Customer Reviews

Samsung HL-R5067W 50-Inch HD-Ready DLP TV

5 star:		(36)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I purchased this set and am floored by the quality of the picture. I was a bit concerned about loss of contrast to ambient light but am pleased to discover almost no change in the way the picture looks day or night. If you buy this set be sure and spend an extra 150-200 bucks on an upconvert DVD player, the difference it will make on your current DVD collection will blow you away!
The set does a nice job with standard definition signals as well, always a concern with so little HD programming currently available.
I work in the home theater department of a major electronics retailer and did my homework before deciding which set I'd spend my money on. This set won hands down over any of the other currently available models. It looked great on the showroom floor but it looks even BETTER in my home.
My neighbor across the street has a 42 inch plasma and it's nice, but i can't wait to show him this 50 inch beauty! I think he'll be a little jealous, especially when he hears what I paid compared to what he shelled out for his plasma ;)
If you're looking to go HD, this is definitely the way to go, more screen for your buck and a picture that will make even the most uninitiated viewer gasp.

After months of research, including plasma, LCD, projection, DLP, we decided on the Samsung DLP. Amazon does a fantastic job of getting the product to you--they use a furniture delivery truck instead of just freight--and the men brought the set into the house, set it in place and removed all the packing. Set was in pristine condition and worked to perfection right out of the box. This Samsung has it's own digital cable tuner and the stations that are broadcasting in HDTV come in so clear it just blows you away! TV buying experience with happy ending thanks to Amazon and Samsung.

I've had this set for about 5 months now, and am extremely pleased with it. The picture is great for DVDs (progressive scan) and for HDTV--we get a number of channels over the air, using a standard antenna, and cannot imagine going back to normal TV. Analog cable is okay, but I wouldn't buy an HD TV if that was the bulk of what I watched.

When the TV was shipped, there was a slight blemish on the screen; I'm not sure if that occured during shipping or was a manufacturing defect. In any case, Samsung offers 1 year *in home* service, and they sent a person to look at it, ordered a full replacement screen, and returned to install it in a week. I watched them replace the part, and the TV now looks and works as good as new.

We've been enjoying our 50" HLN-5065 Sammy DLP for more than 2 years now, with no regrets! I got the 4-year on-site Extended Warranty at Best Buy for $300 when we bought it and I'm glad we did. Since this is a relatively new technology, there are bound to be problems that slowly get worked out with each new series that's released. Last March (at the start of March Madness no less), our screen started randomly freezing with a black and white image on the screen that looked like a photo negative.

One call to Best Buy and within a couple of days, a service guy came out and said he had to replace the digital board...We could still watch TV, but just had to shut it down and boot it back up whenever the screen froze...Sometimes 2-3 times a day, sometimes no times a day. Once the new board arrived and was installed ($292.95 parts + $150 labor), it worked like new for about another month when it did the SAME thing again!

This time a different service guy came out and installed a brand new light engine AND digital board ($1,303.72 parts + $150 labor)...Basically ALL NEW GUTS in the TV! They're the latest version too because he actually had difficulty getting the ports/jacks to line up properly between the new guts and old back cover. That's when he said they don't make the older parts anymore, since they've made improvements in the technology and use those when repairs are needed...Sounded good to me, so I bought into it!

One thing's for sure...The picture has never been better on this screen with both Std Definition and our DirecTV HD feed and OTA Zenith Silver Sensor HD local channels. So why would I give a product 5 stars when we experienced such problems with it?

It's easy...This set delivers a stunning large picture that never degrades (mechanically) over time, and it was $3,200 new when 42" plasmas were $7,000 to $8,000. In another 3-4 years, those plasmas will be worthless and we'll just put a new bulb in our DLP and it'll look good-as-new! Technical difficulties with new technologies should not be unexpected, but rather anticipated...Thus, the reason for purchasing an extended warranty.

After more than 1-1/2 years of viewing enjoyment, our $300 warranty paid for $1,900 of brand new parts, including improved technology! It's like insurance...You don't want to use it, but if you do NEED it, you don't want to find yourself without it. Since this 50" DLP is now only $1,800, you should seriously consider it the front-runner in any large screen HDTV purchase comparison. Don't just consider what you get in picture quality NOW, but what will you still be enjoying several years from now after your neighbor's plasma with multiple screen burn-ins finally gives up the gas and goes screen up in the landfill!

Picture is great, colour is bright and although I have a very sunny room, the reflection is not much of a problem. The cabinet is not distracting from the picture as I find the case with other sets. Every connection imaginable available and easy to do. Overall I'm very happy with this set. Now there is a little story - When the TV arrived the hurried delivery team unpacked the set, put it on the floor and turned it on to prove that it was working. The set came on and a menu was displayed. Satisfied that the set was working, the delivery team turned it off, and I accepted the TV. Little did I know that the unit would not stay on for more than 20 seconds without automatically shutting down. The troubleshooting guide was not able to help me diagnose the problem so I called Samsung. The Samsung sets come with a 1-year IN HOME warranty. The in-home part is uncommon with other manufacturers. I simply had to schedule 1 hour out of my day (they were able to come the next business day) to meet the Samsung service agent. They replaced the entire inside of the TV and it now works great. I'm unsure if the set got damaged during shipping, but the in-home service was a breeze. I now have essentially a brand-new unit. Samsung was a good deal. So the lesson being - keep your unit on for a few minutes when it is delivered, and buy Samsung (or another with similar warranty) and protect yourself. These are delicate units and even a little jostle can shake things to broke.
Originally purchased and reviewed in Aug. 2005
Updated Jan 2007 - Still performing great. Set has never required maintenance or a new bulb. This was a great purchase, I continue to be impressed with this units picture.

