Toshiba 32DL933B review

The Toshiba 32DL933B is a fine idea, poorly executed. Toshiba's Blu-ray players are on sale for less than £80 (around $125), with 3D-ness only garnering a £40 (around $60)-or-so premium, so we don't think it's too unreasonable to expect something along those lines in place of what we have: a bog-standard DVD player.

Of course, the presence of Blu-ray would highlight the Toshiba 32DL933B's other misfire - its HD-ready screen - although even that ought to be enough to host Freeview HD programmes.

We liked

Again we remind ourselves that the Toshiba 32DL933B is likely to hover around the £300 (around $500) mark, and as such should be considered as a budget set. We like its cute design, and the way it handles digital video files from a USB stick is surprisingly accomplished.

We also admire the way it manages to overcome the innate weakness of its LCD panel not only with some decent local dimming, but also by presenting a clean, noise-free image from low bitrate material. It's really the only advantage of using an HD-ready panel over a Full HD resolution version.

We disliked

The awful remote control gets the biggest chunk of our ire, although we've enough left to scold other aspects of this TV - notably motion blur and overly forced black levels. The use of an HD-ready panel does mean that both hi-definition gaming and Blu-ray playing fail to sparkle, although we can't see any excuse for leaving out a Freeview HD tuner, which would help lift this TV to another level.

Final verdict

An entry-level TV that fails to push the boundaries of its genre, the use of Edge LED backlighting and an integrated DVD player are the highs in a largely disappointing performance.

An HD-ready panel helps keep poor sources looking watchable while also making sure hi-definition content fails to wow, but as a bedroom TV for those after a DVD machine, the Toshiba 32DL933B just about makes the grade.

The Toshiba 32DL933B appears to be aimed at consumers who want a flat-ish, telly, and no more - but is there anyone left in such a position? A saturated market ought to lead to either sparkling innovation or intrinsic good value, but Toshiba, normally so effective at the latter, mostly trips up with the Toshiba 32DL933B.

Also consider

Toshiba obviously does good business on its combi TVs, although it remains the only major brand to consistently offer at least one range of flatscreen TVs with an integrated DVD player.

It tried a similar trick last year with the Toshiba 32DB833, although we presume its unique offering of a built-in Blu-ray player didn't do so well, since there's no upgrade in its 2012 lineup.

Head to the combi area of Toshiba's website to see the latest - usually smaller - combination options, although some small brands such as Linsar sometimes make them, too.

If DVD is less important and you don't mind spending a bit more, Toshiba's 32RL858B is worth a look, as is Panasonic's TX-L32E5B.