Purchased the LN55650B to replace a Samsung 56 inch DLP, and it is a huge improvement.
My biggest concern in researching the television was how it well it would work in a very bright room. I have three picture windows in my living room, each of which is at least five by eight feet. I get a large amount of ambient light during the afternoon which made watching the DLP very difficult for several hours. No problem with this set. Yes, there is some reflection, but the picture is very good. I've watched movies, television programs, and sports with great satisfaction. Don't let reviews scare you that warn against reflection.
I was also pleasantly surprised with the quality of sound from the television. I have a home theater that I can use, but usually I don't bother switching over to it. For movies, yes, not for much of anything else.
This is the best television I've owned. I've owned at least a dozen...
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Awesome TV & a great response from Amazon!
Amazon was amazing. I ordered the unit in the AM on Mon and it was shipped and installed on Tues by 5. Better response time than the local electronic store(s) delivery windows. The 100,000-1 contrast ratio really makes a difference and gives animated films a 3D like appearance. I had some conecerns about viewing SD cable channels on this larger screen. This Samsung does a good job with scaling and displaying standard def feeds. When running 1080P it is just plain beautiful. I didn't like the touch of color frame on earlier models but this one is more muted and is much better looking. This is one great TV being offering by an impressive vendor. I certainly plan to buy my next one here as well becuase the TV/DVD combo I ordered was the best price around and both arrived next day.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 So worth it!
I ordered my TV when there was a promo for free blue ray player with a Samsung TV purchase. It was delivered within the early part of the following week. I am very pleased with the picture quality and other features of the TV. And with a free sony blue ray player, I really think I hit the jackpot with this Amazon deal. I will highly recommend this to anybody.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Great TV I have the similar LN55B640
I have just recently bought the LN55B640 which is the sister model to this one. It is a great TV. I had first had the 58 Plasma and exchanged it for this because the plasma made a slight humming noise esp during bright white scenes which I found annoying. This is a great switch. I find that the black tones are very good for an LCD picture quality is very similar to that of the new Samsung LED at a much cheaper price. Be aware you will need to adjust the settings most likely when you get this TV out of the box. I need to switch a lot of the settings including the Auto Motion Plus feature. It comes set on Standard which I found to be a bit superimposed looking and a bit bizarre for some shows and movies. For those of you who have the feeling the TV looks "Too real" of like it was shot with a great home video camera all it is is the Auto Motion Plus feature under Picture - Picture Options on the settings Menu, just set it to "Off" or "Clear" which I like for most shows. Hope this helps. Good luck and this was a great choice for me!! :)
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Great 55 inch TV
The TV is absolutely beautiful. I did contemplate between the 240Hz ln52b750 and this model and am glad that I choose the ln55b650. The larger screen size is surely a plus.
HD channels are great to watch. The only drawback is that when you watch non HD channels the low video quality is also magnified, since the TV outputs all details of the picture.
I did see the opera affect on some channels but that got fixed once I switched off the 120Hz.
I would surely recommend this TV.
HD channels are great to watch. The only drawback is that when you watch non HD channels the low video quality is also magnified, since the TV outputs all details of the picture.
I did see the opera affect on some channels but that got fixed once I switched off the 120Hz.
I would surely recommend this TV.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Great TV
We replaced our three year old Panasonic 50 inch plasma with this TV. It was just as big an improvement as we saw from our Mitsubishi HD projection to the Panasonic. The results are borderline 3-D on all HD channels. This is a great TV! Delivery and set up makes Amazon miles ahead of hauling it home from Best Buy. I saved shipping and sales tax.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 pros and cons, but astonishing!
Pros and Cons, but overall a GREAT TV! For the past two years i have used a samsung 46" lcd (720p) with the bdp-1500 blu-ray player and it was great. Though due to a problem, i had to switch it under warranty and got this 55" in its place. First off, whoever said you cant tell the difference between a 720p and a 1080p, is dead wrong. there is a world of difference. i was using the same blu-ray player on both tv's, and watching it is a world of change! So anyone thinking of a 720p thinking its "close enough" its really not.... there is a HUGE visual difference.
Now, getting to the TV itself. I had a little problem getting the tv to recognize the bluray player. So much for plug and play with the hdmi cable, took about 40 minutes on samsung phone support to resolve, so incase you also get a "mode not recognized" go into the tv settings and change "anynet" to "off" , hookup the bluray using the red/yellow/white cable to the tv and go into the bluray menu, and do the same. then turn them both off, connect with the HDMI, and your in business.
Pros:
Absolutely no question this tv has clarity! It is amazing, we watched dark knight on bluray and were totally blown away, watching a movie we saw before, but in a whole new way! it looks just like the store set ups with all the bells and whistles lol, cant stress how GREAT the picture is. Watching HDTV Cable, same story, just great! Ive read some reviews that some people dont like the "touch of red" but to be totally honest, i cant even see it unless i open all the windows and have direct light, then you can see it. otherwise, in a normal lit room, you can see a little red on the bottom and thats about it. connections with hdmi make this tv super easy for anyone to set up bluray, surround sound, and any accessories with ease, but again if you have my problem you can still call 1-800-samsung, and get free support.
Cons: there arent a whole lot of big complaints i have with this purchase. when moving it to another angle and turning the screen, it wobbles a bit but thats expected with a heavier tv. the one thing i would complain about, is the screen is more glossy than my 5 series 46" lcd. one of the reasons i bought lcd vs. plasma a few years ago, was the glare factor. though this glare is not as bad as plasma, there is still a glare. anyone with windows directly behind you while watching tv.... will definatly see it. light anywhere else in the room, once the tv is ON, you cant really see it unless you try. but if there are windows behind you, or lamps on, you can directly see glare. i watch tv in a darker room so it wont be too much of a factor for me. i opened up my curtains , and have a window 8 ft wide directly to the right of my tv, and with broad daylight coming in from the side, no problems. if i turn on my lamp ... i can see, so think about your room, and how the tv will be placed.
besides these notes, i would buy this tv again. i can hook up my hd camera with ease, view pics, set up my Wii or game cube without issues, and plenty of options to change as far as brightness, color, etc. i havent hooked up the internet cable yet but i look foward to playing with those options and seeing everything this tv can do!
On a side note, really consider buying the extended warranty from where ever you get the tv from, it saved my life. i paid an extra $200 2 years ago when i got my 46 inch, and as luck would have it, it broke, and i got this tv to replace it, and only paid the difference in cost which was only a couple hundred bucks. not bad for a tv worth three grand!
Now, getting to the TV itself. I had a little problem getting the tv to recognize the bluray player. So much for plug and play with the hdmi cable, took about 40 minutes on samsung phone support to resolve, so incase you also get a "mode not recognized" go into the tv settings and change "anynet" to "off" , hookup the bluray using the red/yellow/white cable to the tv and go into the bluray menu, and do the same. then turn them both off, connect with the HDMI, and your in business.
