Hot! Zenith HDV420 HDTV Digital Video Tuner $340

[Wei2Cool]

This is from TB

J and R has the Zenith HDV420 HDTV Digital Video Tuner / Receiver for $339.99 if you have them email you. ATSC Tuner receives 18 formats / Up- & Down-Converts to 1080i, 720p, 480i/p, VSB / Accepts analog input from antenna or cable box.

Will this be a good setup with the UltraSharp Dell 20" LCD Monitor we bought? A true HDTV for $1100, hot or what?

Comments?

Product spec

Review

 

[badluck]

Yep, this is a good price. HD rocks. Once you have it at home, you will never want to go back. Try to get it in time for the Superbowl!!!

 

[John P]

What exactly is the difference between the Zenith HDV420 and the ZENITH HD-SAT520 HD / DIRECTV Digital Set Top Tuner / Receiver?

 

[LarryS]

I would guess the first one is for over the air HDTV, the other one is for satellite.

 

[RICKWAVER]

Actually the 520 is for directv and over the air HDTV signals. The 420 is for over the air HDTV only.

 

[RobsTV]

Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

 

[h8red]

Thanks for the info RobsTV, I had no idea

 

[slappy76]

Interesting.. never knew that about Goldstar. I wonder if GS knew about Zeniths cruddy rep. I've been seeing a LOT of their advertisements lately. I honestly have never purchased from Zenith pre or post GS ownership. Maybe GS is going to be the next Samsung. Who was Samsung 5 years ago? Now they have penetrated the cellphone market, the digicam market, A/V electronics, etc. Their products aren't that bad.. I personally think they put out better products than Thompson (a.k.a. RCA, GE electronics, Proscan). Look at Apex and their DVD players.. those things are SO popular now. Maybe Korea is the new Japan (of the 70s and 80s)..

Originally posted by: RobsTV
Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

 

[tigerbait]

Originally posted by: RobsTV
Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

to add to this manufacturing mess, the new Sony HD200 HDTV/Directv/OTA receiver is also made by LG (Goldstar). The Zenith SAT-520 and Sony HD200 are nearly identical, except for cosmetics and remote.

 

[rbV5]

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years

So then, this new Goldstar Zenith would be an upgrade from the previous bottom feeder, quality cutting, US Zenith.

 

[kantonburg]

We only have 1 HD channel in our area. PBS! Whoohoo Seasame Street in HD.

For those that don't know you can check http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.asp to see which channels are HD in your area.

 

[donrussell]

Might be good to plug into the VGA port of a monitor with DVI/VGA inputs (use DVI for computer output). Audio out goes to computer sound card inputs, then you have a multimedia setup capable of receiving VHF/UHF analog, as well as DTV/HDTV broadcasts. Cost of monitor + tuner may not be much more than the all-in-one multimedia monitors without HDTV capabilities (such as Envision 7500) and certainly less than the LCD TV's sold as HDTV-ready (without HDTV tuner).

 

[RobsTV]

Originally posted by: rbV5

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years

So then, this new Goldstar Zenith would be an upgrade from the previous bottom feeder, quality cutting, US Zenith.

I would have to agree. Since it's hard to get lower than low, up is the only way they can go.
While Goldstar has failed to support pre-Goldstar Zenith with parts, they can be no worse than Zenith was through the '90's.

If I didn't know about the Goldstar buyout of Zenith, I would have said that:
Goldstar is a better brand than Zenith or Thompson (RCA/GE/Proscan).
Just pissed me off that I could no longer get parts for Zenith, which in my eyes reflects badly on Goldstar.

 

[cmbehan]

That's interesting about the companies, but after extensive research into the topic I almost bought the previous Zenith HDTV tuner: the DTV1080. The reason: it was the best according to about 90% of people who had tried it.

Also, the new Zenith Plasma's are supposed to be outstanding as well.

Maybe you're right about some products, but as far as I've heard/read/seen Zenith top end products go toe to toe with anyones.


This tuner is one of those top end products.....I'm just upset I can't get one by sunday.

 

[cHeeZeFacTory]

I don't know much about hdtv tuners.....is it possible to select 480i on the tuner and connect the output to a regular tv??
Just wondering....TIA

 

[jalaram]

Originally posted by: cHeeZeFacTory
I don't know much about hdtv tuners.....is it possible to select 480i on the tuner and connect the output to a regular tv??
Just wondering....TIA

Yes. 480i is option on all (if not all, almost) HDTV tuners. The rarity is the one (one by Samsung) that'll output a 480i and HD signal simultaneously.

