JVC LT-46J300

JVC LT-46J300

The $1100 price is right for a 46-inch HDTV, but disappointing image quality and poor design choices should make you think twice before buying the JVC LT-46J300. Though the JVC LT-46J300 carries a low price ($1100, as of 9/22/09) for its 46-inch size, its image quality disappoints. I found the unit's picture quality to range from mediocre to abysmal. The LT-46J300 exhibited serious problems with digital artifacts called "halos" around fast-moving objects. It also had problems with skin tones. Routinely in our tests, caucasians looked too red; the effect prompted jurists to comment on the lobster-red, sunburnt faces. Judges also complained about too much brightness, lack of detail, and over-saturated colors. The LT-46J300 performed poorly in the PC World Labs' suite of HDTV tests. It failed the two HD HQV tests entirely: It let straight lines become jagged under certain conditions, and it had difficultly distinguishing moving and stationary objects. This may account for some of the lack of detail we noticed. It did only slightly better on tests the Labs developed in-house to show how an HDTV handles horizontal and diagonal pans. On the other hand, the LT-46J300's sound is about as good as a television can get.