VIZIO 52-inch GV52L Full HDTV Review

Oct 30 2007, 12:00am CDT | by Shane McGlaun

Not too long ago VIZIO made headlines when they became the biggest retailer of HDTVs in America. In one quarter, VIZIO beat out Samsung to become the biggest selling HDTV brand in America. At the time, I wondered how well VIZIO HDTVs perform, and today we are going to find out. We are going to look at the VIZIO GV52L HDTV today so read on for all the details.

Gallery

5 images

Benchmarks

Features & Specifications
The biggest feature of the VIZIO GV52L HDTV is definitely the price. At $2299.99 for a full 1080p HDTV with a 52-inch screen size no one can deny it is a bargain. Another fantastic feature that I really wish the other big makers of HDTVs would adopt is the four HDMI ports on the rear that the VIZIO GV52L HDTV has.

Supported resolutions for the set are 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 480p, and 480i. The set also supports PC input with resolutions of 1920 x 1080, 1366 x 768, 1024 x 768, 800 x 600, and 640 x 480. The set is able to display over 16 million colors and has a built-in digital HDTV and standard TV tuner. VIZIO also guarantees the GV52L HDTV against bright pixel defects and provides a no permanent burn-in guarantee. The warranty also covers one-year of in home service.

The VIZIO GV52L HDTV has 178-degree horizontal and vertical viewing angles, a brightness of 500 cd/m2 and a contrast ratio of 1000:1. The set is wall mountable and weighs 114 pounds with the stand. In addition to the four HDMI, ports that are HDCP enabled there are also two component inputs, a RGB PC input, two composite video and an S-Video input. One SPDIF digital audio out is included as well as a stereo analog out.

Other features include a removable base and speakers for wall mounting and PIP and POP, 3:2 pull-down and 2:2 reverse pull-down. A 3D comb filter and motion adaptive de-interlacing round out the feature set.

Testing
The first thing I noticed when unboxing the VIZIO GV52L HDTV was that it is huge. Be sure your entertainment center is up to a set this big and that if you plan to wall mount the set, be sure you anchor the mount well.

Image quality is good, though not quite as sharp as some other HDTVs I have tested recently like the Viewsonic N4261w. Colors were realistic and accurate with good skin tones. I noticed no motion blur when watching fast moving on-screen action from my HD cable box. Upscaled 1080i movies from my Denon home theater looked very good. I noticed a bit of pixilation in transitional areas from dark to light colors, but overall the image quality was good.

The remote control that is included with the VIZIO GV52L HDTV is good. I like the way you change inputs, rather than just a list where you can choose which HDMI port to use, you can also to press the HDMI button on the remote repeatedly until you find the right source. The screen is bright enough to provide a decent picture in brightly lit rooms as well.

Verdict

Conclusion

Pros

Four HDMI ports
Low cost for screen size
Lots of other inputs

Cons

Could use a bit more contrast
Slight pixilation in transitional areas

Verdict
If I were shopping for a big screen HDTV, I would give serious consideration to the 52-inch VIZIO GV52L HDTV. You can get better image quality, but not in this price range for the screen size you are getting. Most users will not notice the image quality difference between this set and others on the market. The wealth of input options is something the other big HDTV makers should emulate.

8.5

where to buy

Buy from Amazon

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Shane McGlaun
Leading our review center, Shane knows technology inside out. His extensive experience in testing computer hardware and consumer electronics enable him to effectively qualify new products and trends. If you want us review your product, please contact Shane.
Shane can be contacted directly at shane@i4u.com.