Do you have to be a set distance away from a 3D tv for viewing? My living room is narrow and I was thinking of upgrading my tv to enjoy my blu ray collection more, some of which have 3D.
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toloveistorebel Impressive. Most impressive. Central FLRegistered Userregular
Not sure if there is any official chart on it for 3D viewing. I do know I like to sit closer than normal to my TV if I'm watching any 3D content though. I think the closer you can comfortably get the more emersed you will feel.
Weirdest thing happened with my Samsung TV: a few hours after using it like normal, the TV cannot read any devices that are connected to it via HDMI.
I tried changing the connections, do a hard factory reset, had a Samsung rep control it remotely over the phone, nothing. The good news is that they're honoring the warranty even though it expired two weeks ago, and will call to schedule a repair visit.
I just don't understand how this happened, or why it seems to be the only issue with the TV (the original remote also stopped working, though I never used it until now for testing purposes. Not sure if that's related). It frustrates me to wonder what would have happened if this issue occurred later on (to the point they wouldn't honor the warranty).
Is it a black screen or does it give a message like "no signal/input detected"? Are all your devices attached to a receiver and the receiver is serving as an HDMI switch? Tried swapping out the HDMI cable?
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ObiFettUse the ForceAs You WishRegistered Userregular
Help me TV thread, you are my only hope.
Looking to get as big a TV as possible on a 1k budget. No projectors. Last TV I bought was a Sharp Aquos and its been great so I'm inclined to go with that brand again, but I'm wondering if there's anything better value out there I'm not seeing.
You are just going to want to make sure you are running the video in Gaming Mode to eliminate most of the processing so that input lag as small as possible.
Is it a black screen or does it give a message like "no signal/input detected"? Are all your devices attached to a receiver and the receiver is serving as an HDMI switch? Tried swapping out the HDMI cable?
A "no signal" message.
After quite a few heated back-and-forth conversations with different Samsung guys telling me different things, I have the repair service scheduled to come on Friday. I'm quite irritated since that's over a week since the TV stopped working, but if they can fix it promptly and not charge me for it (I got a copy of the receipt from Best Buy to prove I'm still under warranty), I can rest easy.
As for why this happened, the consensus seems to be the recent thunderstorms. I used the TV before I left for an hour, and when I came back I was told that a massive thunderbolt hit barely a few feet from our house. The TV stopped reading HDMI inputs after that, so I doubt that's a coincidence.
A Best Buy rep suggested I invest in a surge protector for my TV, stating to get one at least 2,000 joules. So far they seem inexpensive, with my eye set on this one.
A lightning strike is something quite a bit more powerful than a surge that a surge protector would help with. A dedicated battery backup with surge protection is a better but still inadequate choice when it comes to lightning strikes. The only real way to protect from lightning is to unplug your device.
A lightning strike is something quite a bit more powerful than a surge that a surge protector would help with. A dedicated battery backup with surge protection is a better but still inadequate choice when it comes to lightning strikes. The only real way to protect from lightning is to unplug your device.
A whole-home protector might be effective if it hit somewhere else and is traveling down the line, but even that is iffy. A direct hit on your home is going to be a much bigger problem.
I had the Sony KDL60W850B in my cart ready to go, but I backed away and decided against it. I'm seeing good reviews but saying it's overpriced at $2000 on CNET but if I can get it for $1300 shipped/inc tax is it worth it to replace my Samsung UN50EH6000?
TV repair guys said they'll be here within 2-4 hours from now. I'm a bit nervous, since it's currently thundering outside; If they have to take the TV outside to their van to repair it, I worry if it will be raining by then.
Also my parents keep insisting not to mention at all the lightning theory, because they believe that the repair guy will refuse to fix it and claim that I have to file lightning-related damages with homeowner's insurance. It sounds like a silly superstition, but I wasn't planning to mention the lightning either way since I don't know if that was the cause.
I certainly thought about that, too. From what I can tell absolutely no other electronic device in the house was affected.
Honestly I don't care what caused it, I'm just hoping it can be easily fixed, and hopefully to the point that this won't happen again after the warranty expires.
