What We Think

With its deep, inky blacks and sharp detail, this HDTV excels in most areas of picture quality.

Flat-panel LCD HDTVs typically cost more than their big-screen plasma cousins, but with prices for the latter now heading south of two grand, LCDs will have to follow suit to stay competitive. If you check the big-name companies in your local electronics store, you'll find they all charge a premium for their large flat-panel LCD TVs. But at the same time, a few lesser-known manufacturers are offering great deals in the large-LCD arena, in some cases trumping the big boys by providing desirable features like 1080p screen resolution.

Westinghouse Digital Electronics is one maker that's come out of left field to stage an assault on the LCD marketplace. The company's new LVM-42w2 is a 42-inch HDTV monitor (that is, a basic high-def display lacking a built-in tuner for grabbing digital broadcasts) that sells for as little as $2,299. With a few same-size plasma TVs costing less than 2K, that might not seem like too great of a deal, but Westinghouse's model offers full 1080p screen resolution and it can accept 1080p programs through its HDMI, DVI, component-video, and VGA computer inputs. Both are key factors to consider if you're thinking about the new 1080p-friendly high-def disc formats, and neither feature can be found on any current 42-inch plasma HDTV.

From a design perspective, the Westinghouse Digital LVM-42w2 is no great beauty, but it's considerably more attractive than the last Westinghouse LCD I tested. The TV sports a light gray cabinet with a slim, darker gray bezel surrounding the screen.

A relatively sturdy plastic stand comes with the set, although I'd also consider the company's optional wall mount ($111) if there are any rowdy kids in the house. At first glance, I couldn't spot the well-camouflaged speakers. I eventually found them poking out of the TV's bottom panel, but given the tinny sound quality, you'll be even better off than usual using an outboard audio system.

Despite its lack of an RF jack for direct antenna or cable TV hookups, the Westinghouse's input options are fairly extensive: The TV's back panel includes an HDMI connection, two DVI inputs, two sets of component-video jacks, and a VGA port for a computer or other analog RGB input. However, the one area where Westinghouse skimped is standard (480i) connections. There are composite- and S-video jacks (one of each), but since they share the same stereo audio input, you can only use one at a time when you're relying on the TV's built-in speakers for sound.

The Short Form

$2,299 ($2,499 LIST) / 25.8 x 41.5 x 4.5 IN / 52 LBS / westinghousedigital.com / 866-287-5555

Plus

•Crisp HDTV picture •Vivid, natural color •Flexible picture adjustments, including variable backlight •Good price for a bigscreen 1080p LCD

Minus

•Limited shadow depth with dark images •Slightly soft 1080i picture via HDMI/DVI inputs •No analog/digital TV tuner •Bare-bones remote.

Key Features

•1,920 x 1,080-resolution LCD monitor •Can accept 1080p signals •Built-in speakers •PIP/POP •Inputs HDMI, 2 DVI, 2 component-video, and S-video, all with analog stereo audio; composite-video; VGA with minijack analog stereo audio •Outputs analog stereo audio •Price $2,299 ($2,499 list)

Test Bench

•Color temperature of the Westinghouse LVM-42w2 measured reasonably close to the 6,500 K standard after picture adjustments; fine-tuning via its service menu resulted in an even more accurate gray-scale tracking of ±300 K from 30 to 80 IRE — an average performance. The set exhibited near-perfect color decoding. Picture overscan was 5% for 480p signals displayed via the set's component-video inputs — a higher than normal amount. For its HDMI/DVI connections as well as for high-def programs viewed via the component-video inputs, overscan measured 0%. The set's measured high-def picture resolution was excellent for the component-video inputs but slightly soft for the HDMI/DVI inputs. Full Lab Results

Unfortunately, Westinghouse's design upgrade for its TVs didn't extend to the remote control — the handset that comes with the LVM-42w2 is the same bare-bones wand the company included with its earlier LCDs. One highlight is a set of direct-input buttons at the keypad's bottom that let you quickly switch between sources without going through all the TV's many inputs. A “Scaling” button toggles the two display modes: Standard, which centers squarish, 4:3 aspect ratio programs between black side panels, and Fill, which stretches them horizontally to fill out the screen. Standard will be the right choice for watching widescreen material like DVDs or HDTV — the Fill mode, in contrast, zooms in slightly on 16:9 pictures, clipping off a portion of either side.

SETUP Like most LCD TVs, the Westinghouse LVM-42w2 can put out a bright image with good contrast in well-illuminated rooms. And with no reflective screen shield on the set, you don't have to worry about glare from windows. This makes it better than usual for daytime viewing.

Getting down to the business of tweaking the TV for a dim home theater environment, I found that its Color 1 color-temperature preset delivered a reasonably accurate picture (see Test Bench for details). All picture settings, including the LCD backlight adjustment, could be independently tweaked for each input — a major plus. The only real complaint I had was that 1080i HDTV pictures viewed via the HDMI and DVI inputs looked slightly soft compared with the razor-sharp high-def image delivered by the set's component-video input. (Westinghouse says the TV was designed for optimal performance with a 1080p source.) Even though this was mostly noticeable on test patterns rather than program material, I still used the component-video connection to hook up my cable box/DVR.

PICTURE QUALITY The Westinghouse LVM-42w2 did a decent job displaying regular cable TV programs. I would have preferred some kind of noise reduction setting to smooth out cruddy-looking channels, but there was no such option.

I was also impressed with the LVM-42w2's handling of DVDs. Checking out the disc of David Cronenberg's thrilling movie A History of Violence, the bright blue-and-yellow uniforms in a scene where the son of Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen) plays baseball looked exceptionally vivid and clean. The green hue of the field's turf came across as natural, as did the skin tones of the players, which also showed plenty of subtle variation.

When tuned for a dim viewing environment, most LCDs lose some picture contrast — especially in dark scenes — and this was also true of the Westinghouse. For instance, watching a later scene where Tom confronts the sinister mobster Richie (William Hurt) in his dark home office, the picture tended to flatten out and lose some shadow depth. With less demanding content, however, the LVM-42w2 delivered mostly satisfying black levels.

As I mentioned, 1080i format HDTV looked marginally better on this TV when I used the analog component input rather than its digital jacks. When I watched a Dallas Stars — Detroit Red Wings hockey game in high-def on the OLN network, the ultra-crisp picture revealed details like the mesh netting protecting the crowd from flying pucks. I could even make out its texture in the wide shots! And the cutaway close-ups of the crowd looked detailed enough to give me a sense of what it's like to sit in the stands.

The Westinghouse LVM-42w2 also showed itself capable of displaying a range of fine colors in high-def programs. As the hockey game continued, I could distinguish a wide variety of reds — the medium hue of empty seats in the stands, the brighter one of the Detroit players' uniforms, and the vivid, near-neon glow of Coca-Cola signs lining the rink. And the picture also looked consistently solid during fast-action play. Some LCDs tend to blur or smear when displaying quick motion, but viewed on the Westinghouse, the puck, players, and sticks all retained their form throughout rapid-fire movement.

BOTTOM LINE Big-screen LCD HDTVs may cost more on average than same-size plasma models, but the Westinghouse LVM-42w2 42-inch LCD HDTV monitor is priced in line with its flat-panel competition. And the deal here is sweetened by full 1080p screen resolution and an ability to accept programs in that format through most of its video connections. Like many other LCDs, the Westinghouse looks a bit two-dimensional in dark movie scenes. And I was a bit disappointed by the modest softness in its 1080i high-def picture when using HDMI or DVI connections. But beyond that, this LCD's overall video performance is very good, making it a formidable alternative to plasma.

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