LCD TV Reviews

Real-World Performance
One of my favorite scenes to test 120Hz frame interpolation is the beginning of Star Wars VI on DVD as Darth Vader's shuttle approaches the Death Star. On some 120Hz LCD TVs, the closely spaced vertical stripes on the side of the landing bay pulse with artifacts, as does the first view of the Death Star from the shuttle cockpit. I saw very little of this on the JVC. Also, the shadow detail in the shuttle cockpit and in Jabba the Hutt's dimly lit lair was quite good, especially with Dynamic Gamma enabled.

On the downside, the black of space was not very deep, and the scrolling back story exhibited a lot of shimmering as it faded into the distance. Colors were okay, except for the greens on the forest moon of Endor, which looked pretty unnatural. Overall detail looked a bit soft.

Kung Fu Hustle is a very strange movie about dancing gangsters in 1940s Shanghai, but it looks great on Blu-ray. On the JVC, detail in the intricate parquet dance floor and tenements in Pig Sty Alley was nice and sharp, and even motion detail was quite good. Colors were generally fine, including the neon signs and Asian skin tones, but green plants looked a bit overblown.

To see some serious green, check out the "Seasonal Forests" episode of Planet Earth on Blu-ray. As expected, the many shades of green were somewhat unnatural, even to the point of looking a bit neon. On the plus side, there was no false contouring as the sun peeks from behind the limb of the planet at the beginning, and detail was excellent, from pine needles to the hair on various animals to the pollen on baobab flowers.