Pros:
Absolutely no question this tv has clarity! It is amazing, we watched dark knight on bluray and were totally blown away, watching a movie we saw before, but in a whole new way! it looks just like the store set ups with all the bells and whistles lol, cant stress how GREAT the picture is. Watching HDTV Cable, same story, just great! Ive read some reviews that some people dont like the "touch of red" but to be totally honest, i cant even see it unless i open all the windows and have direct light, then you can see it. otherwise, in a normal lit room, you can see a little red on the bottom and thats about it. connections with hdmi make this tv super easy for anyone to set up bluray, surround sound, and any accessories with ease, but again if you have my problem you can still call 1-800-samsung, and get free support.
Cons: there arent a whole lot of big complaints i have with this purchase. when moving it to another angle and turning the screen, it wobbles a bit but thats expected with a heavier tv. the one thing i would complain about, is the screen is more glossy than my 5 series 46" lcd. one of the reasons i bought lcd vs. plasma a few years ago, was the glare factor. though this glare is not as bad as plasma, there is still a glare. anyone with windows directly behind you while watching tv.... will definatly see it. light anywhere else in the room, once the tv is ON, you cant really see it unless you try. but if there are windows behind you, or lamps on, you can directly see glare. i watch tv in a darker room so it wont be too much of a factor for me. i opened up my curtains , and have a window 8 ft wide directly to the right of my tv, and with broad daylight coming in from the side, no problems. if i turn on my lamp ... i can see, so think about your room, and how the tv will be placed.
besides these notes, i would buy this tv again. i can hook up my hd camera with ease, view pics, set up my Wii or game cube without issues, and plenty of options to change as far as brightness, color, etc. i havent hooked up the internet cable yet but i look foward to playing with those options and seeing everything this tv can do!
On a side note, really consider buying the extended warranty from where ever you get the tv from, it saved my life. i paid an extra $200 2 years ago when i got my 46 inch, and as luck would have it, it broke, and i got this tv to replace it, and only paid the difference in cost which was only a couple hundred bucks. not bad for a tv worth three grand!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 A Masterpiece!
Like everyone else on Amazon, I spent a year researching and reading up on LCDs. I made my choice in February 2009 and bought a LN52A650. WOW! Even better than I read and thought...
Well, we got burglared and guess what, I was in the market again. I wanted to order the same model but it had gone up to $2299 (I had paid $1815 in February). Obviously very popular and the new model had come out. So I looked at the LED series (the UN7000 and UN8000) and the LN55B650. I went to a Best Buy, compared them side by side, and guess what, there was no difference in picture quality.
I've had the LN55B650 for a month now and let me just say this: I'm in consumer heaven! Read all the 5 star reviews of the LN52A650 - it applies to this model and expect to be blown away!
Well, we got burglared and guess what, I was in the market again. I wanted to order the same model but it had gone up to $2299 (I had paid $1815 in February). Obviously very popular and the new model had come out. So I looked at the LED series (the UN7000 and UN8000) and the LN55B650. I went to a Best Buy, compared them side by side, and guess what, there was no difference in picture quality.
I've had the LN55B650 for a month now and let me just say this: I'm in consumer heaven! Read all the 5 star reviews of the LN52A650 - it applies to this model and expect to be blown away!
Friday, November 20, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 I'm surprised..
I'm surprised that more people aren't buying this set, or at least reviewing it (which typically is indicative of sales). Really with this set there are only two things that may bother your run-of-the-mill average TV watcher, and that is 1. Glare, 2. Flashlighting/clouding (backlight shining through).
On 1 I can honestly say the glare doesn't bother me at all. Some people may not be able to deal with it because they are picky and/or have a really bright room this TV is going into, but that is not an issue to me. Just personal opinion. I would never let that be a factor to me unless it truly bothered me, and it truly does not with this set.
On 2 I can say that I did have some initial problems with clouding and it being visible. I used settings posted on Cnet for this TV. They are kind of dark, but you get used to it. This prevents clouding from being as noticeable, but some backlight will bleed through, and it's especially apparent on large TVs. How apparent is it? I am very picky and although I can notice it on a completely pitch black screen, it really doesn't bother me that much during normal TV watching. I have my backlight set at 3 (out of 10), standard mode leaves it at 8. This is way too bright and you will most definitely see some bleed through.
There are a few recommended fixes if you have clouding that is poor around the edges. Wiping the entire TV side to side and up and down with a microfiber cloth has worked in limited cases, as well as loosening a few bezel screws along the TVs edge to loosen the pressure and keep the backlight from shining through as brightly. Also limited success stories on this method and I even tried it with no such luck. Changing my settings was the action that gave me the best result. Photographs have proven even TVs that appear as if they have no apparent clouding to the naked eye actually do have clouding, so don't stare at your TV for hours looking for this imperfection, simply find a setting that seems to remove it upon a glance at the TV and move on.
Some other cons to point out that you may or may not know about and/or normally wouldn't think they will bother you but might actually. The off angle viewing of this TV is not good. You will see the TVs contrast change dramatically even moving your head 2 feet from the center of the TV sitting 10' away. How big of a deal is that to you? Depends. Some experts have said that this TV is best for one-person and adding multiple people with different viewing angles renders this set to not be preferred. Do I believe that? Not really. I think for most families sitting an appropriate distance from this set probably won't be too irritated at the slight off angle viewing issues. However, it is noticeable and the best angle by far is directly in front of the set. Keep this in mind--maybe check it out in action at the store first if you are buying this set for a family.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the TV has an included rope you screw into the back of the TV and tie off on a screw in the wall. Very silly design and completely retarded to put on and even easy to look over when you purchase the set. But guess what? Use it. This TV is top heavy like mad and easily could tip over. I've also heard some complaints on the PIP and remote and audio as well on this TV, but I don't use any of them so I won't comment. I also don't play games so I won't comment there, although I hook my computer up and it looks just fine.
People like to hear potential negatives in reviews more than positives I think, so there is my list. I consider myself pretty picky but overall I think this TV is an excellent buy at a sub-$2,000 price point. If you can afford a $5,000 LED LCD with the latest technology, why are you even considering this set? While the PQ might be comparable to more expensive TVs (truly this TV looks that good), lesser auxiliary issues like tying a rope to a wall to keep the TV from falling shouldn't even be something you should care about. PQ is great from cable to blu-ray to PC on this set and I really don't think you're going to be disappointed if you purchase and this is your price range (or a little above).
Another big debate is whether or not to go with the 52B750 with a higher refresh rate. The truth is that your eyes will never tell a difference between the two refresh rates. I have read that there are lesser cases of backlight bleeding with the 52", but that's probably partly due to the fact that the 52" is 3" less in size. I'm still in the return period and I could get the 52" if I wanted, but I simply think that's not the best buy. This TV is.
Lastly I will point out that the LCD panel used in this particular set is a CMO Panel and not a Samsung panel. Approximately 60% of Samsung's don't use Samsung panels, so don't worry that you aren't getting an authentic Samsung; it is pretty common. The CMO panel a lot of experts complain about, but they also complain about the S-PVA panel used in the 46" version of the B650 or the 52" version in the B750. The difference between the two is negligible to the everyday user, not to mention side-by-side the two panels are almost identical in specs. If you've heard about this before and it's concerned you, or if you are hearing it now for the first time, consider it extra information and nothing else that should sway your opinion on purchasing this set. Lastly I will say that if you are someone who thinks 42" or 46" is fine, just buy this TV. The price difference is insignificant and very rarely have I ever heard of someone buying a bigger TV than what they wanted and complained about it later. My dad likes to complain it's too big, but that's because his TV is best for viewing under a microscope and he's not used to watching things bigger. Bigger is better. Overall I give this TV a solid A.