I keep wondering what would happen if they can't fix it, though. Samsung said that in the event that happened "we would discuss it from there", whatever that means.
Concurrently, my Logitech Harmony One Remote also screwed up a few days prior to the TV, where the touch-screen became distorted with a black botch. After a few e-mails with Logitech, they finally sent the free replacement yesterday, and it ended up being a Harmony Ultimate One, which is apparently the next tier of remote.
Makes me wonder if a similar thing would happen with Samsung if this TV ended up beyond repair, though I doubt it. The one benefit I'm hoping to get out of this situation is to maybe convince the repair guy to calibrate my TV for free.
I asked in the computer build thread, but this might be a better place; though it's not precisely a TV.
I'm looking for suggestions for a top notch 32in monitor for my PC. I don't need 4k, so 1080 is fine, but I'm looking for really good pixel size/density since I'll be sitting close to it.
There isn't going to be much variance in PPI if the number of pixels and the diagonal measure are the same across the monitors you're evaluating. If you need higher pixel density on a 32" then whichever 1080P 32" you're looking at then you need more pixels on the display.
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Donovan PuppyfuckerA dagger in the dark isworth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered Userregular
The BenQ has good reviews on Amazon and is $30 cheaper there.
Incindium on
Nintendo ID: Incindium
PSN: IncindiumX
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GnomeTankWhat the what?Portland, OregonRegistered Userregular
edited September 2014
So update on my LG 55LB6300 and a review.
First off, the update. I did end up returning it for a new one. There was an entire cluster of pixels (a full dimming unit I believe) that was fritzy as fuck. When I showed it to the sales associate he said "Oh yeah, that's a defect", went in the back and wheeled me out a new one, no muss no fuss. The new set has had zero issues. One tiny dark spot when I first turned it on that has since completely faded and gone full bright as the set has warmed up.
So my review of the set comes with the caveat that I don't have a ton of other 55" displays sitting around to compare it to, so understand my review is going to be subjective to my experiences coming from a smaller 60hz Visio.
Fit and Finish
Overall the fit and finish of the TV is decent quality and stylish. The silver outer bevel is incredibly thin, and there is little "empty space" on the edge of the TV. The TV itself is quite thin even when taking the electronics bulge on the back in to account. One issue I did have was that the feet are on the outer sides of the TV, not a single stand in the middle. This caused issues with fitting it on my TV stand which has a center raised console for the TV. Since the LG's feet are on the outside, I had to jury rig up a way for the TV to fit, but this may not be an issue everyone runs in to. If I weren't renting, I would consider VESA wall mounting it, but I can't sink the lag bolts in to the wall here (expressly against the lease).
Remote and Interface
Since this is a SmartTV, we need to talk about the interface a bit. This particular model uses a WebOS based interface and a "Magic Remote", which is effectively a WiiMote. You point the remote at the TV and move a cursor around the screen. The scroll wheel in the center of the remote clicks, and acts as your "mouse button" for navigating the interface. I wasn't sure if I would like this at first, but I've actually come to enjoy. The interface overall is snappy, and I haven't had too many lag issues. Some of the options are a bit buried in menus for my tastes, but overall everything is easy to get to. My one major issue with the interface is the "boot" time after the TV is turned on. There is a period of 20-30s after turning the TV on where WebOS is booting and it simply won't accept input. It will show you whatever is coming through the HDMI input, but if you wanted to change the input, you're stuck staring at WebOS's "Loading, please wait" for a small amount of time. It's not obnoxious, but it's long enough that it annoys me if I turn the TV off on a different input than I want when I turn it back on.
The set also has built in apps for Netflix, Youtube, Amazon and several other popular services. The app store itself is kind of a wasteland of terrible apps, except for the major ones like Netflix. So far no niche apps have hit the service that I've seen, such as a Twitch.tv app, though with Twitch's acquisition by Amazon this may change.
