The HDTV Calibration Wizard Product Review

I finally bought a large screen, high definition TV after a couple of years worth of research. My new TV is a Samsung 46" LCD model that cost in the neighborhood of $1,400. Along with the HDTV, I decided to also buy a Playstation 3 game console in order to watch Blue-Ray movies on my new Samsung. Because of the total dollar amount invested into the beginning of my home theatre system, I also looked into a surge protection device for the growing number of expensive devices on my system.

Background: We experienced the after-effects of Hurrican Ike with very strong winds, which knocked down power lines in my area and subsequently knocked out power to many homes. The problem was when the power was restored by the electric utility - there was a surge in the line that burned out countless, expensive home electronic devices. After seeing an interview of a guy who had his home theatre system fried, I got very serious with the purchase of a surge protector. I did what everyone does and Googled for it. Monster Power came up, the same people that brought us the Monster cables for our stereo speakers.

To make a long story shorter, I bought the Monster surge protector but also noticed an ad on their site that piqued my interest. It was for a DVD that calibrates your HDTV. I've seen too many frustrated HDTV owners who post messages on AV forums, begging for help to fine-tune their pictures. I've also seen ads that promised to send a technician to your house and calibrate your new HDTV. Forget that! They charge hundreds of dollars to do so.

The HDTV Calibration Wizard promises to "calibrate your HDTV to professional Imaging Science Foundation standards". The cost was $29.95, which included free shipping. It arrived within a week and I calibrated my Samsung.

The DVD is an interactive, entertaining guide that steps you through:

- your Black setting

- your White setting

- color balance

- sharpness

- contrast

- image aspect ratio (are the people on the picture scrunched and appearing fat, etc.)

It's narrated by Jenna Drey and even includes a bonus music video in WMV HD in 7.1 digital audio. The various controls on your particular HDTV are reviewed, and you can pause the DVD while you bring them up on your remote controller. Through various still and action scenes, you are given instructions to adjust all the aforementioned settings to match what you see on the DVD. It couldn't be any easier. And Jenna was easy on my male eyes, too!

When you consider the thousands of dollars you will spend on a large screen HDTV, $30 is a true bargain and a drop in the old budget bucket. I highly recommend this product for both novice and experienced HDTV owners.