Home > Consumer Reviews > Vizio XVT 42'' SV420 120Hz 1080p LCD HDTV

I purchased the Vizio SV420XVT to replace my not-so-old Vizio VX42L, a TV that I had nothing but problems with. My first VX had severe backlight bleeding, and the replacement unit developed audio dropouts, so I decided that perhaps I should abandon that model altogether and upgrade to Vizio's 120Hz model.

Straight out the box, this TV makes a powerful impression. Its settings are nearly dead-on, but there are of course tweaks to be made. I am still undecided in my opinion of the Smooth Motion feature; it is far too unstable to use for movies, but decent enough for sports games. It essentially creates an extra 4 frames for every 1 frame of input, increasing framerates from 24 frames/sec to 120 frames/sec. During movies, this can lead to herky jerky movements in fast moving scenes, while at the same time create smooth as butter motion in slower scenes. The effect is very similar to watching a soap opera, and I definitely prefer watching my movies at 24 frames/sec.

There are many extra features built into the TV, but I find that the picture looks best and performs most reliably with them turned off, with the exception of Adaptive Luma. Even without these features enabled, the picture is jaw-droppingly good. Blacks are much more solid than earlier models, color accuracy is greater, and contrast is surprisingly good.

The addition of an optical digital audio output is a very nice feature to have on a "value minded" TV as well. This complements the gaming performance of this set nicely. Both PC and current generation consoles look amazing on this TV, and you will not be disappointed if gaming is your main reason for purchasing.

QAM tuning seems to be hit-or-miss, depending on your cabling. The tuner had some issues pulling in channels when the coax run was longer than 25 feet, but that is the weakest feature I have found so far in the entire unit.

The remote is a step backwards from the older units, in my opinion. Far too flimsy and lightweight, it offers many choices for functions like PIP, but has no PC/RGB input button as the older remotes did. That means switching to the PC input requires navigating a scrolling menu, something that is just downright ridiculous in this day and age of HTPCs. Kind of a moot point, however, since most people have a nice universal remote anyways.

In short, I think this TV is a great deal for the money. You have to remember that this is Vizio's first foray into the world of 120Hz LCD sets, and they are nipping at the heels of Samsung and Sony, who are already on their second generations.

Below I have provided the settings I have found to be the best for all around quality:

Picture Menu

Picture mode: Movie
Backlight: 33
Brightness: 49
Contrast: 50
Color: 40
Tint: 0
Sharpness: 4

Advanced Video Menu

Noise Reduction: Off
Color Enhancement: Off
Advanced Adaptive Luma: On
Enhanced Contrast Ratio: Off
Color Temperature: Normal
- Red: 127
- Green: 129
- Blue: 128
Smooth Motion: Off
Real Cinema Mode: Off

I finally turned my tax refund in a month ago and received the biggest return I've ever gotten. In planning my "Harry-Carry" for the money, I decided a new HDTV was the way to go. After doing much research and starting a discussion here on Amazon for different opinions, I finally made my choice for the Vizio SV420XVT1A. It was the size I wanted, 1080p and 120Hz. I found a really good deal for it on Dell's Storefront website with a discount and free S&H; just had to pay tax (sorry Amazon, they had the best deal). I would never buy a TV online before I saw the picture of it in person, but luckily my local Sears has it on display, so I went and checked it out. They had other 120Hz TV's on display next to the Vizio which were the high-end brands like Samsung and Sony. Although their pictures were a bit better, the Vizio still had one that could compete for the price. I ordered it and received a little over a week later via freight service called CEVA. (Anyone ever hear of them?).

It was packaged pretty well in the box, just like you'd expect it to be. The easiest way to remove the TV from the box was to cut out one of the thin sides of the box and pull it out sideways. This TV replaced an 8 year old Konka tube TV (27") and was surprisingly lighter (but not by much...approx. = 56lbs.). Anyway, after setting it up in the same spot as the old TV, I connected cable, a Sony upconverting DVD player via HDMI 1, and my computer (desktop) via HDMI 2. As soon as I turned it on, the setup process came up to scan for cable channels and some other basic picture setup. (I customized all the settings for picture which I will list below) The menu itself isn't very...graphic. For some items of the menu you have to click once or twice to access further settings, but is no big deal. Actually it's kind of good this way since you can navigate the menu, change picture settings and the menu doesn't take up much screen space so you can see what the changes look like without closing out of it.

