Review: Sharp LE510 (LE511)
Sharp LE510 review
LE510 is an inexpensive TV by Japanese Sharp. It is an EU-only model and it comes with a slim design, LED, USB playback and USB recording. In other words; the most basic TV functions spiced with some USB features. The LE510 is designed for smaller living rooms and other rooms, so we obviously want to examine how it fares in this regard.
Sharp LE510 is a European model, available in 22, 24, 32 and 40 inches called 22LE510, 24LE510, 32LE510 and 40LE510. It also exists in a LE511 variant in some countries.
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Size: 32" widescreen Resolution: 1920x1080 Response time: - Contrast ratio: - Brightness: - Viewing angles (H/V): - Panel type: LCD-TV with Edge LED Wall mounting: Swivel stand: Dimensions (HxWxD): 49.0cm x 77.3cm x 3.9cm (without stand) Weight 10.5 kg Built-in speakers: Inputs VGA DVI (but possible to convert through HDMI)
Audio (type) (Audio in/out)
S-video Composite Component HDMI Outputs Audio (type) S/PDIF Tuners Analogue DVB-T DVB-T2 DVB-C DVB-S2 Other Price and retailer:
| UK retailer |
Our first impressions
The TV is decorated with a glossy, black frame design and a decorative line at the bottom. The square stand matches the glossy, black frame.
Sharp LE510 review
Sharp LE510 is a very slim TV and slimmer than most TVs in this price range. This is obviously made possible by the Edge LED backlight. Unfortunately not all inputs point to the side, which might prove to be a problem if you are planning to wall-mount the TV.
Sharp LE510 review
Test tools
Our TV signal is DVB-S (satellite) from Canal Digital and DVB-T (terrestrial). We also have an analogue TV connection. Testing is done with the DVE (digital video essentials) and Peter Finzel test DVD. Testing is also done with DVD, TV, Blu-Ray and Media center/PC.We use our own monitorTest. The software supports some of the traditional test patterns used to evaluate displays as well as some new and unique test patterns developed by the people here on FlatpanelsHD.
Sony PlayStation 3 is our Blu-Ray player.
All contrast measurements are based on the ANSI methodology.
Functionality
This remote control comes bundled in the box. It has a lot of buttons for a relatively simple TV but it works and for a TV in this price range we did not expect much.
Sharp LE510 review
Sharp LE510 has two main media features; a USB media playback system and a USB recording system with Time shift.
Sharp LE510 review
The media playback system supports video, music and pictures from USB devices and it handled pretty much all our media files without hiccups. The only problem we encountered during the test period was a MKV file, but DivX and DivX HD is accepted. The loading times are a bit too long, though, but we managed.
Sharp LE510 review
To use USB recording you need to connect an external USB hard drive. We used one from Transcend. The USB recording function is implemented into the EPG so you can program future recording. You can also use the red record button on the remote. It is quite simple. The only down-side is that you cannot switch channel during recording because the TV only packs on tuner.
Sharp introduced time shifting last year and the system now exists even in Sharp’s inexpensive models. With the time shift system you can pause or rewind live TV streams using the buttons on the remote.
The TV has no DLNA or Smart TV features.
Energy consumption
| Compare power consumption measurements on different TVs and monitors with our interactive power consumption applet here. |
 |  | |
| Standby | 0.1 W | 0.1 W |
| SD+HD | 46 W | 37 W |
After calibration I measured power consumption to 37 W – less than a light bulb.
Calibration on Sharp LE510
Below you can see an out-of-box measurement on Sharp LE510 in the Natural picture preset without Eco mode.
| The graph says this: The number on the left is the delta value. Delta is a difference between two factors; here it’s the difference between the measured color on the panel and the actual color that is our target. |
The Natural preset provides oversaturated colors and a too high color temperature. This is not surprising as it is the case on pretty much any TV today. Brightness was measured to 203 cd/m2, which is a bit too high for bedrooms and the like but this is not difficult to change so we moved on the examine the Cinema preset.
The Cinema preset is better but not perfect. The color temperature is still too high, resulting in too bluish and cold pictures. On the other hand, gamma is almost constant at 2.2, which is great. The color deviations are visible but not extreme.
Sharp LE510 does not provide many calibration options and it we found no RGB (red, green, blue) controls. To counter the too high color temperature you can use the Warm setting in the picture menu but it gave us a slightly too low color temperature. Therefore we did not change much compared to the pre-defined values for the Cinema preset and we suggest you go with that – just turn down the backlight setting option a bit.
