Specifications

FIRST LOOKS CONSUMER ELECTRONICS
PORTS INCLUDED
HDMI
4
Component
2
Composite
1
DVI
0
IEEE 1394
0
RF
1
S-Video
1
VGA
1
CableCARD
0
47-inch widescreen display
WESTINGHOUSE TX-47F430S
HDMI Ports Galore, and More
There’s no disputing that HDTVs look their best
when displaying high-definition video, and the
ideal way to transmit this pristine high-def signal
is over an HDMI cable. That’s the draw for Westing-
house Digital’s affordable new 47-inch LCD set.
This well-priced TV boasts a total of four HDMI
ports for your viewing pleasure.
The TX-47F430S measures 31.4 by 46.1 by 9.8
inches (HWD) with its base attached, and weighs
in at 71.6 pounds. On-display controls consist of a
series of thin buttons along the right side of the TV’s
frame. A lone Westinghouse logo adorns the bottom
bezel, as does an unobtrusive blue power-indicator
light. The TX-47F430S’s two integrated 10W speak-
ers are concealed within the TV’s frame along the
bottom edge and fire downward. The set delivers
ample volume for a large room, and an integrated
subwoofer (15W) helps balance the system’s other-
wise bright sound.
Watching standard-definition video using
DVD and satellite television sources revealed
that the TX-47F430S’s picture was a bit too color-
ful. Light skin tones were excessively green, and
grass lawns tended to look eerily electric, likely a
“feature” designed to grab the attention of outdoor
sports fans. Also distracting, at viewing angles of
20 degrees or more, was screen glare that over-
Westinghouse
TX-47F430S
$1,799.99 list
lllhm
PROS: Excellent 1080i
video processing. Four
HDMI ports. Attractive
price.
CONS: Poor contrast
ratio. No video noise
reduction control.
Oversaturated greens
in skin tones.
For more:
go.pcmag.com/
tx47f430s
whelmed the corners and edges of the picture,
resulting in decreased image contrast. Apart from
that, the set’s results on the HD HQV Benchmark
test DVD were among the best I’ve seen; I recorded
perfect performance within the HQV’s fi lm resolu-
tion loss tests. In fact, the TX-47F430S is one of only
two HDTVs I’ve reviewed that properly process 24p
video material encoded in 1080i format.
Sadly, contrast was another story. I configured
the TX-47F430S for dark-room, eye-friendly viewing
by lowering the backlight control, which produced
a respectable but still relatively bright 0.25 Cd/m
2
black level with a nearly identical contrast ratio of
463:1. Power consumption measurements put the
monthly operating cost of the TX-47F430S at a rela-
tively pricey $10.65 with the backlight set to maxi-
mum. I based my calculations on 8 hours of daily
operation with a kilowatt-hour cost of $0.13. This
was more than $3 higher than any similarly sized
LCD I’ve measured to date.
Despite the set’s competitive price, videophiles
may be put off by the TV’s oversaturated green,
relatively poor black levels, low gamma response,
and lack of video noise reduction controls. I did fi nd
the TX-47F430S’s picture quality more appealing,
however, once its color was calibrated to realistic
levels. —Robert Heron
1080p resolution
NOVEMBER 6, 2007 PC MAGAZINE 41