Thin is in at Samsung. The company’s new 6000, 7000 and 8000 LED backlit series measure a svelte 1.2″ deep. These sets just about disappear when viewed from the side. The top of the line 8000 series, available in both 46†($3199.99) and 55†($3999.99) versions, adds true 240Hz refresh rate to the feature-packed 7000 series. Samsung calls these sets “LED TVs,†but exactly what does that mean?
What It Isn’t 
While Samsung identifies these new, thin sets as “LED TVs†in its ads and on the shipping cartons, and while its website proclaims “a new HDTV technology…,” this is simply not the case.
These sets use conventional LCD (liquid crystal display) technology. White LEDs (light emitting diodes) mounted around the bezel edge, instead of more conventional means of illumination, provide panel backlighting.
There are true LED displays, of course, like Mitsubishi’s Diamond Vision and Panasonic’s Astrovision, used as giant outdoor displays in stadiums and in New York’s Times Square, that utilize up to 30 million red, blue and green LEDs to produce a full-color HD image.
Best Buy piles on, mimicking Samsung’s advertising in its weekly circular, listing these sets as LED HDTVs, while other LCD-based sets are identified as “LCD HDTVs.†In-store shelf tags also identify the televisions as “LED HDTVs†(see photos).
LED backlighting is hardly new technology. Sony introduced the first LED backlit LCD HDTVs in Japan over five years ago and the first in the US in 2005. Sony first introduced edge-mounted LED LCD TVs in 2008.
So, despite Samsung’s position, large flat screen HDTVs continue to use one of two technologies: LCD and plasma. LCD sets not using LED backlighting, use fluorescent lamps (usually a type known as CCFL). So, should you choose to buy one of these ultra-thin new Samsungs, keep in mind you’re not buying “new technology,†never mind a scaled down version of a Diamond Vision football stadium display!
What It Is
As previously stated, the UN46B8000 has a refresh rate of 240Hz for improved motion resolution. Unlike some other vendors touting 120 Hz displays with scanning backlights as 240 Hz, this Samsung uses twin MEMC (motion estimation motion compensation) chips to achieve a true 240 Hz refresh rate. The chips create interpolated frames between actual source frames. Movie film moves at a rate of 24 frames per second. To achieve 240 Hz, film frames must either be repeated ten times, or new frames created (via signal processing) by interpolating two adjacent frames to create intermediate ones. The test results appear in the performance section below.
Inputs include an Ethernet jack (for access to select internet widgets and websites), a USB jack (for viewing compatible still photo, video files and music files and to add firmware updates), 4 HDMI inputs, 1 component video input with L/R audio, 1 composite input with L/R audio input and a 15 pin Sub D (analog) PC input. There is no S-video input.
Note that due to the shallow depth of this Samsung, the 8000′s HDMI inputs require sideways insertion at the panel’s rear edge. The connectors are spaced more closely than on any other set tested. While it’s a tight fit, all but one HDMI cable we tried had sufficient room for insertion. It’s likely, though, that there are other HDMI cables on the market that may be too fat to fit. Inserting an internet connected Ethernet cable into the “RJ45′ type jack enabled the 8000 to quickly self-configure, allowing use of Yahoo widgets for on-screen sports news and weather, as well as Flickr and other selected websites.
The UN46B8000 has four picture modes (Dynamic for showrooms, Standard, Natural and Movie) Except as otherwise noted, measurements and picture evaluations were made in the Movie mode, which was deemed as the most accurate.
There are a plethora of user settings in addition to normal picture settings (i.e. Brightness, Color, and Contrast etc.), including Dynamic contrast (buries darker areas into black and crushes lighter areas), Black tone (darkens darker areas but also buries dark detail), Flesh tone (makes skin redder) and Edge Enhancement (produces more distinct edges without halos) For the most accurate image set these controls to “offâ€Â.
