Hitachi UT37X902 LCD TV

Hitachi was one of the brands who introduced super slim monitors at CES last January. Most of their flat-panel LCDs are about 1.5 inches thick, making it one of the thinnest sets out in the market. Sony’s OLED-based XEL-1, of course, is still the thinnest measuring only 0.11 inches thick. Very thin indeed, but it also requires you to pay around $2,500 for it. The Hitachi UT37X902 on the other hand is thin, but at a more manageable price.

The good point of the Hitachi UT37X902 is its solid picture quality, 1080p, 120Hz with dejudder technology. Not to shabby for a set at this price range. Of course, there are negatives including only two inputs – one HDMI and one PC.

Let’s go straight to the Hitachi UT37X902’s design. This set is probably one of the sleekest LCD out today. The frame on all four sides curves back to the edge, there’s a chrome-colored accent strip below a speaker slit below the screen, and in a subtle touch that’s only evident from up close, the frame is actually composed of smoky translucent material that will let the wall behind the monitor show through along the edges.

As mentioned, the Hitachi UT37X902 is one of the slimmest sets out today. Without its stand, the UT37X902 dimensions are 36.9 by 23.9 by, yes, 1.6 inches.

One of the drawbacks for the UT37X902 is its connection options. Hitachi apparently couldn’t squeeze in all the technology on this set – like say an HDTV tuner and a full complement of inputs. Connectivity on the Hitachi panel itself consists of just one HDMI input along with an analog, VGA-style PC input. You can get a special adapter to turn that VGA input into a composite input, if you want, but no matter how you slice it, most people will want to spring for an HDMI switcher to add a few more HDMI inputs.

Compared with its connectivity options, the UT37X902’s features are the exact opposite. Hitachi packed in features such as a native resolution of 1,920×1,080, or 1080p, and a 120Hz refresh rate complete with dejudder processing. The UT37X902 perhaps can be considered in itself as just a monitor – it lacks either an old NTSC tuner or a new digital ATSC tuner for over-the-air broadcasts.

Quite a few picture controls are available on the UT37X902, beginning with three picture modes that can each be adjusted. Unfortunately, since the monitor itself has only one HDMI input , it cannot associate different picture settings with different inputs.

Overall, the Hitachi UT37X902 performs relatively well. Its black levels are deep enough compared with other 1080p 37-inch LCDs. On the downside it became quite blue in dark areas, and there are some issues with its dejudder and 120Hz processing. The Hitachi’s numerous picture controls allows for users to improve the already fairly accurate Cinema preset to a fine degree.

Sources:
http://www.hemagazine.com
http://www.hdtvlounge.net
http://www.testfreaks.com
http://www.hometheaterforum.com

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