I have the 37" of this TV and its great. People are complaining about this not having a built in hd tuner. You cannot get HD cable over a built in HD tuner, and unless you live in a city your pretty much not going to get many HD stations over the air. So you would most likely get a HD cable box anyways. The color and picture on this set is pretty damn good, one of the best black levels Ive seen on any LCD, and more vibrant colors than a lot of plasmas Ive seen. This is a pretty good deal.

refurb (rox0rz!) vs. New $300 difference? Hmmmm...

Westinghouse
42 flat
$1222
BUYDIG.COM
42 Flat Panel 1080P HD LCD TV LVM-42W2
Unit Price $1222
Shipping - FREE
Totalcost - $1222

or

Westinghouse
lvm-42w2
$1399.98
Newegg.com
Westinghouse Silver Black 42 16:9 8ms 1080p HD LCD TV Monitor Model LVM-42W2

Unit Price $1299.99
Shipping - $99.99 AIT FRONT DOOR DELIVERY
Totalcost - $1399.98

Xplosonhed wrote:i see people griping about the 1000:1 ratio. whats the norm? whats preferred?

There is no standard but 1000:1 is quite good. I don't know why anyone would complain about that.

It clearly said it doesn't take 1080p through component. So you would need to use DVI or the HDMI for that. If you are sending your audio to a receiver that sucks unless you have a new receiver with a bunch of HDMI in and outs. Otherwise I don't see how to do it unless you have an HD set top box with DVI out? Does that even exist? Maybe a switch box. I don't know.

For those saying that they get 1080p through their component cables, you might want to tell Westinghouse:

http://www.westinghousedigital.com/details.aspx?itemnum=44#VALUE

They seem to think otherwise and they built it.

toneware wrote:hate to pee on the parade, but... Isn't $899.98, shipped, brand new a better deal???

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16889234005&ATT=89-234-005&CMP=AFC-C8Junction

If you want 720p instead of 1080p

Don't get peoples hopes up

chianeko wrote:The Calamari Wrestler = awesome

looks more like a Calamari Samurai meditating

fakepie wrote:It clearly said it doesn't take 1080p through component. So you would need to use DVI or the HDMI for that. If you are sending your audio to a receiver that sucks unless you have a new receiver with a bunch of HDMI in and outs. Otherwise I don't see how to do it unless you have an HD set top box with DVI out? Does that even exist? Maybe a switch box. I don't know.

For those saying that they get 1080p through their component cables, you might want to tell Westinghouse:

http://www.westinghousedigital.com/details.aspx?itemnum=44#VALUE

They seem to think otherwise and they built it.

Well unfortunately their website is wrong. I know dozens of people who get 1080p via component cables on this set. My 37w3 also lists a max of 1080i over component, but 1080p works like a champ. You can even verify it with the "info" button, it tells you the current resolution and whether its interlaced or progressive.

The one on sale at BB is not the same monitor. The one at best buy is 1366x724 so only 720p not 1080p.

I am agonizing over this one, i really wish that I knew what refurbished meant in this case. Has anyone else gotten a refurbished TV from WooT?

dgloff wrote:

Well unfortunately their website is wrong. I know dozens of people who get 1080p via component cables on this set. My 37w3 also lists a max of 1080i over component, but 1080p works like a champ. You can even verify it with the "info" button, it tells you the current resolution and whether its interlaced or progressive.

Chances are the people you know don't know the difference rather than the mfg got their own specs wrong. Just saying, I am not betting 1000 on "well, some friends of mine are sure they are getting 1080p."

flownflog wrote:Saw a 42" Westinghouse LCD at best buy on sale for 999.99 brand new. Not sure if it's the same model and/or resolution, but 1k for a TV this size seems like a pretty good deal (minus the refurbished aspect of it :-/).

This is not the same tv on Best Buys site.. best buys site is a 720p...thought I would make that note since I still have some BB gift cards to burn and was hoping it was the same. My next HDTV has to be 1080p -

I will also add I too go the 22" lcd monitor on black Friday.... Love it Love it!

fakepie wrote:

Chances are the people you know don't know the difference rather than the mfg got their own specs wrong. Just saying, I am not betting 1000 on "well, some friends of mine are sure they are getting 1080p."