The remote control is large with lit buttons. Hot buttons include “content” for internet widget activation as well as a media player (via USB) and picture size (6 aspect ratios including a 1:1 called “wide fit”).
The screen bezel is finished in gloss black with a chrome-type edge. The 8000 includes a brushed aluminum swivel stand. It weighs in at just 39.5 lbs. (without stand).
Performance
The edge-mounted rows of LEDs produce a level of performance with both distinct advantages and disadvantages compared to conventional behind-the-LCD panel light sources. The major advantages of this configuration are low energy consumption, a very thin form factor and high image brightness. The UN46B8000 uses less energy than any large screen HDTV flat panel we’ve ever tested. In the “Dynamic” retail showroom mode it consumed just 148 watts with an on-center screen brightness of 79 ft. lamberts (the dynamic setting defaults to the “backlight” of 10, the maximum). The “Home” mode default is called “Standard” mode, (with a preset “5″ level backlight control setting) and consumed 123 watts. The “Movie” mode with the backlight set to “1″ consumed just 94 watts, with a brightness of 22.3 ft lamberts. Unlike rear mounted LEDs, which can change brightness within zones where the image darkens, the edge mounted design requires a steady intensity. This results in a steady power meter reading, and creates a direct correlation between the level of black and ultimate brightness. The best compromise is a backlight setting of “1″. Lowering the control to “0″ made the image too dim, while raising it caused blacks to lighten. The “1″ setting was fine for evening or day viewing with window shades; however, daytime viewing in rooms without window treatment may require a higher backlight setting to provide a sufficiently bright image, sacrificing deep black levels. The black level is quite low, though not as deep as our reference Pioneer Pro-141FD plasma
Getting the LED white light to travel from the edges to behind the LCD panel requires an optical wave guide that twists the light 90 degrees. This is no easy feat to perfect and Samsung hasn’t managed to completely nail it: screen uniformity wasn’t perfect when viewing a full white screen test pattern. On rare occasions, when viewing content with white areas at the top or bottom edge (see photo, note red circle is a room lamp reflection not the TV) or a blue sky, this non-uniformity gave the screen edge a schmutzy (dirty) appearance.
Viewing angle is another LCD issue, and this LED-lit LCD is no exception. Blacks appear lighter and whites darker as one moves off axis, either vertically or horizontally. While this effect is visible with all LCD displays, the fall off is greater with the LED edge-lit 8000. Measuring brightness at 20 degrees horizontal off dead center revealed a brightness decrease of 15%, along with lighter blacks. Whether or not this is an issue, depends upon your viewing distance and the width of your viewing area.
The 8000′s performance shined in areas of signal processing, motion resolution, noise reduction and gray scale accuracy, passing all the standard definition HQV tests for 3:2 Film detection, detail and noise reduction. It also passed the HD HQV deinterlacing 1080i signals and film cadence tests with the 8000 set to Film Mode 1. Warm 2 color temperature was near the industry D6500 standard and fine-tuned near perfection using the 8000′s “White Balance” control with the aid of signal generator and a Photo Research spectroradiometer.
There are two controls for the 8000s “Auto Motion Plus” 240Hz circuitry. Access is available by using the “Custom” mode (the other modes are factory presets and “off”). The first control labeled “Blur Reduction” can reduce or eliminate motion blur with video based sources such as live sports, newscasts, reality TV and some scripted series. The second control is called “Judder Reduction”, it smoothes out horizontal pans of film based sources (movies and many scripted TV series) eliminating the stutter present on other displays and supposedly reduces motion blur, though this is difficult to confirm. Unfortunately there is no objective test material currently available to quantify the amount of blur reduction with 24 fps source material.
