[Fullerton Will]

I spotted this Polaroid "4641-TLXB: 46" Full HD Widescreen LCD TV with Digital ATSC Tuner" in the Walmart in Anaheim, California yesterday, for [EDIT]; and I have to admit the specs and price made me stop and take a look.


They weren't running a descent demo through it, and I'm not sure what their source was, or how it was hooked up, but it looked good enough for me to want to ask if anyone here has any first-hand experience with this television.


I use a 16 X 9 Akai 30" 480p television for daily news checking, but 46" of 1920 X 1080p would be a much nicer match for all of my HD stuff.


Please let me know if there are pros and cons on this unit.


Thanks from Fullerton,


Will

 

[Intercooler2]

I don't have that one but look for my post in here with pictures of the 26" same family I picked up. I kind of wish I would have held off on the Samsung 4665F since this one you mention may have done the job for 1k less.

 

[bethruss]

I too have been looking at the 46" Polaroid at Wal-Mart. One of my concerns is the contrast ratio of 1000:1. Other comparable set have a contrast ratio of 5000:1 to 7000:1. I have looked at these sets with different contrast ratio's side by side... I can't see the difference. Seems like a good bang for the buck. But, would like to see more opinions on this 46" Polaroid.. Thanks, Russ

 

[gi0rgi0]

Is it any cheaper at the b&m ? Saw it on the website.

 

[whatchel1]



Quote:
Originally Posted by gi0rgi0 /forum/post/0


Is it any cheaper at the b&m ? Saw it on the website.

What website are you referring to as b&m ?

 

[mspearl]

Brick and mortar. B & M refers to a retail store, instead of an internet site.

 

[Dueling_Cartmans]

Hey Fullerton Will,


OT, but is The Whole Enchilada restaurant on Yorba Linda Blvd. still there? We used to live in Placentia years ago and that was a regular place for our family to eat at. Great food!

And now back to the topic in discussion.

 

[bethruss]



Quote:
Originally Posted by gi0rgi0 /forum/post/0


Is it any cheaper at the b&m ? Saw it on the website.

Same price in store and on the website....

 

[gi0rgi0]

Thanks for the info.

 

[bethruss]

Confused to the max... The Polarid I saw at WalMart I thought was the Polaroid 4641-TLXB. The one on the WalMart web site is TLA-04641C. Now I went to the Polaroid website to find out what the differences are and compared these two models spec sheets. All specifications were the same except what is listed below.


The 4641-TLXB has a "High Definition digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stereo speakers (20W x 2) with simulated surround sound."


The TLA-04641C has a "Built-in digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stero speakers with simulated surround sound"


What is the differnence between a HD digital tuner ATSC tuner and just a digital ATSC tuner?


Cornfused....

 

[chrisherbert]



Quote:
Originally Posted by bethruss /forum/post/0


Confused to the max... The Polarid I saw at WalMart I thought was the Polaroid 4641-TLXB. The one on the WalMart web site is TLA-04641C. Now I went to the Polaroid website to find out what the differences are and compared these two models spec sheets. All specifications were the same except what is listed below.


The 4641-TLXB has a "High Definition digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stereo speakers (20W x 2) with simulated surround sound."


The TLA-04641C has a "Built-in digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stero speakers with simulated surround sound"


What is the differnence between a HD digital tuner ATSC tuner and just a digital ATSC tuner?


Cornfused....

There's probably no difference.

 

[whatchel1]



Quote:
Originally Posted by bethruss /forum/post/0


Confused to the max... The Polarid I saw at WalMart I thought was the Polaroid 4641-TLXB. The one on the WalMart web site is TLA-04641C. Now I went to the Polaroid website to find out what the differences are and compared these two models spec sheets. All specifications were the same except what is listed below.


The 4641-TLXB has a "High Definition digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stereo speakers (20W x 2) with simulated surround sound."


The TLA-04641C has a "Built-in digital ATSC tuner" and "Built-in stero speakers with simulated surround sound"


What is the differnence between a HD digital tuner ATSC tuner and just a digital ATSC tuner?


Cornfused....

The difference is the ad man that wrote the copy. 1 was pushing the words High Definition the other didn't. An ATSC tuner is also an HD ATSC tuner. Sounds like the only diff between the 2 is one has a model number to be sold in Wally's only.

 

[bethruss]

This was not an advertisement. I got the information from the specification sheets posted at the Polaroid web site. Both models have spec sheets, but have slight differences. I have posted a couple of questions to the polaroid web site. I also asked polaroid about the absence of an NTSC tuner in their specfication sheet.

Russ

 

[ThirtyWhat]

We just purchased the Polaroid 46" LCD yesterday afternoon. After setting up the stand, adjusting the mounting brackets, and getting everything physically set up ... it was late enough that we only had time to run a simple annalog cable connection through our Series 2 Tivo.


That means that we're not getting HDTV broadcasts yet. At this point, we have the choice of a) getting a box from the cable company b) purchasing a Series 3 Tivo and renting CableCards from Insight or c) going the antenna route. We haven't decided which we'll do ... honestly, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed at the moment ... but I'm leaning towards picking up a box from Insight.


Having said all that ... I can't give you an opinion yet on broadcast picture quality. Obviously, at this moment ... it doesn't look much different than our old projection television. Brighter, clearer, perhaps ... but not jaw-dropping. I was starting to feel a little doubtful about our purchase ...


HOWEVER, we took a moment and and hooked up the DVD player ... and it was amazing. The clarity and picture were fabulous. It looked better than any movie I've ever seen in a theatre.


