Small TV-DVD Combos

15- to 22-inch TV-DVD combos for kitchens, bedrooms and dorm rooms

If you are looking for a small TV-DVD player combo for a bedroom, dorm room or kitchen, the 15-inch Toshiba 15LV505 (*Est. $265) is a widescreen model that meets with widespread approval. For example, users at Amazon.com rate it 4.5 out of five stars after more than 75 reports. Notably, not one user gives it the bottom one-star rating -- an impressive showing for any electronics product. Buzzillions.com, which gathers ratings from lots of small and midsize retailers, names it the top choice among all TV-DVD combos, though that's based on fewer user reviews.

Despite the small screen size, this is a widescreen HDTV with a native resolution of 1,366 pixels by 768 pixels. The built-in tuner is NTSC/ATSC compatible, which means it will tune in all analog and digital over-the-air channels. It's also clear QAM compatible, which means it will tune in any unscrambled digital channels that your cable company provides. (Note that cable uses a different format to transmit its signals than over-the-air broadcasters and is not affected by the DTV transition.)

The slot-loading DVD player certainly cuts down clutter and adds to convenience, reports say. Features aren't plentiful, but basics such as digital picture zoom, fast scanning, slow motion and multi-camera-angle select (for those discs that support that feature) are present. Disc format support for those who burn their own DVDs and CDs is good, but not universal. The Toshiba 15LV505 will playback MP3s and WMA music files and display JPEG images burned to disc by a computer. Connectivity is good, but the lack of an HDMI input is disappointing (for more about HDMI, see What to Look For). It's not a deal killer for a screen size this small, since the Toshiba 15LV505 is not likely to be part of a complex home theater system. Still, digital cable boxes and other devices that incorporate HDMI usually provide the best image quality over that all-digital link. A few owners complain of too-low sound volume and slow channel changing. Some also are disappointed that the TV is not wall-mountable.

The Toshiba 15LV505 is housed in a black cabinet. The TV-DVD player combo is also available in white as the Toshiba 15LV506 (*Est. $270). Performance and features are otherwise identical.

While a larger screen size is the most obvious difference, the 19-inch Toshiba 19LV505 ((Discontinued)) offers some other goodies worth discussing compared with the Toshiba 15LV505. First, resolution is jacked up to 1,440 pixels by 900 pixels, a common resolution for 19-inch widescreen LCD computer monitors. That, plus the presence of a PC input, means that the 19LV505 is ideal for double duty as a computer display and an HDTV, making it a good choice for a teenager's room or a college dorm room. Additionally, the TV is DivX-certified and can play back all DivX video file formats from home-burned DVDs.

User feedback is even more plentiful for the Toshiba 19LV505 than the Toshiba 15LV505, but while still good, it's not quite as enthusiastic. For example, the 19-inch Toshiba scores a respectable four out of five stars at Amazon.com following 130 reviews and is the second highest rated TV-DVD player combo at Buzzillions.com after nearly 75 reviews. While some customer-service issues are mentioned, sound quality is the most consistent negative we saw. Some also complain about slow channel changing, but that's a frequent issue with digital tuners. However, far more are pleased overall, complimenting the image quality and the value. The Toshiba TV-DVD player combo is also available in white as the Toshiba 19LV506 (*Est. $320). Note that while both the 19VL505 and 19VL506 remain widely available, Toshiba has announced replacement models that should be in stores in late spring. The 15-inch Toshiba 15VL505 and 15VL506 will remain current models.

Among 22-inch TV-DVD player combos, we saw the best reports for the Sharp LC-22DV24U (*Est. $400). Although Sharp LCD TVs don't garner as much user feedback as Toshiba's models, what's there is largely positive. At Amazon, no review is lower than three out of five stars, while at BestBuy.com, it garners a respectable 4.3 out of five stars. Sound quality and the fact that the stand does not tilt (it only swivels) are the major negatives sited. Most say that picture quality is very good.

The Sharp TV-DVD combo player has a native resolution of 1,680 pixels by 1,050 pixels (16:10 aspect ratio) that matches that of many 20- and 22-inch widescreen LCD computer monitors and sports a PC input. The integrated NTAC/ATSC/clear QAM tuner can receive analog and digital over-the-air signals, and unscrambled digital-cable channels. Connectivity is good, and there's an HDMI input and a digital-audio output (coaxial) for connecting to an external sound system. The built-in progressive-scan slot-loading DVD player supports basic playback functions such as fast forward, slow and still, as well as digital zoom and multiple camera angles. There's also a built-in file browser and you can play MP3 or WMA files burned onto a CD by your PC, or display JPEG images singly or in a slide show.