Using the video-based FPD test disc, the “Blur Reduction” set to “0″ produced a motion resolution of 320 lines, the same as seen on most 60 Hz LCDs. Increasing the control to the “5″ position measured 630 lines of motion resolution, about the same result as most 120 Hz LCD flat panels previously measured. Cranking the control to the maximum “10″ position produced full 1080 line resolution. The only trade-offâ€â€a slight horizontal streakingâ€â€is more apparent as the control setting is increased. This was only noticeable close-up on light objects featuring dark details such as black lettering on a white street sign, or a girl’s dark lipstick against her light face as she swings on a rope. Overall the effect was insignificant enough to keep the control locked at the 10 maximum.
The “Judder Reduction” control makes pans appear smoother. The trade-off was that film-based material appears more like “live video” with a smoother texture as the control setting is increased, as if the film grain has been reduced or nearly eliminated. Comparing the 8000 against our reference Pioneer Pro-141FD confirmed the video-like look, noticeable even when the control is set to “Off”! Some viewers like the improved smoothness while others (including myself) don’t. The best compromise was with the control set to position “1″.
HDTV color accuracy was excellent. With the 8000′s “Color Space” set to auto the primaries show a very slight deviation from the Rec. 709 HDTV standard. Samsung claims the colors can be precisely fine tuned using the 8000′s custom “Color Space” control; if one has the inclination and the proper test equipment.
Evaluating image quality using Verizon FIOS cable (SD and HD) and Blu-ray confirmed the UN46B8000′s ability to produced fine looking pictures. The judder reduction circuitry really smoothed out the image during fast action sequences, such as seen in the Transporter 3 Audi-Mercedes chase (Chapter 10) on Blu-ray.
The full motion resolution and overall excellent performance places the UN46B8000 at the top of all the LCD HDTVs tested. We will see if the 8000 can keep its crown when we review the current Samsung and Sony LED rear backlit models currently in queue. Despite our quibbles regarding its “new technology†advertising, this Samsung is the first HDTV to deliver the dream of a thin, light weight, bright, clear 46″ HDTV that you can easily hang on the wall like a painting. The HD Guru awards the Samsung UN46B8000 ♥♥♥.
-HDGuru® with Michael Fremer
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I just bought a the Samsung LED 8000 series 55″. How do I get the picture to stop looking like it was shot from a home movie camera? It’s like I am watching it from the 1st person point of view, not like a regular movie or tv show.
Please help!
Otherwise, the picture quality is awesome! Love the tv!
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Great Post! I work with Sharp and know first hand about the confusion out there regarding LED TVs . These TVs are LCD TVs that are only backlit by LED lights which are far more efficient and brighter and more consistently bright all the way to the edge of the screen. The picture quality is far superior to standard LCD TVs and as an added bonus, the LED lights provide an execellant reduction in energy consumption.
I am not convinced these TVs are better than the older, LN52A/B750 and LN52A/B650 models. They certainly are much thinner and cooler looking and cheaper to run!
Those earlier models may have better contrast off-center, and they may have better brightness uniformity (less clouding). This is a new technology (the LED wave guide) for samsung and it hasn’t been the perfected yet.
The 1.2 inch thickness is definitely MUCH better than my LN52A850, which has the HDMI connectors shooting straight out the back (not sideways), which was stupid, imho !!
I purchased the Samsung 7100 from best buy just before Christmas. The picture quality was truly amazing as far as color & black depths. I did experience the “3D†effect some people have said they love while others claim to hate, for me some times I liked it others I didn’t. This was not a problem for me as it could be adjusted away. The deal breaker for me was that blurring could NOT be adjusted away. I am a commercial printer & my job demands I have an eye for detail. I returned the 7100 series & brought home the 8000 (both models 55inch). The issue still is there but much less notable. I can now live with what little blur there is. On the 7100 I couldn’t even play a game on my xbox 360 without getting a headache. I am nearly 40 years old & a serious gamer. If you are having issues gamming on the 7100 or 8000, make sure you adjust (turn up) ALL of your display settings on 360 & of course noting less than 700 monster cable(1000 monster cable preferred). Hope this helps my fellow gamers as well as anyone else with a sensitive eye to blur. Here is a good video I found describing the major differences between the 6000-7000-8000 led series.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-zM2cpu1PBpU/learn/videos/HDTVs/SamsungLED/6000-7000-8000.html
I purchased the Samsung 55′ UNB8000 2 weeks ago at BB and have had a problem with it going black/quiet for 5 seconds. I’ve run the power through a Monster 1600 power filter and also straight from the wall receptacle. Voltage fluctuates between 118V – 122V. ANY THOUGHTS??? Will this hurt the TV? Return it?
