Mitsubishi LT-46144

The good: Reproduces a deep shade of black; relatively accurate primary colors; thin bezel makes for a compact cabinet; understated styling; can control other external equipment via an IR blaster; solid connectivity with three HDMI inputs.

The bad: Overly blue initial color temperature; cannot adjust color temperature in user menu; limited aspect ratio control with HD sources, including a lack of a "dot-by-dot" mode; 120Hz does not smooth motion in pans and camera movement.

The bottom line: The ultracompact Mitsubishi LT-46144 LCD HDTV offers decent picture quality, but a few flaws prevent it from topping the best models.

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Description: The Mitsubishi LT-46144 is a 46-inch, LCD television. Compared to other LCD TVs on the market, it is midpriced at around $2,105. This unit is an LCD display, which is generally the best kind of flat-panel screen for viewing in brightly-lit rooms.

Pros: Has a 46-inch screen size. This is larger than the average TV on the market today, but is to be expected for a TV of this price. With built-in HDTV compatibility, this television can display images that are significantly sharper and more realistic than regular television, as long as the source is high definition. (It can easily render standard-resolution digital TV broadcasts and also depict the full resolution of widescreen DVD video.) The 3:2 pulldown feature of this unit reduces artifacts that can occur when motion pictures are transferred to a digital format such as DVD.

Cons: Has only a rear connector location.

Suitability: Ideal as a primary TV in a mid-size room. Also, a wide aspect display such as this one is well suited for DVD movies recorded in the popular 16:9 format, as well as high definition programming.

Value: In general, this TV's features are in line with its price.

Suggestions: (1) For assistance in shopping for a new HDTV, read CNET editors' Ultimate HDTV Buying Guide . (2) If donating or repurposing your old TV is not a viable option, CNET encourages households to recycle their electronics. Please explore the following website to find a recycling center in your area Electronics Take Back Coalition .