Sharp AQUOS LC-52LE700UN impressions

Sharp's LC-52LE700UN is the 52-inch member of the company's first-ever LED-backlit AQUOS range, and we were fortunate enough to give it a spin here recently. The LE700 series began shipping out to consumers this summer, packed with web connectivity (AQUOS Net), a trio of HDMI ports, a 1080p X-Gen panel and a dejudder feature for smoothing out jaggies. The set packed a starting tag of $2,799.99, though in the few short months that it has been on the market, the street rate has fallen to just south of $1,600. Without a doubt, the fall in price helps the screen's cause in terms of value, but is there enough to warrant a purchase? Head on past the break for a few of our thoughts.

Sharp AQUOS LC-52LE700UN

By and large, Sharp's AQUOS LC-52LE700UN is an impressively designed set. It's slim, light and striking when setup on the bundled glossy stand. Thankfully, the cute glowing blue light beneath the logo can be toggled off for complete darkness when viewing a movie, and the LED-backlit panel can automatically adjust brightness based on ambient light. Usage was easy enough, though we can't help but kvetch about the limited abilities of AQUOS Net. Having web connectivity is great, but with sets out there using their Ethernet ports to stream Netflix, Blockbuster On Demand and other web-based content, seeing this implementation is just painful. Oh sure, you can check up on local traffic and view the latest headlines, but if you're looking at set in this price range, you're already doing that on your smartphone. Realistically, the only true use for internet connectivity on a TV is to stream media stored on your local network or show content housed on the web; AQUOS Net may have been groundbreaking in 2005, but these days, we simply expect more from a connected HDTV.

The good

• 1080p X-Gen panel is gorgeous and sharp from all angles
• Amazing viewing angles in real-world use; great for wide living rooms
• Design is top-notch, though the glossy bezel and stand do attract fingerprints and dust
• Integrated TV tuner was quick to pick up channels
• Three HDMI sockets, VGA port and integrated Ethernet port for AQUOS Net
• Easy-to-grasp user interface
• Respectable sub-$1,600 street price

The bad

• Simplistic remote is lacking; it gets the job done, but a universal remote will be far more intuitive
• AQUOS Net isn't nearly advanced enough to be really useful
• Film modes can actually make DVDs look worse
• Advanced video tweaking options weren't nearly in-depth enough for our tastes

The ugly

• No Netflix, VUDU or Blockbuster On Demand streaming puts the set at a real disadvantage compared to more connected rivals
• Poor descriptions for most advanced video settings

All told, this here set is a real looker, and the image quality is stunning... once you get it setup right. We were forced to tinker with the admittedly limited amount of advanced video settings for a few hours before we were satisfied with how our DVDs looked. The defaults are all fine and dandy for HDTV broadcasts and Blu-ray watching, but for less-than-HD sources, it took some serious tweaking to optimize things. We would've really appreciated a few more options and more descriptive labels within the UI. A number of on / off selections aren't really explained, leaving users to simply try things both ways if they plan on seeing the difference.

At under $1,600, the LC-52LE700UN is a fine set for those not concerned with advanced tweaking or web connectivity, but it's hard to wholeheartedly recommend an HDTV like this when so many more well-connected alternatives are on the market with similar price points. Perhaps if AQUOS Net is improved (read: given access to VUDU, Hulu, Netflix or any other major source of web content), we'd feel differently, but for now we wouldn't opt for this guy until we had a look at internet-friendly options from LG and Sony.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 13th 2009 7:30PM]

I just don't know why you guys are caught up on Vudu and hulu which are just average quality streaming services. Maybe Im different, but buy based on picture quality and forget those "cheap" features

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 13th 2009 11:21PM]

Vudu HDX is certainly not average quality service. On TVs up to 50" it matches Blu-ray quality and watching it on 100"+ it's just slightly softer (many people won't even notice - I do because I'm picky) but still retains superb details in 1080p with no artifacts.

The quality of streaming services have been improving every few months and I bet by next year it will match Blu-ray on several platforms.

People need to understand that a 1080p video and a lower bitrate can look identical as 40mbps video. I know, A SHOCKER.

And here's the proof:

Xylon is recognized enthusiast especially on AVS Forums who takes screenshots and have been doing comparisons with DVD/HD DVD/Blu-ray for some time now.

http://forums.highdefdigest.com/blu-ray-software-general-discussion/65214-transformers-comparison-pix.html

Transformers HD DVD version was 50% lower bitrate and the quality is IDENTICAL to Blu-ray version.

Transfomers HD DVD File size: 25 GB Total Bitrate (includes audio): 25.03 mbps - Video bitrate alone: 20.54mbps

Transformers BD - File size: 41.40 GB Total Bitrate (includes audio): 41.34 Mbps - Video bitrate alone: 31.43mbps

Both movies are encoded with AVC (h.264)

Reviews from High Def Digest and other renowned sites have given them identical marks in PQ as well.

