Page 6: More on Features
If you don’t have a home theater, the 10W side speakers do decently well – they certainly aren’t high-end, but you’re not paying for them to be! They are especially good for bedroom or den use, where space is a premium and a stereo just doesn’t fit. I also sometimes use them late at night in lieu of my home theater, as it is one less component to turn on, one less remote to manage, and the sound is much more localized than my dolby digital surround setup. Again, they’re especially useful if you want to mount the panel on the wall, with the speakers spread out to the sides.
We first saw an Olevia LT30HV back in June, and it had some weird power issues that Syntax wanted to look into so we shipped it right back – and it took a while to get another unit back in here. I’ve had zero problems with the new unit, and I have been crawling online forums and haven’t heard a peep from anyone reporting issues with the Olevia – or at least not on the web forums I frequent the most (many of which are heavy early-adopter audiences). So I’m assuming it was a one in a million glitch of some sort, which is unfortunate but it happens in the consumer electronics world, and good for Syntax to jump right on it.
One thing has changed between the original unit in June and the unit we received three months later: the remote control. In fact, the reason it took so long to get another unit in was Syntax was waiting for units with the new remotes. I didn’t have a good picture of the ‘original’ remote from back in June, but one or two online stores carrying the LT27HV had a picture of the remote, and it looks to be the same, original model – so I grabbed one of the pictures here for comparison. The ‘original’ remote was a small, lightweight, slim unit, which seemed to be relatively well laid out, and felt ‘natural’ in the hand. Why change the remote? It could have been for any number of reasons, none of which I want to even venture a guess at.
Well, the ‘new’ remote the LT30HV now comes packing is an oversized, blocky unit, and doesn’t fit the hand well at all – not to mention perfectly flat buttons instead of nice rounded ones. On the other hand, just from a ‘look’ standpoint, it looks like a ‘more expensive’ and modernized design than the original, and bigger buttons with more space certainly sounds good as a target. Just something in the execution didn’t ‘meet our needs’ as a ‘friendly’ remote control.
Also, for some unknown reason, we found it sometimes difficult to turn on (or off) the power with this remote – as if it has to be pointed precisely at the infra-red receiver on the set, and held the proper, exact length of time. Not a huge deal, just a noticeable one.
Yet another ‘loss’ to the modern design was ‘hiding’ certain buttons under a slide-down panel at the base of the remote. Yes, there’s a lot of remotes that have hidden buttons, but they usually have a flip-open panel (the slide-down is a bit cheap, since it also ‘hides’ the batteries), and typically no frequently needed items are ‘hidden’ away. Neither is the case here. Since I don’t want to do an in-depth review of the remote, I’ll leave this as one of my few issues with the Olevia LT30HV. And, yes, it’s a good thing if all I can gripe over is the remote!
The one feature I would have liked to have right on the remote is a ‘zoom’ button, to cycle between the various scale/stretch modes, as that’s the kind of thing you will switch with some frequency if you prefer un-stretched normal television, and normal-widescreen hi-definition broadcasts. It’s only a few button presses away, but it would have been nice to make it just one.
The only other area we found the Olevia lacking was in general menu navigation. It takes some getting used to, as there aren’t separate ‘menu’ and ’select’ buttons like most remotes – the big button in the middle of the directional arrows is the menu button, and (depending on the context) the ‘right’ arrow is used to enter a sub-menu or ‘choose’ the selected item. As I said, it takes some getting used to. I can’t say that other TVs are better, or worse, just that I hope Syntax finds ways to improve on this in future sets.
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Great review. What were the true measurements with & without the speakers? (Width). Since a lot of people have limited space. I heard that the 27″ was the same size. The only diffrence on the 30″ was the use of a wider opeing on the bezel. ( To show more LCD Panel). Any input would be helpful.
Easy Street said:Thanks
Great Review, Just upgrading satellite to HDTV (w/Tivo) almost paid $1k for 30″CRT in HD. I needed more information like your review. Looks like Olevia 30″ which will fit into our entertainment system and not break my back to move around is the way to go.
Thanks
BostonGuy said:Thanks for the thorough review! I paid $1k after rebates and couldn’t be happier. The remote is its only real weakness, but as I use this right now solely as a TV, my cable remote suffices.
David said:Any recommendations for a DVD player to take advantage of the DVI?
I’ll try to put together a quick roundup article of the couple of ‘hi-def upconverting’ DVD players that are reasonably priced (i.e. $150-250 or so) – though I found my progressive scan player looked pretty good all by itself.
John P. Hoffman said:I just ordered the Olevia 27″ model thru TigerDirect and they sent me confirmation that it has shipped a few days ago. Now I find that they have quit selling the 27″ altogether, You would’t know why would you?
