Posts Tagged 52-Inch
Samsung LN52B550 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on January 11, 2010
CHEAP Samsung LN52B550 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color
This reviews contains the stuff I would have wanted to know before paying for a TV of this size.
I recently upgraded to a Samsung LN52B550 1080i 60Hz HDTV from a 32 inch Samsung 720p HDTV. I liked the old Samsung set but it is kinda small by today’s standards. The picture on this TV is awesome. At first the 52″ screen looked too big for the room but now after viewing several movies, its perfect. (My distance from the set in the room where I use it varies from 10ft to 13ft away.) Definitely not too big – I see new details in movies that I never saw before and the big screen experience really makes watching your old favorite DVDs like they are brand new movies. (Do get a DVD player that upscales the DVDs to 1080i resolution – they are just to cheap not to get the clarity that gives you… better yet get a Blue-Ray since prices have come way down)
The TV arrives in a large carton. Putting the stand on it is easy. The TV is not so heavy but it is big and therefore cumbersome to move. It will take two people to lift it up the stairs and onto the table surface or whatever where you will set it down. I did not wall mount it but if you want to do so you could purchase a mount for probably 0 bucks. Hooking the TV up is a breeze if you use HDMI cables – probably buy two six footers – and probably buy them on the web for the best price because they are overpriced in most stores.
If you have a receiver, use HDMI cables to run the sound of this TV through it. The TV sound is nothing special but running it through your receiver it sounds great. There are other options like RCA cables, Composite video connections etc. but HDMI is just so easy because it carries the picture and the sound and retains the best possible picture resolution and sound sampling rates without having to worry if you could be doing better by hooking it up differently. It does have the ability to hook up to your computer but I did not try that yet.
My question when purchasing this unit as opposed to some other model, was whether the 60Hz screen refresh was good enough in light of all the talk about 120Hz and even 240Hz speeds. The higher Hz is supposed to help keep the blurring down in fast motion scenes – and I am sure it would – but it comes at a hefty price (0). Here is my rationale: Consider that the movies themselves are blurred in fast moving scenes. Don’t understand what I mean? Watch a movie then pause it during an action scene. When paused, you are seeing a single frame. It is blurred because the camera took the photo that way – not because your screen refresh rate can’t keep up with it. Try the same thing with a Pixar movie (which is NOT created with a camera). The illustrators deliberately motion-blur frames to get life-like action results. Maybe the 120 or 240Hz makes more difference with sports, but with football games the picture is stunningly crystal clear and I have never noticed any blurring. So anyway, I opted not to pay that extra price and accepted this TV’s 60Hz speed.
The contrast ratio is another thing that is much greater on more expensive sets but the end result is just not worth paying extra for. Perhaps an exception could be made for gamers, where effects are often for the gaming experience rather than realism. However those extreme contrast and computer created lighting effects do not have a realistic look. If movie makers were to use them in production, they would look weird. So, do you need a TV with a really high contrast ratio (where the blacks are really blackest)? I did not see that as worthwhile.
I liked the sets I looked at with LCD backlighting because of the consistent brightness even into the corners, but you are not likely to notice that difference with typical viewing of movies. The manufacturers are really proud of the LCD backlighting feature, but the extra price you pay for the LCD backlight is extreme – very low bang for the buck. This set does not have LCD backlighting – just the standard florescent.
Feature-wise, this model has all the typical menu based settings, channel guides and source options, so really no big pluses or minuses in that department. Like all LCDs, the screen has a matte finish so the reflections from windows or lamps in the room are not very noticeable. (Plasma screens can have a lot of glare so I prefer LCD unless the TV is in a room with no windows.)
This is not a new TV design by any means, but it is at the best price point if you want to upgrade to a really nice TV and don’t care about bragging to your friends about the latest and greatest techie stuff you got.
By the way, I don’t have cable! (If I like a movie I buy it or rent it & I don’t care about the shows…) So, this TV is hooked up to the same roof mounted antenna I have had for 20 years and the picture is great. Just use the shielded coaxial cable you can get at Lowes or Home Depot. I understand there are Hi-Def antennas out there but I have not needed to try one.
Bottom line: the 52″ size seems big at first but is really good for the average living room – worth the cost difference from a 46″. The 60Hz refresh, 6 millisecond response time; 70,000:1 contrast ratio and standard backlighting are all sufficient for really great 1080i resolution viewing of DVD or Blu-Ray media.
I purchased this unit for 19 in December of 2009 & I am very pleased. If I had it to do over again now after having it for several weeks & seeing the after Christmas specials, I would still get the same one.