Picture
Here's where things get very subjective, as I only have so many things to compare it to. The particular model I got is the 120hz set, with no 3D. This was a massive upgrade over the 60hz set I had before. Overall I find the picture quality to be top notch. The colors are vibrant and crisp, and the blacks are deep (obvious caveat here being this isn't a plasma, so don't expect crazy contrast ratios). I've noticed very little motion blur while watching live sports, and it's relatively easy to turn off the extra post processing while playing games. There is some minor light banding on the edges of the screen, but it's almost unnoticeable during normal usage. Another thing I noticed is that some games absolutely do not play nice with the post processing. Final Fantasy 14 on the PS4, for instance, flickers something terrible if you leave the LG post processing on. I'm not sure what causes this, or if it's even the game itself, but you really need to turn on game mode when using your consoles. Once game mode was turned on, I had no issues. I was even able to play Street Fighter, Marvel and Killer Instinct (all games that require very little or no input or display lag) with no issues. I've found the set easy to use in both well lit and dimly lit situations. One thing to note is that it does have a glossy screen, so you will want to keep it perpendicular to (or back towards) any windows.
Sound
There isn't much to say here. It's a flat panel TV speaker setup, so it's bare minimum passable but mostly bad. Unfortunately my Onkyo receiver is dead right now, so I have to use it, but it's certainly nothing to write home about. I'm considering buying a sound bar because I'm kind of done with big bulky receivers and LG makes a nice blue tooth one that is supposed to sound decent and be easy to setup. If the built in speakers are all you have, they won't make your ears bleed, but they aren't good either.
Conclusion
Overall I give the LG 55LB6300 4 Gnome's out of 5. At the price point (999 USD when I bought it), it's been a great set and exactly what I wanted. There are certainly better displays to be had if you want to spend the money, but if you want to stay in the realm of sane prices and 120hz, I would have no qualms recommending this set.
So my 51" Samsung plasma (PN51F5350) fell and crashed the other day. My roommate and I were just watching football, and it tipped forward, crashed into the cabinet and the ground. Luckily no one was near it, but the inner screen is cracked.
We've had it in that position (on the stand, on an entertainment cabinet) for 4 months with no signs of anything happening. It always wobbled a bit left-to-right, but was always secure, and all the screws were in tightly. Looking at the stand afterwards, the front of the bracket was bent forward from the weight of the TV, and it had stripped the screws out.
At first I was sad, now I'm mostly pissed. The first Samsung service department I talked to said that the damage wasn't covered under the warranty, because it was a case of user negligence. According to the representative, I was negligent by not noticing that the bracket was giving in over time. My argument is that the bracket giving in is due to manufacturing defect, as the TV was in place for 4 months and fell without being touched.
I think the practical lesson is not to use those shitty stands, but speaking in terms of liability does anyone agree with Samsung's logic? AFAIK you're only supposed to check the installation every 6 months. The TV didn't fail, but if the $5 included stand fails and destroys the TV, isn't Samsung still liable for that? I explained that (loudly) to the representative, and the case got elevated to the executive support level, and is still under review.
I have no idea what to do if they rule against me again, or how much it'll cost to fix the inner screen. I'll definitely stay away from Samsung due to support from now on.
Jibba on
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toloveistorebel Impressive. Most impressive. Central FLRegistered Userregular
edited September 2014
Wow that really sucks. I would think it would be due to manufacture's defect as well. But whether Samsung will honor that is debatable. Have you checked any other forums to see if others have had this problem? Maybe they say what they did to get Samsung to help.
If they don't budge and won't do anything for you you're better off just getting a new TV. It will probably cost more to replace the panel than just buying a new set. Though I'm not really sure what a 5xxx series plasma goes for anymore.
Wow that really sucks. I would think it would be due to manufacture's defect as well. But whether Samsung will honor that is debatable. Have you checked any other forums to see if others have had this problem? Maybe they say what they did to get Samsung to help.
If they don't budge and won't do anything for you you're better off just getting a new TV. It will probably cost more to replace the panel than just buying a new set. Though I'm not really sure what a 5xxx series plasma goes for anymore.
Yeah, it seems the stand/wobbly TV thing is a common issue. I just called and finally got them to send a technician out to look at it. I can understand that a lot of people probably make up stories to get TVs replaced, but their first two responses were just to brush me off instead of investigating further.
