Hitachi’s 32HDL51 LCD TV offers a cinematic cosmetic that echoes the look of a filmstrip. A nifty motorized stand will rotate the TV in nearly any direction on command via the remote control.

FireWire also provides basic control of the connected device, such as the D-VHS recorder, through the TV’s remote. Hitachi offers similar functionality for non-FireWire-equipped components through a feature called AVNet. This is a neat idea if you only have a couple other items in your system. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t work with my Toshiba DVD player and Sunfire receiver. More complex systems should use a separate programmable remote anyway, like the Philips Pronto or Logitech’s line of Harmony remotes. These can perform multiple functions with the touch of one button. The 32HDL51’s universal remote does offer some control over other devices on its own and can provide discrete commands to access individual inputs, which is great for making the programmable remotes work better, but it lacks separate commands for power functions, picture preferences, aspect ratios and the like.
 

	The 32HDL51 has Day and Night picture modes that you can use to save optimized picture settings. This way you get excellent picture quality for any lighting condition. Use the remote or the automatic timer to switch between the modes.

Regardless of whose remote you use to control the display, you’ll see a great picture as it offers a number of excellent adjustments. A backlight control, for example, is great for adjusting the set’s light output level based on your room lighting. Crank it up during the day for a brighter image and turn it down at night for better black levels and higher contrast. Save the settings in the available Day and Night picture preference modes for a quick and easy recall. Despite a gamma setting that boosts picture brightness, overall, image contrast, dimension, and shadow details are excellent. Note: Setting the black level enhancement mode to any level crushes or eliminates shadow details to varying extents (more so at higher levels) and makes black levels change in light output as the overall image changes. With this mode off, shadow details are present and black levels are consistent with any image, which makes for a better picture and is ideal for dark rooms.

The color decoder settings are similarly excellent, assuming you know how to use them. Check the manual for instructions (an on-screen tutorial would be nice). As set by the factory, the overall image is reasonably accurate (see measurements online at www.dtvmag.com), but the TV exaggerates red images. Use a color bar test pattern––which you can easily find on various DVD test discs, including movies you rent that are THX-certified and include the THX Optimizer––and make adjustments to the color decoder settings. The menu could use a better sequence of adjustments, but it allows you to tweak the TV’s color decoder to be as accurate as is possible. You can even save different settings to the four-color temperature modes. Brilliant! The result is an image that’s as vibrant and rich as possible, while still remaining totally natural.

The Color Management adjustments are also welcome, but significantly less useful to most people. The adjustment effectively changes the primary red, green, and blue colors used to create the image, and is a valuable tool for a qualified technician to obtain the most accurate and vibrant picture possible from the set, but you need experience and expensive test equipment to adjust it correctly. This should be a service or hidden enthusiast-accessible menu item. As it comes from the factory, the set’s colors are good.
 
Another great attribute of the 32HDL51 is its onboard “VirtualHD 1080p” video processor, which upconverts both standard- and high-definition programs to fit the panel’s native resolution. Like the Pioneer TV I reviewed last month, Hitachi’s VirtualHD processor is the best internal scaler I’ve seen in a TV and one of the rare few that actually upconverts 1080i signals to 1080p before converting them to the panel’s native resolution. This preserves as much image detail as possible. The processor does an excellent job of detecting a program’s film or video origins, as well, and provides appropriate image processing to the signal. This ensures the cleanest picture possible under nearly any circumstance. Even image blur and lag, common problems on inexpensive LCD panels, are not major issues here. The image is incredibly sharp as a result.
 
With newcomers like Syntax offering acceptable low-cost flat-panel alternatives, it becomes harder for veterans like Hitachi to maintain its competitive edge. But it does. With features like CableCard, FireWire, advanced color decoder controls, and outstanding video processing, the 32HDL51 may cost more than other, less recognizable brand names, but if you can afford it, the difference is worth the price.