Buying Guide: 10 best 37-inch LCD TVs in the world today

Our constantly updated list of all the best 37-inch TVs in the world

Which is the best 37-inch TV?

Making the decision to upgrade from a bulky old 28-inch CRT TV is almost too easy, but heading straight for a 42-inch plasma can seem a little daunting.

And thus the 37-inch size has become one of the UK's most popular shapes; a lot more impressive than a 32-incher, yet not big enough to entirely dominate a living room. It's also often the maximum size for those of us who are forced, simply by the shape of our living room, to shove a TV in the corner.

It's a size division that's as competitive as any, with the big brands weighing in with both LCD and plasma TV models. Despite its direct forerunners being some of the best-reviewed (and best-selling) TVs around, Panasonic's TX-P37X20 is the only plasma left in this category.

The options explained

Surrounded by LCD TVs not just from Panasonic, but from other huge brands like Sony, LG and Toshiba, the 37-inch size has become a battleground dominated by aggressively low pricing.

A buyer's market, the 37-inch size is also home to some wonderful innovations. Here you'll find some sets properly exploiting a Full HD resolution, and TVs with built-in Freesat tuners, others with online dimensions, 100Hz scanning and even - in the case of Loewe's Connect - a luxury wireless TV that can stream music and video from a PC or Mac, before pumping out incredible sound.

Loewe is hardly typical of this cut-price - and sparsely populated - genre, but it shows just what can be done at this modest measurement.

Sony KDL-37EX503 - £720

Freeview HD and media streaming grace this brilliant TV

At last, we have a 37-inch TV that carries a Freeview HD tuner that doesn't cost the earth.

To celebrate the ground-breaking nature of the Bravia KDL-37EX503, Sony has departed from its usual aesthetic by adding a comely strip of brushed aluminium to the bottom edge.

The set's rear is attractive, too, thanks to the inclusion of four HDMIs, a USB for playing MP3, JPEG, and AVC/AVCHD/DivX/MPEG4 video files, and an Ethernet port. As well as enabling you to stream from DLNA PCs, the Ethernet connects to Sony's new Bravia Internet Video platform.

Black level response is among the deepest we've seen on a non-LED LCD TV, colours are natural and exceptionally subtly blended while the set's various processing systems do well at cancelling out LCD's inherent motion blur problems - so HD and SD pictures look enjoyably detailed.

Read: full Sony KDL-37EX503 review

Toshiba 37RV753

Feature-packed 37in set with Freeview HD and Resolution+ upscaling

Get ready for about as much telly as you're likely to see for half a grand. Toshiba's 37RV753 is yet another set from this manufacturer to feature an impressive set of features for an almost puzzlingly low price.

Pictures are bright and punch and lend themselves well to blockbusting movies or animation, with the only downside a clumsy user interface.

Read: full Toshiba 37RV753 full review

Philips 37PFL9604 - £1,000

Solid aluminium set to stun

With its £1,000 price tag, this is easily one of the costliest TVs for its size, but it's also blatantly superior.

The 37PFL9604 sets about the seemingly Herculean task of justifying its price right away, having an extremely eye-catching design and an Ambilight system that sees coloured light sympathetic to the colour content of the picture spilling from the TV's left and right sides.

In full swing, this Philips' high-definition pictures are jaw dropping. Fine detailing is peerless; colours are among the boldest and most accurate we've seen; motion handling is amazingly fluid and crisp and black levels are exceptionally profound by LCD's standards.

Perhaps even more exceptional, though, is the standard-definition performance. The amount of sharpness and detail the Perfect Pixel HD engine adds to a humble DVD or Freeview broadcast has to be seen to be believed - but there's no Freeview HD tuner.

Read: full Philips 37PFL9604 review

LG 37LH7000

Bluetooth and value-busting good looks

Comfortably one of the prettiest TVs around, with subtle red highlights, see-through bottom edge and high-gloss finish, it sports a USB slot and Bluetooth for wireless compatibility with phones and headphones.

The 37LH7000's 100Hz engine works nicely too, making motion look strikingly fluid and sharp. And so long as you only set TruMotion to Low, you get the motion benefits without suffering many of the flickering, shimmering processing artefacts witnessed using higher TruMotion settings.

