Philips 5000 LED Series 32" - crap picture quality

Fanny Cradock

My parents got a 32" Philips LED and I'm helping them with the initial setup.

Frankly speaking, the picture quality on it is unacceptable - both in terms of viewing DVDs and cable (don't have a box for this so I guess this means they are still on analogue?). Whatever about the colour (perhaps it just needs some really fine tuning) the images produced are very fuzzy. For example, if you happen to be looking at a face then the definition is really poor, especially with warm colours. Another example of poor definition (I've played around with the settings) would be respects to text. If the display ratio is set above 4:3 something like the RTE News logo begins to look blurred and messy. If they stay on this ration or go below then it seems pointless having such a large TV. It's exactly the same with DVDs.

After them spending nearly €400 it is their decade old 21" TV that had a far superior display. Surely this is not normal?

eddiem74

Check for firmware updates to be safe in case there are some.

I got a Philips 32" (not LED I don't think), and am feeding it a return Sky feed via coax and was worried it would not stack up, but once you keep the viewing distance sufficient I was surprised how decent the picture was.

Also, google the model number (which I am sure you have) to see if issues exist.

M00lers

Fanny Cradock wrote: »

After them spending nearly €400 it is their decade old 21" TV that had a far superior display. Surely this is not normal?

In my experience this is normal, LED/LCD tech and standard definition sources don't play nicely together in my opinion.
A Panasonic 37 HD Ready Plasma would be a massive improvement over the Philips. My Mam has two and they are excellent with SD sources.

Fanny Cradock

Thanks for the replies. A larger TV is out of the question. They didn't really want the 32" to begin with, nor do they want to shell out more cash. Viewing distance isn't the root cause of the issue. The picture produced is poorly defined at all distances - even when I'm out the door!

I'm wondering if this actually has to do with the signal connection type? They are currently on an analogue package and perhaps a switch to digital (just the standard UPC package) would sort out the issue? Is that what you mean by standard definition sources, moolers2000? Still, that wouldn't explain why the DVD picture quality is so bad.

BTW, the model is a Philips 32PFL5406. I've had a quick google and I can't see any other people having picture quality issues.

M00lers

Fanny Cradock wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. A larger TV is out of the question. They didn't really want the 32" to begin with, nor do they want to shell out more cash. Viewing distance isn't the root cause of the issue. The picture produced is poorly defined at all distances - even when I'm out the door!

I'm wondering if this actually has to do with the signal connection type? They are currently on an analogue package and perhaps a switch to digital (just the standard UPC package) would sort out the issue? Is that what you mean by standard definition sources, moolers2000? Still, that wouldn't explain why the DVD picture quality is so bad.

BTW, the model is a Philips 32PFL5406. I've had a quick google and I can't see any other people having picture quality issues.

The analogue signal from UPC will not be doing you any favors, that's probably the worst type of signal you could use with the TV. An upgrade to digital would help no end.

I've just checked and there is a software update available since 24th Nov 2011, might be worth installing that.

Also, turn off any picture processing options in the menu, e.g. noise reduction, dynamic contrast, sharpness should be turn way down or off, and anything that sounds gimmicky usually is just that, a gimmick that adds unwanted artifacts to the picture.

The cinema preset is usually the best preset to use with most TVs so use cinema if you have that as an option.

Fanny Cradock

Thanks for that! I'll look into getting them upgraded. I'll also turn down all the visual "enhancements" I put on max.

Dcully

Im running a 32 PFL5405H\05 100hz LCD model on my PC and image quality is superb, watching movies and gaming is fantastic.
I have not watched any form of tv on it however.