Cheers!
Once again a report that measured vertical resolution increases with the LCD update rate, yet no explanation of HOW this can occur.
1) Since it is the deinterlacer that outputs lines to the LCD panel — HOW could the panel update-rate alter the functioning of the deintelacer? The deintelacer inputs a new field every 1/60th second. So even with the cheapest deinterlacer, at 60Hz, 512-lines from the input signal should be sent to any LCD. So how can an LCD TV display only 330-lines?
———–
In past reviews, cheap LCDs provided 330-lines, but the “Region LED” Samsung you reviewed last year provided about 630-lines at 60Hz and about 1000-lines at 120Hz. So why does this new Samsung need to run twice as fast to get the same vertical resolution?
————
2) Assuming the deinterlacerin the Samsungs is good one — on the level used in Plasma HDTVs — it should be able to output about 1000-lines under motion. These 1000-lines should be sent to the 1080-row panel! So, why wouldn’t EVERY update show ALL 1000-lines?
3) You report that at 120Hz, 640-lines are displayed? And, at 240Hz, finally all 1000-lines are displayed. What is it about the LCD panels that forces either 2 or 4 updates to show all the lines coming from the deinterlacer?
4) Alternately, perhaps it is the motion estimation circuit(s) that affect the number of displayed lines. Is the motion estimation (interpolation) chip somehow “creating” double the vertical resolution coming from the deinterlacer? If so HOW does the chip accomplish this task?
5) Bottom-line, as I read your review the viewer ONLY shows full vertical resolution at 240Hz. But, I think most of us agree that:
a) Interpolation should not be used with film sources.
b) But, if you turn JR OFF, in order to obtain full vertical resolution you need to run the set at 240Hz. But, showing film content at more than 48Hz (or 72Hz) creates a “video” look. So shouldn’t reviews make it REALLY clear that if you want to watch film without interpolation and at the minimum possible frame-rate (60Hz) — vertical resolution is going to be only 330-lines! Do those who use BD and buy these LCD sets really understand this limitation?
6) It seems the best one can get from ANY LCD is to buy one where you can turn-off JR (interpolation with 2:3 pulldown sources) AND can obtain full motion vertical resolution at only 120Hz. It’s possible that 120Hz is not so much greater than 72Hz — that film will still look like film. (However, having experience with 25fps film viewed on PAL 100Hz HDTVs, makes me strongly doubt anything above 72Hz will really be acceptable.)
7) Its been widely reported that the motion interpolation chips create unwanted artifacts. But, what about there ability to pass natural film grain? I suspect that these chips must filter-out random-motion detail (grain) in order to generate objects that are following more predictable motion paths.
8) Even if you only want interpolation for video (60i) such as sports — if you want to minimize interpolation artifacts you’ll need to lower the update-rate which, of course, also lowers vertical resolution. So, one could have spent tons of money to get the same 330-lines vertical resolution you get from a cheap LCD.
Picked up the Samsung 55′ UNB8000 on boxing day.. took down my 43″ pioneer plasma.. picture is beautiful very sharp colorful and vibrant.. but the panel upset me when areas of the screen go dark I can see white cloudy images mostly on the left half of the tv… very upset feel like returning it..
Been reading these responses and it strikes me funny.
