LG LH3000 (47LH3000) review

A more unexpected picture strength is the sharpness with which the screen reproduces HD material. Miniscule HD delights, like pore details, individual hairs, the weave of clothing, and celluloid grain, are all exuberantly portrayed, but without over-egging edges or causing too much dot crawl -- that is, as long as you never leave the edge-enhancement tool set higher than its 'low' level.

More good news concerns the TV's motion-handling capability. Less expensive LCD TVs tend to suffer from resolution loss and even overt smearing when showing motion. While it's not perfect, the 47LH3000's motion clarity is really quite striking for a large TV with no 100Hz processing.

The 47LH3000's black levels are far from the horror show we might have expected given the price, allowing the set to reproduce dark scenes with plenty of dynamism. The 47LH3000 even outperforms expectations concerning its sound quality, as its sheer enormity appears to help it produce more potent and clear audio from LG's 'Invisible Speaker' system than we've heard from smaller Invisible Speaker models.

There's really nothing overtly bad about the 47LH3000's pictures. The worst we can say is that it's only decent in a few areas where more expensive TVs might be excellent. For instance, while black levels are good for the money, there's more grey and blue clouding over dark scenes than you'd expect to see from more premium sets. Also, while motion clarity is good, there are still occasionally signs of judder that more sophisticated sets might dispose of. Finally, while standard-definition pictures look bright and natural, there are TVs around that do a better job of suppressing source noise.

Conclusion
There are undoubtedly TVs out there that are able to do some or many things slightly better than the LG 47LH3000. But most people who buy this set are likely to come away from their first viewing session with a smug grin on their faces, knowing they've snagged themselves a bargain.

Edited by Charles Kloet