Skip to main content
DEAL WATCH: Keurig K-Express | 22% off $69.99

Keurig has changed the face of coffee, and snagging one of these for less than $70 is a solid deal. Read Review

BUY NOW
  • Introduction

  • Tour & Design

  • Blacks & Whites

  • Color Accuracy

  • Motion

  • Viewing Effects

  • Calibration

  • Connectivity

  • Audio & Menus

  • Multimedia & Internet

  • Power Consumption

  • Vs Sony KDL-32EX600

  • Vs Samsung LN32C550

  • Vs LG 32LD450

  • Conclusion

  • Series Comparison

  • Introduction
  • Tour & Design
  • Blacks & Whites
  • Color Accuracy
  • Motion
  • Viewing Effects
  • Calibration
  • Connectivity
  • Audio & Menus
  • Multimedia & Internet
  • Power Consumption
  • Vs Sony KDL-32EX600
  • Vs Samsung LN32C550
  • Vs LG 32LD450
  • Conclusion
  • Series Comparison

Introduction

Tour & Design

Front


The Toshiba 32SL400U is a standard looking TV, neither particularly attractive or hideously ugly. Certainly, Sony has better looking TVs in this price range. The bezel is rather thick, with a heavily glossed black finish. In the lower left corner you'll find the IR receiver and a power indicator light. 

Back


The back of this LCD TV is mostly plain, with a lot of vents for heat dissipation. The ports are gathered in one side, making it a little easier to reach them. Note, however, that the TV panel cannot swivel on the base. For information about the ports on the back of the Toshiba 32SL400U see our Connectivity section.

Sides


The Toshiba 32SL400U is not terribly thin, considering it's an LED-backlit TV. We've seen some incredibly thin panels from more expensive Sonys and Samsungs, though you usually have to pay for the privilege. There's at least enough real estate on this Toshiba to fit control buttons and a USB port on the sides.

Stand/Mount


The stand feels incredibly cheap once you start screwing it into the TV panel. The materials feel thin and the screws are stubby. That said, the TV panel weighs very little, so it will probably suffice. We can still complain about the stand's inability to swivel the panel, which makes it harder to access the rear ports.

Controls


The Toshiba 32SL400U has a series of buttons on the side for basic TV control. 

Remote Control


The remote control that ships with Toshiba 32SL400U is pretty bad. The buttons are cluttered placed in an unintuitive manner. It's difficult to operate the TV without constantly looking down to remind yourself where the buttons are. You'll be better off simply programming your favorite remote to control the TV, or buying a new remote. 

In The Box*(5.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U ships with a stand & screws, remote control & batteries, an instruction manual, and assorted documentation. The TV is very light, so you shouldn't have too much trouble getting it out of the box and assembled. 

Blacks & Whites

Black Level*(8.23)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U produced a solid score in our black level test. As you can see in the chart below, the Toshiba managed slightly deeper blacks than the similar Sony and Samsung TVs. However, if you scroll down towards the bottom of the page, you'll see our Greyscale Gamma test, which indicates that the TV has a hard time actually producing detail in those shadows, even if they are impressively dark. (More on how we test Black Level.)

Peak Brightness*(6.56)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U did not do so well producing a bright white. A glance at the chart below shows that it trails the competition by quite a bit. (More on how we test Peak Brightness.)

Contrast*(7.23)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U did not produce an outstanding contrast ratio, primarily because the peak brightness score was not very good. (More on how we test Contrast.)

Tunnel Contrast*(9.22)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U does not have too much trouble maintaining a consistent black level. Frequently, if a small patch of black area is surrounded by bright white, that black will not be as deep as a large black patch. We did not see an issue with this TV. (More on how we test Tunnel Contrast.)

White Falloff*(9.94)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has no trouble maintaining a consistent peak brightness. (More on how we test White Falloff.)

Uniformity*(5.50)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U does a poor job of creating a uniform luminance across the screen. On a dark screen, you can see heavy flashlighting in the corners. There was also some general blotchiness across the screen. You will almost definitely see these problems if you're watching a movie with a lot of darkness. On a brighter screen, it was harder to see the problems. (More on how we test Uniformity.)

