Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)FINAL UPDATE 04/01/2010:
I have to return my Vizio due to the constant re-booting, happens a lot when I try to utilize the PIP/POP feature and just tonight when I tried to activate the CC when I was using the input for TV. VIZIO tech support has said that this is not normal and wanted to ship a replacement but I said no because:
1) Weird side panel which VIZIO now admits they will be correcting in a re-design of the exterior housing by late spring 2010 or early summer 2010
2) The very unlit remote with too few special feature buttons and poor spacing between the buttons
3) Tech support unable to say when or if the USB ports will ever be turned on!
4) Tech support also said the use of LED back lighting is the reason for the poor on-screen space utilization when the PIP/POP feature is on. Tech support said this will be resolved in the PRO series which they say will have more LED zones to allow for better on-screen space utilization when POP is activated.
I do not know what I will be getting but one room is about to have no TV soon...egad!!! I will soon have some pretty upset teenagers in my house.
Updated review 03/08/2010: Since the review below I would like to add some updates for those interested. One reviewer stated something about "stains/shadows" in the right corners but I could not find any on my unit nor the 4" shadow that from the reviewer's description would run diagonally across the screen. I am looking but nothing. I still rate the picture a 5 and the audio a solid 4 but the remote though is just too difficult to use in the dark or even in low lighting situations. Given VIZIO's design for the remote to replace your other remotes it is not useful as that due to lack of a glow button. The remote is still good but only for part of the day and again the remote still is lacking many dedicated "special" feature buttons.
My biggest concern though is the TV "locking up and re-booting" which it seems to do more frequently when I utilized the PIP/POP feature. I have a call in to VIZIO and several e-mails and they are currently researching the issue. I think for the price the TV is a great bargain and while I am no videophile/audiophile I think again for this price range the quality of the audio/video is excellent but they do need to fix certain issues. The re-booting, the missing glow and extra feature buttons on the remote, the side panel toggle switch functions, turning on all the USB ports, and the PIP/POP to better utilize the screen space and fix the audio shutting off from the main screen when you turn off the PIP/POP. The VIA apps rock and really make the TV a joy to use, I hope they add YouTube soon.
Like other reviewers, myself included: BE WARY OF THE REVIEWS ON THE VIZIO SITE.
The TV itself is great but not as slim as I expected it to be given how much slimmer my one year plus old VIZIO SV470XVT1A" LCD is. Let's start with what is good about the VIZIO 55". The remote is good and basically takes over all your other remotes and the on screen set-up of the unit is relatively straight forward as well.The wired Ethernet connection worked flawlessly but I can not speak to the wireless capabilities as I did not use that feature. The picture for me was much cleaner and brighter than my VIZIO 47" and to me needed no further adjustments. The VIA apps were easy to access, use and more are being added such as PANDORA...added 2 days after I got my TV. One of the main reasons I love VIZIO is the PIP and more specifically the Picture outside Picture (POP)capabilities of their TVs. I believe VIZIO is the only company that provides the POP to their TVs. PLEASE NOTE as of 03/01/2010: My earlier review said the volume level needed to be very high to be heard clearly but I now realize I am "deaf" lol and so to me the sound is now very good.The price for features and quality was very good to excellent and really can not be beat but...
This Vizio 55" was really put out before its time as many items are either not working or will be at a supposedly later time or the design layout was weird and needed to be corrected before being sent out. I think VIZIO skimped on the number of non-HDMI connections giving you just one each of Component and A/V inputs, if your like me you have several legacy non-HDMI components. I say skimped because VIZIO seems to be reducing inputs on its TVs compared to models from less than a year ago, the VF551XVT has 2 components and 2 AV inputs per the online manual. Yes the VF552XVT has Ethernet capability and VIA apps but I mean if they want to continue to be a standout from SAMSUNG and other high ends then they need to keep these extras as well.
What I think is the real design FLAW: the side panel controls in the manual on page 11 shows a logical layout of the controls but the actual TV itself does not look like that layout but rather: Menu and Channel Up are on the same toggle switch; The Channel Down and Volume Up are on the same toggle switch; and the Volume Down and Input are on the same toggle switch. When I called VIZIO (twice) both times they said the manual picture is generic and applies to many of their TVs and the picture is not an accurate reflection of this model but at the same time did acknowledge that the design of the side controls was non-intuitive.
The first time I used Netflix it seemed to lock up my TV and I was unable to turn it off via remote or the side panel off button. I finally unplugged it and called VIZIO who said that the TV can lock up and in the future hold the side power button down for 30 seconds or more, the issue never happened again. UPDATE 03/01/2010: Over the past few days since the NETFLIX LOCKUP the TV will on its own for no reason I can discern "reboot". I will update if it continues but it has happened now about 5 times. I think it may be because of updates to the apps but I am guessing. I have not called VIZIO yet on this batch of reboots but will if it continues. I am very happy with my VIA apps and the new addition of PANDORA but wish the other apps that already have icons were active, I am greedy lol.
