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165 of 168 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very happy with my purchase. 240Hz is cool., July 27, 2009
This review is from: Samsung LN40B750 40-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color (Electronics)
I received my LN40B750 this past Friday and have now had all weekend to kick the tires and be amazed at its capabilities. I had already submitted a review, but not sure where it went.
As I had stated in my now missing review, I am very impressed with this set's image quality and ease of use. Setup was pretty easy and only required me to fasten 4 screws to mount and lock the base to the bottom of the set. Connected the optical out to my receiver (Yamama RX-V750) and ran my DVD player's component cables right into the set. Now, I can finally enjoy progressive scan mode. What a HUGE difference that made! One thing I have to address is a negative comment made by another person who was complaining of stereo output from the optical out jack, instead of 5.1 surround sound. This is 100% contingent on what the broadcaster is pushing out, NOT the TV. Yes Jimmy, the evening news ONLY needs to be in plain vanilla stereo, not 5.1 surround sound. I can confirm that it does push out L/R stereo on the evening news and certain other broadcasts. Some broadcasts caused only my center channel to push out audio while others gave me L/C/R output so don't blame Samsung at all if you're getting stereo or 3-channel output. Watching ZOOM last night made all 5.1 channels on my receiver light up like a Christmas tree. I am so thrilled to watch some of my favorite shows in 5.1 now.
So, one of the main reasons I bought this was because of the 240Hz processing and 2ms response time, and, on my wife's recommendation, the panel design. 240Hz processing it is both neat and surreal. Other reviewers have stated that it give the picture a sort of Soap Opera-like effect but I would have to say no to this assessment. When I think of Soap Opera, I think of very apparent action happening on a stage/set with poor or harsh lighting and shadows: sort of campy. I can see where people liken it to that but it's not quite accurate. When enabled and set to its "Standard" mode, 240Hz processing makes certain fast-moving scenes seem very fluid, almost as if it were a live feed/broadcast not too dissimilar to reality TV. It gives motion a more smooth appearance as it is being displayed on screen. When I turned this Friday's episode of Numb3rs on, there was a bus chase scene that looked like it was coming from a live TV broadcast. Turning off 240Hz processing made it seem like "produced" TV does. I am now convinced and a convert to what 240Hz processing can do for TV. I decided to try it out on a DVD: Princess Mononoke. Wow! Some scenes looked like real-time 3D without 3D glasses. I am impressed. It takes a bit of getting used to but even my wife commented on how 3D some scenes appeared and how almost TOO real it makes the image look. She admits she is now addicted to this set. Also, I happened to turn the channel to see an old episode of 1960s Batman and it looked like a live broadcast! Neat but a bit weird. Overall, I think 240Hz processing is just an augmentation to what is already there.
I also have to discuss blockiness with certain scenes and fast moving action: I have thus far encountered NONE. When I have watched football or some other fast-moving stuff on other people LCD panels, all I saw was blocks and digital artifacting and that always turned me off to LCD. I get none of that with this set so far. I put on a baseball game, Olympic re-run highlights, smooth as silk. Not sure if it's because I am running RG6 cabling throughout my house but I am here to attest that the blockiness I hate on LCDs is not present on this set. A+ for that Samsung.
I was also worried about screen glare and reflection with this set as it DOES come with Ultra Clear Panel. I have a large window that faces opposite the set and when off, I can see a reflection. BUT! When the set it on, it's all business and NO glare. Try as I might, I see no glare or reflection. That is impressive. Kudos to Samsung (and the 150000:1 contrast probably helps too!).
The Touch of Grey is cool, no more illuminated border. I was also happy to play around with the widgets and other little built-in goodies. The built-in Ethernet jacks lets you plug it into a router or whatever to perform firmware updates and download new stuff to the widgets section. My wife LOVES the Art widget that displays Monet images to serene piano music. Some think this is gimmicky stuff, I think it's a GREAT example of convergence. A+ to Samsung for this stuff. I was also pleased to receive the full LN40B750 manual with my set. I wonder if people were upset by Samsung going green and putting the manual on a USB stick and built-in to the TV? I think it's smart as opposed to trying to dig up where the manual went.
