First Time Operation:
When first powering up the set, the operator is asked to select the menu language and the country in which the TV will be used. Subsequently, the set automatically begins to scan the airwaves for available broadcasting stations.

Screen Menus:
The screen menus are well structured, but fill the screen too much for our tastes. Even though it is only a question of cosmetics, the menus are pretty plain and will surely make older PC users feel as though they have been cast back to the 90s - their appearance is very reminiscent of the old Windows 3.1 menus.

Remote Control:
The remote control leaves behind a bag of mixed feelings. The large and handy numerical keypad for channel access is convincing, but the rather crowded area around the cursor keys is very disturbing for everyday handling.

According to the user's manual, the JVC remote control can also be used to operate video recorders or DVD players - even from other manufacturers. Details however are concealed within its rather messy graphical layout.

The LT-46 Z 70 BU displays an over sharpened picture with a marked blue-cast as delivered from the factory. After adjustment (refer to "Best Settings") this improves slightly. The adjustments do not however compensate for motion trails associated with fast moving objects, nor the slight shadowing or double contouring and nor the waxy appearance of picture areas. Many older generation LCDs suffer the same weaknesses and render them therefore, completely unsuitable for sport fans.

Movies played from a DVD are somewhat better. In nocturnal scenes, such as the road race in the movie "The Fast and the Furious", the JVC is able to reproduce color tones with a high degree of clarity and completely free of noise. Indoor shots with predominantly warm color tones, such as the torch-lit Hobbit's dwelling in the "Lord of the Rings" demonstrate the limits of the LT-46 Z 70 BU. The bluish residual light affects both the perception of depth and the color neutrality of the picture. Even the rather apparent viewing angle dependency is a disturbance.

Seemingly, the JVC has difficulties scaling traditional PAL pictures to fit the high resolution screen. This holds true regardless whether the input is through the Scart RGB, YUV or the HDMI interfaces as camera pans can be seen to cause jitter or line flicker. Only when a suitably featured DVD player converts or scales-up the picture format to match the screen's 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution, does the outcome noticeably improve.

Hardly amazing is that the true strength of the high-resolution screen is its ability to process HDTV material. When displaying test pictures, the JVC performs the task perfectly and in accurate detail.

The Blu-ray edition of the science fiction movie "Aeon Flux" is an ideal test film because of its richly detailed images and crisp edges. Without effort, the JVC reproduces all vertical details - as evident in the castle steps scene (02:10) or horizontally as witnessed in the curtains (11:38). Along with other older generation sets, the LT-46 Z 70 BU suffers slight image freezing when playing back material with a 24p frame rate.

Computer Operation:
The VGA interface is for all intents and purposes useless as it only accepts PC signals with a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels or 1024 x 768 pixels. Neither of these formats corresponds to the set's native screen resolution, and fonts are inevitably unclear. If however a standard, commercially available HDMI to DVI adapter is used, then the JVC is once again in its element. If the computer graphic card supports it, then picture formats up to the full 1920 x 1080 pixels are rendered with crystal clarity and with pinpoint accuracy.

Sound Quality:
The built-in loudspeakers emit their sound through a fine slit underneath the screen. Speech is somewhat constrained but clearly understandable while music, by comparison, comes across full bodied and with a noticeable bass component, but is still a little distorted and nasal. In standby mode, our test model emitted a quiet but high-pitched whistling sound.

Contrast: ca. 50%

Bright 2: ca. 55%

Bright 1: Minimum

Sharp: ca. 30%

Color: ca. 45%

Color Temperature: Warm (6,700 K)

Movie Theater: On

All other settings available under the "Options" tab should be off.

* applied to realistic playback from HD DVD/Blu-ray material through the HDMI interface in a darkened environment. Manufacturing and HDMI playback device deviations may necessitate slight adjustment.

The slender big picture: The small frame makes this 46" set appear more like a typical 42" flat-panel display. The silver edge along the screen border does not do it any justice as it unnecessarily worsens the contrast.

All one needs: Two HDMI interfaces for a DVD player and set-top box, while two S-Video and RGB capable Scart connectors are also available for additional input sources.

Upper top, lower rot: The huge numerical keypad is superb but the crowded navigation cross is less practical.