Computers & Electronics

What's so good about Samsung TVs?

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  • Mar 22nd, 2012 11:05 pm
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Dec 14, 2006
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What's so good about Samsung TVs?

While looking at LED TVs of around 46" I noticed that Samsung is in general more expensive and popular. For example the UN46D6000 seems very popular. For the same price, I can find the Toshiba 47TL515, which in addition has 3D, 240Hz instead of 120Hz, local dimming on the edge-lit backlighting, and built in WiFi. Alternatively, there is the LG Infinia 47LV5400, which is an inch larger and has similar specs to the Samsung, but costs less.

Why is this? How is the UN64D6000 better than the other two? Does Samsung have better image quality or reliability?
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Feb 15, 2008
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I, too, found Samsungs to be quite overpriced, relative to what you get. And the Samsung S-PVA panels are inferior for text quality and overall viewing angles, compared to the S-IPS/H-IPS used in the LG panels.

Recently bought a LG 42LV3500. Amazing TV, and cost me a little over $500 from Superstore.

For what all that special Wi-Fi, or even the onboard entertainment stuff costs, I'd prefer to keep the $200-$300 that stuff costs extra, and invest in a proper HTPC, or even something like the Raspberry Pi.

LG Infinia 47LV5400
I think there's been a rash of bad PSU's in these. Or at least that's what the Costco/Future Shop online reviews say. But being less than an inch thick is pretty awesome, that's for sure.
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dreamlayers wrote: While looking at LED TVs of around 46" I noticed that Samsung is in general more expensive and popular. For example the UN46D6000 seems very popular. For the same price, I can find the Toshiba 47TL515, which in addition has 3D, 240Hz instead of 120Hz, local dimming on the edge-lit backlighting, and built in WiFi. Alternatively, there is the LG Infinia 47LV5400, which is an inch larger and has similar specs to the Samsung, but costs less.

Why is this? How is the UN64D6000 better than the other two? Does Samsung have better image quality or reliability?

Toshibas are garbage. Don't buy one as they break down frequently and you'll probably experience speaker issues as well where the sound isn't as loud and you can barely hear it on max.

Samsungs make great panels and have better service than LG which is harder to source parts. There's more issues with LG screens failing than Samsungs. Although the older Samsungs have issues with power supplies.
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gnuman wrote: Toshibas are garbage. Don't buy one as they break down frequently and you'll probably experience speaker issues as well where the sound isn't as loud and you can barely hear it on max.

Samsungs make great panels and have better service than LG which is harder to source parts. There's more issues with LG screens failing than Samsungs. Although the older Samsungs have issues with power supplies.

I spent a lot of time researching before I recently bought a 55 LED Samsung, It was more than LG or the Toshiba, but I think everything about this TV is amazing. The bezel is really small, built in wifi, the Iphone Samsung app is cool.

Nyd
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Samsung gives amazing customer service and free warranty work here in Canada. Amazing!
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Large (i.e 55") Samsungs use MVA panels, not PVA panels - similar but not quite the same. Ditto a lot of other manufacturers in that size range, maybe LG as well as I'd be surprised if they can get an IPS panel in 54" or larger.

http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/L ... ffects.htm
- I'm guessing without even reading the review this is a type of MVA panel.

All I gotta say is that, although the viewing angles suck compared to an IPS so that watching something from the left or right side of the room is OK for sports but not for movies, when you're sitting 9 feet back both ends of the couch see a great image with good contrast and beautiful skin tones. Quite unlike so much of the stuff I fiddled with in stores. I'm really enjoying my Samsung LN55C750 and up to this point I'd been a plasma guy.

There must be a reason why several review sites and commentators in the AVS forums rank Samsung's up there with Panasonic's in picture quality.

http://plasmatvbuyingguide.com/plasmatv ... eviews.php
http://lcdtvbuyingguide.com/lcdtv/compare-reviews.php
http://www.televisioninfo.com/ << good info on viewing angles in their reviews
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/index.php

AVS guy >> http://hdtvbychadb.com/resources/tv-reviews

and.... you know.... that CR bunch. ;)


However, Samsung did get slagged for panel switching and perhaps deservedly so.
http://www.digitalversus.com/panel-swit ... 15170.html

.
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Thanks for the responses. For the most part, it seems like Samsung is a good choice.

I almost decided on the UN46D6500. Leon's has it for $1199, but at the last moment I decided to not buy there because of their return policy. I saw a line on the computer screen saying it's "not sold on an approval basis". I had to ask what that meant, and I was told I can only exchange it if I find it's broken when I first try it out. Otherwise, I can't return or exchange it. Perhaps this could be price-matched elsewhere instead.

After doing a bit more research I found that 3D on the D6x00 series is at half resolution! Basically, 3D is not HD, and Samsung or salespeople won't tell you that! It seems the D7000 series and above actually have full HD 3D.