I'm going to talk to the cable company shortly ... try to get them to let me pick up a digital box without having to schedule an installation. I'll write back as soon as I can tell you more about the actual broacast quality ...


I'll write more shortly -

TW


PS - Before I forget ... speakers ... not so good. I didn't take the time to set up our surround sound system last night ... but I'll be doing it after work today. I suppose the built-in speakers would be better than nothing ... but common ... if you're going to have an LCD HDTV ... wouldn't you want something better?

 

[ThirtyWhat]

Well, we did a little quick research ...


Given the choice between spending $600+ on a new HD-compliant Tivo ... and tolerating Insight's craptacular HD-DVR at $15 a month ... we're going with Insight.


Unfortunately, since it involves HDTV, Insight will not, under any circumstances, release a box over the counter. So, installation is set for Wednesday sometime between 10-12. Once that's done, I'll write back and let everyone know how our Polaroid 46" looks with HDTV broadcasting.


I'm hoping it lives up to expectations ... because it's a heck of a deal ...

 

[SLUDGE]

30what


What kind of DVD? Standard, Upconvert, HD?


Also a regular antenna should pullin some HD programming for your main stations ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX. Try it. Its FREE.

 

[monizj]



Quote:
Originally Posted by bethruss /forum/post/0


I too have been looking at the 46" Polaroid at Wal-Mart. One of my concerns is the contrast ratio of 1000:1. Other comparable set have a contrast ratio of 5000:1 to 7000:1. I have looked at these sets with different contrast ratio's side by side... I can't see the difference. Seems like a good bang for the buck. But, would like to see more opinions on this 46" Polaroid.. Thanks, Russ

One thing you should know is that there are two different types of contrast ratio; static and dynamic. It all depends upon the test method. Most manufacturers are stating the dynamic, hence, a BIGGER number. Bigger does not always mean better. Look with your own eyes.


The Polaroid TV is a good value!!!


CE Know It All

 

[monizj]



Quote:
Originally Posted by ThirtyWhat /forum/post/0


We just purchased the Polaroid 46" LCD yesterday afternoon. After setting up the stand, adjusting the mounting brackets, and getting everything physically set up ... it was late enough that we only had time to run a simple annalog cable connection through our Series 2 Tivo.


That means that we're not getting HDTV broadcasts yet. At this point, we have the choice of a) getting a box from the cable company b) purchasing a Series 3 Tivo and renting CableCards from Insight or c) going the antenna route. We haven't decided which we'll do ... honestly, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed at the moment ... but I'm leaning towards picking up a box from Insight.


Having said all that ... I can't give you an opinion yet on broadcast picture quality. Obviously, at this moment ... it doesn't look much different than our old projection television. Brighter, clearer, perhaps ... but not jaw-dropping. I was starting to feel a little doubtful about our purchase ...


HOWEVER, we took a moment and and hooked up the DVD player ... and it was amazing. The clarity and picture were fabulous. It looked better than any movie I've ever seen in a theatre.


I'm going to talk to the cable company shortly ... try to get them to let me pick up a digital box without having to schedule an installation. I'll write back as soon as I can tell you more about the actual broacast quality ...


I'll write more shortly -

TW


PS - Before I forget ... speakers ... not so good. I didn't take the time to set up our surround sound system last night ... but I'll be doing it after work today. I suppose the built-in speakers would be better than nothing ... but common ... if you're going to have an LCD HDTV ... wouldn't you want something better?

Try using an off-air antenna and perform a channel scan. You will be amazed at the clarity of HD off-air broadcast!!


The CE KNow IT All

 

[ThirtyWhat]

Yesterday, Insight installed their box/dvr yesterday (url available on request) ... and while I have one or two "concerns" about the box ... the picture is amazing.


Now, of course, I don't have a Phillips, Sony, or Samsung here in the livingroom to compare it to ... but the Polaroid has a bright, clear picture. On the HD channels, there is no pixelization ... it is literally like watching a DVD of a television broadcast.


For sake of disclosure, I'm going to tell you my "concern" about the box ... because it may, in fact, be a problem with the television.


When you switch back and forth from "On Demand" to broadcast television ... it occasionally "loses" the signal. The screen goes dark. No amount of swapping tuners or switching channels helps. You have to actually turn the tv OFF ... then back on. The tv then re-initalizes the signal and you're good to go. This doesn't happen when you're just surfing ... or looking at the guide ... it's an issue when you go from "On Demand" content to live television.


I'm being honest ... I don't know if this is a problem with the box ... the television ... or possibly just the connection. I'm going to switch the connection to the 2nd HDMI input and see if that corrects the problem ... if not, I'm going to call Insight and see what they think.


I'll post more later ... but, assuming this isn't an inheritant hardware issue ... picture wise the Polaroid is an AMAZING deal. Beautiful picture ... clean design ... numerous inputs ...


I think I'll try connecting it to a CPU tonight and see how it looks ...

 

[chrisherbert]



Quote:
Originally Posted by ThirtyWhat /forum/post/0


When you switch back and forth from "On Demand" to broadcast television ... it occasionally "loses" the signal. The screen goes dark. No amount of swapping tuners or switching channels helps. You have to actually turn the tv OFF ... then back on. The tv then re-initalizes the signal and you're good to go. This doesn't happen when you're just surfing ... or looking at the guide ... it's an issue when you go from "On Demand" content to live television.

It sounds like an HDCP issue.


Have you tried connecting via component?