Customer Reviews

Samsung HL-S6187W 61-Inch 1080p DLP HDTV

5 star:		(98)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

I researched HDTVs very carefully, my final buying choices were this one and a Sony XBR. Boy am I glad I bought the Samsung. This TV is AWESOME!! I never want to cut it off. A big plus for this set is the 2 HDMI inputs. I used one for a DirecTV HD receiver and the other for a Panasonic S97 upconversion DVD player. The picure is truly just outstanding, straight out of the box. I tweaked around with the colors a little, took a little red out but for the most part left the default settings alone. I have had the set now for three weeks and I have no complaints at all. It has plenty of inputs for all your video gear and you are able to label each input on the screen. The manual is well written and easy to understand. Besides the HDMI inputs, it has a WISELINK feature which allows you to hook up a USB jumpdrive and display jpeg photos with amazing clarity. It will play mp3 files too. It has a game mode to enhance video game play and you can hook your computer up to it and use it as a monitor. This set does everything, and does it all very well.

The speakers are hidden in the cabinet, which gives it a very cool design. There is some sacrifice of sound quality, but it still sounds very, very good.

I think Samsung has come up with a wonderful set, and balanced features very well with price and performance. I own the 61'' model, they make the same set in smaller sizes too.

I bought this TV for my home theater, essentially for watching movies from DVDs. I also bought an upconverting DVD player and I am very satisfied with the quality of the image.

This TV is capable of receiving off-air digital television (DTV), both for standard and hig definition TV. The HDTV reception is very good. Be sure you use the best possible connection from your video sources to this TV for the best possible picture.

The only thing that bothers me (so far...) is the fact that whenever you try to reprogram the channels (if you adjust the antenna, for example), the previously programmed channels are deleted and replaced.

Overall, I am very happy with my purchase, but I think that the prices of DLP TVs should come downs pretty soon.

I spent several months researching the current TV's, plasma, LCD, rear projection (LCOS, DLP, LCD), and even a front projector. And of course, checking out each brand from each type of TV, both online, and in stores. Basically, just trying to find the best price vs. performance and something that would suite my needs.

I needed a BIG screen, over 50", so this ruled out LCD and Plasma since they are WAY too expensive above that size. Then I also needed something looked great for playing HD games (Xbox), watching HD movies (HD-DVD), and HD TV (Cable HD DVR). Which really means an awesome 1080p TV. After looking around at various stores, it became clear the Samsung and Sony models were going to be the best bet for rear projection under $3k.

Ultimately, the Samsung did win hands down. Thanks to low price on amazon, and a picture that was just as good, if not better than the Sony in some cases! It has an excellent 10,000:1 contrast ratio for very bright white's and perfect black levels. There is also no ghosting at all, and the rainbow effect (which I have seen on previous DLP's) is virtually non-existent. Which makes this set perfect for gaming. Also no audio sync issues as with some of the older Samsung models.

In the past month of owning this TV, I've only seen the rainbox effect twice, and it was in a B&W movie. None of the serveral other people that have watched this TV have noticed it at all. They just comment on how awesome everything in HD looks on the TV - it's quite perfect really. Out of the box, the picture is almost perfect. I just had to slightly lower the contrast, and it's good to go. And thanks to easy to navigate menu's, this is very easily done. While they are a bit sluggish (takes 1-2 seconds to appear), they have plenty of options.

When it comes to Inputs, it does appear to be lacking on the HDMI side. While 2 inputs is standard for most models, I could really use at least 3 or 4. 2 is OK for your DVD Player and DVR, but with computers and game console also starting to use HDMI, you can quickly run out of ports. Luckily, a cheap HDMI switch can solve that issue.

There is also a PC (VGA) input on the TV that is *suppose* to accept a 1920x1080 resolution at 60hz, per the users guide. Unfortunately I haven't been able to get it to work with a computer at that resolution yet (tried 3). It'll take 720p, all the way up to 1920x1200, but since that's not a native resolution, there is some cropping. This really is a minor issue , since that high of a resolution from a PC via VGA port won't be all that clear anyways. You'd really need HDMI to truly appreciate 1080p. And there are now true HDCP compliant HDMI video cards out now. The xbox will output to this TV at 1920x1080 via the VGA port, but there is a 1-3" border, and the screen is tilted.

Figures though, even though its got the VGA port, it's still a TV, not a PC Monitor. :) The TV won't send information to the source indicating what the correct resolution, refresh rate, and other settings it needs - as a PC monitor would. Future xbox updates may help address some output issues as well. For now, I'm waiting for MS to release HDMI output.

And to wrap up this long review, here is a list of Pro's and Con's.

Pros:
* High Contrast Ratio
* Fast color wheel to eliminate rainbows
* No Ghosting at all
* Perfect for gaming (no audio/video sync issues)
* Good viewing angles (for rear projection)
* Nice variety of inputs
* Only about 17" Deep for the 61" model
* Weighs only 80lbs!!
* Easy setup out of the box
* Relatively inexpensive
* With it's thin black border and silver control panel, it physically looks GREAT.

