Hannspree ST42DMSB

HANNspree 42-inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV ST42DMSB

No one should expect the $650 (as of June 7, 2011) Hannspree SV42LMUB--currently sold only in Hannspree's own stores--to be an exceptional HDTV. Its image-quality score of 77 puts it slightly below most other sets we've reviewed lately, it lacks networking and Internet capabilities, and it isn't particularly easy to set up and use. On the other hand, its audio capabilities are surprisingly good for a TV in this price range. When we started our image-quality tests with a clip from a baseball game, I thought the SV42LMUB was doing very well. Then the people and the camera started moving, and my estimation dropped. I wasn't the only one: Four of the five judges complained about shimmering and other motion artifacts. Static images also looked disappointing. In addition, four judges disliked the color or contrast in our Wheel of Fortune test. And several of us noted greenish tints and poor contrast in various tests. The SV42LMUB displayed a serious overscan problem, too, significantly cutting off the edges of the image on all four sides. On Hannspree's recommendation, we set the video mode to PC (even though our actual source was a PlayStation 3).