LG HB45E $349  ★★★★

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Power player: a fine effort from LG, but there are holes to be picked with overall performance.

The design of this LG 2.1 system is something of a paradox. Taking the two speakers (standing nearly 50cm tall) and the subwoofer (comfortably the largest of the three in this test), this system is not just the bulkiest of those on test here, but, well, pretty darn bulky full stop. We can’t help thinking that this detracts from part of the central appeal of a 2.1 cinema system, and makes the much more petite, PS3-shaped main unit – which, like the PS3, is happy standing vertically or horizontally – something of a busted flush.

Still, everything is finished to a high standard and there’s an exhaustive specification to match. A clean and clear interface – which, frankly, puts the other systems to shame – makes it easy to access all the functions: Blu-ray, DVD and CD playback are all present and correct, of course, and you also get an external iPod dock, DLNA media streaming, LG’s Netcast internet-enabled apps, an FM/AM radio tuner and even USB recording, to highlight some key...