I've seen screencaps dude, and I've done it myself. Think whatever you want, but when you set, for example, the 360 to 1080i, the info bubble shows "1920x1080i" and when you change it to 1080p, it says "1920x1080p". But I guess the set must be lying to me too, and somehow taking the incoming 1080p signal that it doesn't support, interlacing it, deinterlacing it, and then displaying it, all without telling anybody that it's not supported.

If you don't want to spend your hard-earned money, fine. But go check out the (several hundred page) threads on AVS forum about the 37w3, 42w2 and 47w1. They ALL support 1080p over component, and literally HUNDREDS of people who DO know what they're talking about attest to that fact. That's one (of many) reasons I decided to buy one myself, and the results were EXACTLY what I was led to believe.

And granted, I don't know as much about HT stuff as a lot of the guys on AVS (some of whom have degrees in sound or video engineering and $100k+ into their setups), but I have been a HT geek for over 15 years now, into DVD since launch day ten years ago, and HD for four years now. I have 3 HD sets and 6 HD sources, half of which are 1080p (with one more--my HD DVD player--to be upgraded later this year, but not for that reason), so I do know the difference.

Someone explain to me why it is such a big deal that there is no HD Tuner. Who cares? Everyone has cable or satellite these days. When was the last time you actually watched over the air television?

I am (probably) not going to get one of these because I want a 46", however, 42" 1080p LCD for this price seems like a STEAL to me. Especially with the $5 shipping.

terpz wrote:Someone explain to me why it is such a big deal that there is no HD Tuner. Who cares? Everyone has cable or satellite these days. When was the last time you actually watched over the air television?

I am (probably) not going to get one of these because I want a 46", however, 42" 1080p LCD for this price seems like a STEAL to me. Especially with the $5 shipping.

Free over the air HD channels are a good thing. I personally can't get any here, but if I could I wouldn't have a TV without the tuner.

THIS IS NOT A GOOD DEAL AT ALL. Buying a LCD of this size is a big commitment and I would certainly not trust a "refurbished" one at that price. Perhaps if it were 2/3rds of this price I might consider taking a chance on it. The fact is, these things malfunction frequently even brand new. What kind of warranty does this have? (I doubt Westinghouse provides the standard 1 year manufacturers on refurb (rox0rz!)) By the looks of it you can get this new for only a couple a hundred dollars more which I think would be well worth it. Overall this isn't even that nice of a TV, on paper anyway. The contrast ratio is very weak; I could get many new tvs of this size with same ratio for a ton cheaper. Then again I havnt actually seen the picture so I cant say for sure.

Hey, Who writes the right up???
Because they talked about kickball and then karaoke. In Dallas here we have a kickball league and after the games every one goes to the bar and sings karaoke.
The league is big, but I didn't know people from woot play. Texas Star division.
"I'D HIT IT"

fakepie wrote: Otherwise I don't see how to do it unless you have an HD set top box with DVI out? Does that even exist? Maybe a switch box. I don't know.

My Comcast Motorola HD/DVR box has DVI-M out, so it does exist. I use a DVI-M -HDMI cable and get a beautiful picture. Of course I'm still on DLP rear projection.

1000:1 contrast is awful. No tuner. This is not a good deal!!!

fakepie wrote:

Chances are the people you know don't know the difference rather than the mfg got their own specs wrong. Just saying, I am not betting 1000 on "well, some friends of mine are sure they are getting 1080p."

The issue with component video not passing 1080p is not a technical one. It's a political one. Since component video is analog, it's much more difficult to implement copy protection schemes than on a digital connection like HDMI. Component video is perfectly capable of handling 1080p though. So what we might have here is a manufacturer giving in to the movie industry. If you find any device claiming that it can't output 1080p (or 1080i, etc.) through component output, it's a design choice and not a component video limitation.

Mr5000 wrote:I can get a samsung with that price!

where?

jkizer1 wrote:; I could get many new tvs of this size with same ratio for a ton cheaper. .

where?

I have the 47" version of this television, and I'm extremely pleased with it for the price.

You're going to want to do you scaling external to the TV, as this thing is *terrible* at upscaling from 480i. Awful. And it doesn't even support 480i in on the HDMI or DVI inputs anyway. But if you've got a set-top box, it's not a problem. I use my Series-3 Tivo for scaling low-res sources and it eliminates any issues.

