I received my Technika HD ready LCD flatscreen TV for Christmas 2009. This 19in model was the perfect size for my lounge and with built in Freeview and DVD player it meant I could discard of all the other boxes, leads and plugs that are generally cluttering up everybody's TV unit.

The TV comes with a standard remote control which allows the TV and DVD to be operated as well as the standard terrestrial channels available. In addition to standard television this on had an IPOD dock and the remote control can operate this too. The remote is very simple to use with all buttons named and most things do not required flipping through loads of options. Simple click of a button enables you to changes the mode/settings etc. as you please with simplicity.

The TV itself is a glossy black colour and approximately four inches in depth at its deepest point. It sits on a round, black swivel base and can be tilted either backwards or forwards depending on your view point.

This model is operated by plugging in at the wall (obviously), and then by switching a switch to the right hand side, before finally pressing the power button on the remote control. This is the only button on the remote which will turn the television on or off. Just pressing a channel button will not work.

The aerial cable is plugged straight into the wall, however if you do not have a wall point you can plug a portable booster aerial into the back of the machine which depending on your signal should work fine.
The left side of the television has a scart lead point as well as space for a HDMI cable, and also a Ci slot. You can quite easily link the laptop up to the TV and watch whatever you choose from the Laptop on the bigger screen.

This Combi TV also offers a sleep timer, though this isn't a feature I have ever used before.

I tend to leave the screen on full screen, but you can adjust the viewing of this TV to suit the programme or film, by opting for full screen, auto, 4:3 or 14:9. I am not a fan of the screen being stretched or shrunk with black bars to the top or sides, so I do not tend to play with the settings, however, if you wished to do so there is a simple button on the remote labelled "aspect" which allows you to conveniently switch between the settings.

I only use the Freeview/Digital mode on my TV, but on clicking the menu button a full TV guide display appears and allows you to see the Now and Next of what's on. You can scroll through the various channels and select your preference by pressing either the "ok" or "list" button. Should you wish to scroll but not select then the "exit" button takes you back to the programme which was originally being viewed.

I find that if I am scrolling through the channels sometimes the television doesn't keep up with what I am trying to do and with either get stuck on a channel or will continue to scroll when I have asked it to stop.

Another fault I have found is that if you click on the "display" button you can see what it is you are watching and what channel. Often this flicks between the channel details and a message asking me to press the down button. This occurs until the TV catches up with itself when it seems to remedy itself and settle back down.

I did find it a bit annoying that I could only get now and next on the guide, whereas with other televisions you can look much further ahead, until I noticed the "7 day guide" information which says press the blue button. On pressing you are indeed given a 7 day guide which you can scroll through and you can also set reminders for programmes you wish to watch during the week, I was much happier when I found this feature as I was forever seeing things I wanted to watch, only to realise I had missed it.

The DVD function of the television failed me at 13 months. Seeing as all Tesco products come with a standard 12 month guarantee I was a little annoyed to say the least. I tried to return it but Tesco were having none of it.

Prior to its breakdown, the DVD player was really easy to use. The TV itself is very quiet with no audible humming noise, but once the DVD player picked up the DVD you could hear to spinning. Once the disk was playing this noise would once again be reduced until you couldn't really hear it. The DVD can be operated from the remote of from the buttons on the top of the television, which are silver in colour and all labelled. They aren't so noticeable unless you look for them but come in quite handy when you cannot find the remote control.

As my DVD player was breaking it would pick the disk up and make an awful scratching noise as it was trying to read it. This was a horrible noise and certainly put me off even trying to make it work. I tested it several times with a DVD I had no intention of ever watching again, but nothing made it work. As I say Tesco weren't interested and whilst I understand that I could have had the option of a 3 or 5 year additional warranty, this was a gift for Xmas and you don't expect them to breakdown at a year old.

I still have the TV though and I still use it daily, I just link up a portable DVD player instead of using the built in feature. This doesn't bother me as I don't watch DVD's on a regular basis. Aside of the DVD issue the TV set cannot be faulted. The quality is good and the sound is brilliant.

This model is the Technika 19-218 and currently costs £140.00 at Tesco but is regularly reduced and is a bargain for what you're getting.
I will however only give it 3 stars for the problems I had with it.