Considering that HDX peaks at 20mbps, it's not hard to see how the quality might be virtually identical on TVs around 50" and below.

Anyone who claims otherwise is deluding themselves as you won't see the difference guaranteed. The fact that you want to see some difference just tells about the state of one's mind. But I guess people can believe whatever they want and if you MUST know that you have bitrate through the roof that's fine, but don't go dissing things out of bias.

And I will challenge people to recognize on "blind" PQ tests on footage with various bitrates just to prove a point that you can't see the difference.

I say this because I have movies from my Blu-ray discs encoded at around 20mbps and they look identical to originals after many tests with different personal encode settings.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 8:14AM]

@Bozster:

My general feeling is this: if I'm going to pay this much money for a television, and for content for it, I'd like it looking as good as possible even if it's unlikely that I'd be able to tell the difference between something encoded at 20mbps and something encoded at 40mbps.

We, consumers, are paying for quality content, and we should be demanding it. As far as Xylon and the Transformers comparison goes: what was left out of that is that the HD DVD version sacrificed lossless audio (it only included Dolby Digital Plus) to up the video bitrate. I suspect if they'd included Dolby TrueHD on the HD DVD version and dropped the video bitrate to compensate we'd have seen some bigger differences in that comparison. As for Blu-ray Disc vs. streaming; I'm not buying in to something that requires me to have an ultra fast internet connection that's never busy doing other things. Unless you have network management in place to prioritize streaming over downloads or other things you'll hit hiccups in playback as soon as someone in another part of the house decides to download the latest Windows service pack (or some non-streaming movie or music).

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 10:20AM]

edge, it would make sense if you could see differences. I'm not saying you shouldn't buy or have high bitrate movies. It's totally up to you, if you are fine paying for things you can't see and that occupies space that's fine. Nothing wrong with that, but I have issues when people start imagining that anything that's not pumped up bitrate looks like crap. Thats' simply not true and it's basically done out of bias.

And I compared to HD DVD cause those are the 2 highest quality versions of the same movie with same codec with different bitrates. It was just a point.

As far as audio, again, in the example of Transformers as well, lossy DD+ still holds excellent against TrueHD track on Blu-ray version. Reviewers only noted that on a specific sound system the audio was just a tad louder with TrueHD. So this tells you that even with TrueHD and DTS-MA or LPCM the audio difference is negliable and it's mostly hype. Sure the bitrate is much higher but in real life on excellent system with blind tests even people who are audiophiles couldn't distuingish DTS 1.5 and DD+ vs DTS-MA or TrueHD.

It all comes down to source and in the case of audio it's the mix and in the case of video it's the original transfer. Bitrate is absolutely less relevant. Sure, you can't expect to have

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 13th 2009 8:32PM]

um, is Gladiator stretched? Not the best way to advertise your tv when you cannot even set it up properly.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 13th 2009 9:42PM]

ummm this isn't an advertisment!!!

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 13th 2009 11:46PM]

that panel's black level totally sucks...at least from the main photo

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 2:32AM]

Anyone who claims otherwise is deluding themselves as you won't see the difference guaranteed. The fact that you want to see some difference just tells about the state of one's mind. But I guess people can believe whatever they want and if you MUST know that you have bitrate through the roof that's fine, but don't go dissing things out of bias.

migrane

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 2:53AM]

It is really attractive.Is it better than Toshiba? http://global-cell-phones.com/ciphone.html

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 5:07AM]

The dejudder feature won't be for smoothing jaggies, it will be for reducing judder. If it has a jaggie killing feature, I imagine it will be called Edge Enhancement.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 2:57PM]

How did the reviewer miss that this 52-inch set only takes 105W? No other large set is as efficient. If you've ever considered a Tesla Roadster, this is your TV.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 14th 2009 3:52PM]

thats a good price...and I will keep an eye on this, would be nice to hear that they added Netflix streaming via an update tho

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 15th 2009 10:48PM]

When all is said and done, this is the best value in a 50+ inch HDTV. Can you buy a Vizio, LG, Samsung, or Panasonic for this price? Right now, you can pick one up for $1,599 with free shipping: http://www.hdtvbeat.com/lc52le700un-sharp-led-hdtv-1599-free-shipping/2009/10/

If so, I haven't seen it and I've looked at just about every one of them. It's true that this television doesn't have a great online experience, but the amazing part is that all of that can be updated with firmware. Sharp has shown that they are going to make improvements with their new UV2A technology.

All of those bells and whistles may be great, but picture quality is the most important part, how it looks, how it works, and if you're blown away whenever you turn it on.