Other than that, the set is much better than you could expect for the price. It's very lightweight (you can use one size category down for a mounting bracket, which saves you even more). The brightness is fantastic. The contrast is perfectly acceptable. I don't know about getting the refurb (rox0rz!) though... My first set had a cluster of 9 dead pixels, and I had to bring it back to the store to exchange... I'm sure these sets are the result of such swaps, but the question is.. "Did they replace the panel?"

jkizer1 wrote:THIS IS NOT A GOOD DEAL AT ALL. Buying a LCD of this size is a big commitment and I would certainly not trust a "refurbished" one at that price. Perhaps if it were 2/3rds of this price I might consider taking a chance on it. The fact is, these things malfunction frequently even brand new. What kind of warranty does this have? (I doubt Westinghouse provides the standard 1 year manufacturers on refurb (rox0rz!)) By the looks of it you can get this new for only a couple a hundred dollars more which I think would be well worth it. Overall this isn't even that nice of a TV, on paper anyway. The contrast ratio is very weak; I could get many new tvs of this size with same ratio for a ton cheaper. Then again I havnt actually seen the picture so I cant say for sure.

YOU ARE NOT A SMART PERSON AT ALL. This is $300 less than anywhere else. The warranty is posted on the front page. Why would you come to the forum and ask what the warranty is? Its not a nice tv on paper? It gets great reviews from AV enthusiasts and anyone who knows anything about contrast ratios knows that the number used by manufacturers is completely subjective and there is absolutely no standard used to measure contrast ratio. Please show us the 42" LCD with 1080p resolution for tons cheaper, otherwise I stand by my first comment. Then again, I havent met you so I cant say for sure.

cudthecrud wrote:seems like a good price, but not quite amazing. Too bad I already got a new hdtv. Others should check it out and read the reviews at avs forums or something first though.

That comment is definitely a prizewinner!

rbran100 wrote:I am agonizing over this one, i really wish that I knew what refurbished meant in this case. Has anyone else gotten a refurbished TV from WooT?

I have a smaller model refurbished Westinghouse that I bought from ecost about 9 months ago. I put it in the study, so low cost was a major factor. It works fine, and has a very good picture. It has 2 pixels out, but I understand that's common or even better than most LCD tvs. BTW, it's not noticable unless you get about 6 inches away and look for them. My only complaint is the remote is very basic (ie. cheap), but I rarely use it.

inyearstocome wrote:who cares about a TV tuner? you need an NTSC set top box to recieve HD over cable anyway, and that turns this into a 1080p HDTV. Only benefit of an ATSC tuner is for over-air broadcasts.

There is no set top box required when the television is equiped with a built-in ATSC tuner and a cablecard slot. Expect that configuration to be the norm within the next year. A set top box is required only for interactive channels and pay-per-view channels. An advanced cablecard with interactive capability is in development and will eventually replace the set top box.

REFURBISHED CONCERNS:
This is definitely one of those purchases where "refurbished" makes me cringe. Heck, I'd be happy with even an option to extend the 90 day warranty for a little extra cost. I have had refurbished products work for a long time or arrive crappy from Woot. There are just some things that I don't think are worth the aggravation. I personally had that 90 day warranty fly by while trying to get sharp to resolve an issue with my TV. On the 120th day they came up with a firmware fix that would require a tech visit and $200.

ATSC TUNER:
As far as some comments about "over the air tuner." I have a set where I split my cable to the TV and cable box. When I am recording one or two programs I can switch to the ATSC Tuner and watch something else. Not necessarily a show stopper, but it is a ribs feature. And a regular/hd antennae will work when your cable company is having issues. ;)

FINAL ANALYSIS:
I'd probably still go for it if it had an HD Tuner and cable card. LOL.

dgloff wrote:

It would be, if it was an even remotely similar set. Since it isn't, it's not.

Exactly. That's a 720p set, and this is a 1080p. Once you get above 40", most folks can tell the difference.

frebitz wrote:

That comment is definitely a prizewinner!

Yeah? Does it win some kind insight or prize or something?

Good Illustration. One really has to decide if the savings is really worth the refurb (rox0rz!). It's an individual thing.

Deliman31 wrote:refurb (rox0rz!) vs. New $300 difference? Hmmmm...