Greyscale Gamma*(7.26)*


The greyscale gamma test indicates how well a TV transitions from black to white along the greyscale. We can learn a lot by looking at the chart below. The first thing we're looking for is a smooth line. As you can see, the line is far from smooth. The area in the lower left, representing the shadow details, is nearly flat. This means the TV has a hard time displaying meaningful details in the shadows. Moving right, it then hits its stride and moves steadily upward in a relatively smooth line.The other factor we're looking at is the slope of the curve. An ideal curve is between 2.1 and 2.2. The Toshiba 32SL400U's performance of a 2.66 slope is a little steep, so you can expect it to miss some of the finer gradations. ( More on how we test Greyscale Gamma.)

Color Accuracy

Color Temperature*(8.35)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U produces a color temperature with a lot variance, but the variances are blessedly small. In the chart below, you can see how the color temperature cools, then warms, then cools again as the luminance falls. But it rarely falls outside of the range of human imperceptibility. (More on how we test Color Temperature.)

RGB Curves*(7.89)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U did well enough in our color tests. The curves are relatively smooth, and move in unison together. Yes, there's a definite lack of detail in the shadows, something we also noticed in the greyscale gamma test. And yes, there's a strange "knee" in the red channel that we can't explain. Overall, the lines have some slight bumps, which indicate areas where you're likely to see some color banding. (More on how we test RGB Curves.)

The color strips below are digital representations of the test above, compared with three similar TVs and an ideal color response.

 

 

Color Gamut*(3.77)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U performed quite poorly when asked to match up to the rec. 709 color standard. We saw it with our own eyes before we even ran the tests – it was highly oversaturated. As we see in the chart below, the blue value was the worst error, but none of them were great. The white point (the circles in the middle) were also far off. (More on how we test Color Gamut.)

The table below has all the hard details of the performance versus rec. 709.

 

Motion

Motion Performance*(11.63)*

 


The Toshiba 32SL400U had an average motion performance, for a moderately priced LCD. We noticed a lot of the same problems we've seen before: some flickering, some color trailing, and a lot of fine detail loss. The 1080i footage we looked at showed more of these problems than 1080p. In all resolutions, any high frequency, high contrast pattern tended to produce the most problems. Overall, though, it was a decent performance. (More on how we test Motion.)

3:2 Pulldown & 24fps*(9.5)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has almost no problems displaying native 24fps content, like you'd get from a Blu-Ray movie. To get the best performance, you'll want to leave the TV's Cinema Mode to "Film." If you do otherwise and leave it in the "Video" setting, the picture quality will be substantially reduced. (More on how we test 3:2 Pulldown and 24fps.)

Resolution Scaling*(3.33)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has a native 720p (1280 x 720) resolution, but much of the video you'll be watching will be of a different resolution. It's up to the TV's internal processing to rescale that video to fit the screen. Overall, it's terrible at this job. (More on how we test Resolution Scaling.)

480p

With 480p content, there was no overscan loss, but the TV showed a lot of problems with high contrast, high frequency patterns.

1080i

When we viewed 1080i content, the Toshiba just plain choked on high contrast, high frequency patterns. The TV creates heavy Moires in these areas. It's rare that we see a TV this bad, except on very cheap TVs.

1080p

The same problem re-occurred with 1080p content. Any sort of pattern like will create problems for the Toshiba 32SL400U. 

 

Viewing Effects

 

Formats*(9.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has a native resolution of 720p (1280 x 720), which is definitely not something you're going to find on more expensive – or even middle-of-the-road TVs – anymore. The standard has become 1080p, and the 720p format has been relegated to budget TVs. However, the TV is capable of handling all standard NTSC signals, including 1080p video. The TV simply resizes the picture to fit the screen resolution. However, if you jump back to the previous page, you'll see what a terrible job it does of it. 

 

Viewing Angle*(5.63)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U produced a slightly better than average viewing angle. It can extend to about 70 degrees (35 degrees from center on either side) before losing a significant amount of contrast. As you can see in the chart below, this is wider and better than all three LCD TVs we pulled in for review. (More on how we test Viewing Angle.)

Reflectance*(4.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has a hard time with ambient light. It creates a wide, diffuse glare, even when coming in from an indirect angle. (More on how we test Reflectance.)

Video Processing*(2.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has a small handful of processing features. The list is thin, but about what you can expect for a less expensive TV. We didn't think much of the efficacy of any of them, except for Cinema Mode. 

