TechRadar Verdict
Plain looks and basic features, plus a very good picture considering the price
Pros
- +
Picture
Price
Ease of use
Cons
- -
A slightly harsh audio performance
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There's an old saying that goes 'you only get what you pay for in this world' and the more sceptical of you will rightly be suspicious about this budget offering from Goodmans.
At just £350 it's comfortably affordable and is surely too good to be true. However, there is hope for those looking to save a bit of cash, as this 15in 4:3 LCD offering has a surprisingly good picture, though savings have been made on the features and sound.
That said, it does provide a PC input in addition to a TV aerial port, so it will work perfectly well as a monitor for your computer too, making it an enticing prospect for those short on space and living on a budget (like students).
Like the Bush screen, it's design isn't exactly the most daring and it's unlikely to fill the average buyer with desire. The speakers are mounted below the screen, adding to its square appearance, and the headphone socket is placed awkwardly at the back.
Its remote control is plain and rigidly angular but the layout is fine. NTSC playback is included so you can watch US DVDs and videotapes. The TV tuner is quick to set-up but it's PAL only so it may not work in some parts of Europe, such as France. There is also no ability to squeeze anamorphic 16:9 material correctly into 4:3.
Performance
On the downside, the large onscreen menu makes watching the TV while setting it up (or even using a picture to see that you're setting the colour or brightness appropriately) practically impossible thanks to the background being obscured. Equally annoying, the LCD backlight causes blooming at both the top and bottom of the screen, and the black level is not as deep as that offered by some of the best screens.
The maximum viewing angle is just about adequate at 140°. There's some flicker on static or moving objects with fine detail and a little graininess and video interference on the image but these are negligible. The strongest hues may bleed into each other - green and magenta or red and blue for example, but colour purity is very good, keeping things vivid but not overpowering.
Skin tone appears reasonably realistic but slightly too pink. The tonal range is impressive. Not too much detail is lost in shadowy areas and there's just a hint of banding effects visible on smooth contours. Resolution remains clear right up to the maximum available from standard TV or DVD signals.
The set's tiny stereo speakers don't create much separation and they have a tinny and harsh quality, particularly with the higher frequencies in music. The equaliser tweaks don't help much either. There is a vague 'Effect' setting, presumably a pseudo-surround mode, but it makes things more grating. Overall, this is a good value set with a decent calibre picture. Just don't rely on it too much for sound.