$340 is an excellent price even if Zenith ranks near the bottom for quality.

 

[John P]

Actually, if you read through avsforums.com the Zenith fares quite well agains the more reputable brands.

 

[MrMet]

Originally posted by: RobsTV
Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

Ever own an INTEQ?????

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: MrMet

Originally posted by: RobsTV
Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

Ever own an INTEQ?????

what the ...?

 

[MrMet]

Originally posted by: Goosemaster

Originally posted by: MrMet

Originally posted by: RobsTV
Just a little info if you consider Zenith.

Zenith went bankrupt in '99, and sold their name to Goldstar, a Korean company. (smart move by Goldstar).
So now if you think you are buying a Zenith because of the name, you actually are buying a Goldstar.
Imagine if GM sold the Cadillac name to Yugo, and you'll get my point.
All Zenith parts distributors have been closed.
Zenith is now the Bic lighters of the TV world. Use them for a very short time, then throw out and buy another.

Zenith has continuously rated at or near the bottom in quality, for many years.
(duh, that's why they went bankrupt).

Ever own an INTEQ?????

what the ...?

INTEQ was Zeniths answer to the "Pro Scan" line in the late 90's. I foolishly bought one. Had all the bells and whistles you could ask for on a 32' set at he time. Some salesman really scheisterd me on this one. But i did buy the stores extended protection warrety. The set crapped out after about 10 months. Had a repairman out to fix it three times and he couldnt figure out the problem.....LOL the store ended up taking it back and I got my Pro Scan which i still have and enjoy today. I would stay away from anything Zenith after my experiance. And now knowing they are now Goldstar (isnt that Kmarts premium brand), I wouldnt touch em with my ex-wifes money!!!!!!

 

[RobsTV]

Originally posted by: MrMet

LOL the store ended up taking it back and I got my Pro Scan which i still have and enjoy today. I would stay away from anything Zenith after my experiance. And now knowing they are now Goldstar (isnt that Kmarts premium brand), I wouldnt touch em with my ex-wifes money!!!!!!

Sorry to burst your bubble here, but your Proscan is nearly as bad as Zenith.
Internally, the chassis in a Proscan is 100% the same as all the other crap RCA/GE sets made.
They are constantly in our shop for repair.

However, just like a good company can have an occasional lemon, the opposite can occur for a bad company,
and they can occasionally produce a non-lemon from the bunch. Hope that you got one of the rare non-lemon sets.

RCA/GE/Proscan are what keeps TV techs employed.
They account for more of our pay than all other brands combined.
Please keep buying RCA/GE/Proscan's, as this Hot Deals forum keeps taking your money from me

 

[Alps]

As a matter of information: Goldstar, LG Electronics and Samsung are ALL THE SAME COMPANY. So if you think Samsung is great you will think that GS & LG are equally great. The products are exactly the same just marketed under different brands. Actually, Samsung is Korean for GOLD STAR. I work for the company so I am in a postion to know. If you wonder about brands why not do some research on the internet rather than speculate. To the guy who thinks less of a company that buys another company and does not support its previous products- There are legal implications that generally prohibit this, also, often ONLY the trademark name is for sale.

 

[Alps]

I am afraid that when you speak of a "True HDTV" for $1100 you are misunderstanding what constitutes True HDTV. Your Dell 20" LCD monitor may well accept a feed from a 1080i signal but it lacks the pixel count necessary to display an HDTV picture. HDTV requires a pixel resolution over 2000 horizontal. An LCD monitor or even a truly big buck Plazma display will not have the hardware capability to do this. Even the Pioneer $25K+ top Plazma is not capable of displaying HD resolution. A digital television display may have the capability of reading a 480P or 1080i signal but will only display to its maximum resolution which may be SDTV (standard NTSC TV), EDTV (Enhansed resolution) or HDTV (High Defination resolution) HD requires the DISPLAY of either a 720P or 1080i signal. LCD and Plazma monitors do not, at least for now, have the pixel count necessary to do so. Many websites offer indepth explanations of HDTV. Television and monitor ads and specs are quite misleading unless you understand just what an High Definition picture requires.

 

[Kroffty]

J and R ?
LINK please

 

[kantonburg]

http://www.jandr.com/