Up until recently, the selection of 1,920 x 1080-pixel resolution LCD TVs had been largely dominated by Sharp with two of its five-figure G series Aquos. This monopoly is now challenged by the Toshiba 47WL66E Regza . Not only does it offer better value in inch-per-dollar, the set also comes standard with up-to-date HDMI connectivity in comparison with the former video-only DVI equivalent.

Design
The huge 47-inch screen sits atop a thin black base strip with the Toshiba logo sitting center. The usual functions, such as the power button and volume controls, are located at the top of the screen, so note that these may be difficult to reach if you plan to wall-mount the display. Fortunately, the rather largish remote control sits quite comfortably in the hand.

The screen did not look out of place among the décor in our test room. Nor did it dominate the room like some other large displays. Connections are located at the rear behind a removable panel.

The square grey stand, which is removable for wall mounting, offered excellent support and even allowed the TV to be angled in different directions to the base. The speakers are discreetly packed at the base of the screen and are hardly visible. Total thickness is just under 110mm and overall weight, including the stand, is 45.6 kg, which is excellent for a display this size.

A strange design feature is the placement of a second power button blended into the side frame, which can be difficult to see as it's painted the same grey color as the rest of the frame.

Features
For years, television companies have been claiming their products as HD-ready or HD-capable. With a screen resolution of 1,920 x 1,080, this is one of the few LCD TVs on the market to support the full standard. Panel response speed is 8ms, which is good, but slower than many competitor products to be released in the next one to two months.

The display features Meta Brain Pro technology and 3D color management functionality which allows you to adjust color brightness and saturation. Also, the Toshiba 47WL66E supports a large 178-degree viewing angle.

Sporting SRS WOW surround sound provides theater-style sound effects, even with the standard built-in speakers. Total audio output is 10W x 2. The Toshiba 47WL66 has a host of audio connections, but disappointingly the screen is limited by having only a single HDMI port; strange, because most competitors have a least two.

Sadly, the screen is lacking a built-in HD tuner. This same panel sold in overseas markets has this feature as standard. It's a shame Toshiba has elected to leave the tuner out for the Singapore market. Other features include Picture-In-Picture and Teletext.

Performance
Overall, picture quality was reasonable at best. When tested viewing standard-definition TV, the huge 1,920 x 1,080 resolution made images slightly pixilated. Even when we applied the noise reduction and sharpness features, image quality was lacking. High-definition TV was better, though images were still off because of the large screen size.

Setting the colors, contrast, brightness and sharpness using the 3D color management feature did not help. Dark images, especially when displaying the color black, appeared washed-out. This is one area where plasma screens have the lead over the LCD range.

Watching a DVD was a love-hate affair. We found that viewing could be improved slightly by increasing brightness levels, but once again this had adverse effects on displaying dark images.

The viewing angle was excellent, with almost a full 180-degree spectrum. There weren't any complaints from any seat in the house, but this was expected from such a large screen.

Sound quality was a bit disappointing, that is until you turn on the SRS WOW audio enhancement feature. This worked remarkably well, providing very real surround sound effects. There was limited distortion even at loud volumes, and overall, we were impressed by the standard speakers. However, we doubt most people buying this television would rely on the built-in speakers.