I found it a bit surprising that I WAS able to get 5 HD channels (the major networks) without a digital box. (We have a digital/HD package with our cable co., but I didn't think you could get any of the HD's without a box!) When watching channels in regular SD quality, some look better than others. It depends on what channel and what they are showing. Older TV shows and movies do not look that good (fuzzy, jittery) but are still watchable. The newer the program, the better it can look. I've watched reruns of MASH on the Hallmark channel that look nowhere near as good as they did on the old TV, but watching newer shows or movies on channels such as FX, Comedy Central & Sci-Fi look much better. It's understandable of course that SD programming will not look as good on a HDTV as a SDTV, but you're investing in the future. If you're fortunate enough to be able to receive (and afford) all HD programming, then you're already living in it! But eventually, everything will switch over to HD, and SD will go the way of 4:3 TV's! Anyway, the few HD channels I receive look GREAT. Not as good as a blu-ray, but better than an upconverted DVD. (Those 2 things I will talk about below) The picture is quite clear and colorful. I just finished watching Heroes on NBC-HD and the motion in the picture is great, improved by the 120Hz refresh rate. Speaking of the 120Hz, again, it only looks good for certain SD content. Other programming will stutter and jutter (just at some moments) with it on. This is a MINOR annoyance, so I just keep it on, disregarding the picture when it occurs. (It's too much trouble to keep turning it on and off when switching between cable and everything else, so I just leave it on all the time)

Now to the upconverted DVD viewing. So far, I have watched a few TV shows and movies and they too look quite good. Some of these TV shows are copied and shrunk to a DVD 5 disc, so the quality is not as good as the source, but it still looks better than any SD show. The first true (not copied or shrunk) DVD movie I watched was Event Horizon and the picture as well as the sound was like I'd never seen before! The picture showed details I'd never seen when watching the movie before and the sounds (for TV speakers) was pretty great too. (The sound isn't comparable to a surround sound system or anything, but it's better than my old TV!) This is also when you really start to see the 120Hz coming into play. The motion was much smoother and fluid, for example; when the movie begins and you see all the objects floating around on the ship in the zero-g environment.

Next, blu-ray. I initially tried to watch a blu-ray from my computer connection, but found this to be too problematic. First off, the display was only cloned and the monitor I use is 4:3, so the picture on the TV wasn't the best. (The black bars on the top and bottom were WAY TOO THICK!) Also, the picture did the old stutter and jutter, just like it did for some of the old movies I previewed on SD cable. On the plus side, the actual picture was pretty good though. Next I tried using my laptop, connecting it to one of the HDMI connections that reside on the right side of the TV. Once connected, the display switches from the laptop screen to the secondary display (TV). The picture was allowed to be adjusted to the full 1920x1080 which looked better than my desktop did. I popped in the Matrix and started watching. The picture was breathtaking! It had been awhile since I watched the Matrix and I saw and heard things that I never had before with stunning fluid motion. Blu-ray is definitely the way to go! The only bad thing was, I STILL got the shutter and jutter here and there throughout the film! I had to know if this would occur with a standalone BR player, so I borrowed my dad's and hooked it up. I watched some of the most action-intense scenes from the Matrix and no, the stutter and jutter was gone! Great picture, motion, sound, EVERYTHING! A standalone player is DEFINITELY the way to go. I'll have to get one (maybe as a graduation present) sometime. The current one I'm eyeing is the LG BD370. Besides getting rave reviews, it can also play many different codecs including .MKV, which I already have a few HD movies in! Just plug in a USB drive, and start watching! (From what I've read anyway, awesome!)

This TV is one of the best buys I've made that I am sure I won't regret! This TV isn't top of the line, best thing you can get out there, but if you're on a budget (like me), then this is probably the best deal you're going to get! Upconverted DVD's and especially Blu-rays are the best!

After watching many different forms of programming in both SD and HD, such as cartoons, TV shows and movies (both new and old), all on cable, DVD and BR; the following are the settings (that I adjusted at least half a dozen times) I found to be best all around for viewing any format:

Picture:
* Backlight = 40
* Brightness = 49
* Contrast = 53
* Color = 50
* Tint = 0
* Sharpness = 3
* Advanced Video
o Noise Reduction = Off
o Color Enhancement = Off
o Advanced Adaptive Luma = Low
o Enhanced Contrast Ratio = Off
o Color Temp. = Custom
Red = 125
Green = 128
Blue = 128
o Smooth Motion
Smooth Motion Effect = Middle
Real Cinema Mode = Smooth

Audio:
* Equalizer = Rock
* Balance = 0
* Digital Audio Out = PCM
* Analog Audio Out = Fixed
* Sound Effect = SRS TSXT
* DRC = ½

Setup:
* Wide = Panoramic (=Wide for HDMI inputs)

if you are looking for the biggest bang for your buck television and you want a 42" look no further this is simply the greatest HD I have ever owned I can go on and on about it Bluray movies look completely spectacular in 1080p full HD resolution the images are so crisp and look like they are popping off the screen its almost too real I have sony bravia surround sound home theater system hooked up to this set as well and I could not ask for more also I am a gamer and let me tell you PS3 in full 1080p high definition glory looks absolutely breathtaking on this TV!! Call of Duty World at War looks so real its unbelievable! anyway I believe Vizio is the next big contender to the likes of Sony, Samsung, and all these other high priced brands the quality is the same as them if not better, and you cannot beat the price! definatly would 100% recommend buying not only because its 1080p (full high definition resolution) but the refresh rate of 120Hz and the True Surround technology built in really put this set over the top!!!