BIG UPDATE SEPT 2008 - After a short life, my tv now 3 yrs and 3 months old with very minimal usage (avg. 15 min/day - I'm away a lot)is dead in the water. Light engine is the suspect. Minimum $800-$1200 to repair, no service center close to me. So, same TV new is only $1200. What choice do I really have. Essentially, I have to write off the TV. I'm so utterly disappointed with this product. No TV should cost you $800/year to own. Samsung no help - out of warranty of course they feel no accountability to taking my money and giving me 3 years for that kind of money - no value. This is the 2nd time the TV is broken, and both times the entire inside needed replacing. Never even go to replace a bulb. Consider that the least of your worries.

The HD picture quality is exceptional. I was able to receive HD over my standard cable tv input. I then added Digital Cable using the cable card. Without a set top box my cable bill went down (part of a roadrunner and digital package). The picture quality on HD broadcasts make you feel like you are in the room with the people on screen. The standard analog channels look poor. The large screen only accentuates the poor signal quality provided by the cable company.

BTW- Time Warners definition of "digital cable" is approximately 30 digital channels and the other 50 (?) are analog. Hopefully over time this will improve.

DVD movies vary in quality from excellent to okay. Depends on how old the movie is and if it is formatted for 16:9 viewing.

Overall I am very happy with the TV Quality. Amazon shipped promptly and the unit arrived in perfect condition.

Chris

I purchased this television from Amazon; I like the television, it's sharp, contrasty, and though it suffers from the typical DLP issues, it does a stellar job otherwise.

What I would caution however, is that you don't purchase this from Amazon directly. I had a downright horrific experience with Amazon's shipping company, Eagle GL, involving a soaked telvision with obvious signs of improper shipping, arriving days late with no status or contact along the way. Amazon's freight delivery providers are completely incompetent and should not be trusted. Get yours from J&R or one of othe other listed vendors.

After shopping around for weeks, reviewing numerous articles on the DLP vs other televisions, and talking to people who own a Samsung DLP, I decided on the 50 inch Samsung DLP. Amazon had the best price on this television and I have not been disappointed at all. Very easy transaction, amazon used a moving company to deliver the television; they took it out of the box, and set it up in the family room (set up means plug in and make sure it works. All other cable set up is on you). 5 stars for amazon.

Now for the television: Great look, great picture, great sound, easy set-up, Love the thing; however you need at least 8 to 9 feet of viewing room between you and the television otherwise the picture does not look sharp and I found it to hurt my eyes if I viewed it closer than 8 feet away. Also keep in mind the lighting and window placement in the room where the television will be in order to prevent / limit any glare on the picture screen.

Bottom line - this television is the best bang for your buck hands down.

I wasn't sure if I should order the television online but the experience was great. The set was delivered in about five days. The picture is phenomenal, much better than I expected. The remote could use an upgrade but besides that the set is more than advertised. I have not figured out the tv guide feature and I am not sure if I ever will. This set is the best bang for your buck. Also be aware that you will probably need a new t.v. stand for the set because it is very wide. Get the matching stand made by Samsung. Also, the t.v. is very light, and can be easily pushed or moved by young children.

When I bought this TV and brought it home, I immediately noticed a curved border on the 4:3 aspect ratio mode. Upon exchanging the set for another identical set, the problem still exists on the new one, leading me to believe this is a problem on all of this model. The Samsung web site says that a 1/2" deviance is "acceptable", so if you have the same problem, don't expect the manufacturers warranty to help. The pincushion problem is not nearly as noticeable in 16:9 format, but if you can't stand the stretching of a 4:3 signal to 16:9, this will be an issue for you as well.

The remote control looks like something out of the '80s. It is functional, but for a big screen TV, you expect more. I suggest the Harmony remote control, and just toss the stock remote control in a drawer for emergencies.

When I spend over 2000 bucks on something, I expect perfection, but did not get it with this set.

The Good:
-- crisp, bright widescreen picture

The Bad:
-- archaic remote control
-- slightly concave screen causes pincushion deviance of anywhere from 1/8" to 1/4", very noticable in 4:3 mode

UPDATE 1/27/2006:
After a few months of owning this tv, I started noticing smudge marks on the set that were not on the front of the picture; these only occured while the picture was a white or very bright color. I called Samsung after seeing this was a common problem on their support site. Within a few minutes of talking ot the operator, I had a number of a local shop that is certified to do Samsung repairs. They were over at my house after about a week. The repairman replaced the entire engine and ordered a new screen. After another few weeks, after a replacement screen was obtained by the repair shop, the screen has been replaced. All of this was done at no extra cost to me, but did take about 3 weeks total to get fixed (not really Samsungs fault).

The concave shape of the screen that I complained about in the review is now gone. My main complaint is that both of the sets that came out of the factory were faulty in one way or another. I am put off by the low quality coming out of the factory, but when you have this TV with a flat screen and a new engine, it looks pretty darn good.