The most impressive LCD flat panel HDTVs are by Sharp Aquos. It’s not surprising that a company that builds the LCD panels themselves also builds some of the best LCD HDTVs. Most manufacturers outsource the important work of building the actual panels and that company will slap its name on the side and call it a day. Not Sharp! The Aquos line has been winning hearts and eyeballs all over North America with stunning images.

Sharp just announced its R series will include five new “full-spec” (en vogue geek-speak for 1080P) HDTVs will be available on March 10th 2007. The screen sizes range from 65” down to 42” and all offer full 1920 x 1080 resolution. 

The Japanese manufacturer promises the R series will provide great high speed performance. This refers to the speed at which an LCD pixel performs a complete transition of color, some call it the ‘rise / fall’ specification. Although as a technical spec rise/fall hasn’t been fully ratified by the IEEE so there is no real way to quantify LCD pixel speeds. LCD has been notoriously slow to make severe color transitions which affects fast moving images on screen and can result in macroblocking and trailers behind images. Not so for Sharp’s Aquos R line, according to Sharp these panels will provide a stunning 3,000:1 contrast ratio with deep blacks at very high speeds.