I'm curious if this is a common issue with all plasma makers, or just a Samsung issue? I mean, plasmas are finicky beasts and they all weigh a ton, so presumably they all should have pretty heavy duty stands to make up for it, and probably higher rates of failure than LCD TVs. Maybe that's why everyone else got out of them, besides Samsung and Panasonic.
Jibba on
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toloveistorebel Impressive. Most impressive. Central FLRegistered Userregular
Yeah I'm not sure. I had a PN51D450 for a good while and never had any problems with the stand. Was pretty solid. Now we have a really heavy P60ST60 Panasonic plasma that seems solid on its stand as well. I can definitely understand plasma stands needing to be heftier though. But the reason LG and Samsung are the only ones making plasmas anymore is because they don't show well in bright showrooms like Best Buy and people think plasma is "old" technology. But that horse has been beat enough. Keep us updated on what Samsung does for you.
Being someone who worked in a big box electronics store for some time at some marginal level of authority, I can tell you that while I completely agree with you, this is almost certainly not how they are approaching the situation. The problem with physical damage to electronics is that it instantly becomes a matter of he says, she says. Yes, the stand was defective and caused the TV to crash into the ground-- but, how am I, as the person fulfilling the warranty, supposed to determine the truth of that statement? I can't, so 99% of the time I'm going to have to go by the book. After all, physically damaging a piece of electronics would be the easiest way to replace it, if any type of warranty covered it. (Hell, a lot of people take their laptops and crack the screens on purpose towards the end of their warranties just to get a brand new one, because laptops have accidental damage protection a lot of times...)
However, that last 1% is important, because ultimately it all comes down to who you talk to. Rules in retail and electronics can always be broken. You should have SEEN some of the ridiculous, off-the-record type shit we've done at my store in the past in order to placate certain customers. So, my advice would be to stick to your guns and keep pushing to talk to someone higher. It's not a guarantee to work, but the most of a fuss you raise the higher the possibility that they will concede just to make this go away. It sounds kind of shitty, but honestly, the success rate of quiet customers to loud customers when it comes to broken electronics is kind of staggering.
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Magus`The fun has been DOUBLED!Registered Userregular
So what's the best way to remove an imprinted image on your (plasma) TV? I feel like it's highly unlikely it's full burn in since I have never left the TV on the same screen for more than 2-3 hours at a time.
Howdy TV threaders, just wondering about this: I'm considering buying a 40 inch Toshiba LED TV, model 40L2200U used, can anyone give me an idea of what it's worth, in very good condition? It's a 60hz set, so would it suffer from the motion blur issue? Thanks!
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toloveistorebel Impressive. Most impressive. Central FLRegistered Userregular
How old is the TV? I'm not familiar with that model but judging by the 2 star rating from the 16 Amazon reviews you might want to find something else. Some said the picture quality wasn't any good. Most of the 1 star reviews (9 out of the 16) said that the TV died within 5 months.
I saw that Costco's Black Friday ad is out so I'm currently looking at a couple of their tvs and I dont know which to grab. I doubt I'm going to be doing a lot of stuff in 3D so its not a must for me, but I assume theyre better panels. I'd like local dimming, but given that seems to come at a pretty high premium so its not strictly necessary. We watch a lot of sports and will be playing video games on it so I'd like a display thats going to be able to handle those things well.
These are the displays I'm looking and I'm not entirely sure which I should go with:
Vizio M552i-B2
Pros - local dimming, apparently pretty decent picture, after discount comes out to about $680 which is the cheapest of the bunch
Cons - no 3D, not super sure how quality it will be, 55" and I think I'd like to go 60+
Samsung UN60H7100AFXZA
Pros - Active 3D, Micro Dimming Pro (which I guess isnt as good as actual local dimming, but better than no dimming tech and I'm not sure how good Vizio's local dimming is going to be), 60"
Cons - $1,280
Samsung UN60H6300AFXZA
Pros - 60", $970 ($770 if I grab the 55", $1170 if I go with the 65")
Cons - no 3D, no local dimming of any kind
I think the best display out of the bunch is probably the Samsung UN60H7100, but I cant find any reviews of it. If I'm not going to grab a 3D tv I'll probably grab the Vizio. Does anyone have suggestions?
