Product Listing

Sharp AQUOS Quattron 52-inch LED TV - Gold Getter

By Andy Sim - 12 Aug 2010
Launch SRP: S$4999

Cosmetics & Features

Design

The 52-incher is deceptively heavy given its thin frame, hence it's best to assemble the unit with an extra pair of hands. More importantly, Sharp has been busy at the drawing board, and the results are apparent on the new LE820M series. The AQUOS is a sight to behold, primarily for its posh and curvy presentation. The TV sports a slim 40mm girth, which isn't much of a surprise since it uses edge-lit LEDs. A matte silver accent surrounds the unit's perimeter, and to augment its high-brow tastes, physical aspects such as touch-sensitive controls, a chrome-colored spine and stylish glass stand are equally guilty of contributing to the Quattron's expensive demeanor. Unfortunately, the TV's panel is highly reflective due to the glossy coat. To minimize undesirable reflections, we'd advise viewing this baby with your room lights dimmed down, or better yet, turn them off altogether. On the up side, Sharp's latest LED installment boasts of a single-sheet design with a bezel that's flushed with the panel. This styling trend, if you recall, is similarly echoed by the likes of LG's Borderless design and Sony's Monolithic dress code. So as far as looks are concerned, Sharp has definitely following the trends.

Given its hefty weight and fragile glass stand, it's best to assemble the LE820M with an extra pair of hands. Although the manual recommends fastening the back-plate to the panel first, we'd recommend attaching the plate to the stand instead. It's much easier that way from our experience.

Slim is what the AQUOS Quattron is. The LE820M might have a massive diagonal size of 52 inches but it is merely 40mm thick, or just about four times the width of a ballpoint pen.

In our opinion, Sharp has scored the right mix with their Quattron's series. Yes, well defined lines and an elegant "boomerang" logo are a definite plus. The simple emblem lights up when the unit is powered on, though you can choose to disable it if illuminated logos aren't your thing.

A row of touch-sensitive controls add to the polished looks of the LE820M. Just next to it lies the remote control sensor and ambient light sensor. Also, notice that the bezel and screen are beautifully flushed with little difference between them.

Slender as it is, Sharp has somehow managed to pack the LE820M with a pocketful of connectors. An analog component input and RS-232C terminal sits below the back panel, while a string of four HDMI ports are flanked at the side. That's not all. The AQUOS also holds a USB port plus an Ethernet terminal for your home network. Additionally, this model is also engineered with Sharp's AQUOS Link, which runs on the HDMI-CEC protocol used to unify compatible AV devices. In front, the TV's remote control sensor is placed at the bottom corner so be sure to keep that spot unobstructed. You might like to know this TV swivels, 20 degrees both ways. Now, remember we talked about Sharp overhauling its designs? Well, the remote isn't spared either, but not necessarily in a bad way. The stick is now noticeably slimmer. Apart from that, we also spotted a couple of dedicated keys such as an OPC button to toggle its optical picture control on or off. By the way, the LE820M does not have any built-in digital tuners though we understand from Sharp that they might plan for one at a later stage.

Component inputs have been relegated to the bottom side of the back panel. Another rare inclusion is a serial RS-232C port which acts as a conduit for computer controls/updates and servicing needs.

You don't have to worry about a lack of HDMI ports; this Quattron has four. However, Sharp's recessed implementation makes them difficult to reach if the TV is wall-mounted. This might be an issue especially with its USB and Ethernet ports should you need to access them frequently.

Sharp made some tangible improvements with their remote's design if you were to compare it to the clunky old wand. The new stick is visibly slimmer and more refined. AQUOS Link controls are clumped at the top while the Menu button sits just above the directional pad.

 

Features

We have not have reviewed a Sharp display for a long spell, but it is evident the Japanese have finally made good use of the Quattron's Full-HD panel. On the LE820M, the menu interface is more refined compared to awkward graphics of the past. While its layout is visibly more attractive, it isn't exactly the most user-friendly. To return to the top strip, which harbors icons such as Setup and Link Operations, we had to hit the "Return" and directional buttons a couple of times before finding our way back. On the bright side, at least its layout does not interfere with what's on screen. There are eight whopping picture presets in all, including a "Dynamic Fixed" selection which is similar to the "Dynamic" preset except for locked-down image and sound settings. For the savvy, there are sufficient picture configurations to tinker with such as hue, saturation and color temperature adjustments. And like most modern sets, the AQUOS Quattron is also capable of shrinking your utility bills with its ECO features. This mainly reduces the backlights' brightness with Standard and Advanced options available. 

There's enough configurations to please the adventurous and the savvy, such as a six-color adjustment system to increase or decrease the saturation levels of a selected color. However, navigation can be a little nerve-wrecking when you are toggling between the top strip and menu options.

The LE820M not only offers a wide range of advanced configurations, but it also comes with eight picture presets which is a little more than the norm. Head straight for the "User" preset if you'd prefer to fine tune every single detail. Also, take note of the unobtrusive GUI layout.

Oh, and let's not forget about media playback on the LE820M. Plug in a USB drive, and a pleasing "USB Media" screen appears in a jiffy. Furthermore, we noticed that the TV was intuitive enough to separate the video clips from non-video file formats upon selecting "Video Mode". While the Quattron does not favor NTFS partitions, its video support, on the other hand, was exemplary. The yellow fellow breezed through common AVI, MKV and MOV extensions without batting an eye, and codecs such as DivX and VC-1 failed to rattle its cage either. Coupled with DLNA functions, well, we can only tell Sharp to give themselves a nice pat on the back. On the other hand, you are out of luck when it comes to AVCHD video formats or WMA audio files. In short, we won't go so far as to say this feature is a perfect replacement for standalone media tanks, but the Quattron's USB Media functionality is definitely a huge bonus. Lastly, while the AQUOS offers an Ethernet port for home network connectivity, don't expect to find any online applications or widgets on this one. 

 The AQUOS managed to play most of the video file formats we hurled at it, and the Video Mode was also intuitive enough to separate clips from files with non-video extensions. What's more, its DLNA feature also makes it easy to stream content over your home network.

       

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8.5
  • Design 9
  • HD Performance 8.5
  • SD Performance 9
  • Features 8.5
  • Value 8
The Good
Sophisticated design
Excellent standard definition handling
Rich and accurate colors
The Bad
Slightly uneven backlights
Expensive
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