Zenith C27V28 27" Multimedia HDTV TV

Rating:
Summary: The best HDTV for the best price.
Review: I have bought the Zenith C27V28 HDTV for a little bit over a month & m happy about it (for the price, the graphic qlty, the feature, ease of use). I want to give it a 4.5 star but since I couldn't then I give it a 5 stars.

I bought the Sony KV27FV300 a few weeks before. If I have to compare the 2 products, I would said: (a) the sound on the Sony is better (100%) than the Zenith (70%); (b) the picture qlty on the Zenith is 100% and Sony (70%); (c) Feature with the user in mind: Sony (60%), Zenith (100%).

The Pro:
Analysis of point (c):

First Best feature : It's a HDTV for the price of a Sony regular TV!!!!

Second Best feature: The C27F28 can control the VCR to record the show I want it to record w/ a single button. I show a show I like, I click a button, and the TV turn on the VCR to record the show. Or even better, I can view the TV Guide and decide there is a show I want to record, I click a button ... and voila the TV is taking care of it!!!!

Third Best feature: I can plug a Computer on it and use it as a monitor with either 640*480, 800*600 or 1080i resolution, while the latest is not implement yet on the Video Graphic card of most computer ... for now!

Other best feature: Zenith's list surf channel is unlimited: I can program as many favorite channels as I wish to surf. (A surf list is a list of my favorite channel I want to see quickly without typing in the number of the channel myself. Example: my favorite channels are: 3, 5, 21, 32, etc.... So when I m in surf mode, by clicking 1 button I jump from channel 3 to 5 to 21 ... etc.).

The Flashback button is good both for PIP & the main screen, i.e. if I want to go the channel I watched before the one right now, I can do for both the PIP & the main screen. Wow!!!

The color setting on the PIP is difference than the main screen. I have the cable TV guide so that I can always get the info on the program I m watching.

The time on the TV can be self ajusted by the TV Cable cie, so I don't have to worry about Summer Saving time or not.

The Con:
(i) When changing channel, it takes several second for the screen to turn on.
(ii) The PIP screen does not accept HDTV, i.e., if I want to watch a HDTV show while looking at a show taped on a VCR, I cannot do that.
(iii) The sound, analysis of point (a) vs (b): According to me, the picture is more important than the sound, since I can always plug the TV on a better sound system. Like if u listen to a DVD, use the sound system from your DVD player.
(iv) The closed caption does not display well French accent (letter 'è' cannot be displayed)!!!!
(v) Possibly the Caller ID (yes, I can plug a tel line in and see who is calling me on the TV screen!!!) is not made for other country than the US.

My Conclusion: If Zenith can fixed all the con, I would declare this will be the perfect TV for me. It well worth the money even w/ the cons.