Sony KDP-51WS655 51' HD-Ready CRT Projection Television

Features of Sony KDP-51WS655

• Auto 16:9 enhanced mode renders anamorphic DVD content in letterboxed widescreen and using all available display lines for the image

• 51-inch high-definition-ready rear-projection television with integrated NTSC and ATSC (HDTV) tuners; 47 x 53.1 x 25.6 inches (W x H x D)

• CableCARD slot for digital cable readiness; features direct-digital HDMI connection

• CineMotion 3:2 pulldown detection and reversal removes redundant video information to display a film-frame-accurate picture from movie sources

• HD Detailer wideband video amplifier ensures that the fine details contained in a high-resolution source make it all the way to the screen

Sony's 51-inch WS Series KDP-51WS655 takes rear-projection sound and image to new heights. The set uses Sony's HD Microfocus CRT and lens system, featuring smaller phosphor particles, thinner phosphor layers, and other improvements that give the screen a beam spot 28-percent smaller than Sony's standard CRTs. And that means sharper focus, higher contrast, and brighter images. The KDP-51WS655's huge screen features a wide, 16:9 aspect ratio that matches the dimension of most movies and HDTV broadcasts, and it's compatible with just about any video signal out there, from standard-definition 480i and enhanced-definition 480p to high-definition 720p and 1080i--there's no stand-alone set-top box required for HDTV reception. It's loaded with dual NTSC tuners, a high-definition ATSC (DTV) tuner, and a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) for a direct-digital hookup with advanced HD components. The set's authorized CableCARD ability means the set will also receive digital cable television systems services directly from the cable operator without requiring a bulky, external cable box. An onboard HD Detailer wideband video amplifier provides high detail from high-res images to give you the best possible image from high-bandwidth sources. Auto 16:9 enhanced mode with auto ID1 detection automatically renders anamorphic DVD content in letterboxed widescreen, using all available display lines for the image and wasting none on the black bars that frame the image when a program's widescreen aspect ratio differs slightly from the set's. Digital Reality Creation (DRC) circuitry ensures high picture resolution, while proprietary Direct Digital Circuitry increases a video signal's signal-to-noise ratio before it reaches the DRC circuit, ensuring rich, natural-looking images from any source. TwinView 2-tuner PIP (picture-in-picture) lets you view any 2 sources simultaneously--even 2 TV stations. Sony's MID-X (Multi Image Driver) maintains the integrity of a digital signal by minimizing image loss in the scaling process. Sony's CineMotion 3:2 pulldown detection and reversal is a handy feature for watching progressive-scan movie programs in their native 24-frame format. Digital video mastering introduces a common distortion when adjusting 24 frames-per-second movies to 30 fps video; 3:2 pulldown digitally corrects this distortion, removing the redundant information to display a film-frame-accurate picture. The set offers an HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface), which permits a direct digital connection with a compatible DTV set-top box. Other connections include 2 component-video inputs, 4 composite-video inputs, 3 S-video inputs (with 1 each composite-/S-video on the front panel for ready connection to a camcorder or gaming console), and 2 RF coaxial inputs for hookup with an older VCR, cable box, or antenna. An optical digital-audio output lets the set pass a Dolby Digital 5.1-channel surround-sound signal to a compatible audio/video receiver or other surround processor for powerful, enveloping sound through your multichannel speaker system. The set's onboard 2-way speakers are powered by a generous 20 watts per channel (x 2) for dynamic, full-bodied sound even if you're not using external speakers. HDMI is a lossless, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface to link the set with any audio/video source (such as a set-top box, DVD player, or AV receiver). HDMI supports standard-definition (SD), enhanced definition (ED), or high-definition (HD) video, plus multichannel digital audio--all using a single cable. It transmits all ATSC HDTV standards and supports up to 8-channel digital audio, with bandwidth to spare to accommodate future enhancements and requirements. What's in the Box TV, remote control, remote batteries (2 AA), a user's manual, and warranty information.

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Sony KDP-51WS655 Customer Review(s):

Summary: Great TV, but has a problem
Rating: 3 (out of 5)
Comment: After purchasing this TV and using it for a bit, when I pressed the SAP/MTS button, the TV started to flash the number 7 in the channel # area. On occassion it would turn to channel 7 by itself. When I tried to access the Menu, it would then start to open and close the Menu screen on it's own. I took the battery out of the remote to see if it was the remote causing the problem and it didn't help. I turned it off with the controls on the TV set and left it for an hour or so. When I came back it worked like normal. I've told my grandparent's *not* to touch the SAP button, so it's bummers that they can't listen to their stations in non-English, if they chose to keep this TV, which it seems like they have, due to the trouble of returning and buying another one.

Please note that this problem has occurred 3 times, and my recount above, was of the final time when I was physically present.

1st time this TV was purchased from Circuit City in Fremont, CA. My grandparents called Circuit City and they sent in a tech who couldn't fix it and exchanged their TV for them. The new TV they got due to the exchange exhibited the same problem. They finally returned it. I came home for vacation and took them to Fry's and they chose the same TV (I would've advised them against buying another KDP-51 if I had known of their previous problems with this model.) And #3 occurrance of this problem is what I recounted above. I don't know how my grandparents got the problem to show up in the first two incidences I was not present to witness.

Good ratings on everything otherwise. I liked the TV before the problem showed up.
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