Pictures are frequently quite spectacular, with exceptionally vivid colours, fluid and sharp images, and decent black levels. The only thing that's run-of-the-mill is its speakers.

Read: full LG 37LH7000 review

Panasonic TX-L37D25

One of the best-equipped sets for free HD is a top-notch performer

Despite its run-of-the-mill price, this 37-incher from Panaosnic is a high-end TV - it's so good that it makes everything else seem rather ordinary.

Laying down a marker for spec and performance that many of its rivals will struggle to match, the D25 adopts Edge LED backlighting and delivers both Freesat HD and Freeview HD tuners. Easily one of the best displays in its class and comprehensively well featured.

Read: full Panasonic TX-L37D25 review

Panasonic TX-P37X20 - £450

Panasonic's budget plamsa TV offers a lot of bang for your buck

The TX-P37X20 is at the bottom of Panasonic's new plasma TV pile. As such, it's rather low on features and cutting-edge technology. But we're confident it will find an audience.

Fashionistas won't like it much, mind you, for the standard black finish, unimaginative sculpting and chunky size is bland in the extreme. Its connectivity is mostly entirely standard, too, with highlights of three HDMIs and an SD/SDXC card slot capable of handling AVCHD video files or JPEG photographs.

The P37X20 boasts sharp hi-def, but isn't Full HD - though without any of the blur that's common LCD screens, you'll arguably see a more consistently detailed picture on this plasma from its built-in Freeview HD tuner.

The set's viewing angle, too, is vastly superior to the angles supported by most liquid crystal sets. Given the right HD material, though, it's worth an audition

Read: full Panasonic TX-P37X20 review

LG 37LE5900

Edge LED lighting in a budget TV

Despite its low price, LG's 37LE5900 is an edge-lit set that's proof that LED tech is getting cheaper by the day.

Elsewhere an amazing set of features crammed somehow into a breathtakingly slinky chassis (including a Freeview HD tuner and 100Hz processing), though an occasionally patchy backlight takes the gloss off this otherwise impressive package.

Read: full LG 37LE5900 review

Panasonic TX-L37S20B - £650

Future-proofed Freeview HD model is a winner

Having the brains to decode Freeview HD broadcasts, plus a 1080p panel on which to display it, makes the Panasonic TX-L37S20B about as future-proof as it's possible to be.

Also appearing is Panasonic's own V-real Pro 4 processing engine, a sophisticated suite of picture tweaks widely regarded as one of the better examples of its kind currently on the market.

The socket count is disappointing in terms of HDMIs (of which there are just three), but it's redeemed slightly by the inclusion of an SD card slot for enjoying multimedia files either from the internet or from your personal computer.

Colour is impressive and black levels aren't bad, and although the picture is on the noisy side, its speakers are typically robust.

Read: full Panasonic TX-L37S20B review

LG 37LH3000

Can this budget LCD TV hold it's own against new TV technology?

Boasting a glossy, curvaceous body that looks anything but cheap, this budget LCD TV - note the absence of LED backlighting - includes features such as LG's Twin XD Engine processing and ISF Certification.

We're instantly struck by how bright and colourful things look, while upscaling is good and animated movies explode off the screen spectacularly.

Read: full LG 37LH3000 full review

Loewe Connect 37 Media

Built-in recording and impressive flexibility don't come cheap on this 37" high-end HDTV

Loewe is often slated in reviews for its huge price tags, forgetting that the German luxury brand is so called for a reason.

Massively impressive speakers are the unique attraction on the £2k+ Connect, which takes its name from an ability to stream digital media from a PC or Mac - and again, it's easy to use, unlike the mainstream brands' efforts.

Oh, and its 250GB integrated memory enables you to rewind, pause and record live television.

HD has stunning detail and fluidity, though digital TV can look poor. An expensive luxury, perhaps, but this Connect's luscious user interface and quite brilliant speakers make this a goood high-end alternative, though picture-wise it's not outstanding.

Read: full Loewe Connect 37 Media review