6 months (I'm writing this in late August 2006), but are starting to level off. I'm not seeing the same kind of drop in 37" TVs just yet (this would have been our second choice for size).
I moved to a very thorough investigation / comparison of brands. In addition to mining the Internet for all of the expert ratings, and reviewing Consumer Reports' and other magazines, it became clear that Sharp was one of the top brands, both for quality, picture clarity, and brand-name reputation. However, there was no substitute for looking at the sets in person, so I checked a wide variety at stores throughout the area. It was my conclusion that no set looked nicer than Sharp. So, now I knew I wanted a 32" Sharp.
Sharp's website is snazzy, but not altogether helpful in explaining the various models and their amenities. You can navigate around to see the differences between them, but I chose the 32D6U because I wanted: (1) The speakers on the bottom, rather than the side [which would have made the TV too wide], and (2) the pre-installed Cable CARD (which obviates the need for a box). Savvy readers who are considering Sharp will want to review the various options before deciding. I will note that the widely-advertised/available D40U does not have the Cable CARD installed.
Now that I've been using the TV daily for 3 weeks, I've gotten a good feel for it: The clarity of the picture and sound are still pretty astounding, even now. We have a need for closed-captioning in my house, and I appreciate the various options for subtitles, as well. The TV itself was fairly easy to setup, although the instruction manual was surprisingly unhelpful when it came to getting my HDTV cable service to work. Sharp can do better in this department. Finally, the set looks snazzy. Something this size, which costs this much, really needs to be thought of as furniture as well as an electronic toy. I like the looks of the set, and visitors are impressed, too.
There are other sets which may have slightly higher audio or video quality, or which may have more audio/video options. If that's really important for you, then you are free to shop around more. To those readers who drive a Honda Accord or Toyota Camry, however, you may feel the same appreciation with this kind of TV that you do with your car: Turn it on and it works perfectly, every time.
This is a long review, but I know that people who read these things all the way through tend to be motivated and persuaded by people who are serious about their shopping. I hope that this has been helpful.
94% of People (17/18) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 12/19/2005 |
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Strengths: Picture quality, HDMI, 1366 x 768 resolution, large number of inputs, built-in tuners, cable-card ready
Weaknesses: I have not found any
Summary: I got this as a gift and connected to a Terk HDTVi antenna($24 at Amazon). The combination worked great and I could get several HDTV channels at amazing clarity. I do not have cable,so could not test the cable card. I connected the TV to my Toshiba SD-4900 progressive scan (480p) using component video cable and the picture looks great, though not as good as with broadcast channels. I am thinking of buying a Toshiba SD-5980 with HDMI and HD upconvert features to fully utilize this TV's capabilities. Before this TV, I looked at Syntax Olevia and Westinghouse LCD TV's - the picture quality of those is not as good, believe me!
88% of People (14/16) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 01/31/2006 |
- grkcro
from WI
- Member Since:
Jan 2006
View Member's:
Reviews
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Strengths: Unbelievable clarity, great sound even with factory speakers and many cool options that are to numerous to put down
Weaknesses: I wish I had 10 more.
Summary: Hooked up a Terk antenna and got like 14 channel crystal clear. Even viewing analog, the picture will blow you away. This is the Rolls Royce of LCD tv's.
80% of People (4/5) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 02/23/2006 |
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Strengths: picture quality, appearance
Weaknesses: on-screen settings
Summary: When I decided to splurge and get an LCD TV, I did some online research - read consumer and test reviews, compared options and pricing. I settled on the Sharp LC-32D6U because it seemed like one of the best values (slightly under $2k) plus has superior picture quality. This is the newest Sharp model and is rated the #2 32-inch LCD by PC World. I'm very pleased - it has a great look and even the sound is decent, although could use more bass. I love the widescreen format. It's the perfect size for my townhouse living room. I've only had it a few days and so far I don't feel the picture quality is optimum, because I'm not sure how to best configure the settings, which I find rather confusing - I'm going to have to check with Sharp or the store I bought it from for assistance. Make sure you get high quality cables and a home theater line conditioner (I bought Monster for both). What good is a nice, expensive TV if you have cheap, inferior cables?