David said:Interesting. Well, it’s no secret that there are newer, larger, more expensive models coming. We’ve all seen these huge discounts, but don’t know if they are clearing the channel or what. Tiger still has the 30″, but click through my links to Amazon, as they still have stock, and it’s much cheaper.
Benjamin said:I just got this for Christmas and while the picture quality is good with DVD and HDTV inputs, regular broadcast and CATV is just crappy. Also, the remote is the WORST I’ve ever used! The distance range is no more than 3 feet! Thank goodness for a Logitech Harmony remote.
Jay Brewer said:I have read and reread your review about 100 times. Thanks for all the insights and also helping my wife and I understand why pay more now when we can add to this LCD over time. Also - 30″ inches is plenty to start - and as prices come down this will be a killer display for our bedroom or play room.
Thanks again also for an amazing site.
Dumpsterlad said:The new 32″ and 37″ models (due in January 2005) seem to be redisgned. Press releases claim that the 32″ models will ship in full force this month with an MSRP of $1999. Any idea when these will be available for review?
Benjamin said:The IR board on my unit was replaced by an on-site tech, yey! Now, the remote works perfectly from long distances. So it seems like the replacement IR units have better design.
Jason said:I got my Olevia 30″ two days ago and very happy with it. The sharpness of the picture really impress me. I was very surprised at how good the quality is for the amount of money I spent for the unit. Thanks for the review, it was what made me decided to buy a Olevia and I am so glad I did.
Mike said:I am looking to buy this LCD TV, but am wanting to know if it is multi voltage (110-240v) and 50/60hz.
jim said:Reason? I am stationed overseas.
great review!! thanks i’m sold on it
hey ppl target.com as this unit for $1199.00
and free shiping, also check for a 10% off coupon
OliviaOlevia said:not sure where i saw it but check any of the coupons sites i’m sure u’l find it… happy hunting
Just got the 27′ for $999 plus another $100 from Compusa and $200 form Syntax! Waited and waited and bam! $699 and got 21 mos no intrest from them to celebrate their 21st birthday! Thru thurs march 10th the sale. The 23′ sony looked a bit better, more black, but I can get THREE of these for the same price! This is a very nice unit, but at that price any shortcomings are well forgiven!
Morgan said:That had to be the most in depth review ive ever read, took me forever to read it, cant imagine how long it took to write it, but i love the details. I ordered one today, then i got bored so i tried to find some reviews and stumbled across yours, its better than every other consumer review put togather that i have found so far. The new models look amazing, the 37inch is $1700 and ive seenthe 32inch for $1300. I want more people to know about these sweet lcd’s so syntax can keep making them, but Cnet gave them a horrible review, i contacted them and told them to review the new 37inch, but they wont respond.
one happy guy said:got the 27 inch, all i can say is WOW!!!! great unit for the price $699.00. picture is clear even with digital cable feed from cablevision, can’t wait to see what it looks like in HD i will get the HD box next week i’ll keep you posted. didn’t try to hook this unit to a computer, i’m sure it will be fine. and no dead pixels yeeeeee lol. overall i recomend this unit!!!!
judy said:got the Olevia LT26HVE and am verrrry satisfied. Great picture….AND….i rec`d a $125.00 rebate!
Bob LaFont said:Total price was $674.00
This is the most detailed and comprehensive review that I have ever read. I have owned the 30” for 6 months now and agree totally with this review. This TV is awesome. If Syntax keeps this quality / price ratio up they will sweep Sony under the rug.
Calvin J. Vo said:Hey guys i’ve just read today’s add Fry’s has the 30′ Olevia for $ 777.00 that is incredible cheap!!!
Trevor said:I have the 27″ tv and its great however when I try to play DVD’s from my LG3510A at 1080i I get the error message “The disc is not available for viewing using he DVI monitor withour HDCP capability” strange thing is that the HDTV this using receives gets transimitted to the TV just fine using 1080i. Any ideas to what my problem is?
trevor said:Any idea where to find the ntsc tuner upgrade, did it ever materialize?
Wanda said:Just got a 32″ installed last night. Love the picture. Still don’t know how to work the remote. I’ll have time to play with it today. I know fellows, it is probally just a women thing - that I can’t work the remote. Just don’t know how to get local channels.
Michael said:I got the 32 under 1k. My eyeballs have been changed forever!
mdeva said:DON’T take a chance with Olevia. My set died in less than two years - and I’m not the only one (http://www.fixya.com/support/t240455-olevia_lt23hvx_not_power#SameProblemContinued).
Power problems.
Very disappointing.
Friday said:Olevia LT 30 HV goes black after one minute, sound stays on. Syntax Olevia seems to have a problem they won’t acknowledge. Local TV place can’t find a problem. Olevia support says ship to Seattle.
Gordon said:No more Olevia for me!
I have had my h37 Olevia for about a year now. So far the HDMI port and the speekers have gone out,right after the warenty has expired. The tv is a peace of junk.
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