On 1 I can honestly say the glare doesn't bother me at all. Some people may not be able to deal with it because they are picky and/or have a really bright room this TV is going into, but that is not an issue to me. Just personal opinion. I would never let that be a factor to me unless it truly bothered me, and it truly does not with this set.
On 2 I can say that I did have some initial problems with clouding and it being visible. I used settings posted on Cnet for this TV. They are kind of dark, but you get used to it. This prevents clouding from being as noticeable, but some backlight will bleed through, and it's especially apparent on large TVs. How apparent is it? I am very picky and although I can notice it on a completely pitch black screen, it really doesn't bother me that much during normal TV watching. I have my backlight set at 3 (out of 10), standard mode leaves it at 8. This is way too bright and you will most definitely see some bleed through.
There are a few recommended fixes if you have clouding that is poor around the edges. Wiping the entire TV side to side and up and down with a microfiber cloth has worked in limited cases, as well as loosening a few bezel screws along the TVs edge to loosen the pressure and keep the backlight from shining through as brightly. Also limited success stories on this method and I even tried it with no such luck. Changing my settings was the action that gave me the best result. Photographs have proven even TVs that appear as if they have no apparent clouding to the naked eye actually do have clouding, so don't stare at your TV for hours looking for this imperfection, simply find a setting that seems to remove it upon a glance at the TV and move on.
Some other cons to point out that you may or may not know about and/or normally wouldn't think they will bother you but might actually. The off angle viewing of this TV is not good. You will see the TVs contrast change dramatically even moving your head 2 feet from the center of the TV sitting 10' away. How big of a deal is that to you? Depends. Some experts have said that this TV is best for one-person and adding multiple people with different viewing angles renders this set to not be preferred. Do I believe that? Not really. I think for most families sitting an appropriate distance from this set probably won't be too irritated at the slight off angle viewing issues. However, it is noticeable and the best angle by far is directly in front of the set. Keep this in mind--maybe check it out in action at the store first if you are buying this set for a family.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the TV has an included rope you screw into the back of the TV and tie off on a screw in the wall. Very silly design and completely retarded to put on and even easy to look over when you purchase the set. But guess what? Use it. This TV is top heavy like mad and easily could tip over. I've also heard some complaints on the PIP and remote and audio as well on this TV, but I don't use any of them so I won't comment. I also don't play games so I won't comment there, although I hook my computer up and it looks just fine.
People like to hear potential negatives in reviews more than positives I think, so there is my list. I consider myself pretty picky but overall I think this TV is an excellent buy at a sub-$2,000 price point. If you can afford a $5,000 LED LCD with the latest technology, why are you even considering this set? While the PQ might be comparable to more expensive TVs (truly this TV looks that good), lesser auxiliary issues like tying a rope to a wall to keep the TV from falling shouldn't even be something you should care about. PQ is great from cable to blu-ray to PC on this set and I really don't think you're going to be disappointed if you purchase and this is your price range (or a little above).
Another big debate is whether or not to go with the 52B750 with a higher refresh rate. The truth is that your eyes will never tell a difference between the two refresh rates. I have read that there are lesser cases of backlight bleeding with the 52", but that's probably partly due to the fact that the 52" is 3" less in size. I'm still in the return period and I could get the 52" if I wanted, but I simply think that's not the best buy. This TV is.
Lastly I will point out that the LCD panel used in this particular set is a CMO Panel and not a Samsung panel. Approximately 60% of Samsung's don't use Samsung panels, so don't worry that you aren't getting an authentic Samsung; it is pretty common. The CMO panel a lot of experts complain about, but they also complain about the S-PVA panel used in the 46" version of the B650 or the 52" version in the B750. The difference between the two is negligible to the everyday user, not to mention side-by-side the two panels are almost identical in specs. If you've heard about this before and it's concerned you, or if you are hearing it now for the first time, consider it extra information and nothing else that should sway your opinion on purchasing this set. Lastly I will say that if you are someone who thinks 42" or 46" is fine, just buy this TV. The price difference is insignificant and very rarely have I ever heard of someone buying a bigger TV than what they wanted and complained about it later. My dad likes to complain it's too big, but that's because his TV is best for viewing under a microscope and he's not used to watching things bigger. Bigger is better. Overall I give this TV a solid A.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Best Father's Day Ever!!
I have never seen a better picture than the one on this Sammy. HD content on it is simply jaw dropping to my eyes. Way too bright out the box, but a few adjustments to contrast and backlighting brought it to an awe inspiring level. This replaced a 62inch Mit$u DLP (broke after just 3 years) and I couldn't be happier. No more fan noise, no more green push, no more suckiness of the Mit$u. I dusted off the xbox 360 HD-DVD player and watched Transformers again. This TV actually made me like the movie. Much much better than my theater experience. Black levels were excellent and the colors, Oh my!!! This thing is almost 3 dimensional at times.
The Auto Motion Plus feature works as advertised, but I changed the judder reduction to 3 and the blur reduction to 10. No soap opera video with these settings. I haven't had the set calibrated yet, but I can't imagine it getting much better anyway. Maybe a year or two down the road, I'll look into it, but I'm just scared to touch anything now.
The negatives are small, but must be noted. The internet connectivity is very gimmicky as the Yahoo widgets are limited. I checked out Yahoo News, and it has a bunch of headlines, but no full stories. It is also painstakenly slow to navigate. The menu system in general is pretty slow also. There is a touch control panel on the front bezel that can control volume/power/channel/source, but there are no visible labels. I thought there might be some way to illuminate the panel, but could not find anything in the manual. This makes the front panel touch buttons fairly useless.
I for one love the design of the front bezel and it compliments the TV perfectly. Who wants a dull black box when you can have the glass over red carbon fiber look! Ok, I went too far there, but I like it.
Overall, this is a fantastic product and I hope to enjoy it for years to come. When the economy gets better, I will be getting me a blu-ray player to feed this beast. It's so hungry for HD...
The Auto Motion Plus feature works as advertised, but I changed the judder reduction to 3 and the blur reduction to 10. No soap opera video with these settings. I haven't had the set calibrated yet, but I can't imagine it getting much better anyway. Maybe a year or two down the road, I'll look into it, but I'm just scared to touch anything now.
The negatives are small, but must be noted. The internet connectivity is very gimmicky as the Yahoo widgets are limited. I checked out Yahoo News, and it has a bunch of headlines, but no full stories. It is also painstakenly slow to navigate. The menu system in general is pretty slow also. There is a touch control panel on the front bezel that can control volume/power/channel/source, but there are no visible labels. I thought there might be some way to illuminate the panel, but could not find anything in the manual. This makes the front panel touch buttons fairly useless.
I for one love the design of the front bezel and it compliments the TV perfectly. Who wants a dull black box when you can have the glass over red carbon fiber look! Ok, I went too far there, but I like it.
Overall, this is a fantastic product and I hope to enjoy it for years to come. When the economy gets better, I will be getting me a blu-ray player to feed this beast. It's so hungry for HD...