I thought 3D made sense because the price difference is fairly small, and it's not a feature that can be added later. However, considering that defect and how glasses need to be purchased separately, I guess I don't want it now. The UN46D6000 seems like the best choice now.
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Buying a Samsung TV instead of an LG is like buying a Rolls Royce Phantom instead of a Mercedes S600.

The Mercedes does just as good of a job but at 80% of the cost. If you are crazy about the brand or "perceived" features, go for it. I stick with LG and pocket the savings.
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we bought a 42 in samsung tv....just after the 2 yr warranty was up...the power panel died. i emailed them asking if they could help with the cost....thier response?......sorry, you should have got an extended warranty.

i guess i thought a $1,800- LCD should last longer than 2 yrs....silly me.

that was Many yrs ago when LCDs were pricey.....now they are cheap as hell.
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sonic wrote: we bought a 42 in samsung tv....just after the 2 yr warranty was up...the power panel died. i emailed them asking if they could help with the cost....thier response?......sorry, you should have got an extended warranty.

i guess i thought a $1,800- LCD should last longer than 2 yrs....silly me.

that was Many yrs ago when LCDs were pricey.....now they are cheap as hell.
I think it's normal for them to not help with the cost once the warranty has expired. I have a Samsung SyncMaster 213T monitor and Future Shop wouldn't help when I noticed some vertical lines less than a month after the extended warranty expired. That was even though the monitor cost a lot, and a replacement would only be a small fraction of the price. I can't blame them. However, that does teach me that it's a good idea to carefully inspect everything before the warranty expires. Oh well, at least the lines are only noticeable in some mid brightness colours during when playing video and not noticeable during normal desktop use.

How much did the repair cost? If if it cost more than a few hundred dollars, that is a ripoff. I've read about things like that with some TVs, and I hope Samsung isn't like that. The only really expensive repair that isn't worth it should be LCD panel replacement. You can get parts for less from other sources such as eBay, and sometimes you can send boards away for repair or replacement with a refurbished board. Asian and especially Chinese sources can be even less expensive.
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One thing thats awesome about the Samsungs that some may find as a sweet feature is that it will play essentially any file type you throw at it.
Plug your ethernet cable into the TV or connect with wifi, and play your MKV files directly off your desktop. Unless I'm mistaken, no other tv will play MKV files.

At least the newer 2010/2011 tv's do :)
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sonic wrote: we bought a 42 in samsung tv....just after the 2 yr warranty was up...the power panel died. i emailed them asking if they could help with the cost....thier response?......sorry, you should have got an extended warranty.

i guess i thought a $1,800- LCD should last longer than 2 yrs....silly me.

that was Many yrs ago when LCDs were pricey.....now they are cheap as hell.

I had a Samsung 22" monitor and I told them I had no receipt as it was a gift... they just serviced it including free shipping both directions! Sorry you had a rough go of it... you may need to fudge the "purchase date" to a little before instead of a little after the two year warranty period...

They treated me like GOLD and I'll buy more Samsung stuff down the road because of it...
... too late to try again?
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Babypimpin wrote: One thing thats awesome about the Samsungs that some may find as a sweet feature is that it will play essentially any file type you throw at it.
Plug your ethernet cable into the TV or connect with wifi, and play your MKV files directly off your desktop. Unless I'm mistaken, no other tv will play MKV files.

At least the newer 2010/2011 tv's do :)

This is true, the USB port will play anything I throw at it, MKV, 3D, whatever, its like having built in VLC, the codec support is incredible.

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sonic wrote: we bought a 42 in samsung tv....just after the 2 yr warranty was up...the power panel died. i emailed them asking if they could help with the cost....thier response?......sorry, you should have got an extended warranty.

i guess i thought a $1,800- LCD should last longer than 2 yrs....silly me.

that was Many yrs ago when LCDs were pricey.....now they are cheap as hell.

Was it the undersized capacitors? My four and half year old 46 inch Samsung LCD TV (LN-T4665F) has them....TV is still working fine due likely to lower number of hours (many others have had their TVs failed...fix is to swap out the fat or swollen capacitors). Sooner or later, I am sure that my TV will fail. Info here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthre ... ht=samsung http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=820218

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Mark77 wrote: I, too, found Samsungs to be quite overpriced, relative to what you get. And the Samsung S-PVA panels are inferior for text quality and overall viewing angles, compared to the S-IPS/H-IPS used in the LG panels.

Recently bought a LG 42LV3500. Amazing TV, and cost me a little over $500 from Superstore.

For what all that special Wi-Fi, or even the onboard entertainment stuff costs, I'd prefer to keep the $200-$300 that stuff costs extra, and invest in a proper HTPC, or even something like the Raspberry Pi.