Donovan PuppyfuckerA dagger in the dark isworth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered Userregular
Micro dimming pro is their name for local dimming that has more zones than cheap panels, but not as many as the best panels.
Some screens only have like 50 zones, which is better than nothing but not exactly super duper. I think 'micro dimming pro' is 200 zones on a 60 inch 1080p panel? Which is pretty good!
I think I read somewhere that the top of the range Sharp Elite had 17,000 zones on the 70 inch model. Which is completely insane.
Posts
Nintendo ID: Incindium
PSN: IncindiumX
I tried changing the connections, do a hard factory reset, had a Samsung rep control it remotely over the phone, nothing. The good news is that they're honoring the warranty even though it expired two weeks ago, and will call to schedule a repair visit.
I just don't understand how this happened, or why it seems to be the only issue with the TV (the original remote also stopped working, though I never used it until now for testing purposes. Not sure if that's related). It frustrates me to wonder what would have happened if this issue occurred later on (to the point they wouldn't honor the warranty).
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero
Looking to get as big a TV as possible on a 1k budget. No projectors. Last TV I bought was a Sharp Aquos and its been great so I'm inclined to go with that brand again, but I'm wondering if there's anything better value out there I'm not seeing.
http://www.amazon.com/Sharp-LC-60LE650U-60-inch-Aquos-1080p/dp/B00BG5M93Y/
or this one 65" that doesn't have the Smart TV built in ($950)
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/sharp-65-class-64-1-2-diag--led-1080p-120hz-hdtv-roku-streaming-stick-included/4757028.p?id=1219103675987&skuId=4757028
Nintendo ID: Incindium
PSN: IncindiumX
Is a 120Hz refresh rate on a TV that big gonna be noticeable while gaming?
edit: and yeah, that first one is the TV I keep going back to
Nintendo ID: Incindium
PSN: IncindiumX
And if you buy it on dell, it comes with a $300 dell giftcard
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A7726629
A "no signal" message.
After quite a few heated back-and-forth conversations with different Samsung guys telling me different things, I have the repair service scheduled to come on Friday. I'm quite irritated since that's over a week since the TV stopped working, but if they can fix it promptly and not charge me for it (I got a copy of the receipt from Best Buy to prove I'm still under warranty), I can rest easy.
As for why this happened, the consensus seems to be the recent thunderstorms. I used the TV before I left for an hour, and when I came back I was told that a massive thunderbolt hit barely a few feet from our house. The TV stopped reading HDMI inputs after that, so I doubt that's a coincidence.
A Best Buy rep suggested I invest in a surge protector for my TV, stating to get one at least 2,000 joules. So far they seem inexpensive, with my eye set on this one.
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero
A whole-home protector might be effective if it hit somewhere else and is traveling down the line, but even that is iffy. A direct hit on your home is going to be a much bigger problem.
Also my parents keep insisting not to mention at all the lightning theory, because they believe that the repair guy will refuse to fix it and claim that I have to file lightning-related damages with homeowner's insurance. It sounds like a silly superstition, but I wasn't planning to mention the lightning either way since I don't know if that was the cause.
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero
Honestly I don't care what caused it, I'm just hoping it can be easily fixed, and hopefully to the point that this won't happen again after the warranty expires.
I keep wondering what would happen if they can't fix it, though. Samsung said that in the event that happened "we would discuss it from there", whatever that means.
Concurrently, my Logitech Harmony One Remote also screwed up a few days prior to the TV, where the touch-screen became distorted with a black botch. After a few e-mails with Logitech, they finally sent the free replacement yesterday, and it ended up being a Harmony Ultimate One, which is apparently the next tier of remote.
Makes me wonder if a similar thing would happen with Samsung if this TV ended up beyond repair, though I doubt it. The one benefit I'm hoping to get out of this situation is to maybe convince the repair guy to calibrate my TV for free.
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero
I'm looking for suggestions for a top notch 32in monitor for my PC. I don't need 4k, so 1080 is fine, but I'm looking for really good pixel size/density since I'll be sitting close to it.
