LG has been launching innovative products for quite some time now. I think
the first in this series was the 'LG Chocolate'. Then they came up with 'LG
Prada' and 'Shine'. These new home theatre systems seem to follow in the
design-centric theme. The 'LG HT 702TN' and 'HT 902TB' are 5.1 home theatre
systems, with floor-standing speakers, a subwoofer and a center speaker. The
included DVD player in both of these home theatre systems has DivX support, USB,
1080i up-scaling, HDMI and all the usual connectivity options. The glossy black
design on the unit seems to keep buttons to a minimum – instead opting to keep
most of the controls on the remote control. LG's slim DVD tray technology is
also used in the home theatre players.
The J10 HD stands apart from the other two, thanks to a very unique addition
– a built-in 80 GB hard drive. It's basically a 2.1 home theatre system, with a
slot-loading DVD drive and touch sensitive buttons on top ala the 'LG Chocolate'
phone. The subwoofer is the central part in all this and provides the ports,
amplification for the speakers and power to the DVD player.
The 5.1 home theatre systems fared well in our DTS surround sound tests with
accurate sound reproduction in all corners. We also played various genres of
music. The 2.1 systems sounded better than its bigger 5.1 counterparts. It has
better treble as well as deeper bass effects. The 'J10 HD', with a built in 80
GB hard disc can also rip tracks from audio CDs to the hard disc as mp3. It
takes about a minute per song. It can also record radio as per your set time – a
feature borrowed from the LG's 'Time machine TV'. The 'HT 902' system also has a
3.5mm port to connect external mp3 players.
The J10 HD system has its display on top which is kind of weird, since it
cannot be seen unless you stand over the player. And with both the 5.1 systems,
the floor-standing speakers have the connection ports under the support base,
which makes setup a little cumbersome and time consuming.
Overall, all of them provide good sound, class and value for money. Our pick
would be the “J10HD” for its great blend of features and price.
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