Audio Video News

Westinghouse is a name everyone knows; from home heating to garage door openers, it's a name you know. What you might not know is that they're in the consumer electronics biz, and hoping to become as known for TVs as they are for coffee pots. See what they're cooking up now.

The new Westinghouse VK-40F580D is a 40-inch LCD display, 1080p flat-panel HDTV. Appealing to the "keep it simple, stupid" crowd, the VK-40F580D has a built-in DVD player, so no external equipment or wires required. Well, assuming you don't care about sound quality -- it has two 10-watt speakers built in, and a digital audio output so you could use your own home theater speakers.

Here's the rub. It's a DVD player, not Blu-ray, and even worse, the DVD player doesn't upscale. So, you're looking at 480p video. If you want better quality, you can easily use the two HDMI inputs that will automatically detect an external video signal.

Using the VK-40F580D is simple enough. The DVD slot is right on the front panel, and all the connectors are on the side of the display. Once it's installed, you won't need to access the rear panel.

With a price of $1,149, the Westinghouse is a simple solution for a simple setup.-Leslie Shapiro

Westinghouse VK-40F580D