LG HT503TH

The basics

LG HT503TH is a home cinema system designed and manufactured by LG. This 500W system is pleasing to the eye with a solid group of sockets, including an HDMI port that deals with all digital video signals.

The good

Let's put this into context. For £20 less than an iPod Touch you can have this full-on one-box home cinema system. Not bad considering its four speakers have been tuned by audio legend Mark Levinson. Sufficed to say, they do a solid job of distributing the surround effects around the room. The design also belies the £200 price, as does the features list - the upscaling DVD player serves up a visual treat with sharp clean images, a USB port lets you play all sorts of media files, plus you can record MP3s directly from a CD. It's not overly fast, but like a Franky Boyle comedy skit, there's no need for PC.

The bad

Unfortunately, the centre channel - like an English footballer in a debate - struggles to supply the all-important dialogue. Also, the underpowered subwoofer seems out of its depth, veering between silent and totally overboard.

The bottom line

The million-dollar question then: Is it worth the money? Strictly speaking it's a £200 question. And the answer is: Very, very nearly.