Televisions

Televisions are like shoes. They get comfortable real quick. Buyers tend to agonise over which screen size best suits their room, debating endlessly the merits of 42in versus 46in panels, but the simple fact is that in 97.3* per cent of all cases (*actual figure may vary) they buy a telly they’ll conclude is too small within days. 

Despite Panasonic revealing a new-found enthusiasm for LED this year, most serious video enthusiasts will still be carrying a torch for the brand’s new plasma TVs, particularly the flagship VT50 series auditioned here.

Hailing from Finland (as its name suggests) the Finlux brand isn’t entirely new to the UK. It’s entered and left again on more than one previous occasion. But with its latest push, Finlux (now actually owned by Turkish outfit Vestel) is seemingly making its most concerted effort yet to establish a firm TV foothold on our shores.

You would be forgiven for being seduced by the 47LM670’s delightful floating ribbon stand and gorgeous slip of a bezel that virtually disappears when the screen is switched on. But at the same time you may be wondering if the 47LM670 is all fur coat and no knickers. After all, its picture processing is perfunctory and the screen uses Passive 3D technology. Sometimes, though, it pays to keep things simple, and whilst the 47LM670 is not an unqualified triumph it does succeed in delivering better than expected results.

As you’d expect – given that we’re called Home Cinema Choice – we just love really big flatscreens. We’d think nothing of knocking through a living room wall and obliterating our kids’ playroom to accommodate a monster display. Especially if that display didn’t cost an arm and a leg.

As soon as you clap eyes on the 55LM660T you’ll be impressed. By any stretch of the imagination, it’s one heck of a looker. Not least because its bezel is, well, hardly there. In fact, when the TV’s off, the way the black colour of what small amount of bezel there is blends with the blackness of the screen means the set appears to only have the slightest trace of silvery trim wrapped around its extreme outer edges. Spectacular.

Kogan is a brand you’ve probably never heard of. Until this 55in LED screen arrived at HCC, we certainly hadn’t. Hailing from Australia, Kogan promises bigscreen pics at bargain prices. This set can be yours for just £750, saving a few hundred quid on the mainstream competitors. However, I’m worried that it proves to be a false economy.