 

Calibration

Calibration


[

](http://www.displaymate.com/)The Toshiba 32SL400U performs best by starting in Movie mode. Any change you make to any setting will automatically shift it into Preference mode, where it will save your changes. All our changes are below.

Notice that we made a few big changes to backlight, brightness, and others.

Video Modes


The Toshiba 32SL400U has four preset modes and one customizable mode. 

 

Connectivity

Connectivity*(6.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U is short on ports, and definitely not a great choice for a home theater. There are just 2 HDMIs and one shared composite/component AV input. That's precious few inputs, which makes this a better choice for a bedroom or elsewhere in the house. You'll also find a VGA port for computer inputs. For outputs, there's only a digital audio out, and no analog audio out.

 

The ports are spread out between the back and sides. Most are on the back. They're hard to get to because the TV panel doesn't swivel and some of the ports face up and into a little shelf on the back. On the side, above the onboard control buttons, is the USB port, which can be used for playing back photos and music. For more details, jump to the Local Media Playback section.

Here's a chart that has all the details of the Toshiba 32SL400U's ports, alongside the competition.

 

Placement*(3.0)*


The ports are mostly located on the back of the TV panel, and the lack of a swivel base does not make them particularly easy to access. Also, several of the ports are placed under a little shelf, facing up and into the body. It's very difficult to fit HDMI cables into the ports without flipping your whole body around to see it.

 

Audio & Menus

Audio Quality*(4.75)*


The audio quality of the Toshiba 32SL400U is lackluster, at best. If you have no aspirations beyond clearly hearing the vocal track on a TV show, you'll be fine. But movie buffs or audiophiles will want to invest in a separate surround sound system (or a better TV). There's virtually no bass. There's no equalizer in the menu, either, just bass and treble settings. The TV also has an auto volume limiter that cuts the volume in the event of sudden, loud noises. You don't like this feature? Tough! There's no way to turn it off, or even a mention of it in the menu, as far as we could tell.  

Menu Interface*(6.0)*


The menu interface on the Toshiba 32SL400U is simple enough. Once you've spent a little time with this LCD TV, you'll learn the meaning of those icons along the top. Each represents a submenu: Picture, Audio, etc. The interface is not without its frustrations. For instance, when you get to the bottom of a list, you can't hit the down button to re-start at the top. Likewise, if you accidentally find yourself in one of the pop-up menus like Picture Settings (see second photo below), you have to scroll all the way down to the bottom to hit the Done button.

Because the Toshiba 32SL400U is a simpler, less expensive TV, there are only so many settings in the menu. It shouldn't take you long to master them all. 

Instruction Manual*(7.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U's instruction manual is fairly comprehensive. We don't always like the pat explanations of certain features, but at least every feature is covered. We've seen manuals that don't even bother with that. You can find the Toshiba 32SL400U's manual online here

 

Multimedia & Internet

 

Internet Features*(0.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has no internet features, no access to streaming content, and no DLNA support. 

 

Local Media Playback*(9.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U can play photos and music from USB mass storage devices, like a thumb drive. When you pop it into the USB port on the side, a menu pops up asking you if you want to open the device, and if you want to access photos or music. The photo playback is straightforward. The pictures appear as thumbnails, and you can view them one at a time or with slideshows.

 

The music playback is also simple. Songs are listed in a menu on the left side. The current song playing appears on the right. Only music files in the MP3 format are supported.

 

Other Media*(0.0)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U has no other media playback. 

Power Consumption

Power Consumption*(9.37)*


The Toshiba 32SL400U does not require much power to operate, which is the norm for small screen LCDs. On average, it will cost around $12.64 per year to run. If that's still too expensive for you, the backlight can be further lowered. Typically, we lower the backlight until the peak brightness is at 200 cd/m2. But the Toshiba 32SL400U is unusually dim for an LCD, so we had the backlight up to its maximum setting and still measured under 200 cd/m2. (More on how we test Power Consumption.)

As you can see, the power consumption cost is about the same as competing TVs.

Vs Sony KDL-32EX600

Value Comparison Summary


The Sony KDL-32EX600 costs a bit more than the Toshiba 32SL400U, but is a whole lot more TV. It has twice the number of AV inputs, a higher resolution, and better performance in almost every area. It's also a better looking TV, from an aesthetic point of view. That said, it's definitely not the best Sony in its price class, so if you're willing to pony up a little more money, you might also check out the Sony KDL-32EX700 (the next step up from the EX600 series). 

