Reasons To Buy & Things To Know
5 out of 5
I wish I had the review I'm about to write available to me when I was starting my search for an HDTV. The TV itself has a great picture (particularly on HD channels and dvd's of course), sound from tv is also very dynamic and clear.
This is a "slimfit" so it does have some weight (about 120 lbs.) but it's very manageable with another person to carry. How often are you moving your tv around anyway? Unlike most of the other LCD tv's on the market, this still has a picture tube with a glass screen. The result? This will outlast most (all?) LCD's which has pixels that may burn out.
A couple of things to be aware of with the setup - the manual is just OK with some conflicting info. BUT - if you do the following you will be in good shape:
1. Do yourself a favor and connect your cable box w/ an HDMI cable ($60 at Target). It really simplifies things.
2. ALSO (and this is my biggest gripe w/ the manual) - if you use and HDMI cable and you want to hook your dvd player and your cable reception into your stereo receiver you must do it separately (1 set of red/white audio cables from cable box AND 1 set from your dvd player) - You will not be using the "audio out" from the back of the tv. Yes, this will take up 2 ports in your receiver that you can switch between depending on whether you are feeding your cable tv signal or a signal from your dvd player.
Finally (believe it or not) - Kudos to the tech that I reached at the Samung 800 number that was very competent in helping me resolve the above problem in a matter of about 20 minutes.
CRT of the Future, best buy for your $ in a midsized widescreen hdtv with built in tuner
5 out of 5
First, addressing the complaints of others. Earlier versions of this product had geometry issues caused by poor quality control at the factory. This has now been corrected, and the incidence of geometry issues is much lower now.
This is a great tv for many reasons.
(1) The picture quality is amazing. I compared it to everything they had at Best Buy, and only one looked better to me. (Sony HS 420 - colors looked more lifelike: but I'll get to that). The problem with looking at tv's in the store is that they are set to look good in store lighting. You need to get the TV home and adjust it to your specific viewing conditions.
(2) the TV looks beautiful just sitting there, not even turned on. It looks like an LCD from the Front. The slimfit design is revolutionary. It is space, and weight saving.
(3) value: for this price range you will not find a better quality widescreen HDTV with built in tuner. The only one I found that was close was a phillips for about $100 less. But, the TV itself was big and bulky (and ugly in my opinion), weighed much more, and most importantly the picture didn't look nearly as good.
For my first HDTV I had the following requirements. Widescreen, HDTV, at least 26 inches with a tuner, under $1,000. I spent three months, and countless hours comparing tv's and this is the cream of the crop.
Combines the best in VALUE, QUALITY, and SLEEK DESIGN
4 out of 5
This product gets high marks from me because it intersects in the categories of value, quality, and design. Hands-down, for this level of quality in picture and audio, there is no other CRT television that comes close in price. Sure, you can spend more and get bigger and fancier, but for decent quality at the lowest price, look no further. When shopping for my latest TV, we visited a total of three different electronics superstores over a period of several weeks (some more than once), and this TV has the most eye-catching picture and definitely one of the slimmest depths on the market (they tout it as 2/3 as thin of a conventional flatscreen CRT). In fact, this TV was the one we picked out as a Christmas gift for our parents, and we liked it so much once it was set up for them that we bought our own when we got home.
Since HDTV is the future, getting a set that is HD-ready is a must. You will be good to go with this television for years to go. Speaker quality is great, and the design of speakers around the set looks darn good.
A word of warning to anyone who buys this--if the picture quality seems "off" when you first set it up, check the progressive scan settings on the set. I found that the manufacturer's default setting was causing a lot of problems with picture quality, but by changing it, I got a crystal clear picture.
The drawbacks? I have noticed some slight bending in the horizontal volume line when I am fiddling with that. I can't tell if it is affecting overall picture quality, but it doesn't seem to be. I dislike how you have to cycle through ALL of the possible cable, video, and S-video sources, even if you only have three options hooked up to your TV. You should be able to de-select some of the signals from the cycling when you hit the source button. And last, there's a slightly annoying beeping noise (akin to Super Mario Brothers) whenever you turn the set on or off. I haven't figured out how to deactivate that yet!
Bottom line--anything close to this in quality and design is going to run you hundreds more. And the other sets in this price range are inferior and bulky. This is a great buy.
Be Warned
2 out of 5
1. Audio output makes set up with home theater systems difficult. You'll need splitters.
2. The remote control will not control Samsung's own DVD/VCR combo units such as the V3500.
3. Telephone customer support is very lacking. Long hold times, poorly trained techs, and I was hung up on twice while being transferred.
4. For some reason, the Source button on the remote does not cycle through the Component video inputs (only the coax, air and RCA inputs) so to switch between your HDTV cable box and DVD player that are both connected with Component cables, you have go three layers into the menu.
Other than that, the looks great.
Was hopefull I found the right TV but very dissapointed
2 out of 5
I bought the TV from BB Sunday 1/29/06 and ended up taking it back tuesday 1/31/06. Here's why:
1. The first thing I noticed when i plugged my computer into the hdmi was that it was not clear in any way whatsoever. I was slightyly dissapointed, but I thought hey its a tv, not a computer monitor.
2. The second thing I noticed that night was that the title bar on the folder started to bow downwards and wasnt straight all the way across the screen, bending in the top right corner. I also chalked it up as "its not a monitor"
3. The next day I recieved my hdtv cable box, and began watching a dark movie... When a bright light in the dark movie was encountered in some scenes the light turned into a flare that extended from the left end of the screen to the right. Really weird...
4. The final straw was my xbox 360.. It looked beautiful at first glance, but deeper in the game I noticed both the left and right sides of the screen were distorted and almost like a dingy blur. it wouldnt be so bad if I didnt pay 800 bucks for the tv.
Subscribe