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Initial thoughts.
Ordered TV from amazon.com delivered by Pilot. It was delivered a day sooner than the earliest date promised. Overall experience w/ Pilot was way better than CEVA.
As for TV, I bought Sony KDL 52v5100 but I was so disappointed with Sony's picture quality and features of that tv that i decided to break my loyalty with sony after so many years. I will need to post an update as it has only been 24hrs since i got this tv, but my initial reaction is that it seems to be great. looks are good and it is full of features. beats a comparable price-range sony anytime. picture quality is also very good. one thing i noticed though, is that there is a gap b/w the glass surface and the actual LCD (less than 1/8inch). keeping my fingers crossed, as i have heard bad things about samsung customer service.
Update #1: Ok here is an update. For some reason the tv keeps forgetting fav channels!! This may not be relevant for many ppl but I have hooked up CATV cable directly into the tv. So when I add a fav channel, a bit later the channel goes missing from the fav list. The same thing happened to different channels at different times. Flipping channels though is much better - actually its pretty awesome. I was used to Sony, which takes annoyingly long time to change channels. But like I said, this may be a non-issue if you are using a cable box.
Also, hooked up LAN cable and it would not pick up automatically so had to input all IP/DNS addresses. Internet activity is a bit slow (probably due to slower processing). Yet to check out how DLNA works. USB functionality is great - plays almost all video files, displays pictures in crisp quality, plays music etc.
As for TV, I bought Sony KDL 52v5100 but I was so disappointed with Sony's picture quality and features of that tv that i decided to break my loyalty with sony after so many years. I will need to post an update as it has only been 24hrs since i got this tv, but my initial reaction is that it seems to be great. looks are good and it is full of features. beats a comparable price-range sony anytime. picture quality is also very good. one thing i noticed though, is that there is a gap b/w the glass surface and the actual LCD (less than 1/8inch). keeping my fingers crossed, as i have heard bad things about samsung customer service.
Update #1: Ok here is an update. For some reason the tv keeps forgetting fav channels!! This may not be relevant for many ppl but I have hooked up CATV cable directly into the tv. So when I add a fav channel, a bit later the channel goes missing from the fav list. The same thing happened to different channels at different times. Flipping channels though is much better - actually its pretty awesome. I was used to Sony, which takes annoyingly long time to change channels. But like I said, this may be a non-issue if you are using a cable box.
Also, hooked up LAN cable and it would not pick up automatically so had to input all IP/DNS addresses. Internet activity is a bit slow (probably due to slower processing). Yet to check out how DLNA works. USB functionality is great - plays almost all video files, displays pictures in crisp quality, plays music etc.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Now THIS is HDTV..
I'm not a videophile and don't want to try and provide a technical review...but can say that the picture quality of this Samsung LCD is [by far] the best that I have reviewed to date (compared to Sony, Sharp, Panasonic, and LG).
Sound quality is the same as most other flat screen TVs.
The only thing that I'm trying to get used to is watching movies on Blu-ray. It is so real that you feel like you're sitting in the studio. Hopefully this 'soap-opera' effect will be temporary.
Sound quality is the same as most other flat screen TVs.
The only thing that I'm trying to get used to is watching movies on Blu-ray. It is so real that you feel like you're sitting in the studio. Hopefully this 'soap-opera' effect will be temporary.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Beautiful!
Let me give you some history first...i had originally ordered an LG plasma from HSN...it came twice with chards of broken glass...and the delivery was awful (Civa?) and took several weeks to arrive. So i was somewhat reluctant to purchase on-line again. So when Amazon shipped this so fast and Pilot delivered it with great service, i was very pleased. However, afterward, i noticed a tiny scratch in the screen that showed a white dot when the screen was dark in that corner...Thought i could live with it since i was sick of sending back TVs, but obsessed over the small dot when i saw it. I notified Amazon who offered a small discount or a new TV. I picked a new TV. Within a few weeks, I had a new TV delivered and the old one taken away. Amazon was great and the same delivery guy was very pleasant. Now the TV...it is so sharp and crisp and beautifully big that i don't want to stop watching TV. I have a fairly new LG 42" in the bedroom and thought it was good until i watched this one. Glad i didn't wait for an LED or whatever is next, because i can't imagine a more perfect TV. Haven't figured out the extra capabities such as streaming, but can't wait. Almost ordered the 52inch, but glad i went a little bigger. It's Great!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
ln55b650
After much shopping around and studying the specs and reviews on many different tvs, I purchased a new Samsung ln55b650. I narrowed my choices to Samsungs new lcd tv and their new led tv. I couldn't tell a lot of difference watching the two tvs in the store so I went with the 55 inch lcd. I couldn't be more pleased with my choice. The picture quality is even better than I hoped and after a months usage I have found no problems with the tv.
I would recommend the tv and I would definitely order it again from Amazon. The price and the delivery service make Amazon my first choice for any new appliance.
I would recommend the tv and I would definitely order it again from Amazon. The price and the delivery service make Amazon my first choice for any new appliance.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 GREAT HDTV !!!
Samsung hits another home run. I received my LN55B650 HDTV two days ago. Put it on my bedroom wall and WOW !!! Great sharp picture, deep colors, and a very nice appearance. In the past year, I've purchased two other Samsung HDTV'S for my other rooms, and I am very pleased with all of them. I purchased this HDTV, using Samsung's $[...] instant rebate. This put me over the top in deciding to buy. Received my television two days earlier than scheduled. Delivery by Pilot was first rate. White glove setup. I was very pleased with their service. This HDTV is everything and more. I have researched a lot of HDTV'S and as of this review, I am very satisfied with what Samsung has produced. If you are looking for a HDTV of this size, buy this Samsung and you will not be disappointed.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 55-Inch 1080p - Fantastic Picture
Upgraded from a Samsung 56" DLP....like night and day. Having owned previous LCD sets from Sharp, I was leary about purchasing another LCD TV. While the Sharp LCD (15" 480i and 32" 1080P) both had good pictures, they were not significantly better than my Samsung, 56" 1080P DLP in either a 480i (both sets) or 1080P (the 32").
That said, I saw the LN55B650 in Best Buy and was impressed, so I proceeded to do several days of research and pricing on the internet and decided to take the plunge....purchased the 55" and 32" versions.
- Blue Ray: Crisp picture, deep blacks and true colors...looks like you can almost step into the picture.
- HD Signal: As good as the Blue Ray picture.
- Non-HD Signal: Great upconversion with superb detail.
- Controls: A lot of adjustments, most of which I don't touch. Planning on bringing in a professional to fine tune both sets.
That said, I saw the LN55B650 in Best Buy and was impressed, so I proceeded to do several days of research and pricing on the internet and decided to take the plunge....purchased the 55" and 32" versions.
- Blue Ray: Crisp picture, deep blacks and true colors...looks like you can almost step into the picture.
- HD Signal: As good as the Blue Ray picture.
- Non-HD Signal: Great upconversion with superb detail.