I should also mention that none of the 3 side USB ports are activated as well but I saw that an earlier reviewer says they are but on my TV they are not. I called VIZIO and they said not at this time. This again is weird as the model before this has one USB port and that is active per the on screen manual. If you look at the on-screen manual for the VF551XVT it indicates in the manual the port is active and even has a corresponding button to use the port on the remote control. No such control is on the VF552XVT remote, in fact...
I think the VF552XVT has a good remote and while it does take over many of your other remotes flawlessly, the remote given its size does not have ANY dedicated buttons to call up many of the most used features of the TV. Features such as: changing the TV aspect ratio; changing the PIP size; changing the PIP input source and changing the audio from the Main screen to the PIP input; a mode button to switch between all the pre-set color settings; nor buttons to select the input source. My old VIZIO 47" remote had ALL THESE EXTRA FEATURE BUTTONS AND MORE, some were used a lot and others not so much but always better to HAVE THAN NOT HAVE. TRUST ME FROM PRIOR EXPERIENCE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE THE PIP INPUT SOURCE AND AUDIO AND SIZE IS FANTASTIC AS WELL AS BEING ABLE TO CHANGE THE TV ASPECT RATIO AND MODE. I believe VIZIO either spent too much on the QWERTY keypad or just went giddy adding the QWERTY keypad and forgot how having these special feature buttons on the remote make using the TV much easier. Easier in that use of...
The on screen menu is fantastic but calling it up blocks out about a 25% of the left side of the screen from top to bottom which is very disconcerting especially if you are trying to make adjustments to the picture. It would have been more prudent if the menu had to be so large to then have the balance of the screen show the movie/broadcast but in "squashed" form without having that portion of the picture covered by the menu. Further the POP feature shows the two images side by side but with black bars top and bottom which reduces the overall size of the POP images by about 40-60%...no kidding. I mean you have a big screen with all this unused space when you utilized the POP feature.
I love the VIZIO TV price point with features but clearly this TV NEEDS the USB ports activated and the side panel issues addressed and many more dedicated buttons on the remote to avoid having to always call up a very distracting on-screen menu. The remote while very good is LACKING A MUCH NEEDED GLOW BUTTON and more separation between the buttons. If you buy the TV you will see what I mean by button separation. Look at the on screen manual for the VF552XVT and look at the remote page (enlarge that page about 300%) and compare it to any remotes you have at home and look at those button separation distance, in the dark you will appreciate those button separation distances especially with no glow button. In addition I think the TV is too thick given these are newer models and should be to me much slimmer. My old VIZIO (47" LCD) is about 3 1/2" at its thickest and 2" at its slimmest while the VF552XVT at its slimmest is over 4" thick and at its thickest about 5".
At this time 03/01/2010 I am think of doing more research and maybe getting another LCD brand, SAMSUNG as I like their picture quality but really would like to stay with VIZIO if they can fix the remote issues and USB activation soon. I also hate to give up my POP feature which seems to be unique to VIZIO?I RATE THE OVERALL TV A 3 BUT PICTURE IS A 5 AND SOUND IS A 4. WOULD I CONTINUE TO BUY...Read more›
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VIZIO VF552XVT 55-Inch Class XVT Series TRULED 240Hz sps LED LCD VIZIO Internet Apps HDTVCombining TruLED backlighting technology (Direct Type LED) with a whole new world of online content, the 55-inch VIZIO VF552XVT provides extraordinary picture quality and keeps you entertained and up-to-date on all the latest news from your favorite Internet sites with the included VIZIO Internet Apps (VIA). You can connect this VIZIO HDTV to the Internet via the built-in Wireless-N Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n) or Ethernet port and stream movies and TV shows, listen to music and get the latest news, sports and weather. The universal Bluetooth remote includes a slide-out QWERTY keypad that makes it easy to type Internet searches as well as send a Tweet or update your Facebook status.
This HDTV features VIZIO's industry-leading TruLED backlighting with Smart Dimming technology for incredible brilliance, color and contrast. This cutting edge technology stops light leakage enabling you to achieve REAL 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio for rich, dark scenes delivering an experience that will blow you away. It also offers full 1080p high definition resolution, 240Hz motion smoothing, and SRS TruSurround HD for an excellent home theater experience.
Key Features
55-inch HDTV featuring 1920 x 1080 pixels and support for 1.06 billion colors
Full 1080P High Definition resolution gives you over 2 million pixels, making the clarity and detail of your picture razor sharp.
TruLED direct type, backlit LCD display is comprised of 640 LEDs divided into 80 control blocks and utilizes.
Smart Dimming intelligently controls these blocks--turning them on and completely off based on the content you're watching--which helps stop light leakage enabling you to achieve an amazing 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio for rich, dark scenes.
240Hz refresh rate delivers 240 scenes per second producing enhanced frame rate and delivering sharper clarity of fast action scenes for blur free images.
178-Degree horizontal viewing angle results in a crisp and clear picture that is easily visible from just about anywhere in the room
Two built-in 15-watt speakers provide room-filling sound.
SRS Audio Technologies:SRS TruVolume evens out dynamics to limit volume inconsistencies between programming. SRS TruSurround HD delivers immersive virtual high-definition surround sound out of the unit's two speakers.
