Price: $555
Website: www.simplyelectricals.co.uk
Toshiba Regza
32RL858
Toshiba Regza 32RL858 is not the most modern TV we have ever
seen – the bezel made of outdated silver plastic is not the most advanced.
However, its appearance is misleading, because this small TV has Smart TV
features and a Freeview HD tuner.
RL858 has a rear gate. 3 HDMI, VGA, Ethernet (no Wi-Fi
option) and USB are presented, so you don’t have any trouble connecting Blu-ray
player, PC or game console. Unfortunately, they mostly turn out rather than
facing down; they may interfere with the same wall mounting.
Back
panel
You will want to connect TV to the internet; Toshiba has
added online Places system, which is one of beautiful SmartTV systems we have
ever seen. It is not a perfect system as competitors because you have to step
through many menus to find services, while in SmartTV of Sony and Samsung, they
stay in the same place. Youtube, BBC iPlayer and rental movies from AceTrax are
there, as well as USB playback and network for video files. The file format
support is excellent, and we don’t encounter any problem when playing MKV, DivX
or XviD videos. However, there is only a USB port, so you won’t play files
directly if you use optional dongle Wi-Fi (product code is WLM-10U2, $48 from www.amazon.co.uk).
We don’t expect much from the menu system, based on the
program guide on clutter screen. It occupies the whole screen and there is no
picture-in-picture mode. Nevertheless, if you try more, you will see full image
options. Color management system gives you the control for red, green, blue and
magenta separately. Also, there are options to disable the active backlight
control, a few noise reduction settings, as well as brightness control,
contrast and sharpness, so you are able to change the image.
32RL858 surprisingly does well with standard and high
definition source. Images look sharp and detailed, even during fast action
scenes. Colors are vibrant and they jump off the screen in a way that few basic
TVs can do. Main Freeview channels are not interfered, though some
low-bandwidth channels have fewer details reasonably. Freeview HD channels are
better, but Blu-ray videos are where the TV looks best.
Although primarily we are quite impressive, the image
quality is not perfect. Night scenes are the most troubled, revealing gray
areas that they should be black, simultaneously there is inconsistency in the
backlight. Some areas of the screen look brighter than normal, so we suggest
reducing the backlight to compensate.
Speaker is only 10W power, quite clear and loud enough for a
medium-sized room. A TV at this size will find a place in the second room for
sure. We are pleased to see that you won’t need to invest to speakers to watch
every day. Nonetheless, its weaknesses were exposed during our Blu-ray tests.
At higher volume, or when bass is created, we began to hear vague and
distorted.
If you are looking for a second TV to combine with a game
console or Blu-ray player, 32RL858 is quite ideal. The image quality is good
for a cheap TV. If you add high-definition content, it has Smart TV features
and reasonable price. However, it is worth waiting for how competitors of this
TV show before you buy.
Summary
Evaluation. A cheap TV with lots of feature
and excellent image quality, but check out rivals before you buy.
32-inch LCD TV with edge LED backlight. 1920x1080
resolution, 3.000.000:1 contrast ratio, 400cd/m2 brightness, 3 HDMI outputs, 1
SCART, 1 VGA, 1 component, 1 composite, Freeview HD tuner, 1 year of RTB
warranty.
Energy consumption: 1W standby, 68W active.