- Controls: A lot of adjustments, most of which I don't touch. Planning on bringing in a professional to fine tune both sets.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Great value
Considering this is in Samsung's 6-series line (read: budget), the features and picture quality are top-notch. Like most people, I considered an LED backlit (not perimeter lit) higher end set. While I agree that the black level is nicer on the LED lit sets, it is not twice as good to justify the price. Same thing with 240Hz, it's an improvement, but not a must-have. 3" vs 1" thick... once it's on the wall, 7' away from you, I doubt you'll care much.
With a TV like this, you want to spend time reading up on settings to tweak it for your room and your tastes. But, out of the box, the TV performs beautifully, the color and contrast are excellent. Sound... well I'm not sure, since I don't use the onboard speakers.
I was able to get this with the free blu-ray player for $[...] shipped, turned the player around on [...] for [...] bucks so the set was $[...] net. Edit: I absoultely CANNOT believe it is selling for 2600 bucks now with NO free Blu-Ray player. Since when do electronics go UP in price? Next thing you know, OLED will go obsolete before LCD.
If you are considering a TV this size, definitely go down to your local shop to check out the bezel as it definitely has some red highlights and is a bit bigger underneath the set than some of the more minimalistic designs out there. That design element may bother some. Depending on the wall color behind the set (ideally should be a neutral dark color) you may not even notice it.
With a TV like this, you want to spend time reading up on settings to tweak it for your room and your tastes. But, out of the box, the TV performs beautifully, the color and contrast are excellent. Sound... well I'm not sure, since I don't use the onboard speakers.
I was able to get this with the free blu-ray player for $[...] shipped, turned the player around on [...] for [...] bucks so the set was $[...] net. Edit: I absoultely CANNOT believe it is selling for 2600 bucks now with NO free Blu-Ray player. Since when do electronics go UP in price? Next thing you know, OLED will go obsolete before LCD.
If you are considering a TV this size, definitely go down to your local shop to check out the bezel as it definitely has some red highlights and is a bit bigger underneath the set than some of the more minimalistic designs out there. That design element may bother some. Depending on the wall color behind the set (ideally should be a neutral dark color) you may not even notice it.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Review
I have had this item approximately three weeks and it has met all of my expectations. As a Plasma TV owner, I wanted to replace and older TV with an LCD since they use less power and create less heat. I did a good deal of research but this TV was too new to have been rated. I trusted in the quality and ratings of Samsung brandmates and was not disappointed. It has a bright and beautiful picture; more adjustments than anyone could ever need; and many other features (such as internet connectivity) that I have yet to try. I especially like the media viewer, since I shoot only digital photos when traveling. This TV is so good, it shows up the flaws in my cable HD service that I never noticed before. I highly recommend this TV to anyone looking for a large screen TV in the LCD format.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Highly recommended
Pros:
+ Terrific picture quality (especially after I calibrated it)
+ Wide range of adjustments available to fine-tune picture
+ No "judder" when playing 24fps Blu-ray movies
+ Worked perfectly out of the box
+ Very good value
Cons:
- Doesn't have anti-glare screen
-"Auto Motion Plus" feature just makes picture looks strange (but can be easily turned off)
- Default picture settings out of the box are WAY too bright (like every new TV I've seen)
- Not the most advanced TV on the market (which is probably why it works out of the box)
I bought this TV to replace an old rear-projection DLP. First I considered a plasma, but was put off by the power consumption, heat output and heavy weight. Pioneer is also getting out of the plasma TV business entirely, which worried me since they made arguably the best plasma TV on the market (the Kuro). Next I looked at the new LED TVs, which are super-thin and look great in the store...but I also found a lot of reports of them being kind of buggy. So I decided to go with a high-quality 55" LCD released this year that had 1080p and a 120Hz refresh rate. This takes us to this TV...
The bottom line is that this is a great TV. It has much better picture quality than even the 1080p TVs made just a couple years ago. It worked perfectly out of the box and there were no bugs, video glitches or imperfections of any kind...it simply works, and works very well. Sound quality is on par with the built-in sound in other TVs. Factoring in the reasonable price it's a no-brainer. More advanced TVs exist, but cost more money, seem to have more bugs and deliver marginal improvements in picture quality - not a reasonable trade-off in my book compared to what you get from a high quality LCD right now.
Like every new TV I've seen, the out-of-box settings are way too bright. Setting the picture mode to "movie" and turning down the backlight to 6 produced a great-looking picture, and calibrating it using Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics [Blu-ray] made it outright amazing. For those who like to fine-tune the picture this TV has every control you could want, and probably several you haven't ever heard of. The menu system is well laid out and easy to navigate.
It also has a bunch of extra features that are fun to play with, but are ultimately better left turned off. Auto Motion Plus is supposed to make fast-moving images look better, but to my eye all it did was make the picture look strange. The Edge Enhancement and Digital NR features sharpen edges and remove video noise, respectively, but they also introduce video artifacts of their own and are probably best left off as well. Finally, the Sharpness settings is *artificial* sharpening - it makes the picture seem more detailed, but also makes it look extremely gritty and noisy - I suggest setting it to 0. These aren't unique problems to Samsung; similar features on other new TVs have the same problems.
If I could change one thing about this TV, I would give it a more glare-resistant screen. There is probably a trade-off between how sharp the picture is and how well it resists glare, but this thing is SHINY. If you have a very brightly lit room it could be a problem for you.
If you want very good performance for the money from a proven, trouble-free design, you can't go wrong with one of these LNxxB650 models from Samsung. They look great, are light weight, consume little power and they just plain *work* without any fuss.
+ Terrific picture quality (especially after I calibrated it)
+ Wide range of adjustments available to fine-tune picture
+ No "judder" when playing 24fps Blu-ray movies
+ Worked perfectly out of the box
+ Very good value
Cons:
- Doesn't have anti-glare screen
-"Auto Motion Plus" feature just makes picture looks strange (but can be easily turned off)
- Default picture settings out of the box are WAY too bright (like every new TV I've seen)
- Not the most advanced TV on the market (which is probably why it works out of the box)
I bought this TV to replace an old rear-projection DLP. First I considered a plasma, but was put off by the power consumption, heat output and heavy weight. Pioneer is also getting out of the plasma TV business entirely, which worried me since they made arguably the best plasma TV on the market (the Kuro). Next I looked at the new LED TVs, which are super-thin and look great in the store...but I also found a lot of reports of them being kind of buggy. So I decided to go with a high-quality 55" LCD released this year that had 1080p and a 120Hz refresh rate. This takes us to this TV...
The bottom line is that this is a great TV. It has much better picture quality than even the 1080p TVs made just a couple years ago. It worked perfectly out of the box and there were no bugs, video glitches or imperfections of any kind...it simply works, and works very well. Sound quality is on par with the built-in sound in other TVs. Factoring in the reasonable price it's a no-brainer. More advanced TVs exist, but cost more money, seem to have more bugs and deliver marginal improvements in picture quality - not a reasonable trade-off in my book compared to what you get from a high quality LCD right now.
Like every new TV I've seen, the out-of-box settings are way too bright. Setting the picture mode to "movie" and turning down the backlight to 6 produced a great-looking picture, and calibrating it using Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics [Blu-ray] made it outright amazing. For those who like to fine-tune the picture this TV has every control you could want, and probably several you haven't ever heard of. The menu system is well laid out and easy to navigate.