Blacks & Whites


The Toshiba 32SL400U managed a great black level, but failed to deliver on peak brightness. The Sony 32EX600 was not the brightest screen either, but it beat the Toshiba and managed a wider contrast ratio.

Color Accuracy


The Toshiba 32SL400U had a pretty good color performance, but the Sony KDL-32EX600 eked out an even better showing. The RGB curves were smoother and the color temperature was slightly more consistent.

Motion


The Sony 32EX600 produced smoother motion with less artifacting.

Viewing Effects


The Toshiba 32SL400U managed a slightly wider viewing angle than the Sony KDL-32EX600. 

Connectivity


The Toshiba 32SL400U is weak when it comes to ports, there's no denying that. The Sony EX600 has double the number of AV inputs. 

Vs Samsung LN32C550

Value Comparison Summary


The Samsung LN32C550 costs about the same as the Toshiba 32SL400U. It's better in a lot of ways, but is certainly no model of perfection. In terms of sheer features, the Samsung has a 1080p resolution and far more ports, as well as a more attractive design and DLNA home networking support. In terms of performance, the contrast ratio is far better, but the viewing angle and color rendering take a back seat to the Toshiba. Overall, the Samsung is the better value, and unless you can find compelling reason to buy theToshiba 32SL400U, choose the Samsung. 

Blacks & Whites


The Samsung LN32C550 produced a great contrast ratio, due to a deep black level and a much higher peak brightness than the Toshiba 32SL400U. Importantly, the Samsung is also much, much better at displaying meaning detail in the shadows. 

Color Accuracy


The Samsung LN32C550 had a harder time displaying detail in the brighter parts of the signal, which cost it some points in our RGB Curves test. We liked theToshiba 32SL400U's performance better in this regard. Both TVs were good at maintaining a consistent color temperature.

Motion


The Samsung LN32C550 produced a smoother image, but we found that it had a lot of problems with artifacts such as laggy processing.

Viewing Effects


The Samsung LN32C550 has a terrible viewing angle, a problem many of the Samsungs in this price range have suffered from.

Connectivity


The Toshiba 32SL400U has few ports to its name, and is easily beaten by the Samsung LN32C550. 

Vs LG 32LD450

Value Comparison Summary


The LG 32LD450 costs about the same as the Toshiba 32SL400U, and offers some minor upgrades. The resolution is 1080p rather than 720p, and the color performance is better. On the other hand, the Toshiba has better contrast ratio and viewing angle. Both are flawed TVs, in a way, and are easily outclassed by similar TVs from Sony and Samsung. 

Blacks & Whites


The LG 32LD450 had a very hard time with black levels, which created a poor contrast ratio. The Toshiba 32SL400U was better overall, though the LG produced a far brighter peak white level. 

Color Accuracy


The LGs we've reviewed this year almost all had great color performance, and the 32LD450 is definitely among them. The RGB color curves are very smooth and uniform. 

Motion


The motion performance of the Toshiba 32SL400U and LG 32LD450 were very similar. Both produced adequately smooth images with some artifacting, but not so much as to kill the experience.

Viewing Effects


The Toshiba 32SL400U beat out the LG 32LD450 with a wider viewing angle.  

Connectivity


The LG 32LD450 is like the Toshiba 32SL400U, in that it lacks a lot of connectivity options. 

Conclusion

 

 

Series Comparison

xxSL400U Series


The xxSL400U series contain Toshiba's less expensive and smaller TVs that employ LED backlighting. The screen sizes range from just 19 inches to 32 inches. Given the limited, 720p resolution and limited number of ports, these TVs are destined for the bedroom, kitchen, or spare room rather than being the centerpiece of a home theater system.

Meet the tester

David Kender

David Kender

Editor in Chief

@davekender

David Kender oversees content at Reviewed as the Editor in Chief. He served as managing editor and editor in chief of Reviewed's ancestor, CamcorderInfo.com, helping to grow the company from a tiny staff to one of the most influential online review resources. In his time at Reviewed, David has helped to launch over 100 product categories and written too many articles to count.

See all of David Kender's reviews

Checking our work.

Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.

Shoot us an email

Up next