LG 32LG6000 review

LG 32LG6000 Review

Reviewed by: Ian Morris

Reviewed on: 16 June 2008

Want something with a different look to put in the corner of your lounge? You'll almost certainly want to consider the latest fad: a red TV. Done right, red can look great. But will it look good in five years time or will it be the modern equivalent of wood veneer?

LG's Scarlet range has been the centre of extensive media coverage and there's been a lengthy marketing campaign. The goal is to attract people who want a TV with some slightly unusual aesthetics. Does the LG 32LG6000 coerce the trendy people of the world into spending about £500 on technology instead of shoes?

Design
We're not fashionistas, so you'll have to make up your own mind about the Scarlet's styling. As you can imagine, it's being sold on its bold colouring: the rear of the TV is bright red, but we're sceptical about exactly how much time most people spend looking at the back of their TVs.

Pressing the silver ring inside the hole turns the TV on and off; the colour indicates the TV's current state of power

The red rear isn't the only design selling point: it also features a gigantic hole at the front. Here in the office, we've had a number of people remark about how unusual it is to see a cracking great hole in a TV, but no one has really expressed revulsion yet. The hole does also serve a purpose: if you touch the inner, silver ring, it turns the TV on or off. It also glows a different colour to tell you what mode it's currently in -- red for off, white for on.

One of the problems created by drilling a hole in the front of a TV is that you need a much thicker bezel to go around it. The bottom part of the TV is therefore chunky and has significantly more plastic that wouldn't be there on a normal TV. We aren't sure if having the circle of emptiness is really worth the size trade off.

The remote control is simple, light and easy to use

Aside from the stylistic decisions, LG has put every sort of socket you need on the TV. There are a generous four HDMIs -- that's quite unusual on a 32-inch TV. You also get two Scart sockets, component video in and the usual aerial jack and PC RGB input.

Features
Of course, looks aren't the only thing. This TV has a decent number of features. Firstly, the menu system is brilliantly styled and truly simple to use. While it's probably fair to say that most people stay out of their TV's configuration screens, the LG's simple but graphically rich menu design really makes the difference.

Audio is given specific attention on the LG6000, too, with two fairly nice features. The first is the rather aesthetic decision to hide the speakers at the bottom of the TV cabinet. The second is the inclusion of Clear Voice, a technology designed to boost dialogue.

The TV also features what LG calls AV mode, which is essentially a set of picture presets designed to tailor the picture to specific kinds of material including video games, movies and regular TV. The LG6000 also has a built-in light sensor designed to reduce the backlight in dark rooms, which helps to improve the black levels of the TV.