It also has a bunch of extra features that are fun to play with, but are ultimately better left turned off. Auto Motion Plus is supposed to make fast-moving images look better, but to my eye all it did was make the picture look strange. The Edge Enhancement and Digital NR features sharpen edges and remove video noise, respectively, but they also introduce video artifacts of their own and are probably best left off as well. Finally, the Sharpness settings is *artificial* sharpening - it makes the picture seem more detailed, but also makes it look extremely gritty and noisy - I suggest setting it to 0. These aren't unique problems to Samsung; similar features on other new TVs have the same problems.
If I could change one thing about this TV, I would give it a more glare-resistant screen. There is probably a trade-off between how sharp the picture is and how well it resists glare, but this thing is SHINY. If you have a very brightly lit room it could be a problem for you.
If you want very good performance for the money from a proven, trouble-free design, you can't go wrong with one of these LNxxB650 models from Samsung. They look great, are light weight, consume little power and they just plain *work* without any fuss.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Excellent product!
After shopping for a new TV, both online and in store, I decided on this Samsung tv to meet my needs. I had decided to purchase from a local store, but once I realized how much less expensive it was to buy from Amazon, I immediately ordered from them. One week later I had the TV sitting in my living room, ready to hook up to my satellite system. But then I decided to wait till satellite provider could upgrade me to HDTV, which they did 3 days later. Loving this TV ever since. Exactly as described! Reviews from other customers was so much help.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Samsung knows TVs - This is a Beauty
I have had this TV for around 2 Months now and I must say that I am impressed with the overall styling, picture, and feature set. I was looking at the 240hz models and in the 52" models but decided on this one because it was under 2K and was 55". I also spoke with friends that have the 240hz TVs and they say that the effect is probably too much on anything except sports. The picture through HDMI on this TV is not short of phenominal! The colors are rich and vibrant and it is tack sharp. You will need to turn the backlight down to around 7. I was concerned about glare because I have huge picture windows opposite my TV. The glare from the windows is very little. This may be helped by the way I mounted it and turned it down (angle) to help with glare. The glare is about 20% of about what my projection TV was! If it does not bother me in my living room then it probably would not bother most. My picture windows are about 3.5 feet by 10 feet and there are 3 in the living room and 3 in the adjoined kitchen. To say the least I am very pleased with this purchase. I just hope that I do not have to ever deal with Samsung support because I have had a bad experience lately trying to get my bd-p1500 blu-ray player replaced. I upgraded the firmware and it would not play ANY blu-ray movies rented at BB. I sent it in and they sent it back saying nothing is wrong with it. This is lame! Dear Samsung... you make great products. Stand behind them so we can keep buying them! If this TV is in your budget and you want the best bang for your buck then this is it.... Sparq
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Best LCD for the Money
This LCD is the best of both size and quality. With the additional 300 off that amazon was offering a couple of weeks ago, it was a bargain for what you get. Samsung is top quality in my opinion right now.
Here is the good:
Great picture. 3 extra inches worth more to me than 240 hz
Glass screen makes picture more vivid and handles glare with ease.
Touch of color makes it look really nice hanging in my living room.
Could be better:
Sound is average at best. Most will hook it up to external speakers so it doesn't matter that much
Remote is decent but needs more quick buttons to control PIP and other tools that you have to navigate through a couple of menus to change
Bad:
Nothing. You will not be dissapointed with this bad boy!
Here is the good:
Great picture. 3 extra inches worth more to me than 240 hz
Glass screen makes picture more vivid and handles glare with ease.
Touch of color makes it look really nice hanging in my living room.
Could be better:
Sound is average at best. Most will hook it up to external speakers so it doesn't matter that much
Remote is decent but needs more quick buttons to control PIP and other tools that you have to navigate through a couple of menus to change
Bad:
Nothing. You will not be dissapointed with this bad boy!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Jaw-Dropping Display, Hook-up Shortcomings
Firstly, let me say right out. I am truly amazed at the 3d effect of all digital media displayed on this TV. I am now a witness to being in the studio to watch the filming of MI-III, Transformers, The Dark Knight and others ("soap-opera effect"?). That's the incredible depth of this display. I have 2 others widescreens, plus one dead Sony (this one replaced it), as a comparison, plus the half dozen friends that have their own Widescreens. Nothing compares. I am considering that my display may be an anomaly - the picture is stunning.
Well now for the bad...
Believe it or not, although the TV has HDMI x 4.... (You send the perfect HDMI digital audio and video to the TV) Samsung decided that the audio output would be stripped of all but a left and right channel - that's right - ala 1980 2-channel output from the "audio out" jacks fed back to your amplifier/receiver. In my previous setup ALL of my audio/video went to the TV (which did output surround audio). My DVD Players and HD set top box audio also went to the amplifier/receiver. This allowed the ultimate flexibility with PIP. I do use PIP often, my wife and I snuggle while she watches "murder she wrote" and I watch UFC (LOL), and also every NFL Sunday. I might add that the LN55B650 built-in Tuner WILL send digital sound(i.e. 6.1 etc.)via the audio out, so it is possible - and all the more irritating. It is a poor decision to whack the HDMI audio input down to 2 channel audio output - why not allow the surround sound content to be output - strange...I recommend checking this out before purchasing any SAMSUNG brand - dont get surpised like I did ( in my particular set-up, my amplifier cannot accept input from all 4 of my sources, so going to the TV gave me the extra inputs - I may be forced to buy another amplifier, which I do not want to do)
And on the PIP...
The PIP only allows one Source selection... DVD OR cable box OR satellite, etc... THE OTHER SOURCE MUST BE THE BUILT IN TUNER. This is a disappointment. The previous 3 TV's in my home (2 still in use)could choose any 2 sources. I have read that when using PIP, only analog channels are displayed, this is not true, the QAM tuner will show ANY content - digital or analog, but the consumer should be able to choose his 2 sources for PIP display.
NOW.... that said, I re-emphasis, the LN55B650 display is absolutely jaw dropping and almost makes up for the other shortcomings.... a strong 4 rating, I wish I was watching it right now.......
Well now for the bad...
Believe it or not, although the TV has HDMI x 4.... (You send the perfect HDMI digital audio and video to the TV) Samsung decided that the audio output would be stripped of all but a left and right channel - that's right - ala 1980 2-channel output from the "audio out" jacks fed back to your amplifier/receiver. In my previous setup ALL of my audio/video went to the TV (which did output surround audio). My DVD Players and HD set top box audio also went to the amplifier/receiver. This allowed the ultimate flexibility with PIP. I do use PIP often, my wife and I snuggle while she watches "murder she wrote" and I watch UFC (LOL), and also every NFL Sunday. I might add that the LN55B650 built-in Tuner WILL send digital sound(i.e. 6.1 etc.)via the audio out, so it is possible - and all the more irritating. It is a poor decision to whack the HDMI audio input down to 2 channel audio output - why not allow the surround sound content to be output - strange...I recommend checking this out before purchasing any SAMSUNG brand - dont get surpised like I did ( in my particular set-up, my amplifier cannot accept input from all 4 of my sources, so going to the TV gave me the extra inputs - I may be forced to buy another amplifier, which I do not want to do)
And on the PIP...
