Product Review: Dell W3201C 32" LCD HDTV

April 20, 2006: Dell is known for its high-selling PCs, which were made famous by Steve - the guy who said, "Dude, you got a Dell." If you think that Dell televisions are just a bi-product of their PC monitors, you are wrong.

In fact, Dell is quickly becoming a leader within the television industry. What impresses me is that they are committed to make a good product better. As a result their products deliver as advertised.

The W3201C was priced at $1599 at the time of this review.

Dell's W3201C is a 32" widescreen high definition LCD TV with a 1000:1 contrast ratio and 16ms response time. At 32", the screen is big enough for most living rooms yet it won't overpower a bedroom. It is a WXGA panel with 1366 x 768 resolution, which is equivalent to over 1-million pixels. The native resolution amounts to 768p. The brightness is 450 nits.

A nice feature on the W3201C is the addition of a built-in digital tuner, which means that anyone with an antenna could receive over-the-air broadcast signals. This is a nice feature on a TV of this size. Another interesting feature is the addition of table/floor stands for the detachable speakers.

Dell says this panel is built to last. They test it at extreme levels of hot and cold as well as the tips and tumbles associated with everyday life. Of course, Dell is quick to point out that you can buy an extended warranty with your new TV.

The panel can wall mount or attach to a swiveling tabletop stand. With the stand it is just 9" thick. Without the stand it is 4.5" in depth. The panel is 22.7" tall, 31" wide and weighs about 51 pounds.

The W3201C comes with a illuminated remote control.

2 coaxial
2 composite
2 S-Video
2 component
2 HDMI
8 RCA stereo audio

The unit came packaged in a box with the cables, manual, remote control and speakers neatly arranged in within the styrofoam padding that protects the LCD panel. I feel confident the unit will ship to any location without damage.

The speakers are cool - 15 watts per channel. The interesting twist to Dell's design is that the speakers come with a stand so they can sit vertically on a flat surface. They also install with minimal difficulty onto the panel.

The stand is one of my favorites of all flat panels because it is heavy, swivels and has a wide base that makes it hard to tip the panel over. I really like the swiveling option.

The picture is pretty good for a television at this price level. Actually, it is very good. My biggest complaint with many LCD flat panels is their inability to display low resolution images with clarity. This is not the case with the W3201C. My satellite signal looked almost as good as my Samsung DLP television. Colors and edges were crisp. There was no ghosting or screen door effect.

The great thing is that the picture only got better with DVDs, video game play and high definition programming. The quality of the picture was exceptional. The panel also looked good as a PC monitor. What did I expect?

As expected, the picture looks better in the 4:3 screen mode as opposed to the wide mode. But, outer edges of the television have a sort of carnival fun house distortion to them when in wide mode.

Here's an example: On text scrolls the text morphs from large to small to large as it enters, moves across and leaves the screen. The distortion is a result of the picture stretching to fill the frame.

Is this an issue? Not really. The distortion is minimal, but you do notice it from time to time.

The remote control has all of the functions you need on a remote, but for whatever reason I couldn't get the feel for it. My main gripe is that there are two sets of up/down/left/right controls on the remote. It was confusing when trying to quickly move through menus.

Is this an issue? You don't buy a TV for the remote control. Most people will never use this remote because they will use their cable or satellite's remote. Also, the Dell remote isn't universal.

While I liked the concept of the stands for the speakers, I didn't like how they balanced on the carpet. I wish they had a wider base.

Is this an issue? Not if you plan on mounting the speakers to the television or placing them on a tabletop surface.

I like the built-in digital tuner, multiple HDMI connections and the picture quality. The design is good. The panel looks sharp and blends into any decor.

I reviewed a 26" Dell LCD TV last year and thought it was one of the better televisions I reviewed in 2005. At the 2006 CES show in Las Vegas I met with Dell officials, and was impressed with their presentation and class.

The W3201C will take the consumer to another level. The 1000:1 contrast ratio is slightly above average, and the 16ms is typical for a 32" LCD. Toss in the built-in tuner and good picture you have a recipe for success. The max resolution is 1080i.

I had a difficult time finding anything I didn't like about this television. Alas, I did notice something that made me scratch my head. The wide mode does not resize 4:3 images as good as other LCD flat panels I reviewed. This isn't a deal breaker for me.

The price is right in the mid-thousands, especially since this television has a built-in ATSC tuner.

The bottom line is that the W3201C gets a 4.5 rating because the screen quality meets or exceeds my standards for cable, satellite, high definition, DVD and video game play.

All specifications quoted in this article are courtesy of Dell.