Home > Consumer Reviews > Philips 47PFL5603D/27 47-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

This TV has a lot of grainy reception. Don't fall in love with the price (Wal-Mart) I have a HP 37" LC3760N and I think the world of it. If you are looking for a starter LCD TV start there.

I've hooked a blu-ray DVD player and an upconverting DVD/VCR combo player to this telly and it's working out just great. It does have issues with action from the old VCR's - confusion in the upconversion - but overall, this is a nice product. I've never had cable (too expensive) and haven't watched broadcast television (yuk!) in many years, so I cannot comment on that at all. The Philips gives a pleasing picture and fantastic color.

As I type these words, I am watching them on this very screen, and I thoroughly regret purchasing this TV.

I got fooled by the specs where they said:

* Flicker Free 1080p - It doesn't really give an acceptable, stable 1080p picture. The picture wobbles and squiggles periodically, making you hold your breath in between these occurrences, hoping it's gone away.

* "typical" 5ms response time - No. If you calibrate it with software or console-games like Guitar Hero or Rock Band, the lag is in excess of 120ms. If you connect your PC, it gets worse. When is it 5ms? In the menus, perhaps?

So.. If good 1080p picture-quality, gaming or PC connectivity is what you're looking for, then this TV isn't for you.

Oh, and the "game-mode" on this TV gives you an INTERLACED picture that still lags far beyond 5ms. Hohum, 1080 PROGRESSIVE indeed. UselessPhilips 47PFL3603D 47-Inch Widescreen 1080p LCD HDTV.

I guess you got me this time, Philips. Got me good.

Don't put any stock in the specs. First, the TV's slideshow feature DOES NOT support .alb files, even though it clearly states so in every spec sheet I have ever read, and it says explicitly so in the manual. The email and telephone customer support is terrible - they have no idea what you are talking about when you call. The email support does not allow you to respond to answers they give you (sent from an unattended email address). Finally, if you want to use this TV to do business presentations or show slideshows from a USB camera, drive, or flash device, you CANNOT SORT THE IMAGES. The TV does not sort by name, number, date, or anything that makes logical sense.

I happen to have discovered how the sorting is done, and was able to fix the issue myself with a third-party app that runs on Windows (it's easier in Linux). However, I am not giving up the secret because Philips does not deserve this service from me. The infuriated me so badly, I will never buy another Philips product.

Otherwise, the TV has mediocre performance, poor menus, and a bad remote.

Don't listen to all of the other reviews that say good connectivity. An LCD without PC input (except HDMI)?! What?! If it had PC input I wouldn't care so much about the USB stuff, but I can't do a presentation on this without going out and buying an HDMI capable laptop. (Don't tell me about S-Video - the picture is AWFUL on this TV).

DO NOT BUY THIS TV!

Phillips own website says that this TV has four speakers but it only has two! I picked this TV because I thought it had four speakers and would have good sound without a surround system.