Vizio VU37L The Only 37" Vizio to buy

Vizio VU37L 37” LCD HDTV
Well, the old 19” TV in my bedroom was looking pretty bad (and very small compared to my 42” Vizio LCD in the TV room – check out my other reviews for that one) and after a bit of research, not to mention a failed attempt to purchase a 37” Vizio locally (again, read my other reviews for that debacle)
I didn’t want or need quite as large a HDTV in the bedroom as in my TV/media room as the bed is only about four feet from the TV. I also didn’t have enough room on that wall to build an entertainment center that would both fit in the space & hold all the electronic equipment I have.
A 32” would be too small & a 42” was too big, like Goldilocks & her three bears, so I settled on a 37” which was just right.
Inputs:
3 HDMI (one with separate audio if needed)
2 component (RGB RCA’s plus red & white RCA’s for audio, one input shares audio inputs with the middle-side mounted composite input)
2 composite (single yellow video RCA with red & white RCA jacks for audio)
1 Coax for cable or antenna
1 VGA plus 3.5mm stereo audio jack for PC connection.

Outputs:
Red & White stereo RCA’s for analog audio
SPDIF digital audio

The majority of these inputs & outputs are located on the back, lower portion of the TV, with the secondary inputs located in the middle upper right side of the back.
All of the inputs & outputs are color coded and labeled for easy identification.
Note: Most of the other LCD’s in this size & price range only have 1 or 2 HDMI inputs while this VU37L includes a 3rd HDMI input with the right side inputs.
The shared audio on the middle/side connections is a bit strange; normally even the lowest end TV will have separate audio inputs for composite & component. No major problem though, I just added some RCA Y adapters to the audio inputs sending one set to my composite switch & the other set to my component switch. Problem solved.
I had to do some research & trial/error in finding this VU37L model that has analog audio outputs. The first 37” Vizio (VW37L) I bought had less inputs and ABSOLUTELY NO analog audio outputs. This was a great frustration in that I couldn’t use the HDTV with a surround sound system, nor with my headphone amp.
If you plan on using a surround sound/home theatre speaker setup, you definitely need some basic analog audio outputs to make life simple.
The TV has built in 20 watt speakers that sound pretty good by themselves, but if you dig around in the setup menus (you have to change each inputs settings to your specs), you’ll find that there are options for simulated surround (that really sounds like surround) and also an equalizer with presets or manual controls.
Unlike the VW37L I purchased locally that made a buzzing / bacon in the frying pan noise on ANY HD content, the VU37L’s sound on all inputs & all channels are crisp & clean with no noise.
One thing I don’t care for is that you must set up each input’s settings: color, sound, etc. separately. There are no global settings to carry over from one to another. If you set up the TV (cable or antenna), you have to set up the Component, Composite, HDMI & PC settings on their own, otherwise the will look vastly different.
PC input:
I have an older PC connected so I can check email, surf the web & watch online videos, but I encountered an issue. My old PC has onboard video with limited memory & no way to change resolution any higher than 1024x768. I had to upgrade the old PC with a new video card & after some tweaking; I’m enjoying full 1366x768 widescreen goodness. I can’t wait to load up some games like Unreal Tournament, Doom & Quake to really put the TV (and the PC) to the test. Unfortunately, the old PC doesn’t have quite enough processing power to handle High Definition video.
Image quality:
I have to say that this TV looks every bit as good as it’s 42” big brother. Standard definition TV is quite watchable, while 720p & 1080i high definition signals look amazing. Deep, rich colors, very little pixilation, crisp clean & highly detailed images.
While I don’t own a blu-ray player, I do have a 1080i up-converting DVD player that makes my old DVD’s look better than ever.
Remote:
This TV (as well as the VW37L I purchased & returned for several reasons) use the same remote control that I simply didn’t care for at all. The only way to change to the PC input is to cycle through the inputs by entering the input menu, scrolling down & waiting for the input to be automatically selected. This was simply bad product design on the remote. Luckily, the remote for my 42” Vizio works on this 37” Vizio. A little search on that big online auction site resulted in me purchasing an identical remote (to the one that came with my 42” Vizio) for use with my new 37” Vizio.
After replacing the original remote with my “online auction site” Vizio remote, I can easily switch between inputs and access all the other functions with less menu searching.
The original Vizio remote was pretty simple, with large volume & channel buttons & a few of the inputs had their own buttons, except for the PC input (as described earlier).
On the right hand side of the TV are manual controls for power, channel, volume, etc.
This HDTV weighs in at about 40 pounds & is easily moved by just one person.
I have noticed that when I first turn on the TV, it takes 30 to 45 seconds before any image or audio is played.
For initial setup, you need to select cable or antenna & let the TV’s analog & digital tuners search for all the available channels. If you have cable only or antenna only, this normally takes about 5 to 10 minutes. You’ll need to scan antenna separately from antenna through the menu.
If you have cable AND an antenna, you’ll need to switch cables (antenna/cable tv) or add an A-B switch to make things a little easier. You cannot have cable and antenna connected at the same time, nor can you automatically switch between the two. You’ll also need to scan them individually.
To switch from cable to antenna (there’s only one coax input on the TV), I have a coax cable from the TV going to an A-B switch. The A input goes to cable TV, while the B input goes to my antenna. When I want to watch cable I select cable from the menu & press the A button on the switch. When I want to switch to antenna, I have to change my A-B switch to antenna & go into the menu to select antenna as the input.
I don’t see why TV manufacturers can’t just add an internal A-B switch that’s controlled in the menu setup.
With up to 1080i resolution & 1366 x 768 for PC, this technology should last for many years to come…that is until 3D HDTV’s hit the streets.
Another thing to remember is that not all programs are broadcast in 16x9 widescreen format. You can select widescreen or normal (even panoramic if you have the remote I do) views to adjust the picture size. If you watch a normal 4x3 program stretched to fit 16x9, you’ll notice that everything is wider but shorter than in the normal 4x3 mode. In normal mode, you’ll see black bars on each side of the screen, but the picture will not be stretched or distorted as in widescreen.
I’ve got used to watching 4x3 programs stretched to 16x9, everybody looks a little fatter & shorter.
If you’re using a DVD player, you need to enter the setup menu of the player & select 16x9 or widescreen to take full advantage of your widescreen movies. Don’t forget to enable HDMI & progressive scan on your DVD players.
I’ve tested all the inputs & so far everything is working just as it should, just remember to change all the settings in the menu for each input.
As with my 42” Vizio, after opening the box & removing the TV, there was a noticeable scuff on the screen. It’s only noticeable when the TV is turned off, but every single Vizio TV I’ve owned, opened or returned have had scuffs on the actual screen.
Vizio only gives a 1 year warranty on their TV’s, but hopefully they’ll honor it should any problems arise.
I’m disappointed that Vizio sells the VW37L which is the same price, but with far fewer inputs & no outputs. Don’t make the same mistake I did, go with the VU37L!
At about $750 it’s a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for here. It would also be nice if this model wasn’t limited to sales by Dell, Sears & a small number of extremely high priced retailers.
Great image quality, good sound, plenty of inputs & outputs, I’d recommend this TV to anybody thinking about jumping on the HDTV bandwagon.