Customer Reviews

Samsung HLR6167W 61-Inch Widescreen HDTV DLP TV

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Very nice picture, not quite as bright as plasmas but watch mostly at night anyway, also viewing angle needs work compared to plasmas, you can see the difference at most big box stores, just look down the isle at an angle and you'll see the plasmas really have a better angle. But overall for a 61in TV very nice, The TV Guide function is cool now if Time warner would just give me a cable card I'd be set

Just found out about a minor glitch, this TV is not quite ready for primetime HDMI, the HDMI input does NOT support pure digital audio (only PCM) the end result if you have a new dvd player that has HDMI out going into TV then out to AV receiver via optical out, only PCM (standard Dolby) will be output not Digital Dolby. Now I know lots of people just run the audio direct from the dvd to AV Reciever anyway but this defeats my purpose of trying out the Samsung DVD950 so I can simplify life and use the Anynet function to switch to a DVD. Bottom line the ANynet function leaves much to be desired and they probably should of just given you a programable remote with macros instead. So if you have this tv don't waste money on a fancy DVD player with HDMI outputs, you can't tell the difference between component anyway :)

We just got this TV delivered on Feb. 4, and we are in love with the picture. Previous raters have said its "not as bright" as others in the same category; on the contrary, I find the picture quite bright. Also, I don't know what the one guy meant with the warranty not being good when purchased from Amazon. I registered my TV with Samsung and there was no trouble.

The only reason I'm not giving this 5 stars has to do with Amazon's "white glove" delivery, rather than the TV itself. For $199, you're supposed to get "knowledgeable" delivery professionals to unpack it, hook it up, and set it up. Amazon tells you that you have to "sign off" on the delivery saying it is in perfect condition and then you cannot return it. The guys knew *nothing* about how to set it up (other than the electrical plug), so you pretty much have to decide whether or not it's perfect without seeing the picture. This is a pretty involved hook-up when you're connecting an HD cable box (with the three video cables) and the directions do not have examples of all scenarios. The delivery men were rather rude about my wanting to see the picture before signing off on the product.

In short, the time for delivery was great, it appears to have arrived in great condition, but for $199, I expected to have delivery men who knew how to hook it up. Since then, I noticed that the link for more information on the delivery service is no longer working. You might want to download the manual and get an idea for the set-up before it is delivered, because you won't get help with the "white glove" service.

Pros: Large, clear picture. Watching the tv show "Lost", the picture is absolutely stellar. Vivid, crisp images. There have been other HD programs that are not as impressive. I'm assuming they were in 480p vs 720p, but that's an assumption for the difference in picture clarity in HD programming. Xbox gaming has worked flawlessly, with no lag. There have been no problems with color wheel buzzing (as was reported on the hlp series), and I'm not a person who sees rainbows, thus, I haven't seen them on this tv either. The tv guide onscreen has been incredibly easy to use. It was functioning correctly the 2nd day.
CONS: The engineering for particular screens is awkward. To use the PIP, you can hit 1 button on the remote to bring up a pre-programmed channel, but all you can do is turn it on or off. To surf, or change the pip channel, you must go through the menu and go through several screens, and then you can only select an analog channel. Also, the remote that comes with the tv does not allow you to surf a day at a time on the tv guide onscreen. I can only go hour by hour. You can use the search feature which works well, but I feel I should be able to hit a button or select a time to search for programming and I need another remote to do it. (The remote that would include cd/dvd controls for fast forward).
SUMMARY: Those are my only 2 complaints and since they are engineering issues I have to recommend the tv. I'm happy with it and will keep it for years if it keeps working as well as it is. I've had the tv for about 2 weeks.

At the time of my writing this (Nov 2005) I researched and viewed every DLP I could get to from Circut City, Best Buy, The Sony Store, and some local big screen TV shops.

The Good:

I found this Samsung to provide hands down the best DLP picture available. The picture is bright, sharp, and clear but of course is still subject to diminished quality when it is in direct sunlight or in a very bright room. I just close my blinds about halfway in the day time and it looks great. I can't help but attribute this to the fact that Samsung pioneered the DLP technology and they have had the longest amount of time to perfect it.

I mainly decided on DLP as I am an avid gamer and DLP is a great choice for games as it has no possible "burn-in" at all (something both LCD and Plasma can suffer from). DLP is also an amazing value if you want a very large size screen.

I've had this TV for the last 3 months now and am extremely pleased with it's performance. DVDs are a joy and appear extremely film-like and clean. Video games look fantastic with the 720p display bringing out all of the detail you would expect.

The UI and remote are good and offer quick access to the features that you need with one press (like ratio switching).

The TV has a very thin profile and looks great when sitting on the stand that is designed for it. The stand easily holds about 4 full sized components like a TiVo or Cable Box.

The whole tv only weighs in at 120 or so lbs. I was easily able to lift this onto the stand with one person helping on the other side. It is extremely light for it's size.

The Bad:

If you are a big picture in picture fan you might want to look elsewhere, as the PIP option is locked to a second source, so you can forget browsing other channels with it. About all it is good for is keeping an eye on another source like your xbox or dvd.