Origin: Galedrid - Nintendo: Galedrid/3222-6858-1045
Blizzard: Galedrid#1367 - FFXIV: Galedrid Kingshand
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824014372
Nintendo ID: Incindium
PSN: IncindiumX
First off, the update. I did end up returning it for a new one. There was an entire cluster of pixels (a full dimming unit I believe) that was fritzy as fuck. When I showed it to the sales associate he said "Oh yeah, that's a defect", went in the back and wheeled me out a new one, no muss no fuss. The new set has had zero issues. One tiny dark spot when I first turned it on that has since completely faded and gone full bright as the set has warmed up.
So my review of the set comes with the caveat that I don't have a ton of other 55" displays sitting around to compare it to, so understand my review is going to be subjective to my experiences coming from a smaller 60hz Visio.
Fit and Finish
Overall the fit and finish of the TV is decent quality and stylish. The silver outer bevel is incredibly thin, and there is little "empty space" on the edge of the TV. The TV itself is quite thin even when taking the electronics bulge on the back in to account. One issue I did have was that the feet are on the outer sides of the TV, not a single stand in the middle. This caused issues with fitting it on my TV stand which has a center raised console for the TV. Since the LG's feet are on the outside, I had to jury rig up a way for the TV to fit, but this may not be an issue everyone runs in to. If I weren't renting, I would consider VESA wall mounting it, but I can't sink the lag bolts in to the wall here (expressly against the lease).
Remote and Interface
Since this is a SmartTV, we need to talk about the interface a bit. This particular model uses a WebOS based interface and a "Magic Remote", which is effectively a WiiMote. You point the remote at the TV and move a cursor around the screen. The scroll wheel in the center of the remote clicks, and acts as your "mouse button" for navigating the interface. I wasn't sure if I would like this at first, but I've actually come to enjoy. The interface overall is snappy, and I haven't had too many lag issues. Some of the options are a bit buried in menus for my tastes, but overall everything is easy to get to. My one major issue with the interface is the "boot" time after the TV is turned on. There is a period of 20-30s after turning the TV on where WebOS is booting and it simply won't accept input. It will show you whatever is coming through the HDMI input, but if you wanted to change the input, you're stuck staring at WebOS's "Loading, please wait" for a small amount of time. It's not obnoxious, but it's long enough that it annoys me if I turn the TV off on a different input than I want when I turn it back on.
The set also has built in apps for Netflix, Youtube, Amazon and several other popular services. The app store itself is kind of a wasteland of terrible apps, except for the major ones like Netflix. So far no niche apps have hit the service that I've seen, such as a Twitch.tv app, though with Twitch's acquisition by Amazon this may change.
Picture
Here's where things get very subjective, as I only have so many things to compare it to. The particular model I got is the 120hz set, with no 3D. This was a massive upgrade over the 60hz set I had before. Overall I find the picture quality to be top notch. The colors are vibrant and crisp, and the blacks are deep (obvious caveat here being this isn't a plasma, so don't expect crazy contrast ratios). I've noticed very little motion blur while watching live sports, and it's relatively easy to turn off the extra post processing while playing games. There is some minor light banding on the edges of the screen, but it's almost unnoticeable during normal usage. Another thing I noticed is that some games absolutely do not play nice with the post processing. Final Fantasy 14 on the PS4, for instance, flickers something terrible if you leave the LG post processing on. I'm not sure what causes this, or if it's even the game itself, but you really need to turn on game mode when using your consoles. Once game mode was turned on, I had no issues. I was even able to play Street Fighter, Marvel and Killer Instinct (all games that require very little or no input or display lag) with no issues. I've found the set easy to use in both well lit and dimly lit situations. One thing to note is that it does have a glossy screen, so you will want to keep it perpendicular to (or back towards) any windows.
Sound
There isn't much to say here. It's a flat panel TV speaker setup, so it's bare minimum passable but mostly bad. Unfortunately my Onkyo receiver is dead right now, so I have to use it, but it's certainly nothing to write home about. I'm considering buying a sound bar because I'm kind of done with big bulky receivers and LG makes a nice blue tooth one that is supposed to sound decent and be easy to setup. If the built in speakers are all you have, they won't make your ears bleed, but they aren't good either.
