Televisions 20 Inches & Under

Hannspree's Potto 15-Inch LCD Television

Hannspree's Potto 15-Inch LCD Television Review

Price : $849.99

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		Brand:	Hannspree
		List Price:	$849.99
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Hannspree's Potto 15-Inch LCD Television Feature

• 15 inch 4:3 LCD Television
• 1024 x 768 Pixels Resolution, with 3-D Y/C Digital comb filter
• 500 cd/m2 Brightness, 500:1 Contrast Ratio
• Matching Designer Remote Control
• 4-in-1 connection cable for S-Video, Composite Video and Audio. Headphone Jack, V-Chip, Closed Captioning and Stereo Speakers.

Hannspree's Potto 15-Inch LCD Television Overview

Matured neutral shapes easily fit in any environment. This 15 inch LCD television has rubber feet to avoid scratching surfaces, the subtle metallic paints and fabric are pleasing to the eye.

Hannspree's Potto 15-Inch LCD Television Specifications

It's no longer just enough to enjoy TV programming or access your PC with a crisp, clear, flat-panel LCD screen. Taiwanese television manufacturer Hannspree believes that the time has come to integrate this display technology not only into your home, but your lifestyle as well. To that end, they've come up with a wide variety of creative, playful design concepts--from a cello-like body to a Los Angeles Lakers-colored "jersey"--that buck the standard LCD TV/display motif of a screen surrounded by a gray or silver plastic housing. Style is well and good, but that shouldn't be the sole reason to purchase an LCD display. Happily, the Hannspree Potto 15" LCD TV's bright display and incorporated features make it worth considering the extra price.

(Reviewer's Note: We tested the 15-inch Vaas model, the aforementioned cello-shaped model with a faux wood-grained plastic cabinet and speakers integrated into the concave side, which we found to be quite easy on the eyes. That said, its video and audio functionality is essentially the same as this 15-inch Hannspree model.)

The Hannspree provides a composite A/V input for RCA plugs as well as a standard RF input for connecting cable or an antenna for access to TV programming. It also has a secondary A/V input that works with the unique 4-in-1 cable, which collects the three RCA A/V plugs plus an S-Video jack on one end and connects it to the Hannspree with a single jack on the other. (A note of caution: Take care to not force the 4-in-1 jack into the TV, as the pins tended to bend easily if they didn't make direct contact with their connection. This was easily fixed with some tweezers, but you should still use some finesse.) It comes with three female/female RCA adapters, enabling you to connect another RCA cable's male ends directly into the Hannspree's 4-in-1 cable.

The screen is quite bright--500 candela per square meter (cd/m2)--and it's coupled with a similar 500:1 contrast ratio, enabling color to pop quite nicely. It also offers a 16 millisecond (ms) screen response time, which makes this display able to keep up with quick-moving objects from TV programming and DVD movies without getting all jaggy. At 15 inches, the Hannspree offers a good picture size for standard, 4:3 aspect ratio TV programming and it's a fine size for use in a smaller room. However, for watching DVD movies in widescreen mode, it's best to have the screen closer to you, as we did with the Hannspree set up on our bedside table--perfect for late-night viewing of Firefly.

But where the Hannspree really shone was as a multi-functional home office audio/video center, enabling us to switch from PC (using the VGA port) to cable TV viewing without missing a beat. It also helped to eliminate some of the clutter from our desk, as the unit's built-in speakers allowed us to eliminate our PC's external speakers. Sound via the Hannspree's speakers was quite good, especially with the SRS WOW virtual surround sound selected. The Hannspree also includes a line-out audio connection, enabling you to connect to a 2.1- or 5.1-channel powered surround sound speaker system.

We were initially stymied on how to utilize the Hannspree's speaker system in conjunction with it's PC monitor capabilities. Connecting to the RCA audio-in jacks via a 1/8-inch mini stereo jack from your PC won't work as the AV1 source has to be selected; the same goes for using the 4-in-1 A/V cable, which uses the AV2 source. (The 1/8-inch jack size is what you'll find on a headphone jack, and this is also the size used for audio-out connections on desktops and laptops.) However, the answer was staring us right in the face--the Hannspree has a line-in audio connection, which is easily handled with an optional mini-to-mini cable. However, if you don't have one of these, you can use two mini-to-RCA cables, connecting them with the included RCA adapters.

The remote control that came with our Vaas review model was Hannspree's generic model, which offers mastery over only the Hannspree TV and no options for other A/V components. Other models come with different designs, some specific to the TV's design, but all offer the same basic controls, including a button to directly access V-chip parental controls. It also offers a button marked Auto, which will automatically adjust the screen parameters to the Hannspree's internal settings from non-standard settings activated from your PC.

Overall, we were thoroughly impressed with the Hannspree's video and audio capabilities. At 15 inches, it certainly won't replace your main television, but it's a good addition to an office or bedroom. Plus, its singular design added a personalized touch that is rarely apparent in typical LCD TV/displays. --Agen G.N. SchmitzPros:

• Nicely bright screen with good contrast and response time
• Works just as good as a standard TV as it does a PC monitor
• Clever single-jack connector for A/V and S-Video plugs
• Integrated speakers provide good sound with SRS virtual surround capability

Cons:

• 15-inch screen size won't do large rooms or widescreen DVD movies justice
• No component video connectivity

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