
Sharp HT-M700H
Pros
- Stylish design, Easy to setup, Balanced sound range
Cons
- No digital video output, Several omitted features, Design a little fragile
Bottom Line
Ideal for smaller environments, the Sharp HT-M700H delivers impressive (and inexpensive) 5.1 audio, however the lack of digital video output and a sparse feature-set make it unsuitable for DVD playback
-
Price
$ 519.00 (AUD)
A solid low to mid-range home theatre setup, Sharp's HT-M700H is a great option for users looking for a small surround sound system. A stylish, modern design and a balanced range of sound quality impressed us, although there are a few key omissions which really detract from the overall package, especially regarding connection options.
The first thing that caught our eye when unpacking and setting up the M700H was the design. The main unit has a very minimalist front panel, with only two buttons and a volume knob, complete with neon blue backlighting (which annoyingly, couldn't be disabled). One of the buttons is an on/off switch, while the other controls the motorised front panel, which opens to reveal the DVD tray, an LED display, and a few other buttons. A novel and interesting feature, it nonetheless seems a little too fragile, and we could envision a child snapping it within a few minutes.
Setup was a breeze, thanks to Sharp's clever colour coding. We had all five satellite speakers and the sub plugged in and working within ten minutes. Adjusting and fine tuning positioning took another couple of minutes, and we were ready to go. Unfortunately, it was here that we noticed the connection options on the back panel. Despite boasting optical digital audio, as well as S/PDIF, the HT-M700H video outputs were limited to SCART, S-Video, and composite - not a single digital video output could be found. Even on a system as low budget as this, we would have expected to find component, at least. This is a rather serious flaw, and we found that image quality on DVDs suffered noticeably because of it, even on high quality displays.
This trend continued in the interface which also suffers from a lack of options. A very minimal four DTS soundfield presets are available, titles cannot be skipped through (only chapters), and fast forward and rewind are only present at 2x, 8x and 30x. There seemed to be a lot of features and functions, but none were really fleshed out to our satisfaction.
Still, all this became pretty irrelevant once we settled in to watch a movie. The opening scenes of Lord of the Rings: Return of the King brought back memories of the cinema to our minds. The deep drum beats rumbled heartily, without affecting the clarity and sharpness of the high, orchestral score. Battle scenes were vivid and three dimensional, with the crunch of each sword swing being almost palpable. Within the confines of the small room in which we had setup the Sharp, even the 50W subwoofer was able to create some respectable booms and rumbles, although we couldn't help feeling that it would be a little more underwhelming within a large and spacious living room.
Despite creating a decent vibration though, the bass doesn't overpower the rest of the sound, and we experienced very pleasant mid-range and treble performance from the HT-M700H. It should be noted that this is not a unit that boasts excellent sound quality, but for its price it certainly delivers a clear and balanced sound, without any single element overwhelming the others.
In the end, the Sharp is a very viable audio system, but its numerous omissions and slight foibles make it less than suitable as a fully fledged home theatre setup.
Brand Post

Most Popular Reviews
- 1 Miofive 4K Dash Cam review: This friendly road watcher is ‘here for you!’
- 2 Dell U3223QE review: A winning debut for an IPS Black monitor
- 3 Netgear Nighthawk M5 mobile router review: Probably too expensive, but nice
- 4 Asus TUF Gaming VG28UQL1A review: This 4K monitor plays nice with consoles
- 5 Firewalla Gold review: Powerful home network security in a tiny box
Latest News Articles
- Optus is offering a deal on its Internet Family Entertainer plans with Netflix
- Fetch TV adds 8 new free channels to its line-up
- Fetch TV releases the Fetch Mini 4K set-top-box with voice activated remote
- Sony announces X-Series speakers for music lovers of every genre
- JBL PartyBox 310 lets you party in wet and dark places and sing duets
Resources
Business Centre
The latest business news, reviews, features and whitepapers

Videos
Watch our video news and reviews from around the world

Guides
Comprehensive buying guides, features, and step-by-step articles

PCW Evaluation Team
Pedro Peixoto
Aruba Instant On AP11D

Set up is effortless.
Cate Bacon
Aruba Instant On AP11D

The strength of the Aruba Instant On AP11D is that the design and feature set support the modern, flexible, and mobile way of working.
Dr Prabigya Shiwakoti
Aruba Instant On AP11D

Aruba backs the AP11D up with a two-year warranty and 24/7 phone support.
Tom Pope
Dynabook Portégé X30L-G

Ultimately this laptop has achieved everything I would hope for in a laptop for work, while fitting that into a form factor and weight that is remarkable.
Tom Sellers
MSI P65

This smart laptop was enjoyable to use and great to work on – creating content was super simple.
Lolita Wang
MSI GT76

It really doesn’t get more “gaming laptop” than this.
Featured Content
- 100 Great PC Games You Should Play Before You Die
- Best Click Frenzy mobile and Internet plan deals
- Microsoft’s iconic browser Internet Explorer is being killed off in June
- Which flagship TV is best? Sony 4K HDR Bravia 2016 versus LG 4K HDR OLED 2016
- 10 Blu-ray movies / Best looking Blu-ray movies