Toshiba L2300U LED LCD TV: Cheap, but not a great value
TVs
Hi there, David Katzmaier from CNET.
This is Toshiba's 50L2300U.
This set is also available in a 39-inch size.
This review will apply to both.
This is one of Toshiba's least expensive TVs for 2013.
It doesn't have any Smart TV or any of those extra doodads, but it does have a 120Hz refresh rate, although it's a little bit problematic.
Let me get to that in a little bit.
But first, let's take a look at the main thing you might notice as well with this TV, its two-tone styling.
It's got silver on the bottom here along the bottom
of the panel itself as well as a matching silver stand and this little pedestal that seems a little flimsy, but it's plenty strong in person.
It doesn't allow the panel to swivel, however.
The rest of the TV is a standard glossy black, relatively thick border around the edge, and it's actually pretty thick when you look at it on the side that's got its direct LED, not an edge-lit model.
Speaking of the edges, they are pretty curved.
So, all told, one of the nicer looking budget TVs you're gonna find.
The one standout feature on a spec sheet is a 120Hz, but Toshiba's flavor doesn't really behave
like a 120Hz TV.
It really produces no picture quality benefit nor that blurring reduction or even film-based cadence that we prefer to see on 120Hz TVs.
It behaves more like a 60Hz television, so that's what we're gonna call it.
Toshiba 50L2300U with generally basic picture settings, but there is a color management system and a couple of tweaks you can do to gray scale as well as the ability to adjust different picture modes.
That's pretty nice.
Connectivity is ample with three HDMI, one component video, even a PC input.
There's also a USB port, but that only really
plays back photo and music, not video.
Now, despite its relatively low price, we don't consider the L2300 a great value that's because its picture quality was a little bit disappointing.
It produces pretty light black levels.
It also has that 120Hz processing issue we talked about earlier where it doesn't really behave like a 120Hz TV, more like a 60Hz model.
There's also a pretty glossy reflective coating on the screen here, so it's not gonna be as nice in a bright room as some of the other matte screens we've seen.
On the flip side, it does have a relatively accurate color and we did appreciate
the uniform screen which is a direct result of having those LEDs behind the screen, as opposed to along the edge.
All told, however, we can't find a better picture and more features in this price range.
That's a quick look at Toshiba's L2300U LED LCD TV.
I'm David Katzmaier from CNET.