Conclusion
Overall I give the LG 55LB6300 4 Gnome's out of 5. At the price point (999 USD when I bought it), it's been a great set and exactly what I wanted. There are certainly better displays to be had if you want to spend the money, but if you want to stay in the realm of sane prices and 120hz, I would have no qualms recommending this set.
Pros:
Cons:
We've had it in that position (on the stand, on an entertainment cabinet) for 4 months with no signs of anything happening. It always wobbled a bit left-to-right, but was always secure, and all the screws were in tightly. Looking at the stand afterwards, the front of the bracket was bent forward from the weight of the TV, and it had stripped the screws out.
At first I was sad, now I'm mostly pissed. The first Samsung service department I talked to said that the damage wasn't covered under the warranty, because it was a case of user negligence. According to the representative, I was negligent by not noticing that the bracket was giving in over time. My argument is that the bracket giving in is due to manufacturing defect, as the TV was in place for 4 months and fell without being touched.
I think the practical lesson is not to use those shitty stands, but speaking in terms of liability does anyone agree with Samsung's logic? AFAIK you're only supposed to check the installation every 6 months. The TV didn't fail, but if the $5 included stand fails and destroys the TV, isn't Samsung still liable for that? I explained that (loudly) to the representative, and the case got elevated to the executive support level, and is still under review.
I have no idea what to do if they rule against me again, or how much it'll cost to fix the inner screen. I'll definitely stay away from Samsung due to support from now on.
If they don't budge and won't do anything for you you're better off just getting a new TV. It will probably cost more to replace the panel than just buying a new set. Though I'm not really sure what a 5xxx series plasma goes for anymore.
I'm curious if this is a common issue with all plasma makers, or just a Samsung issue? I mean, plasmas are finicky beasts and they all weigh a ton, so presumably they all should have pretty heavy duty stands to make up for it, and probably higher rates of failure than LCD TVs. Maybe that's why everyone else got out of them, besides Samsung and Panasonic.
However, that last 1% is important, because ultimately it all comes down to who you talk to. Rules in retail and electronics can always be broken. You should have SEEN some of the ridiculous, off-the-record type shit we've done at my store in the past in order to placate certain customers. So, my advice would be to stick to your guns and keep pushing to talk to someone higher. It's not a guarantee to work, but the most of a fuss you raise the higher the possibility that they will concede just to make this go away. It sounds kind of shitty, but honestly, the success rate of quiet customers to loud customers when it comes to broken electronics is kind of staggering.
Steam Profile | Signature art by Alexandra 'Lexxy' Douglass
Steam Profile | Signature art by Alexandra 'Lexxy' Douglass
I bought this one last year and I love it: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0078LSTWU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
These are the displays I'm looking and I'm not entirely sure which I should go with:
Vizio M552i-B2
Pros - local dimming, apparently pretty decent picture, after discount comes out to about $680 which is the cheapest of the bunch
Cons - no 3D, not super sure how quality it will be, 55" and I think I'd like to go 60+
Samsung UN60H7100AFXZA
Pros - Active 3D, Micro Dimming Pro (which I guess isnt as good as actual local dimming, but better than no dimming tech and I'm not sure how good Vizio's local dimming is going to be), 60"
Cons - $1,280
Samsung UN60H6300AFXZA
Pros - 60", $970 ($770 if I grab the 55", $1170 if I go with the 65")
Cons - no 3D, no local dimming of any kind
I think the best display out of the bunch is probably the Samsung UN60H7100, but I cant find any reviews of it. If I'm not going to grab a 3D tv I'll probably grab the Vizio. Does anyone have suggestions?
Some screens only have like 50 zones, which is better than nothing but not exactly super duper. I think 'micro dimming pro' is 200 zones on a 60 inch 1080p panel? Which is pretty good!
I think I read somewhere that the top of the range Sharp Elite had 17,000 zones on the 70 inch model. Which is completely insane.