One new plasmas consume forty percent less and are so close in energy consumption why any of you knuckleheads are buying inferior plastic well marketed same lcd technology for hundrends if not thousands more.Buy a 55 inch lcd instead of a 63 plasma that has a way better picture. You guys buy into some tech talk about 1080i vs 1080p when in fact a tv 50 inches or less you can’t tell. True with larger TVs Another thing how thin your tv is common on guys! Plasmas have a slimline at 2 inches and its a plasma. I bought a Samsung PN63B590 at 2300 dollars not led lcd that can touch it for picture cost and quality.Dont get sucked into paying antiquated technology because its thinner.Someone prove this wrong. Forget Best buy they have contracts with Sony and others and they are going to market what will make them the most profits they are double dipping the same mark up the second time around with Led terms versus LCD there using plastic to cut cost and material. Quality hmmm Mercedes and Bentley other higher end cars may not goes as fast as a Corvette but what a piece of fiberglass and plastic the vet has.
I just bought 8000 series one week ago. At the same time I bought flip mino hd camcorder. Initially I thought it may not be good quality of the video with 720i which is the out put of flip mino.But surprisingly picture quality is fantastic.
I just got this one for about 2 weeks but not quite sure that the picture quality is better than the 120 hz. I didn’t test with blu-ray discs yet, but connected with cable I think it’s not different from the 120 hz.
I agree with a few who commented on Samsung’s 8000 series. I am disappointed with Samsung 8000 LED, 240 hz TV’s clarity. The picture quality is inferior to SONY CRT Vega/Bravia series. The LED TV’s picture is blurry and edge contrast is very poor. Somehow the picture does not look real. Wish I could hang on to good old CRT TV.
I have two Nikkai 10″ Freeview TVs and they are excellent. Sound obviously not wonderful as the speakers are small, but perfectly adequate. The picture quality is surprisingly good. Both over a year old now and no problems.
I have read everyone of these comments to see if anyone else had experienced what I had or maybe I have bought a poor looking Samsung LED HDTV. Just recently I purchase a package deal at BB (UN46B8000 + Samsung Thin Wall Mount) for $2200, but then had it adjusted to $2000 after seeing the price drop within the same week in store–not sure why. However, price has gone back to $2200 w/o the free mount.
Based on my observation, I was quite disappointed. No matter what settings I played with and placing it side-by-side with my 3-yr old SONY XBR2 (Silver w/ clear frame around it). The Samsung LED did not have the clarity as the SONY. Even with the local over-the-air digital channels, the picture quality is not comparable to the SONY.
When I hooked both up to just the standard RCA cables from the SD DirectTV box, the Samsung LED lacks clarity (edge contrast is blurry), facial tone color is not as real looking, RED/BLUE/GREEN colors are over-exposed (too bright), WHITE (not as bright), and BLACK (not as black). I am not sure if SONY has better technology in terms of their video processing, but the price justifies the picture quality for those that could afford one.
Yes, the Samsung is very thin, but SONY’s XBR10 is also very sleek looking. However, I am thinking of returning it. As a matter of fact, now thinking back to when I purchase the SONY XBR2 3 yrs. ago, the reason I chose it over the Samsung was due to the picture quality. At the store, the Samsung LED looks great (not sure what type of source BB hooked it up to), but not at home when it sits next to my SONY XBR2.
I have just purchased this TV, but have experienced and problem in getting the unit to display in Colour. The TV is connected to a PVR digital Decoder. The input is via standard AV cables, I have tried everything but it will not display in Colour, What else can I try?
Hi gentlemen,
I’ve been reading pretty much all this page and have a question:
Is the difference between a Edge-lit and Full Led that big?
What would be the best full-led screens available at the moment?
What type of HDMI cables are recommended for the 8000 series 240hz tv? Does the hz in the tv change the recommendation or would decent cables work?
Jeez, you people don’t know you’re born! The 55″ 7000 has just arrived here in Argentina and it’s priced at US$5290 (that’s 1.4 times my annual take home salary). I’d love the luxury of being able to compare it with an 8000 (unlikely to arrive any time this year), but I’m just going to dig deep into my savings and put up with the 7000…
The expensive, stylish Samsung UNB8000 series has its share of picture quality drawbacks, but a firmware update helps, and the thin frames are worth serious bragging rights.