Cons:
* VGA input has some limitations
* Needs more HDMI inputs
* Plastic bezel feels somewhat cheap

And that's about it for this TV. Any other "cons" such as limited viewing angles and wobulation (google it) are going to affect ALL DLP's at this time; so I won't use that to effect my review. Otherwise, both myself, and many friends who come by to watch movies and play games, are very impressed with this TV. It's quickly converting them from their favorite brand over to Samsung. So this TV is highly recommended if you need a big HD 1080p TV for around $2k.

I bought this TV with high expectation and I am still amazed by its quality.

To make the long story short, here are the Pros and Cons from my perspective.

Pros:
1. It's HUGE. Anyone will be impressed by its size. When watching DVDs, you will feel like watching the big screen in a movie theater. The size is overwhelming (in a good way).

2. 1080p. Although it's truely not supported by many of today's programming, it is future-proof. When you get PlayStation 3 or a blue ray player, you can fully utilize this TV's potential.

3. Picture Qality. As expected, HD looks amazing on it. What is beyond my expectation is the SD quality. This TV has a smoothing method that can make your SD programming look pretty good. I am really happy about it. Also, my PlayStation 2 looks pretty good using S-video due to the smoothing. Previously I had a Olevia 26" LCD TV. It doesn't smooth the picture, so my PS2 games look kinda awful.

Cons:
1. The sound quality isn't that good. It lacks bass and sounds flat. But this won't be a problem if you use your own speaker system.

2. Picture quality as PC monitor. Someone said it's 'crystal clear'. However, I didn't find it that way, although I use 1:1 mapping. When you look at it from a distance, it's fine. Just don't expect it to be as clear as your PC LCD monitor.

All in all, this TV is very well worth the money. Don't buy the Sony KDS-60A2000 for $500 more, because these two TVs are so similar in quality.

Holy Crap! I've had an HDTV for seven years (May of 1999) and it was still working fine, but I was tired of not having HDMI (or even DVI) and I knew High Definition technology had moved forward a bit since the late 20th century. But this thing is amazing! I have a Denon 4806 receiver and the DirecTV high definition HDR, so using HDMI is not just possible, but very easy to set up. Watching the HD channels, especially the Discovery and ESPN channels, is truly surreal. My wife and I were watching Discovery on the Top 10 travel destinations, and after seeing the shots around Hotel Bora Bora she said, "Now we can't go there, because it likely won't look as good in person as it looked just now on this TV." The blues, the reds, the crystal clear (but not overly "harsh") edges on everything -- and I still haven't even tried my Xbox 360 or MacBook Pro (with DVI out) yet. I'm waiting until HD DVD and Blu-Ray are a bit more baked, but for now this image quality will suit me just fine.

Wow, what a TV! Everything in my research told me this was the one to buy. The picture is stunning; the ease of use is fantastic. With my Onkyo HDMI receiver this is heaven! The menu on the TV is brilliant with a feature that maps the whole menu tree in one shot.

I am having some issues getting the closed captions to work with one of my DVR's which is a drag because I have bad hearing. The tech support was not all that helpful but they did try. It may not necessarily be the TV.

Regular TV is a little less sharp than a CRT TV but you get used to it quickly. The HD channels have to be seen to be believed. I have noticed that some channels have much better HDTV than others. Discovery channel is hands down the best. CBS football is better than FOX or ESPN. My guess is it's the cameras they use rather than a signal issue since I have Direct TV.

In my research I found some good advice when going to the store to see it. Many stores tweak the picture settings on the TV's they are not pushing so they look duller than the hot item. A couple of quick passes through the menu and this DLP was looking better than the LCD and plasma sets.

As for Amazon I am really impressed! Not only did I save $350 from the lowest local store price but I also saved 8.25% tax and delivery fee. If that wasn't enough, today I saw it had dropped $60 in price since I bought it Dec. 1st. I sent an e-mail to customer service and received a response and a credit to my card within 2 hours. Now that is good service.

I highly recommend both Amazon and this model.

Purchase/Service:

For $2,200 at Amazon, this was a great purchase since it would have cost over $2,700 at a retail store (including tax and shipping). Eagle arrived 10 days earlier than the Amazon estimate, unloaded the TV right to the TV stand, and after hooking it up and making sure the controls worked and the picture / sound worked, I signed for it. And, Eagle asked if I wanted the packaging carted away.

Very pleased with the service part so far.....

My Set-up:

S6187 61" HDTV
Sony AV and 5.1 surround (this is not a digital unit.....I wasn't sure it would work but there are three options to hook-up a home theater: 1) Basic connection; 2) Optical; 3) HDMI)
Sony DVD
Motorola HD-CATV box (We use Comcast)
Sony VCR

Experience:

As far as the tv, the HD channels look sharp and clear, however the non HD channels aren't as sharp as my 36" Sony CRT TV (there are several settings on the Samsung for 16:9, 4:3 and wide format; setting to 4:3 or wide for non HD channels improves the picture quality a little). But it doesn't effect the enjoyment since I purchased this for the HD, and it blows me away.