My only gripe with the set is not being able to cycle through the inputs (Video 1, Video 2, Component 1, HDMI 1, etc.) by just depressing the button. While the TV's GUI menu system is nice, I hate using a GUI to navigate to the input I want to use. I'm old-school and like to cycle through the inputs. It would be nice if changing input methods (GUI versus multiple button depressions) was an option in the settings somewhere. The remote is pretty standard and sleek and doesn't have the dial that I have heard so many complain about. It may be that Samsung went back a bit and just kept things simple with a standard button layout you'd find on most any TV remote. On a scale of 1-10, this set is a solid 9.5 for me. You would be happy with its many options. 240Hz may not be for everyone but it is cool in my book. If you are considering the LN40B650, you will be happy spending the extra $ on this set for the 2ms response time and 240Hz processing.
Just a couple things I forgot to mention in the original review. Although Samsung's web page says there are no USB ports, mine has two on the right side labeled USB 1 (HDD) and USB 2. It IS an Ultra Clear Panel but Samsung's page says it is not. It was printed right on the box. Although the Samsung firmware upgrade guide says to download and extract firmware to a USB drive and plug it into the back of the TV, there is no USB on the back of the TV, only the right side. Someone asked if the remote is backlit and yes, it is. There's a button on the top of the remote that illuminates the buttons in the dark.
UPDATE: 8/3/2009
After downloading and installing the 1008 firmware update (my model shipped with the 1006 version), I feel the TV is a bit more responsive for channel switching. The widgets and goodies load up a bit faster too. I cannot find any concrete info on what the new firmware contains. Updating to the new firmware does allow you to revert back to the old firmware in the TV setup. That's VERY important in case of a firmware bug. Way to go Samsung! I will update this review if any future firmware updates improve this already great TV.
UPDATE: 9/8/2009
TV is still working great. I have to add that I do not experience the so called "blue-ish blacks" that some others have reported. I have properly calibrated my contrast and brightness levels so I get deep blacks on many of the shows I watch. Also, I have to add that when I did a channel scan, the NTSC tuner was still grabbing things out there. It picked up a couple of music channels broadcasting over NTSC so that was kind of a surprise. I guess the NTSC and ATSC tuners work in tandem.
UPDATE: 9/18/2009
Today I updated the firmware to revision 1011 and a few new features were added. The "HD Conection Guide" is new which shows you the inputs and connections. And there is a menu item called "Contact Samsung" which has web site info and phone numbers along with model code and software version. Sadly, this firmware erases all your settings so make sure and write them down before you update!
UPDATE: 9/22/2009
On 9/18 I updated to 1011 firmware via the Internet. I just went to the Samsung web site and saw that 1012.3 is available. Going to update and see what new stuff got added or fixed.
UPDATE: 9/25/2009
I have to say that when I updated to the 1011 firmware, I felt that the image quality somehow suffered or was reduced because I noticed a lot of jaggies and such when material was 480i, 720p, and sometimes 1080i material, whereas it used to be smooth or fairly sharp in general. After the update to 1012.3 firmware, I feel like the picture has returned to being very sharp all around no matter what the source material. Seems channel switching is also a tad bit faster with the 1012.3 update. It also didn't reset my settings to factory default which is nice. I've written my settings down just in case. Glad Samsung continues to fine tune the performance of this TV. Keep it coming.
UPDATE: 10/14/2009: I successfully played an XVid movie using Media Play and it functions *almost* like a TiVo---not that I own one but have seen them. Very cool! I didn't realize it but there are firmware release notes! Never noticed they were there before but if you visit Samsung's site and find your model TV, click Support & Downloads, click Firmware, and then click the "Upgrade File" link under the description, it tells you what's been fixed.
For 1012.3:
a. This Firmware will support some strange resolution or Codec.