The PIP only allows one Source selection... DVD OR cable box OR satellite, etc... THE OTHER SOURCE MUST BE THE BUILT IN TUNER. This is a disappointment. The previous 3 TV's in my home (2 still in use)could choose any 2 sources. I have read that when using PIP, only analog channels are displayed, this is not true, the QAM tuner will show ANY content - digital or analog, but the consumer should be able to choose his 2 sources for PIP display.
NOW.... that said, I re-emphasis, the LN55B650 display is absolutely jaw dropping and almost makes up for the other shortcomings.... a strong 4 rating, I wish I was watching it right now.......
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Wow!
I just got this yesterday and was immediately blown away by the picture quality, especially when compared to the 50" 720P LG plasma it replaces. The difference was as astounding for me as the plasma was over regular def TV. For live HD such as CNN and local news, the Samsung easily matches the sharpness and clarity one sees in the big box showrooms. I'm not so sure about other HD broadcasts. Some shows seem too bright, but when I adjust down the contrast and brightness, other shows are too dark. The colors also seem to vary more from one show to another than was the case with my plasma. I hope to be able to sort this out over time through the many easily accessed menu adjustments.
Samsung LN55B650 Samsung Is The Way to Go for LCDs
I now own three LCDs. Two of which are Samsung. I've always liked the fact that Samsung packs in a lot of features and quality for a reasonable price. For the past two years, I have been putting off replacing the TV in our family room, a 7 year old Sony 36XBR800, which is a mammoth of a set. However, our finally caved in for a number of reasons: (1) pricing on flat screens dropped, (2) wanted a television that supported HDMI, and (3) wanted a set that would help with the glare on the TV.
The glare on the TV was, believe it or not, the tipping point. Our family room has lots of windows, and the blinds don't block out all the sun, so with the old set I would get a lot of glare in the middle of the day coming off the TV. It was bad enough where sometimes I would just give up trying to watch anything. I did some research and LCDs do the best job cutting down the glare because of the matte finish on the screen. Plasmas tend to have a glossy finish, which reflects more sunlight. Plasmas also tend to eat a little more energy than LCDs. Those two points sold me on the LCD.
Although I will have to say that overall the Plasma, in my opinion, does a better job of handling moving images than an LCD. LCDs have been known to have issues ("judder") with fast moving objects onscreen, which is something you may typically get while watching sports or playing video games. To correct this issue, TV manufacturers have introduced refresh rates, which you'll see advertised (60 hz, 120 hz, 240 hz). These refresh rates help to cut down the noise you get around the edges of moving objects. However, you'll notice that while watching some programs without fast-moving action the onscreen content can sometimes looks like a cardboard cutout. It's always a good idea to use the higher refresh rates for sports and games and save the lower refresh rates for all other programming. With that said, I looked at some sports programming on both 120 hz and 240 hz sets and the improvement was marginal. At the time of my purchase the cost to go with a 240 hz set was almost $500 more (over 120 hz), which was not worth the marginal gain. If the gap came down between the two refresh rates I would definitely reconsider, but remember that you are paying for a fix by the manufacturer to the technology.
So, after all my research between the two competing technologies I still went with the LCD because my main concern was glare and here are the breakdowns of my pros, cons and "somewhere in between" for this set.
=====================
PROS
=====================
+ Price: At the time of my purchase it was hard to find many other sets offering the same quality with the same feature set.
+ Inputs: With 4 HDMI, 2 Component, 2 Composite, 2 USB and 1 PC input you'll have enough to plug in all the most popular components (e.g. video game systems, DVD/Blue-ray Player, DVR, etc.). You'll be able to hook up a card reader and browse pictures on the TV, watch movies from your camcorder and anything else you can think of doing with all those inputs.
+ Picture Quality: The quality of the picture at 1080p is simply amazing. You will not be disappointed. At this size of a screen and with such a high-quality of picture you'll see things you've never noticed before in your favorite movies and shows. There were times when I felt like I was watching a movie live. It felt like a theater performance.
+ Ability to Combat Glare: Mission accomplished. On a number of occasions I have been able to switch picture options in the middle of the day to be able to see what I am watching.
+ Options: If you like tweaking than you'll like this TV set. You can tweak settings by input, which means that you can get an optimal picture and sound all the time no matter what source you are using. The menus are also easy to navigate and understand. I've used TVs in the past where all the options were buried, which wasn't the case with this set.
=====================
NEUTRAL
=====================
= Internet Connectivity: This is what I would classify as a "nice to have" feature. It's nice to be able to browse YouTube, view pictures from Flickr, check sports scores, read news and more all using Yahoo! Widgets. However, there's a bit of a lag with all these features between the remote and the onscreen menu. For example, you'll notice that if you're searching for a video on YouTube, you won't be able to crank out the search text in a few seconds. It may take you some time, but nonetheless it beats crowding around a small computer screen. In short, I'm not going to stop using my computer to watch videos on YouTube or read the news, but it's nice to occasionally have the option to do it on my TV.
= Speakers/Audio: Nothing amazing here. I would say it's slightly better than average. Then again, I am using the TV with a home theater system, so the sound on my set is turned off, but I did test the sound for the purpose of this review. If you sink this much money into a TV you should do yourself a favor and get a decent home theater system to complement.
=====================
CONS
=====================
- PIP: I was disappointed with the Picture in Picture options. I was hoping that the Picture in Picture would allow me to select an input other than the cable or antena hooked up to the TV, but that was not the case. On my old Sony I was able to play a game on a console, while having HD programming via my cable box on the PIP display. Basically, I was able to use any input for the TV as the source for the PIP. Samsung limits this option.
- "Judder": I mentioned this earlier in the review and I have to say that I did notice this when watching sports and playing video games. I did notice an improvement when setting a higher refresh rate, but you'll still notice some noise. Part of it may be psychological as well, since I know the issue exists. There's also a game mode under the picture settings that further corrects this issue, but you lose some crispness from the picture. Again I want to mention that this was a minor issue and I almost classified it as neutral, but though it was worthwhile to point out.
Overall I would give this set an 8.5/10. If I had the opportunity to go back I would still have gotten the same TV. If the price difference between the 240 hz and 120 hz was somewhere around $200, I would have made the jump to improve the picture slightly for gaming and sports. However, I am still amazed by the quality of the picture and it's the best TV I've owned to date. I love to tweak and this set meets that need very well with an endless array of options. I'm enjoying all the same programming as before, but with a much bigger smile.
The glare on the TV was, believe it or not, the tipping point. Our family room has lots of windows, and the blinds don't block out all the sun, so with the old set I would get a lot of glare in the middle of the day coming off the TV. It was bad enough where sometimes I would just give up trying to watch anything. I did some research and LCDs do the best job cutting down the glare because of the matte finish on the screen. Plasmas tend to have a glossy finish, which reflects more sunlight. Plasmas also tend to eat a little more energy than LCDs. Those two points sold me on the LCD.