Im hoping to get this in time for xmas. I noticed the picture quality is outstanding and highly recommend it
Love it picture of Samsung UN46B8000 240Hz LCD is totally awesome.
I posted back on August 5, hoping at the time that the price of the 8000 would go down. Shortly after, one of the ebay sellers offered free shipping and a rebate offer of about $250. The total price was about $1850. Most of the rebate money (from two sources) has now arrived. I also bought the Samsung BDP3600 Blu Ray player.
I only have a four-year old WalMart bought 29 inch Panasonic CRT to compare it to, but the 8000′s picture is astounding. I’m sure I could adjust it to be much better than the wonderful quality that it already is, but it seems good enough. There is a tremendous selection of controls to change it if I ever want to. The Blu Ray player loads extremely fast and upconverts DVD’s so well that I don’t really need to get Blu Ray discs. Unlike the Cyberhome DVD player, however, the 3600 won’t play most of the crummy pirated DVD’s I bought in China. Also, the sound is not very good. Someday we’ll be flush enough to buy external speakers.
It’s a beautiful set and is not the dust magnet the CRT was. I haven’t seen the need to clean it in the two months I’ve owned it. Maybe any of the new non-LED sets would have amazed me just as much as the 8000. I guess I’ll never know, but my wife and I are certainly very happy with the TV we got.
I’ve had a terrific Toshiba 36″ CRT set for 17 years. Great picture, and not the first problem with it, ever. I’ve been waiting for LCD TVs to come out that surpassed the 36″ CRT set. I finally found one. I originally wanted a Sony 46″ Bravia. After looking at all of the sets on display at Fry’s electronics, I settled on a Samsung 46″ 8000 Series. The picture is much better than even the latest Sony Bravia, and there is no noticable motion blur. Now that we have it in the house, and have used it to watch HD cable shows, regular DVDs, and Blu-Ray discs, I can say that my wife and I are completely satisfied with our choice. 1.2″ thick, only 39.5 lbs, and the best picture I’ve found yet, and it runs cooler than anything I’ve looked at so far. We are completely satisfied with ours, and I can highly recommend it to anyone in the market for a new flat panel TV. As far as the minor faults stated by “experts”, they may be apparent to someone with a lot of test equipment, but for normal viewing, we find no downsides to the picture at all, regardless of the source or the kind of viewing, i.e. sports, movies, HD TV programs, etc. All play perfectly for us, and we are glad that we chose the set we did, and both occasionally remark on how good the picture is.
My suggestion is to carefully watch all of the TVs on display at a large electronic store to see which one produces the best picture for YOU, and buy from a store that will take it back and/or exchange it for you in 30 days if you’re not satisfied with it once in your home. Fry’s Electronics will do that, but we have no reason to exchange the Samsung 8000 Series we bought. We love ours, and look forward to many years of viewing pleasure.
YMMV
For the ‘I feel sick to my stomach guy’, if you are meaning the 100 or 200 hz mode just turn it off!! If not then please explain what ur problem is as we are not mind readers! I’m looking to get a new big tv for a dedicated cinema room and wondering what to get either a 55″ samsung led 7020/8000 or the 58″ ps58b850 slimline plasma! I am a really heavy gamer and bluray user, any ideas which one would be best for me! Is the lag on the LEDs really bad??
55″ led is around £2100 and 58″ plasma for £1900.
Do you know if prices are supposed to fall dramatically on LED TVs this holiday season? I would love to pic one up but they are a lot more expensive then their LCD counterparts.
Just picked up the Samsung UN55B8000 and it makes me feel a bit sick to my stomach when watching it. Hopefully I get used to it.
