How to buy cheap Samsung 55 Inch HDTV LED UN55B8500 1080p 240 Hz Discount ReviewProduct Features and Technical DetailsProduct FeaturesSamsung UN55B8500 55 Inch HDTV LED 1080p 240 Hz7,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast RatioAuto Motion Plus 240Hz Internet@TV Content Service; DLNA Wireless; Content Library (2GB Flash Memory); USB 2.0 MovieFast 2ms response time5 HDMI — Anynet+ (HDMI CEC) (side)5 HDMI and Anynet+ (HDMI CEC) (side)Technical DetailsBrand Name: SamsungModel: UN55B8500Display Technology: LED litDisplay Size: 55 inchesSpeaker Count: 2Resolution: 1920 x 1080To clarify we own this tv and am not just basing this review on time spent in a store browsing.
The TV has a “direct lit” LED backlight, a new, lower cost version of a full array LED backlight that lacks local dimming.
A 46 inch, 3D capable 1080p LCD TV with a good number of features, including an edge LED backlight with local dimming, a claimed 480Hz refresh rate, and built in Wi Fi.
From a picture quality perspective the XBR8 is closest but not quite up to par with the 8500.
In a dark room we could not tell where the tv screen ended and the bezel began because the screen was so dark.
Bring on a 4K OLED 40 55inch TV screen for less then $5000 then we would consider it.
The 240hz refresh is nice but the best thing is that you can independantly control Blue and Judder settings.
Cranking up the 240hz tends to produce what some call the soap opera effect but this can easily be eliminated by tweaking.
One interesting thing we found out was that the Movie mode using the Warm 2 setting is pretty much spot on from a calibration perspective right out of the box.
We say that because we have a Spears & Munsil calibration blu ray disc and when we ran the tv through the calibration process using Movie mode on Warm 2 we literally only had to tweak one setting by one or two points.
This 46 inch 1080p LCD TV, the bigger sibling to the 32 inch set above, is a relatively basic set that has the “direct lit” LED backlight and a claimed 120Hz refresh rate, plus ConnectShare Movie.
We could see many people just flipping back and forth between Natural and Movie modes, depending on what they are watching, and not bothering to calibrate the tv as it looks great pretty much out of the box.
Viewing Angle: we sit about 9 to 10 away from the screen and have not noticed any real issues with the viewing angle.
Of course no LED LCD will have a viewing angle as good as a plasma but unless you are sitting at an extreme angle you probably wont have to worry too much about this.
We think this is more of a personal preferencesure the best picture is right in the center of the screen but we dont think sitting to the right or left a few feet makes the picture dramatically different.
If you have windows directly facing the tv then make sure you have curtains or blinds that can block out the light enough not to bother you.
Although direct lit LED backlights are no slimmer than CCFL based LCD TVs, they do offer an advantage over models with fluorescent lights: better energy efficiency.
We dont think its anymore reflective than other Samsung tvs but coming from a matte screen prior to this it was a big change for us.
The company will increase production of various types of TV with 55 inch screens or larger in a bid to dominate the premium market, Samsung said.
>Buy Now<Widgets: The tv comes with internet connectivity for Yahoo Widgets, You Tube, Twitter, USA Today Sports and several others.
You can either buy a Samsung USB wireless stick to connect the tv wirelessly to your network or you can plug an ethernet cable directly into the back of your tv.
Its odd because when we went to the You Tube widget and looked up a video it played quickly and was smooth.
Hopefully Samsung will have a software update to allow the widgets to load faster.
Whether Im watching HD football, playing a PS3 game, watching a blu ray movie or watching The Office we have been blown away by the picture this tv can deliver.
A fairly basic 55 inch 1080p LCD TV in Sony’s entry level LCD TV line, which uses fluorescent (CCFL) backlights rather than edge mounted LEDs.
This year, for example, both Samsung (EH series) and LG (LS3400 series) are offering lower priced LCD TVs with direct lit LED backlights.
Just wanted to make sure nobody is confused when Samsung refers to it as an LED tv and we are calling it LCD.in a way they are both right but this can be confusing for a consumer.
A 60 inch 3D capable 1080p LCD TV from Sharp that has an edge LED backlight, a 120Hz refresh rate, and built in Wi Fi.
The TV can accept a Wi Fi adapter, but since it can’t access online content, we assume it’s for DLNA and AllShare as as well as for receiving firmware updates.
>Buy Now<UPDATE 2 Aug 23, 2010:we are now approaching 11 months of ownership and we have not had a single problem with this tv.
There are many 2010 model Samsungs that are LED edge lit but we do not believe there is a true LED backlit tv for 2010 yet which would be the true successor to the 8500.
FINAL UPDATE Dec 14, 2010:Having now owned this tv for well over a year we can say it has been the best tv we have ever owned.
It has handled HD broadcasts, PS3 game playing, Blu Ray movies and everything else we can throw at it.
This will probably be our final update as this tv appears to be no longer available which is a shame but understandable as tv manufacturers always have to bring something new to the table every year.
FINAL FINAL UPDATE Jan2, 2012:we are coming up on two years of ownership of this television and it is still performing great.
We recently used the Amazon video on demand application on the tv again and it still works great.
Nicole Hansch is a business journalist based in Sydney, Australia. Nicole has a passion for financial markets and breaking news stories and loves writing about business news, stock market, and economic opinions that matters most to its audience. Nicole spends a lot of time discovering and researching latest financial markets and industry news stories in order to make sure the latest and greatest stories are brought to you first on BigBoardNews.com.
