VIZIO E320-A1 32-inch 720p 60Hz LED HDTV

First, a little history. Our last Vizio model, the VW32LHDTV20A, was hit by a power surge through a faulty surge protector the last full week of march, and since then it has become unusable. It was a great TV for being nearly 8 years old and I was sad to see it go, had it not been for the power surge I would still be using it today. That being said, I can't fault Vizio for a power surge and because of my satisfactory experience with the previous TV, I was willing to buy from them again.I did some research and chose a unit based on my needs. I wanted a unit with the following inputs and outputs:-Minimum of 2 HDMI inputs-SPDIF out-Coaxial input-RGB input-At least one component input-At least one AV inputAfter doing some research on Amazon and other sites across the web, my options became very apparent. I can pay tens or even hundreds of dollars more to get a reliable unit from a trusted brand that has everything I just listed, or, I can pay as much as 100 dollars LESS on a less reliable unit from a more obscure brand. After weighing my options and considering the fact that I can live without the RGB input since my computer has an HDMI output, this TV was the only standout. It was within my price range ($250-300) and had enough inputs and outputs that I could get by with no problem on my current setup and still have room to grow. I did briefly consider the next step up (the E320i-AO) but since we use our recently custom built desktop PC as a media hub, we did not require a smart TV with apps and wifi connection. If you use your desktop PC as a media hub for your HDTV like us, I would strongly advise that you save yourself 40 dollars or so and consider this model. The LED LCD panel is the same and you won't really notice a difference in your viewing experience. As far as the difference between 720 and 1080 resolutions, take it from me, don't waste your money on anything under 40 inches that is 1080. You really can't see a difference. I have a friend with a 1080p unit and I can't tell the difference. I can't see the difference when they are side by side either. I have noticed however that when a 1080p signal is transmitted to the TV through HDMI, it displays "1080p" in the upper right hand corner. Whether or not it's actually displaying in 1080p, I do not know, because like I said I can't tell a difference. I just know it says 720p on the product page.Now let's discuss my actual experience using this unit. When compared with our previous traditional LCD TV (VW32LHDTV20A) the picture is a much better. The colors seem to be deeper and richer, and the edges and corners of objects are very smooth with no pixilation. Our previous unit had occasional pixilation, especially when handling darker colors and while watching local TV channels.Yes, it only has two HDMI inputs. But considering that most new surround sound units now have 4 or more HDMI inputs, a true home theater junky will not see the need to have this many on your TV. A friend of mine runs all of his HDMI cables into his surround sound receiver and only one HDMI cable from his surround sound to the TV. The surround sound acts as the hub for all of his devices. Many DVD and BluRay players also have additional inputs for other devices as well, so the need for many HDMI inputs on TVs anymore is becoming questionable. So if you have a newer surround sound unit or other device that has HDMI inputs, you will not need many on your TV.Scanning for channels is about twice as fast as it was on our previous unit. This TV also seems to have a more sensitive tuner card, as we picked up channels from sources about 120 miles away. Our previous unit never received channels that this unit will. While I did block some of the channels because their signal wasn't strong enough to render then watchable, this unit does have a far more powerful tuner card than previous generations of Vizio TVs. My only true complaint is that there appears to be no way to see the upcoming schedule in the TV's guide, you can only see info for the current time slot. I like to look ahead sometimes to see if there is anything I would like to watch, and having to skip over to the computer or pick up a TV Guide at the store is bothersome. I am surprised this slipped the minds of the engineers at Vizio. Maybe a firmware update will return this capability in the future. Of course if there is a way to view a full guide with upcoming show information, please leave me a comment.I have read some complaints about sound quality on this unit. I honestly do not see where the trouble is. Compared to several previous generations of Vizio TVs, the audio quality is clearly superior. Some of their previous generations had speakers that sounded more like cell phone speakers than a traditional TV speaker. The sound had no depth. Our previous unit had fairly large speakers, I can not tell you what the wattage was, but while they had depth, the clarity and surround sound on them was not as good as it is on this TV. Granted the sound may not be as good on this TV as more costly 32 inch units from other brands, but at this price point they are more than satisfactory, and I see no reason to complain. If you plan on using surround sound, then you have no reason to worry about this, as long as it works.I have read some complaints about the backlighting. This isn't really a problem, you just have to make some adjustments to get it to a level you are satisfied with. Go to Menu, Picture, More, Advanced Picture and adjust the Ambient Light Settings to "Low" or "Off". Problem solved. If you turn it off, adjust the backlighting to a satisfactory level in the Picture menu.As far as the physical aspects of this unit, the thin bezel sure is nice, particularly for a small living room like ours. It helps the room feel bigger. The thin design also helps the unit feel less intrusive than previous generations of Vizio TVs. The real estate savings are enough to make a positive impact on our entertainment center. The only downfall is that it makes it more difficult to hide the cables behind the unit. An easy fix is to either direct all the cables directly behind the stand, or to bundle them up nice and neat wherever they fall so they don't look so sloppy.Speaking of the stand, this was the only part of the setup where I had trouble. I read another review where someone else had trouble. They couldn't get a screw to start, but a family member made a suggestion that worked for them to resolve the issue. I had a hole that was milled too big for any of the screws that shipped with the unit. Since it was where the two portions of the base connect, it wasn't really a big deal because the full weight of the TV is directed downward onto it. I used a longer and coarser screw I had on hand instead of the provided screws to fix this problem. However it did provide me with 10 minutes of frustration or so. Also, go easy when attaching the stand to the TV itself, I heard a "pop" noise when turning one of the screws in, and now it won't back out. I assume they had a nut that was either spot welded in or molded into the plastic internally, and the weld or mold failed. This really isn't a problem for me since I do not intend on ever mounting this TV, thus ever having to remove the stand, so at least that screw is secure. However Vizio really needs to get with the supplier that molds their plastic components and make sure they are producing quality products. Since I'm not the first one to have a problem with the stand, a trend is becoming obvious. This isn't enough to remove a star for me since everything functions as intended, but it is a problem that can be remedied easily, and I am certain and could be worthy of a lower rating for someone who needs to wall mount this unit and finds they can't remove their base.So all in all, I am satisfied with this unit. It works as intended for the price point and also has a stellar picture. When you compare the ratings and features (primarily the inputs and outputs) of this unit with others in the price range, there aren't very many other options worth considering.