I purchased this television set from Costco yesterday for $850 to replace my Samsung TX-P3075WH in my bedroom. I already have a Sony Bravia 42" KDL-42V4100 in the living room that I paid $1250 for last summer.

I was originally looking to get the new Samsung 40" LED TV instead but I decided to purchase a lower end television for the bedroom. So I settled on this VIZIO since it's over half the price cheaper and have similar features.

I gotta say that freah out of the box I'm very impress by the features of this television. It has close to the same functionality as a higher end Samsung or Sony television. One of the main reason I purchased this TV was for the 120hz frame rate and Smooth Motion feature, which I've heard a lot of positive comments on. It took me about 5 minutes to get this thing hooked up to my PS3 and Comcast receiver. I watched my blu-ray version of Tranformer on it, and I gotta say it was awesome.

I still have to calibrate the set for my bedroom room but as it stands right now, the picture quality of this set is far superior than my Samsung (granted that it's my oldest set) and just a notch below the Sony. The Smooth Motion technology is great and does what it's supposed to do. The major complaint I have about the technology though is that it makes alot of movies look "fake". I watched Terminator 2 (blu-ray version) and the technology completely destroyed the visual experience. The terminators looked like little toys gliding across the screen. (Transformers didn't have this problem) And some things were so clear that I can immediately tell they were props. Luckily though, you have the option of turning Smooth Motion off.

So here are some pros and cons that I noticed:

PROS:
Great value: You're getting alot more than you paid for compared to the major brands.

120Hz Smooth Motion (it's also a con) : Makes things "glide" across the screen. Sports show looks "amazingly" realistic. It's like you're standing right next to the player at the stadium.

Crisp Clear picture and details.

Wireless Speaker Option: I haven't used this yet, but just the thought of connecting some wireless speakers for 5.1 Digital Dolby surround is aweome.

Decent amount of menu options.

Picture-In-Picture and menu guide: This may seem to be a minor feature. But some televisions that are around this price don't have PIP or a menu guide!

Cons:

Low contrast ratio. Typical contrast ratio of 1300:1 and dyanmic of 6500:1. Dynamic ratios are generally useless. The standard contract ratio is more important and this set's has quite a low contrast ratio. That said though, my actual experience with this was actually quite good. I was suprised that it the manual said it was only 1300:1.

No media slot. Not that important to me, but looking forward, it would be pretty sweet if there was a USB port or media slot for me to just plug in my camera's memory stick to view pictures.

120Hz Smooth Motion makes older movies looks very fake and cheezy. I loved Terminator 2 and the movie looked like crap with this feature turned on. I usually leave this feature ON, and set at low. Depending on the movie, I'll temporarily turn the feature off. I would be entirely against turning this feature off permanantly. (If you're not going to use it, save some money and go buy a different set that doesn't have this feature right?)

Runs hot: This television generates more heat than both my Samsung and Sony television. (Not a big deal to me though)

Power consumption: This television takes up 300 watts of power, compared to my Samsung set that uses 170 watts (almost half) and the Sony that uses 240 watts. (Power consumption is one of the main factors that separates the name brand manufacturers from the "lower-end" players. In my opition Sony, Samsung, and Toshiba products always destroy the competitors in this area)

Overall, this is a great TV. I would highly recommend it. If price is a factor in your decision, I can say you're not giving up much in terms of quality or features if you choose this set.

I have had this TV for two weeks and so far it is great. (I got it at Costco for $996.)

Once I got the HD cable from Charter, etc., and tinkered a bit with the settings, the Vizio looked as good at home as in the store. Really! Even straight out of the box, it looked excellent!

(And you & a friend can just pull it out of the box, connect up the cable/antenna + power supply cord and watch. The stand is already installed. Nice.)

I would give it 5 stars but for three small complaints.

1. As others have said, the remote is a little flimsy and hard to use in low light.

2. The input plugs in the back of the set face down and are difficult to use. This is no big deal since there is a pretty complete set on the right side of the set but it is a pain if you want everything set up clean. (My TV is in a cabinet, so this is a small problem. I use the side input jacks.)

3. There is no headphone out jack and I can't seem to find any USB input either.

The TV is slow to warm up at first. Be prepared to wait about 10 seconds. This is good because it saves juice and $$. If you are a "quick on" kind of person, this is NOT your TV.

Also, the sound from the just the TV is pretty good. The speakers face forward on the bottom of the TV. For someone with so-so hearing anyway, the TV by itself is fine for everything but action movies.

Lastly, before I got the HD cable hook up, I tried the TV with cheapo rabbit ears. It pulled in all my local digital channels very well. Much better than my old TV + converter box. I live in a low area and I was shocked that all the local digital stations came in fine. In fact, when I get sick of paying Charter megabucks for HD, I'll probably switch back to the old $10 Radio Sh** antenna!