The TV controls are simple to use, and the on screen menu's are easy to navigate.

The sound out of the TV is not adequate for surround sound, but I hooked up a 5.1 reciever and it makes HD come to life.

I like the fact that you can connect components to an AV and/or the TV, so there is room for 3 additional components with my set-up.

I also hooked up my laptop (there is 2 connections for the video and audio on the back of the TV). After changing the video settings on the Laptop (the mannual does a nice job for XP users), it was incredible!

The camcorder hooks up to the side of the TV, so there is no need to move the unit away from the wall. It was a simple set-up, and again, the picture quality just blew me away!!!

I highly recommend this TV to anyome looking for a 50" plus TV.

I'm just blown away! Moved up from 32 inch HD-CRT and love it. HDTV broadcast are fantastic as are DVDs. I now detest standard broadcast TV. I hooked up my media computer to this set and was stuned by the quality. Can EASILY read web pages/email from a viewing distance of 9 feet (BTW, Samsung recomends 7 feet min viewing distance).
Read all the other reviews for more detail as they helped me. I was going to go with the Sony until I read about the screen turning greenish after a number of hours, reviewer mentioned seeing this on a Best Buy demo set. The very next day I saw the exact same thing on the same model at my BB store in FLA and a co-worker saw it on same model at BB in MN. Both store employees confirmed that the greenish screen color was not correctable. Do your homework, I was within a couple of days of buying the Sony!
Delivery!? This is a fun story...for you.
Trucking calls me from the loading dock and reports that they put a hole in the screen with a fork truck. They report that they are contacting Amazon and returning the TV and that I would need to also contact Amazon. The contact, by phone at Amazon, sounded to be in India and had no idea what to do about my problem. We got through it and I was sent a couple of emails to complete the re-ship of TV. At this point I'm getting VERY nervous about this online transaction with no store front.
I might not be saving the money I thought I was! Within 48 hours I had email confirmations of another set being shipped. It was still delivered before the original est delivery time. Delivery people carried it into the house, unpacked it, placed it on the stand the way I asked and took all the packing material out the door with them. All in about 10 min. They also called me 24 hrs before delivery. Amazon did a great job.

Amazon....you're the greatest!
Great price on TV...free shipping...no state tax; does it get any better??
Ordered on a Sunday night at 1:00AM...on the loading dock in Tampa Friday morning!! Talk about under promise, over deliver (when they projected 3 weeks for delivery)!!!!! This company is a tribute to American business and ALL companies should learn from Amazon!! Unfortunately, very few and far between.
Now the TV!
Out of the box, phenomenal picture! Did not know a TV picture could be this clear and sharp. You see "skin" defects on celebrities that make you say, "I didn't realize he/she was THAT ugly!"
Tweeked it a little bit to my liking, and it got even more incredible. Was not even a fanatical TV watcher before; this makes watching TV so enjoyable now, will probably watch alot more. HDNet is fabulous (Mark Cubans latest "toy") Get it if you can...unbelievable!!!!
Sound excellent...with surround sound...will give you goose bumps!
Samsung has got it fiqured out!!!!!!
Thanks Amazon AND Samsung....you're the best!

If you are in the market to buy a new HDTV....buy this Samsung! I don't even know where to start. But I have had my Samsung 61" for 2 days now and it is by far the BEST tv I have ever seen. The 61" is even bigger in my living room than it looks in the store showroom. Amazon's service was nothing short of Professional when handling my pre-order and getting my Samsung DLP delivered safely and quicker then estimated.
I am currently using an older model DVD player without upconversion or HDMI and it looks awesome. I tried "Pirates of the Carribean" and "The Incredibles" and both were ultra sharp and crystal clear with bright, amazing colors. I cannot wait to get an HD DVD player to take full advantage of the 1080P resolution.
For video gamers, I connected my Xbox 360 to this bad boy and I literally yelled out "Whoa!" just within seconds of seeing the Xbox 360 logo flash brightly on screen with the most beautiful shade of green that I have ever seen. I first put in Call of Duty 2 which I've played dozens of times before and I instantly noticed an incredible upgrade in graphic sharpness, resolution, color, and the frame rate was so silky smooth. Every game I popped in- Test Drive, Dead Rising, Far Cry Instincts....they all look Fantastic!! And there is NO delay between the button commands and the screen display as I've read that some DLP's suffer from. I feel like I just got the 360 and all the games as playing them on this Television creates a whole new experience in gaming.
The Samsung HL6187 has an Optical output for true digital sound. So I've got my 360 and DVD player's sound connections going right into the tv with the optical cable going out to my 5.1 receiver, and the sound is great. The television's speakers are fine, but if you are going to have this tv set....you really owe it to your self to dive into the outstanding visual eye candy with a surround system to totally emerse yourself in a completely wild Digital experience. This Television is worth every penny....and at Amazon's low price, you won't regret it.