Although I will have to say that overall the Plasma, in my opinion, does a better job of handling moving images than an LCD. LCDs have been known to have issues ("judder") with fast moving objects onscreen, which is something you may typically get while watching sports or playing video games. To correct this issue, TV manufacturers have introduced refresh rates, which you'll see advertised (60 hz, 120 hz, 240 hz). These refresh rates help to cut down the noise you get around the edges of moving objects. However, you'll notice that while watching some programs without fast-moving action the onscreen content can sometimes looks like a cardboard cutout. It's always a good idea to use the higher refresh rates for sports and games and save the lower refresh rates for all other programming. With that said, I looked at some sports programming on both 120 hz and 240 hz sets and the improvement was marginal. At the time of my purchase the cost to go with a 240 hz set was almost $500 more (over 120 hz), which was not worth the marginal gain. If the gap came down between the two refresh rates I would definitely reconsider, but remember that you are paying for a fix by the manufacturer to the technology.
So, after all my research between the two competing technologies I still went with the LCD because my main concern was glare and here are the breakdowns of my pros, cons and "somewhere in between" for this set.
=====================
PROS
=====================
+ Price: At the time of my purchase it was hard to find many other sets offering the same quality with the same feature set.
+ Inputs: With 4 HDMI, 2 Component, 2 Composite, 2 USB and 1 PC input you'll have enough to plug in all the most popular components (e.g. video game systems, DVD/Blue-ray Player, DVR, etc.). You'll be able to hook up a card reader and browse pictures on the TV, watch movies from your camcorder and anything else you can think of doing with all those inputs.
+ Picture Quality: The quality of the picture at 1080p is simply amazing. You will not be disappointed. At this size of a screen and with such a high-quality of picture you'll see things you've never noticed before in your favorite movies and shows. There were times when I felt like I was watching a movie live. It felt like a theater performance.
+ Ability to Combat Glare: Mission accomplished. On a number of occasions I have been able to switch picture options in the middle of the day to be able to see what I am watching.
+ Options: If you like tweaking than you'll like this TV set. You can tweak settings by input, which means that you can get an optimal picture and sound all the time no matter what source you are using. The menus are also easy to navigate and understand. I've used TVs in the past where all the options were buried, which wasn't the case with this set.
=====================
NEUTRAL
=====================
= Internet Connectivity: This is what I would classify as a "nice to have" feature. It's nice to be able to browse YouTube, view pictures from Flickr, check sports scores, read news and more all using Yahoo! Widgets. However, there's a bit of a lag with all these features between the remote and the onscreen menu. For example, you'll notice that if you're searching for a video on YouTube, you won't be able to crank out the search text in a few seconds. It may take you some time, but nonetheless it beats crowding around a small computer screen. In short, I'm not going to stop using my computer to watch videos on YouTube or read the news, but it's nice to occasionally have the option to do it on my TV.
= Speakers/Audio: Nothing amazing here. I would say it's slightly better than average. Then again, I am using the TV with a home theater system, so the sound on my set is turned off, but I did test the sound for the purpose of this review. If you sink this much money into a TV you should do yourself a favor and get a decent home theater system to complement.
=====================
CONS
=====================
- PIP: I was disappointed with the Picture in Picture options. I was hoping that the Picture in Picture would allow me to select an input other than the cable or antena hooked up to the TV, but that was not the case. On my old Sony I was able to play a game on a console, while having HD programming via my cable box on the PIP display. Basically, I was able to use any input for the TV as the source for the PIP. Samsung limits this option.
- "Judder": I mentioned this earlier in the review and I have to say that I did notice this when watching sports and playing video games. I did notice an improvement when setting a higher refresh rate, but you'll still notice some noise. Part of it may be psychological as well, since I know the issue exists. There's also a game mode under the picture settings that further corrects this issue, but you lose some crispness from the picture. Again I want to mention that this was a minor issue and I almost classified it as neutral, but though it was worthwhile to point out.
Overall I would give this set an 8.5/10. If I had the opportunity to go back I would still have gotten the same TV. If the price difference between the 240 hz and 120 hz was somewhere around $200, I would have made the jump to improve the picture slightly for gaming and sports. However, I am still amazed by the quality of the picture and it's the best TV I've owned to date. I love to tweak and this set meets that need very well with an endless array of options. I'm enjoying all the same programming as before, but with a much bigger smile.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Samsung LN55B650 Reviews
Manufacturer's Review (April 20, 2009)
With the Samsung 55-inch LN55B650 HDTV, you're investing in a high-quality LCD TV that offers top-of-the-line picture quality with 1080p high definition resolution. Enjoy the sharpest details and vivid color with a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio for more realistic images and Samsung's Wide Color Enhancer 3 technology for a more natural rendering of colors. It also incorporates a number of innovative features to reduce the motion blur and image judder, which traditionally plague LCD HDTVs when displaying fast movement. This B650 series HDTV combines an ultra-fast 4ms (millisecond) response time with Samsung's Auto Motion Plus frame interpolation technology, which utilizes a 120Hz refresh rate helps ensure crisp, easy viewing of sports, video games and movies.
With the Samsung 55-inch LN55B650 HDTV, you're investing in a high-quality LCD TV that offers top-of-the-line picture quality with 1080p high definition resolution. Enjoy the sharpest details and vivid color with a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio for more realistic images and Samsung's Wide Color Enhancer 3 technology for a more natural rendering of colors. It also incorporates a number of innovative features to reduce the motion blur and image judder, which traditionally plague LCD HDTVs when displaying fast movement. This B650 series HDTV combines an ultra-fast 4ms (millisecond) response time with Samsung's Auto Motion Plus frame interpolation technology, which utilizes a 120Hz refresh rate helps ensure crisp, easy viewing of sports, video games and movies.
Samsung LN55B650 Features
Features
- 55-inch LCD HDTV with full HD 1080p resolution for the sharpest picture possible and red Touch of Color design
- Auto Motion Plus 120Hz for amazingly fluid motion, 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 4ms response time, Wide Color Enhancer 3 for more vivid colors
- Internet@TV online content service from Yahoo!, Flickr, YouTube via your broadband connection
- Inputs: 4 HDMI-CEC, 2 component, 2 composite, 1 PC, 2 USB, 1 Ethernet, 1 optical digital audio output
- Includes removable stand; measures 51.6 x 35.2 x 12.1 inches with stand; 15-watt x 2 bottom mounted speakers with subwoofer
Samsung LN55B650 Product Details
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #31 in Television
- Color: ToC Red
- Brand: Samsung
- Model: LN55B650
- Dimensions: 33.10" h x 51.60" w x 3.10" l, 64.80 pounds
- Display size: 55
Samsung LN55B650 55-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color
Product DescriptionSamsung’s LN55B650 takes your HDTV enjoyment, and capabilities, to new heights. The power of Full HD 1080p resolution delivers clear, vivid images on a 55-inch LCD screen. The Medi@2.0 feature lets you access countless hours of online content from partners like Yahoo! and Flickr using customizable widgets, all controlled by your remote. Auto Motion Plus120Hz technology renders the smoothest, most lifelike HD action. DLNA technology means you can harness your entire home network through your HDTV. Connect your DVD, cable or satellite HD box, or Blu-ray Disc player easily, using any of four HDMI inputs. Experience truer, more natural dark tones and shadows with the 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. And highlight nearly any room in the house with a unique red accent at the bezel’s edge, courtesy of the Touch of Color design.
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