. Resolution : DTV 320 x 240
. Codec : MPEG2 - TS (on Media Play)
b. Samsung launches new widgets for Internet@TV
. Blockbuster on Demand, Rally Cast, Ebay, and many more. To get more information, visit ''News & Alerts'' on [...]
c. Add some menu on Media Play
. ''Repeat'' Menu (on Media Play)
d. This Firmware will correct the following phenomenons some units may experience.
. When viewing 1080i formatted signals through the Component Input, the picture is intermittently jumping up and down.
. Intermittent No Sound on 1080p when connecting with some Unit through...
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80 of 86 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Picture, No red bezel!, May 9, 2009
This review is from: Samsung LN40B750 40-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color (Electronics)
Wow! This panel is really amazing. I have been researching sets for several months. It came down to the Sony XBR6 and the Samsung A650. Quite frankly I loved the Samsung picture but could not really accept the red "Touch of Color" bezels... just a personal choice I guess. Anyways, I purchased the Sony a few weeks ago on clearance and thought I was getting a great deal. Unfortunately the picture on the Sony was a real let down. It seemed dull and dim (even after adjusting the settings several times per different recommendations online and turning off the auto-dimming setting). My old DLP set even seemed crisper when I compared them side by side which was just not acceptable. Perhaps I got a bunk panel but after googling "dim XBR6" it seems like several people noticed the same thing I did.
I started doing more research and noticed that Amazon started carrying this television within the last week or two. Samsung must have caught on that they were losing sales due to their red color fetish as this panel is a beautiful dark shade of gray. Anyways, the XBR was returned and this panel replaced it. It's as clean crisp and clear as you could imagine from a non LED backlit panel. Its like night and day between this set and the Sony. The action is clear and crisp and the picture is just impressive. I highly recommend this panel, it is absolutely the clearest picture around without paying the huge premium for an LED set. You will not regret going with this TV. The only negative I would mention is that the panel is fairly reflective compared to the Sony. Definitely not an issue when the set is on but when turned off its definitely noticable.
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22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very good LCD set, with some useless extras, August 20, 2009
This review is from: Samsung LN40B750 40-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV with Charcoal Grey Touch of Color (Electronics)
I shopped around quite a bit before deciding on this set, and now that it's in the house, I would most certainly purchase again. I'll keep this short and sweet:
THE GOOD
- Absolutely stunning picture quality, with a wide array of picture adjustment options. As with any LCD/Plasma, though, be prepared to spend some time adjusting these settings depending on input source, room conditions, and personal preference.
- User menu is well organized, easy to understand, and overall responds quickly to input commands.
- The set itself is very attractive. The glossy black finish and charcoal grey ToC compliment my other equipment nicely - much more appealing than the red ToC found on other Samsung sets. Also, the stand allows the TV to rotate, which is a plus.
- The 240 Hz refresh rate is nice, but not as big of an improvement as 120 Hz is over 60 Hz.
THE BAD
- Almost useless network connectivity. With the notable exception of being able to connect to the internet for product updates and support, I find few good things to say about Samsung's networking interface. Being able to view pictures/listen to music/watch movies over a home network is nice, but having this capability built into a TV set is redundant at present. In my case, I have my computer connected through a long DVI -> HDMI cable, so using Samsung's clunky networking interface to access a limited amount of my media is pointless. Several other companies have this same technology in their TV sets, but it seems not a one of them has figured out how to implement a truly useful product for accessing media content on a home network (largely due to paranoia over content rights). Ho hum.
- Internet widgets are slow. As there exist other ways of accessing the same content/services that aren't nearly as slow, I can't see really using them. Good idea, poor execution....but could get better in time through firmware updates.
As I stated earlier, I would definitely purchase this set again. I did travel to my local BB to compare, and to my eye, I found the LNB750 series a cut above most of the others on display. I did not have high expectations for the networking capabilities, and unfortunately you are paying for it (most other similar Samsung series seem to have the same networking capabilities, so no luck there). It is somewhat irksome to have to pay for features that are either useless or poorly designed, but the picture quality and overall performance of the LN40B750 make it a worthy purchase.
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