Can be viewed as close as 2 to 3 feet without much if any grain.Viewing angles is as good as any great plasma I have seen during the last year.
Very light and thin. Can practically be taken from room to room.Can be profiled nearly perfectly.
These LED-lit LCDs are pretty nice. However, I have had the chance to have some hands on time with them and several drawbacks became apparent.
First of all, I still saw noticeable amounts of ghosting and motion blur on the 7000 model I used. Not at all clear like on the best plasma and crt sets.
Second, there was significant input lag, even in “game mode”. Moreover, game mode doesn’t allow you to use the normal picture settings so your image quality for games looks very poor. This unfortunately makes these sets not a very good choice for serious gamers.
Off angle image degradation was some of the worst I have ever seen on an LCD. The colors and blacks became washed out and a bluish tint would invade the picture. Be ready to set straight on if you plan to buy this tv.
Absolute black levels were amazingly good for an LCD, but unfortunately there are some downsides. No matter how I set the tv I couldn’t keep it from crushing the blacks to some degree, which of course hurts shadow detail. The other thing is that even though the blacks can get pretty dark the contrast in dark scenes always suffered because the brighter areas of the picture would also lose brightess and punch.
All in all I really liked the Samsung LED, but I ended up choosing the Panasonic G10 plasma because the drawbacks were fewer and the picture it produces is simply amazing. The performance in dark scenes is even better, the colors seem richer, the viewing angles are extremely wide, the motion is smooth and detailed, and there is virtually no input lag.
Hey As Seen on TV,
Vizio is not even in the same BALL PARK as the Samsung LED. Vizio is about a thousand dollars cheaper for a reason.
Hi HDGURU,
I recently purchased SAMSUNG LED 8000 TV. How can I get the sound from my TV through my Bose Lifestyle 28 home theatre system (which takes in RCAs). I don’t find any L & R Audio outputs on my new TV. I didn’t have this problem with my old CRT TV. Any work around ?
Just bought the 55in 8000. LED-LCD. Love it picture is totally awesome. And strreaming my movies to it a breeze.
I’ve been wanting one of these for a while! Have you heard anything about the quality of the brand Vizio. They are a ton cheaper but I’m wondering if the quality compares to Samsung.
Everyone is forgetting the TRUE reigning king of picture quality- the CRT! I know it’s unpopular and out-moded, but my ws Sony xbr tube has the inkiest blacks that would put these other pos big-box junkers to shame! Yes, it’s heavier than me, but who would steal a 200 lb 34 inch tv? I’m glad Samsung is making new tech popular and cheap, but they are generally junk. Just watch an “old” dvd via s video or component and you’ll see their weakness in the video processing. Guys, processing is as important as the screen itself. It’s like owning a $10k speaker system and running it with a Technics ht receiver. Seriously! And people- don’t look at numbers like 1,000,000,000:1 and 480 hz- they are numbers unregulated and mean hardly anything. Do you really think your “200 watt” pioneer car deck really produces 200 clean watts continuously to 4 speakers? Anywho, go by what you physically see and hear, not what advert review says. Thank you and good luck.
Great review!
Finally somebody pointed out exact advantages and flaws of edge mounted LED’s. Thanks!
Darker colors looks really great, but light colors really have non-uniform appearance!
Thanks!
HD Guru? Your just a Samsung hater!
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Betty
http://electricguitarhowtoplay.net
Interesting review, can’t believe why would Samsung lie to the comsumer. I did read that “LCD sets not using LED backlighting” Now I have to do some deep research because my next big buy is a big “LED HDTV”
I was ready to buy the set, it was on sale for $2099. But after seeing a few complaints of the tv showing a glow in the black likes when it’s letterboxing, I had to see it myself. I had them play a DVD in the letterbox mode, and sure enough, the horizontal black lines had a “glow” to them. The glow follwed me as I moved left-right. I really love the tv for the picture quality, but priced at 2x other tvs the same size, I expect the picture to be perfect, not just better. Get rid of the glow, or lower the price to the range of other 46″ tvs, and I’ll be buying one
I bought the Samsung 46b8000 and am trying to get the right HDMI cables without being ripped off. Could use some help. Any suggestions?