Word of warning: beware of online "gray market" dealers who try to sell refurbished models as new. Their scam is they tell you the TV had to go to Sharp for verification that it is new/unused and as a result it has a "reconditioned" or "refurbished" sticker on it, but they assure you it has a full one-year warranty, then they push you to get an extended warranty. A refurb TV only has a 30-day warranty. I dealt with 2 such places in Brooklyn and wisely cancelled both orders. It's best to go with a reputable place and pay a little more - that way you know what you're getting and have the factory warranty. If it seems like too good of a deal, there's a reason why.
75% of People (6/8) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 05/01/2006 |
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Strengths: Slick Design, Lots of inputs, Excellent HD picture, Outstanding sound quality. Menu/Setup system is clear and easy to follow.
Weaknesses: The single HDMI input is actually DVI. Cabling room behind TV is tight when connecting several devices. Factory default picture settings are horrible.
Summary: Purchased this TV to replace a 30" LCD which died from a backlight failure: repair cost was over half that of this new TV. I researched the various online HD forums to narrow my options, and after seeing the Sharp picture "live" in a store I was sold.
This 32" arrived in a much smaller box than the 30" it replaced but there was plenty of room and it arrived with no damage. Removed it from the box, connected "almost" all of the cables, and powered it up. Then I sat back somewhat disgusted as the picture looked to be forcing all of the colors to something resembling neon. Analog cable looked pretty lousy; HD was acceptable, but not nearly as good as my old 30" LCD.
So, I accepted the challenge of getting this thing to an acceptable viewing level. After lowering the backlight setting a lot, and going back and forth between the brightness and contrast I now have the picture I purchased this set for: and that's with the component cables.
The reason for component cables...I had a HDMI-HDMI cable that I used before and this set has (according to the specs) a HDMI input. When I went to connect it I found it was really a DVI connection so I have to get an adapter or a new cable. Not really a big issue, but I could have bought a cable days ago and been ready to go all digital. A minor setback.
Although it's only been a day, I'm thrilled with the picture and sound quality. In fact, I have a surround system that I had to use before (to get decent bass and sound) and I haven't hooked it up yet. I'll see how the TV sound is with a good DVD movie and see if its worth hooking up the surround system.
50% of People (1/2) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 01/12/2006 |
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I bought the TV to use it as a monitor for a Power ...
Strengths: picture quality
Weaknesses: it won't work as a computer monitor for a PowerBook
Summary: I bought the TV to use it as a monitor for a PowerBook, but it would not work at its rated resolution, so the result was very blurry text.
25% of People (4/16) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 07/18/2006 |
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Strengths: Appealing look, excellent stand with forward tilt. Terrific clarity. SmartCARD feature.
Weaknesses: Location of power switch is on top. Difficult to reach if wall mounted.
Summary: This unit was highly rated in consumer reports AND supports the CableCARD. This allows me to save $7 per month in cable box charges. This unit is very modern looking and looks terrific in my newly renovated bedroom. I recommend highly.
0% of People (0/1) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 04/24/2006 |
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 Acceptable for the price Strengths: Price
Aesthetics
Weaknesses: Picture quality
Summary: Like a previous reviewer, I can not get this TV to look great no matter how I set the picture controls. It is a nice looking TV and has a good price/performance ratio....I guess I need to look at spending more to get the quality I want. Still a good TV.
0% of People (0/1) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 02/17/2009 |
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 Nothing but a headache Strengths: Not much compared to others
Weaknesses: Prone to warranty repairs, not capable of what it is advertised as.
Summary: This has been one big dissapointment since we got it. The sound went out within a year, then it stopped being able to handle cable via its HDMI connection. This is how it was hooked up for a while, then the picture went blurry and became too large. Sharp said this is because it is incapable of processing a 1080i signal via HDMI. Now look this thing up anywhere and see where it says that. It does say HDMI and 1080i display. So, now I think Sharp is giving me the runaround. No one can give me a straight answer. Why bother with this colossal piece of junk? Buy something else.
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| Date Reviewed: 05/09/2006 |
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Strengths: Digital Picture Quality
Weaknesses: Analog Picture Quality
Summary: Great size fot the living room or bedroom. Text is easily read (22" set is difficult to read). If your looking to upgrade those old cathode TV's this is the place to start. Slim widescreen set at a good price will enhance your viewing pleasure.
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