I have mixed reviews. Originally, I love this TV. I was satisfied with my purchase. I have trusted Vizio in the past and had a lot of good experiences with their products. About a month or 2 after the 1 year warranty passed on my TV (I didn't even know at the time) - a thick, dark and wide blue line formed across my TV. I immediately called Vizio and started a ticket and spoke to a nice representative who told me everything I needed to send in to get my TV repaired or replaced. I did it immediately and the nice representative called me back right away. He said "Ok we are going to be able to help you out and we will send out a repair guy on (the next day) and if he can't fix it, then we will get you a replacement.I was THRILLED. This was great news because I can't afford to pay another nearly $450 on a TV after just a year... 2 days pass (after staying home from work waiting for the TV repair guy... and I get another phone call. "We are sorry Ma'am but your TV was out of warranty 2 months ago and so we won't be sending someone out. Have a nice day!" Click.EXCUSE ME? I called right back in and basically raised hell demanding to be escalated to multiple supervisors because this was wrong. The guy had already confirmed everything was ok. He had my paper work right in front of him and he stated all was fine, the dates of purchase was fine, everything would be handled (as it should have been). The final supervisor I reached was not a nice man. BUT because I wasn't going to take no for an answer and demanded he pull up my previous recorded phone call and that the company should stand by their original decision based on decency alone - he finally caved and agreed to send a guy out.Michael came out and he was a nice guy who stated at the door, I'm here to try to fix your TV. I was like try? He said they mailed me a part but I've been doing this a long time and the part they sent me isn't going to fix what's wrong. So I'm like then why did they send it to you if they know? He says, because they have procedures they have to follow. And I'm like how does that even financially make any sense at all? Wasting both of our time? He said, well, I'm still getting paid. I was instantly frustrated. Turns out, Michael was right. He in fact DID NOT fix it. Back to square 1. After much more back and forth with Vizio - they agreed to send me a refurbished Model. Ok great. I was satisfied. 3 weeks passed and still nothing. Finally a man shows up and says, I'm here to install your TV. ?!?!?!?! What TV? Do you have it? No... I am just here to install it. Sorry dude, I don't have a TV... they haven't sent it yet. I call Vizio - they can't figure out what's going on. Finally they realize it's been waiting at the airport for sometime to be picked up and delivered. I have now missed multiple days from work because several times I waited on the scheduled appointment dates and no one ever showed...FINALLY a guy shows up with my TV and he boxes up the old one (which they never told me I would have to return and I had seriously almost left it by the street for the trash, so thank God I didn't) and the whole thing finally ends. All in all I was fighting back and forth for nearly 3 months with them over something that they could have fixed so easily from the get go. The only reason they came through was because I fought and fought to be heard and listened to. My replacement TV only had like a 90 day warranty but it's been almost a year now. They also gave me a newer model (smart tv) which I am enjoying even more.I would be hesitant to trust Vizio again in the future. The whole experience was a nightmare and I felt very disrespected and very unappreciated as a customer. I was treated rudely by several Managers, one in particular named Harley - a man- total JERK... The back and forth was unnecessary and so frustrating. I am satisfied with the resolution but the stress and headache it gave me almost wasn't worth it... if I wasn't so poor - I'd have just bought another $500 TV of a different brand... but I don't have that luxury... Honestly, I doubt even rich people would want to dump extra money on a product that should have lasted WAY longer... Electronics are finicky, I get it... Sometimes things happen - but when they do and you are a billion dollar company you should respect and help the customers that got you to that level. Customer experience is pretty much the top priority in a company that markets things to consumers - along with quality products and advertising of course...Back when dealing with all of this - I'd have given this TV a 1 star - because that was all it was worth... I'm giving it 3 stars because they DID eventually correct the situation and my replacement TV has been working since. I had meant to write all of this in a letter to the Vizio headquarters after everything that had taken place but at the end of it all, I was just drained. I do want Vizio to see this and pass it along to their quality department because I don't think ANYONE should be treated the way that I was or have a similar experience. I'm sure there are plenty of notes and documentation showing all of what I have written is how it happened and the experience was awful. I am available for a follow up if someone wants to reach out. So do I recommend Vizio brand? I don't know... I would probably choose a different brand for myself moving forward. Best of luck to all. Thanks.