Connect to the Internet via integrated Wireless-N Wi-Fi or via the included Ethernet port
VIZIO Internet Apps (VIA) let you easily connect to the Internet and stream movies and TV shows, listen to music and get the latest news, sports and weather. VIA comes with Amazon Video on Demand, Flickr, Netflix, Rhapsody, Twitter, VUDU and Yahoo TV Widgets pre-loaded on the TV, ready to launch onscreen at the touch of a single button on the remote. You can continually discover and download more apps from other content and service providers by browsing our gallery of apps that is dynamically updated right on your VIZIO HDTV. (Learn more)
Customized Bluetooth remote with slide out QWERTY keypad enables you to control your TV, even type onscreen, from any spot in the room--all without having to point the remote at the TV. This universal remote also uses infrared to control all of the A/V devices connected to their HDTV, such as DVD and Blu-ray players, VCRs, audio devices, cable and satellite set-top boxes, DVRs, and other components.
ECO HD exceeds the current Energy Star Guidelines by 50 percent below Energy Star 3.0, saving you money on your utility bills while limiting the impact on our planet.
Mercury free display: The display's backlight is environmentally-friendly due to the fact that LED backlights do not utilize mercury, an environmentally harmful substance.
Warranty: One year parts and labor; free on-site repair (available for models sized 30 inches and above); free lifetime technical support
Connections
HDMI (with HDCP): 5 (1 side)
Component: 1
Composite A/V: 1
S-Video: 1
RF: 1
PC input (15-pin, D-Sub): 1
Digital audio output: 1 optical
USB: 3 (on the side; for service and future multimedia functionality)
Dimensions
TV with stand: 51.5 x 35.91 x 13.47 inches (WxHxD); 86.3 pounds
TV without stand: 51.5 x 33.89 x 4.96 inches (WxHxD); 73.8 pounds
What size TV should you get?
What's in the Box VIZIO HDTV, Bluetooth remote control (with batteries), power cord, safety strap, cleaning cloth, user manual, quick start guide
Technical Specifications
Screen size: 55 inches
Tuner: ATSC/Clear QAM Tuner
Native Panel Resolution: 1920 x 1080 pixels
Computer Support: 1920 x 1080, 1360 x 768, 1024 x 768, 800 x 600, 640 x 480 via VGA/HDMI
Dynamic Contrast Ratio: 2,000,000:1 w/DCR
Brightness: 500 cd/m2 (typical)
Response Time: 5ms
Picture-in-Picture (PIP): Yes
Picture-outside-Picture (POP): Yes
Zero Bright Pixel Defect Guarantee: Yes
V-Chip: Yes
3D Comb Filter: Yes
3:2 or 2:2 Reverse Pull-down: Yes
ATSC with 8VSB and QAM demodulation: Yes
ATSC with MPEG-2 decoding: Yes
NTSC Video decoding via Video: Yes
Progressive Scan Video: Yes
Color Fine Tuning: Independent Red, Green and Blue
Panel Lamp Life (typical): 50,000 hours to half the original brightness
Voltage Range: 100~240 Vac at 50/60 Hz
Power Consumption: 163W average, less than 1W standby
Wall mount hole pattern: 600 x 200
Learn More
VIZIO Internet Apps This VIZIO HDTV includes the VIZIO Internet Apps feature (VIA), and it comes pre-loaded with Amazon Video on Demand, Flickr, Netflix, Rhapsody, Twitter, VUDU and Yahoo TV Widgets, ready to launch onscreen at the touch of a single button on the premium Bluetooth universal remote control. A high-speed Internet connection is required to access content and receive product updates, and this model enables you to connect to the Internet via integrated Wireless-N Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet.
When you press the VIA button on your remote, the Apps Dock appears along the bottom of your screen with a selection of different Apps that let you watch movies, TV shows, listen to music, or get weather and news information all on demand. In addition to the providers listed above, new partners for 2010 include:
blip.tv: Blip.tv is an online television network that hosts the best original shows on the Web; from scripted sitcoms and dramas to shows about fashion, technology, politics and more.
CBS: The CBS Widget offers easy access to CBS schedule information, program metadata, previews and clips, cast photos and bios, and more.
NBC: View NBC's show schedule, view full screen photo galleries and catch up on your favorite shows with up-to-date quick text recaps, cast bios, and more.
CNBC: The CNBC widget allows you to interact with CNBC's real-time stock quotes direct from the NYSE and NASDAQ, real-time watchlists to track favorite stocks, and other key analytics.
iMemories: Now all your old home movies, photos and slides can be watched directly on your VIZIO TV with iMemories. iMemories digitally converts and preserves all your favorite memories online, regardless of the original media format.
Roxio CinemaNow: The Roxio CinemaNow platform enables you to instantly access a broad range of high-quality digital entertainment from your favorite consumer electronic devices.
The Weather Channel: Get your weather forecast when you want it with the press of your remote. The Weather Channel Widget delivers current conditions, the 5-day forecast and more for your zip code and thousands more.
Which Size HDTV is Right for My Room?
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