Picture quality on Sharp LE510
| In this section we will evaluate picture quality with the calibrated settings. |
The LCD panel is semi-glossy and, although not 100 % reflection-free, presents images perfectly fine under most viewing conditions. A very bright sun-illuminated room might be a challenge but besides that we wouldn’t worry.
LE510 does not offer Sharp’s most advanced picture systems and the color gradation is not impressive either. Most colors are distinguished but in the dark areas we saw some banding and color smudging. On the other hand, this is not uncommon with LCD-TVs today and the results from LE510 actually compare to some mid-end – and much more expensive - LCD-TVs from top brands that we have tested over the past few years. However, images tend to have a blue tint, as discussed in the calibration section.
Sharp LE510 review
SD picture quality from DVDs and the built-in tuners is mediocre compared to the standard today but better than on most TV we have examined in this price range. Moving images tend to look slightly softer and the general picture quality is softer than on more expensive TVs but for a 32-inch TV we think most users will find LE510 adequate and convincing. It had no critical errors in terms of SD picture reproduction.
Sharp LE510 review
HD picture quality is obviously better and HD always does better justice to a TV. HD pictures look considerably crisper on Sharp LE510 compared to SD but the HD experience is obviously far behind more expensive TVs. Luckily, Sharp LE510 has no critical issues with response time, colors or shadow detailing, and it delivers a pleasing HD experience from the built-in tuners and from external sources.
Sharp LE510 review
If you are looking for a TV to use together with a game console you should care about response time and input lag. Sharp LE510 is not super-fast but it does not exhibit any types of heavy trailing or overdrive trailing, either. It is well-suited for most gaming and the game mode provides an input lag level of 32 ms: comparable to a typical LCD-TV today.
Sharp LE510 review
Below I have measured black level and contrast.
| | |
| Black level | 0.20 cd/m2 | 0.15 cd/m2 |
| Brightness | 203 cd/m2 | 132 cd/m2 |
| Contrast ratio | 1015:1 | 880:1 |
Contrast ratio +/- 50
After calibration we measured black level to 0.15 cd/m2, which is typical for inexpensive TV but not really impressive in any way. The best TVs reach 0.01 to 0.03 cd/m2 black depth today.
Sharp LE510 review
Shadow detailing is fair and we were able to distinguish more grey tone shades. Only the 2-3 darkest shades faded together with the black color; this is common with LCD-TVs.
Below I have examined the Sharp LE510 a completely dark room to see if it has clouding, backlight bleeding or floating black issues.
Sharp LE510 review
Our LE510 sample had absolutely no clouding problems, which is great – especially if you plan to use it in a bedroom.
PC and Media Center
In order to achieve 1:1 pixel mapping you need to select the aspect ratio called “Full" in the TV settings.Viewing angles
LE510 has some color shifting from wide angles but nothing worrying. Actually I am positively surprised with the viewing angles on LE510. See for yourself below.
Sharp LE510 review
Sharp LE510 review
Sound quality
The TV is thin and the cabinet leaves little room for proper speakers. For a TV in this class we need proper sound because an external sound solution seems unreasonable. And luckily the speakers are good enough for casual viewing. The bass is weak, sure, but the cabinet is not vibrating or anything, which is definitely a plus.Conclusion
Sharp LE510 (LE511 in some regions) offers a few handy features such as USB video and music playback, as well as photo viewing. It also offers recording functionality if you connect an external USB hard drive. A pretty decent solution pack for an inexpensive bedroom or summer house TV.Picture quality wise, Sharp LE510 is nothing extraordinary but it has no critical picture-related issues either. The black level is a little weak compared to top-end TVs but compared to the average mid-end TV, Sharp LE510 is on-par. SD and HD pictures are fairly good and the response time, too, allowing console gamers to enjoy most games on the relatively inexpensive LE510 model. However, pictures tend to have a blue tint due to too high color temperature in the Cinema and Natural picture presets.
All in all Sharp LE510 is a fair TV but in no way impressive. We consider it a good choice for bedrooms, summer houses, children’s rooms and the like but if you seek a living room TV we think you should consider spending a few more coins and look at some of Sharps 6, 7 or 8 series models.
Price and retailer:
| UK retailer |
 |  |  |
| Fair picture quality for an inexpensive TV | Black depth | Bedroom |
| USB playback and USB recording | Blue/cold color tint | Summer house |
| No light clouding problems | Detailing a bit soft |
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