Westinghouse
42 flat
$1222
BUYDIG.COM
42 Flat Panel 1080P HD LCD TV LVM-42W2
Unit Price $1222
Shipping - FREE
Totalcost - $1222


or

Westinghouse
lvm-42w2
$1399.98
Newegg.com
Westinghouse Silver Black 42 16:9 8ms 1080p HD LCD TV Monitor Model LVM-42W2

Unit Price $1299.99
Shipping - $99.99 AIT FRONT DOOR DELIVERY
Totalcost - $1399.98

I was wondering if anyone knew what Standard definition looked like on this TV i was looking into the 37LVM abd when i went to best buy to see what it looks like the HD looked awesome but the SD looked like a woot monkey run over by a 18 wheeler (hits every wheel and cries for the first 10.) Any suggestion guys. Also the reason i want decent SD is because not all channels come in HD and I have a rather large DVD collection and i don't have an upconverting player. I don't think it's worth it to go and buy 600 dollars to watch HD content from a disc. To each his own.

A quick search reveals this
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8114541&type=product&id=1158318442758&ref=06&loc=01

tburrell wrote:

"better" depends on a lot of factors. Plasma typically has better black levels, brighter picture and faster response time. LCD typically has fewer burn-in issues, response times are getting better and they have less screen glare (better for rooms with more light).

There is, also, the factor that the plasma in the television might need to be replenished one day. The cost of refilling the plasma in the television costs just as much as the television when you bought it.

There are a lot of crap comments coming from folks who have never seen this display, nor understand it's strengths as a *monitor* for all types of HD sources... not just as a TV.

I've owned this model since November '06 (bought from Amazon.com) and am VERY happy with it. I paid $1699.

The picture quality is amazing for an LCD. The only slight weakness is in the "blacks", but that is a challenge for all LCDs... compared to other LCDs I've seen this one gets top marks. Bested only by Plasma.

I much prefer this over a glass Plasma display, because the LCD has almost zero glare refelctivity which is a big plus in a living room with lots of ambient light and windows.

With this Display, Westinghouse put all the money into the core features, and didn't waste any on useless bells and whistles... so what you get, while not flashy, is very good.

The HD Tuner is a key example. They could have included that and raised the price by $150 to $200, but in the "real world" most people connect this display to a HD Cable Tuner, or HD Direct TV, or a Media PC, or any variety of other HD devices that have their own HD tuners built-in. Why pay TWICE for something you will likely not need to use? Instead, Westinghouse beefed up the number and variety of digital inputs SIX... and given the wide variety of digital sources on the market (and in the future), I would say the expandibility of this *monitor* makes it ideal for being future-proof as you add new devices. The alternative if you have more HD devices than your TV/Display can handle, is to get an expensve HD capable AV Receiver to run everything through.

The number and variety of ports on this unit helps alleviate the need to do that in the near future.

If I were on the fence about this and looking for guidance about the suitability of this unit, I would look carefully at those who ACTUALLY own this display and weigh that proportionally HIGHER than those who are merely speculating on the weakness of this on paper... but who have no direct experience. If you listen to those who own this I think you will see a trend develop...

As for refurb (rox0rz!)... admittedly, I would be a bit leery myself. This isn't a small item, and can't be easily shipped back once setup. BUT, if it is a good unit... this is one amazing deal for the quaility of image and flexibility of setup. Plus... weighs only 58 lbs... way less than the 32" CRT that it replaced.

Cheers!

teddypimp21 wrote:A quick search reveals this
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8114541&type=product&id=1158318442758&ref=06&loc=01

The link is for a 720p monitor rather than the 1080p that woot is offering...

jklyank wrote:If you like girls built like little boys.

You, sir (or ma'am) are WE TODD DID! I am usually kind when responding to even the most blatant moronic statements on this forum, but this is inexcusable. Have you ever even SEEN Rachel Ray? She is the embodiment of all that a woman should be. The only possibility I can think of is that you are confusing her with Giada de Laurentis, which would simply make you ignorant, but there is little difference here.

You may not post for 99 more hours.

Still saving for a 46"...

Dont bother buying a Westinghouse TV. I was at best buy the other day looking for a TV and one of the sales guys told the other one "Well, we broke last months record." I then asked the sales guy talking "For what? Sales?" He then said to me "Nope, westinghouse brand TVs returned, let me tell you, it seems like we get back even more than we sell!" For a sales person on commission to admit that, its gotta be crappy.

Pssshhh... Throw in an HD tuner and price it at $39.95 and I'd be in for one. :-P

the scene on the TV is from the japanese movie THE CALAMARI WRESTLER which is widely regarded as one of the best pieces of film to come from japan