Sharp Aquos LC-46D83M (46-inch LCD)

Print

Email

Bookmark

Share

Add to My Products

By Philip Wong, CNET Asia
Aug 1, 2008

It's sure taken TV manufacturers a while to warm up to Asian digital broadcasts. The latest to join the fray is Sharp with its D83-series Aquos. Unlike its Korean competitors, the Japanese company has it right from the very beginning, too, by going with dual antenna inputs. This means you can enjoy the best of both worlds without the hassle of hot-swapping TV aerials.

Design

The latest LC-46D83M is based primarily on its 2007 analog TV tuner equivalent right down to every nut and bolt. Though a dated design, its sleek 95mm-thick bezel is almost onpar with the latest entries, such as the Samsung Series 6, second only to the 79mm LG Scarlet and 74mm JVC Superslim. An ultra-thin 1-inch LCD frame and streamlined bottom speakers give it an overall picturesque feel, while its frontal black piano finish, chrome lining and smooth corners are added icing to an uncluttered facade. The glossy treatment is extended to its sturdy, albeit fixed, pedestal stand which can be exchanged for an optional wall bracket.

Having recently reviewed the 47LG50FD and its poor side A/V input placement, it's a relief to try out the Aquo's right-mounted counterpart. Not only were the ports a finger away from the corner, they're also adequately concealed and updated with an HD-ready HDMI terminal. Lined on top is an array of roundish buttons, clearly labeled just in case you momentarily lose sight of the remote. Just like its predecessor, our major grip is the horizontal trench on the rear which houses the majority of its sockets. This can be a bottleneck for some oversized cords which have to be bent to route and fit through its cable management clip.

A lot more controls under the flap, but some of them deserve better "exposure".
(click for larger image)

There's more to it than meets the eye for its strikingly familiar remote wane. Sharp has apparently thrown in full video playback control to supplement its Aquos Link one-remote multi-device function underneath a flap. To work around the hassle of a single input toggle key, there're now separate regular and digital TV shortcuts, as well as automatic detection and manual software filtering for external analog and digital sources, respectively. Putting aside these niceties, we're not particularly impressed by its spilt-second response lag and cumbersome under-the-flap layout for aspect ratio, picture modes picture-in-picture buttons, etc.
The Japanese company has further updated the TV software menu to reflect its new capabilities. This includes customization for the digital TV tuner, Aquos Link, and more importantly, backlighting adjustment for optimized black levels. The fundamentals are not forgotten as well, with contrast to color and noise reduction covered in the video submenu. That said, we did notice that there's no SpyderTV-friendly grayscale cut and gain common among higher-end models. If you care less about the technicalities, then perhaps you could stick to any of its six picture modes and sensor-based OPC (Optical Picture Control) dynamic backlight optimization.

Features »