I think there's been a rash of bad PSU's in these. Or at least that's what the Costco/Future Shop online reviews say. But being less than an inch thick is pretty awesome, that's for sure.
NewsyL wrote: Large (i.e 55") Samsungs use MVA panels, not PVA panels - similar but not quite the same. Ditto a lot of other manufacturers in that size range, maybe LG as well as I'd be surprised if they can get an IPS panel in 54" or larger.

http://www.televisioninfo.com/content/L ... ffects.htm
- I'm guessing without even reading the review this is a type of MVA panel.

All I gotta say is that, although the viewing angles suck compared to an IPS so that watching something from the left or right side of the room is OK for sports but not for movies, when you're sitting 9 feet back both ends of the couch see a great image with good contrast and beautiful skin tones. Quite unlike so much of the stuff I fiddled with in stores. I'm really enjoying my Samsung LN55C750 and up to this point I'd been a plasma guy.

There must be a reason why several review sites and commentators in the AVS forums rank Samsung's up there with Panasonic's in picture quality.

http://plasmatvbuyingguide.com/plasmatv ... eviews.php
http://lcdtvbuyingguide.com/lcdtv/compare-reviews.php
http://www.televisioninfo.com/ << good info on viewing angles in their reviews
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/index.php

AVS guy >> http://hdtvbychadb.com/resources/tv-reviews

and.... you know.... that CR bunch. ;)


However, Samsung did get slagged for panel switching and perhaps deservedly so.
http://www.digitalversus.com/panel-swit ... 15170.html

.

Last month got a LG 55LW5000 3D for $999. Good deal given it is 55" and 3D to boot and came with a total of 9 glasses + 3 movies. Guess what it has on a macro shot ?? Chevon IPS pixels !!
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Babypimpin wrote: One thing thats awesome about the Samsungs that some may find as a sweet feature is that it will play essentially any file type you throw at it.
Plug your ethernet cable into the TV or connect with wifi, and play your MKV files directly off your desktop. Unless I'm mistaken, no other tv will play MKV files.

At least the newer 2010/2011 tv's do :)

LG plays MKV as well.
I tested it but the chore is left to media player that plays all.
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Another neat feature on Samsung tv's are the on screen display of the back buttons if you are fiddling around the tv without the remote. The buttons will sense your fingers and display on the screen, without you having to guess which button is which :razz:
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ppl4golf wrote: LG plays MKV as well.
I tested it but the chore is left to media player that plays all.

Yes, LG plays MKV, but at least the LW5600 and LG5700 don't support DTS sound. There are various options for transcoding DTS to AC3, including transcoding during playback via Plex. However, people are reporting that Plex also unnecessarily transcodes the video. I'm not sure if that bug has been fixed yet.

BTW The Plex integration on LG TVs is at least theoretically something that could be really cool and better than just using DLNA. For example, Plex can be used to play rtmp and mms streams on the TV.
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Not too long after warranty expired on my 43 inch DLP Samsung TV, the color wheel broke. Called Samsung, they wouldn't help me, even if this was a known issue. Finally had to pay out of my pocket. First big mistake. Should of sold it even if the TV was a only few years old.

A few months ago, the TV is acting crazy and is no longer working. At first, I thought it was the light, which I replaced. It was part of the problem. Now the TV open, works for 30 seconds, the shuts down by itself. Then restarts with no picture and the bulb will not go on but all the fans will run. I have to disconnect the TV, leave it there for a while', plug it back, but it will do the same cycle....anyways, TV will soon be garbage if I don't find the issue. I opened it up, cleaned it up, looked for leaky or swollen capacitors, no luck.... Lemon TV.

My next one will be a Sharp, Panasonic or Sony. The majority of Panasonic & Sony products I purchased were reliable.
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Poulet wrote: Not too long after warranty expired on my 43 inch DLP Samsung TV, the color wheel broke. Called Samsung, they wouldn't help me, even if this was a known issue. Finally had to pay out of my pocket. First big mistake. Should of sold it even if the TV was a only few years old.

A few months ago, the TV is acting crazy and is no longer working. At first, I thought it was the light, which I replaced. It was part of the problem. Now the TV open, works for 30 seconds, the shuts down by itself. Then restarts with no picture and the bulb will not go on but all the fans will run. I have to disconnect the TV, leave it there for a while', plug it back, but it will do the same cycle....anyways, TV will soon be garbage if I don't find the issue. I opened it up, cleaned it up, looked for leaky or swollen capacitors, no luck.... Lemon TV.

My next one will be a Sharp, Panasonic or Sony. The majority of Panasonic & Sony products I purchased were reliable.

Every brand has their issues. Get an extended warranty if you want any TV brand to really stand behind it. If you buy it from Costco, you get two years warranty. Not sure if Costco offers extended warranties beyond 2 years? You need to read the details on the extended warranties too...sometimes the company offering the warranty will limit themselves (good for them; bad for you).

Dave

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