Available at Amazon
Samsung LN52B550 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color Feature
Samsung LN52B630 52-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on January 4, 2010
CHEAP Samsung LN52B630 52-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color
I have spent the better part of two years researching and looking at flat panel TV’s. Considered the Pioneer and Panasonic plasma’s, and the Samsung, Sony, and LG LCD’s, between 42″to 55″ screen size. When it was time to pull the trigger, the Samsung seemed the best over-all value for the money, and with many happy campers on it’s side, a safe bet. I have only had the set for two weeks, but both the wife and I are really impressed with this LCD’s picture quality and ease of use. And for the record, we purchased the Samsung DVD-1080P9 player, a budget priced up-converting DVD player at the same time, based on the solid reviews of the player here at Amazon and else-where. The beautiful integration between the LCD and the DVD is a big selling feature and makes loading and watching a DVD a simple one-step process.
Since there are so many post’s on this set’s many features and solid picture quality, I’ll just say a quick few words on the subject. Top-notch color, excellent resolution, non-glare matte screen, easy to use and read menu options, and wonderful cosmetics make this set a clear winner considering its current discounted price. And the spec’s speak for themselves. Even regular SD broadcast’s look very good on this LCD. The up-converted standard DVD’s are very close to HD in quality. The only area on this set I think could use a bit of improvement is in the set’s speakers. But, hey, most sets fall down in this area also. The Sammy’s are as good as most I have heard. Get yourself at least a pair of high quality add-on self-amplified speakers to go with this superb TV.
In closing, I am a true believer in Samsung’s LCD panels. This set will not disappoint!
Available at Amazon
Samsung LN52B630 52-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color Feature
Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-52V5100 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on December 5, 2009
CHEAP Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-52V5100 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black
Well I’ve had this TV for approx 3 weeks and I love it so far & delivers as promised. I mostly use it for gaming on my 360 (which looks great on this set) and watching movies via HDMI on my laptop. I can’t wait to get my PS3 and play it on this..
I can’t comment much on the sound since I output sound to my Logitech 5.1 speakers for the required “omph” needed. I tested the internal speakers once and it’s decent but the lack of bass could be an issue.
The motion flow was great at first but I ended turning it off since it tended to detract from the movie for e.g I was watching “Public Enemies” recently in high def with motion flow on and it looked insanely beautiful but after an hour I was more gawking the movie environment rather that enjoying the video. IMHO motion flow is best suited when watching porn at 1080p and Courtney Cummz & Phoenix Marie has never looked better, I could never go back to standard def after seeing that….
Overall excellent product & highly recommended, The only gripe I have is with Amazon’s Yo-yo pricing model,I bought this at 14 only to look a couple of weeks later and it dropped to 49 and back up to 00 etc…..
Available at Amazon
Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-52V5100 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black Feature
Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-52V5100 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black Overview
Samsung LN52B750 52-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on November 30, 2009
CHEAP Samsung LN52B750 52-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color
Two things you need to know about having a Samsung LCD, of any of the kinds and sizes they make:
1. They’ll work perfectly fine if you attach a computer as one of the components: no residual fuzziness or unwanted screen crop, although you’d better have a state-of-the art video card on your computer for this to render the crisp picture you’re dreaming of. The one that comes with your garden-variety laptop will never do. I use one of these for my computer at work (40 inches: I’m insane), and another, slightly smaller one for my home computer. They work EXTREMELY well for this purpose, which is why I have three of them total: I’m too leery to switch brands. For example, the TV, when you use it as a computer monitor, has enough brains to shut down when your computer goes to sleep, and then to fire back up again when your computer wakes up — all without your having to touch the monitor at all!
2. This TV can evidently do a lot. Tragically, this will require you to get educated about the latest cables and connectors. For example, I am wont to connect all my devices (Playstations, cable connections, VHS players, DVD players, Blue-ray players, satellite links, etc.) with red-white-yellow connectors, or, preferably, red-white-red-green-blue connectors. As for the latter, this only has two rows available, plus an extra red-white-yellow on the TV’s left side (facing the screen). However, it has an array of other adapters (such as HDMI adapters) that I’m still learning about. (These basically look like jumbo-sized USB cables, but can carry high definition sound and audio together in one cable). If you’re unclear on the in’s and out’s of this stuff, read the exchange in the comments below, which I found helpful. I have never, for example, learned how to get the monitor’s on-board speakers to route the sound the computer’s putting out.
Credentials: I have three of these, different sizes.
Available at Amazon
Samsung LN52B750 52-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color Feature
Samsung LN52B750 52-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color Overview
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