How is possible that brightness messures in this samsung UN46B800 messure lower ft-lamberts than plasma panasonic tc-p54v10 or tcp50g10 in your reviews ? 73 versus 87 and 92 respectively.
Hope I agree with you, Bob. I’m used to my cheap Walmart 29″ Panasonic non-widescreen CRT. The Samsung BDP3600 and UN46B8000 are arriving this week. Wonder if the Blu Ray player will play the pirated DVD’s I bought in China or if I’ll have to continue using the cheap Cyberhome? Or maybe I’ll want to throw them all away. Looking forward to renting the Blu Ray DVD’s from Netflix. I was hooked at a home show by a UN46B7000 showing a documentary that I think was called “Earth.” Rebates and low eBay prices on both player and TV finally got the prices down to my level.
I’ve had the 55″ 8000 for about 2 months now, it’s simply amazing. 1080i hdtv/cable is truly 3d and blue ray is astounding – this is a class above the rest. At first I’d use custom motion flow for blue ray but now I’m more used to it and enjoy the full and unbelievable (jaw dropping) 3d picture and resolution. It’s hung on my wall like a picture and the brightness is so strong there’s no noticable issue in any respect (view angle, etc.) After many years of 1080p/24, my vote goes to the Samsung 55″ 8000 as the best TV in the world and an order of magnitude better than anything I’ve seen before.
The LED LCD set has as much reflection glare from room lights as the plasmas. I saw them both side by side at BB
The Pioneer Elite models are not the best plasma that Pioneer made, the Pioneer krp-500m is the last and best plasma that Pioneer made. Long live the NEW KING!……
I just brought one of these home yesterday.
I am very sorry to report that there is *considerable* input lag. I would say, between 70-100ms.
Enabling game mode will reduce this slightly, to what seems to be somewhere between 40 and 70ms, but it is completely unbearable.
Playing my Xbox 360 was very annoying on this monitor. All inputs were noticeably delayed.
So, I decided to test the HDMI output on my laptop in conjunction with the laptop speakers. I connected the laptop to the UN46B8000 via HDMI/DVI port 1 and set the monitor to gaming mode. I then started up a Blu-Ray movie on the laptop.
In this configuration, only the video was being output on the HDMI port, and the audio was playing through the laptop’s speakers. There was a very clearly noticeable delay between the audio and the actual display on the UN46B8000. People would talk and their mouths would seem to always be just a fraction of a second behind their voices. Again, what seemed to be about 70ms on average.
IMO – completely unsuitable for gaming. Definitely an AMAZING screen for home theater, but any input-sensitive applications will definitely suffer from this unfortunate drawback.
Robert Jones, XBR9 has CCFL backlighting. You probably meant XBR8.
I love this TV but prices are still coming down like crazy and I am waiting for more offers to come my way before jumping in.
LED HELP!!
I purchased the Samsung 7100 (55″) LED-lit LCD about two weeks ago for a little over 3k. I was in the store yesterday and saw a Samsung (55″) LCD (CCFL) on sale for $1899. My question is…will I see that much a of difference in picture quality between an LCD and Edge-lit LED? Do CCFL’s have a longer lifespan than the LED’s? My return window is getting smaller and I’m looking for some guidance. Thank you!!
Waiting until the 9000 series comes out, thinking that the 46 inch 8000 will get cheaper then. Wonder if the BDP 3600 would be a good Blu Ray player to get also. I figure they would mate well. Wonder what inexpensive speakers I should get. Maybe Samsung also? Any ideas?
if you read the manuals of the LED Tv’s, samsung warns from burns in, if still image is there for more than 2 hours, is this True Guru ?
isnt an LED TV 32″ is suitable as a computer screen ?