Vizio E601i-A3 LED-LCD HDTV

I purchased this TV on 11/21/12 and it was in stock. Although I wasn't able to get a Black Friday-type price, Amazon did have a brief price change on its site. It went from high to lower and back to high again. I contacted Amazon to ask about their price-matching because I saw a lower price at a "discount club." Initially the rep said I did not qualify since Amazon had to add the club membership of $40 to the club price. That would have brought it back very close to Amazon's price. We ended the call and within two minutes the rep called me back. He realized that Amazon had made the price change I mentioned above and said I DID qualify. He issued a credit to my account which was reflected within 24 hours. I also got Amazon's 2% bonus credited to me "for use on a future purchase."

Shipping & Delivery

As an Amazon Prime subscriber, I was offered delivery on 11/28. Since Amazon also offered "white glove" delivery, with a scheduled date & time, I opted for it. My TV was delivered on 12/1. Although the delivery was about one hour late, I was still satisfied with it.

Wall Mount

I opted for a PID 4174 wall mount from Monoprice.com (less than $30.00). It is a flush mount that can tilt some 15 degrees. With the TV mounted, the front bezel is 4 inches from the wall. This is one sturdy mount. With a little help from the Mrs, it was installed with TV hanging in about 45 minutes.

Remote Control

The remote is quite good for operating the TV and all the "smart" applications. It has a full keyboard on the back side. Remember to keep it pointed at the lower-left corner of the TV. And keep in mind that it can't control anything other than the TV. If you want to control your satellite of cable box, AV receiver, soundbar, etc., you will need a different remote. I use a Harmony Remote and it does the job very well.

Picture

I have played with the picture settings to find those that are ideal to me. I have mine set pretty well, but I am still experimenting with them. The quality of the picture and the colors etc. are just GREAT. I've heard many people complain about the colors, but mine are all anyone could ask for.

Sound

I was okay with the sound from the TV speakers, but I certainly recognize that there are many better options. Having rear-facing speakers dampens whatever comes out of them. As a result, I added a soundbar to my setup. I am using the Vizio SB4021M-A1. It requires one optical connection and a power connection. Now everything sounds GREAT.

Accessories

In addition to the SB4021M-A1 soundbar, I also have a Samsung BD-EM57C Blu-ray player attached to the TV. I opted to use HDMI ports 3 and 4 for my connections. (Some people had difficulty using HDMI 1 due to its ARC feature and thought it was possibly their lip sync problem too.)

Issues

Many people have complained about getting the BSOD (black screen of death), which led to repairs and or replacement of the TV. I have not had such a problem. I have had a few lip-sync issues, but the more I watch and pay attention, it appears to be a particular program on a particular network rather than a TV issue. As a result, I have no complaint. I should add that I have the same lip-sync issue (one channel, one program) on an older Sharp 37" TV in another room.

Conclusion

I would definitely recommend this TV to anyone looking for a 60" flat screen. This TV replaced a Samsung 56" DLP set that was about seven years old. The picture quality is hands down better on the Vizio than it was on the Samsung.