Summary:

If you want a large DLP today you'll be hard pressed to find a better DLP picture on the market. If this review is a bit old however do look around and see what is out there. This technology is developing rapidly and advancements are being made by other companies all the time. If you have your eye on this set already, buy with confidence and know you're getting a quality and great looking product.

I spent about 4 months reading reviews, checking prices, and comparing pictures before selecting the Samsung Hlr5667w.

Unfortunately by the time I finally went to get the dang thing, the TV proved hard to find. Imagine my surprise when a I found the 61" model (hlr6167w) had been knocked down to the price I was prepared to pay for the 56".

The main reason I am writing this is to let everyone know now is the time to buy, these models are being discountined and will soon be replaced. I was able to get this TV for 1999.99, the new models will almost assuredly be close as twice as much.

As far as the TV itself goes, it is amazing. HD on it is unbelievable, if you have seen it on display at a Best Buy or some such store that doesn't offer a true HD signal, you haven't seen anything.

The Screen is vivid and crystal clear in a room full of light, there is practically no glare on the screen. Of course, it looks great in the darkness as well.

I was a little worried about how regular "low-def" TV would look, but even that looks good.

Most who pay this much for a TV will probably use surround sound but it is worth noting that, The sound is well above what I expected, as well.

It's like having a movie screen in your home, and I could not be happier.

I also, would like to thank everyone who takes time to review products both here and elsewhere. I read literally hundreds of reviews on these TV's before buying.

As a Professional installer I've installed all of these models of DLP's and I love the HD Picture but standard resolution looks horrible compared to Plasma, LCD, and CRT. I believe the TV tries to overcorrect a non HD picture and creates heavy pixelazation and debris. If everything was HD and eventually it will be I would highly reccomend this tv but as of now you can't get more than 10 or so actual HD feeds. Also an upconverting DVD and even Standard DVD in 480 Progressive looks great but I would definelty spring for a Samsung DVD HD850.

This TV is huge. I was originally planning on purchasing a 50-55 inch TV at the $2K price range. There is a lot of value in this TV.
HDTV looks awesome. It even looks better than DVDs playing through over the component cables. This TV doesn't have 1080p support (it has 1080i though), but you're not really missing anything because most HDTV programs aren't transmitted higher than 720p (which this TV fully supports). This TV also supports Cablecards if your cable provider has them available.
The other semi-problem mentioned earlier was that there wasn't enough high end inputs (hdmi, DVI), and it's true though there are enough component inputs if you prefer that. The Anynet function and TV Guide feature was useless for me, but it's always nice to have extra features.
One of the neatest features is plugging my computer into the TV through the D-Sub (15 pin monitor) input. Though some care has to be made so you don't accidentally set the resolution to something that can't be displayed properly on the TV. It is pretty finicky when it comes to what resolutions can be displayed unlike a regular monitor.
One other minor issue I had was the viewing angle. The TV doesn't come with a stand, so some thought has to be put into the placement of this TV. For optimal viewing, you want to be able to be eye level with the center of the TV.
Overall, I am very satisfied with this TV purchase and recommend it as a very good DLP solution for those that don't need the 1080p or a lot of the higher end digital inputs.

edit - The newer 61" 1080p model (HL-R6168W) from Samsung might be more value for only a few hundred dollars more as of the prices posted on Amazon today (4.3.06).

We have had this tv since November 2005 and have really enjoyed it. We had it delivered via the amazon delivery option. The delivery guys unboxed it outside the house and placed it on the floor because we hadn't yet found an appropriate tv stand. My father in law and husband then spent the day getting everything programmed. The picture quality is clear and I've grown dependent on the tv guide which comes with the tv. We've had no problems with the tv. We definitely liked the ease and competitive pricing amazon offered. I know some people have had difficulty with the shipping. We've found that the delivery people will give you a call if you request it, so you don't need to wait around all day. As for another person having a problem with the delivery people not hooking the tv up for him, I've never encountered delivery people who would do that. I was ecstatic when the guys who later delivered my tv stand actually took the time to place my tv on top of the new stand.

I WAS LIKE A PROUD NEW PAPA! THE SERVICE/DELIVERY FROM AMAZON WENT OFF WITHOUT A HITCH, THIS WAS THE 1ST TIME I PAYED FOR SOMETHING OVER $100.00 DOLLARS OVER THE INTERNET,TRACKED IT AND RECEIVED IT ON TIME,IAM VERY HAPPY WITH AMAZON'S DELIVERY SERVICE. AS FOR THE TV I READ SO MANY REVIEWS AND WEB SITES I WAS GOING NUTS. BUT IT WAS WELL WORTH IT THE HD RECEPTION WITH COMCAST HDTV BOX WILL BLOW YOUR MIND. AND THE PRICE FROM AMAZON ON THE INTERNET WAS ONE OF THE BEST TO BE FOUND.

3 months after my warranty expired, the color wheel failed...looking at the internet, this is a fairly common problem with Samsung DLPs.

While the picture is great, I'm concerned that it barely lasted the warranty period before needing repair.