Samsung UN55C7000 55-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Black)

Review by A. Leetham for Samsung UN55C7000 55-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Black)
Rating:
I’ve owned this television for a few weeks now, and I’ve been putting it through a battery of tests using a variety of different sources and room lighting conditions. To get right to the point, I am returning it — it will be picked up this week — and waiting for either the UNC8000 precision dimming edge lit led set, or perhaps either the XBR-HX900 or XBR-LX900 from Sony. The C7000 is a good TV. It compares favorably — if not signficantly so — to any of the edge lit led lcd’s that Samsung released in 2009. However, it doesn’t hold a candle to the UNB8500 that was released late in 2009. It is also outperformed by Vizio’s latest (552), the Sony XBR 8, and even LG’s LH 90 gives it a run for it’s money and outperforms it in a few important areas. Essentially the performance of the C7000 is either matched or exceeded by multiple televisions that cost significantly less. If you are not a videophile and do not concentrate on picture performance in a completely darkened room, I’m sure this television will suit you just fine. However, if you are a videophile and/or picture performance in a completely darkened room and accurate reproduction of theater film viewing is very important to you, this television is not for you. This TV exhibits many of the same problems that plagued Samsung’s 2009 series of edge lit led’s — namely, a lot of light shining through from the corners, top and bottom, and sides of the picture while viewing in a darkened room — and does not perform the way you would hope for a television that costs this much. Samsung did improve upon the fluctuating back light problems of last years edge lit led’s. This television does not have a fluctuating back light problem at all. However, I must come back to the issue of light shining through from the edges of the screen. It’s a big concern for anybody who wants to reproduce a natural theater experience and view films the way they were meant to be seen. You simply cannot recreate that experience with this television. When you view a film — or any other content — in a completely darkened room, it is impossible not to notice the light shining in from the edges. That is a huge problem for a lot of us. I will say that when you are viewing a film in a bright room, this television is an outstanding performer. It is also an excellent performer for viewing sporting events, animated features, and other lively bright content in a brightly lit room. Of course, most of us do not wish to pay $3,300 to only be completely happy with our televisions when we are watching them in a brightly lit room. The light shining in from the edges also creates the potential to create a lot of problems with 3D viewing once we have sufficient 3D content available. Imagine trying to immerse yourself in a 3D viewing experience and not be able to focus on the 3D atmosphere due to the fact that there is light shining into the viewing area. I just don’t see it working. It seems that it would be a major obstacle in viewing 3D content. Imagine going to see Avatar in 3D or IMAX 3D and having light shining into all of the edges of the film. There’s just no way that it wouldn’t distract you and take away from your viewing experience. I foresee this being a huge problem for 3D viewing once we have the content. I will discuss some of the positives of this television because I don’t want anyone to think it’s a bad television. I would have really given it 2.5 starts out of 5 but Amazon doesn’t allow for a half star so I went with 3 because the positives probably do outweigh the negatives on this TV. The color accuracy is what we have all came to expect from Samsung, which is to say it’s flawless. The black level is outstanding — if not up to par with the local dimming led sets such as the 8500 and the XBR8, or the Pioneer Kuro 151 plasma — and does not have the fluctuating backlight problem. The black level is definitely better than last years edge lit led sets. The video processing and motion resolution is beyond reproach. It appears that this particular feature is probably comparable the 8500, which is the only lcd in history to be able to resolve all 1080 moving lines. It will be interesting to see if this television can do that once the reviews come out and the video processing has been tested. This television handles 24fps content perfectly, and reproduces the proper cadence of film based content. It is definitely a good television, it just has some major flaws, and is outperformed by a few sets that cost over $1,000 less. The potential for 3D viewing problems definitely exists, and Samsung needs to find a way to cure the problem of having light shine in from the edges of the screen.

Review by Larry Talpins for Samsung UN55C7000 55-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Black)
Rating:
I’ve been using the TV for a few weeks now…i was previously using an 8 series 46″ Samsung LCD from 2008…which I’ve been very happy with..I was looking forward to upgrading to a brand new 55″ inch LED from Samsung with 3d capability. I made one flawed assumption in buying this TV early on…that Samsung had learned from last years LED edge lighting fiasco and that the picture quality in 2010 would be excellent. Boy was I wrong! Read on for the reason(s)

Quick background, I have the TV hooked up to the same Verizon Fios DVR cable box from my old TV and a brand new Samsung BD-C6900 1080p 3D Blu-ray Disc Playerusing high speed HDMI 1.3 cables (as the 1.4 was not out yet a few weeks ago).

First off, this is NOT a “plug n play” TV. My initial picture quality (default settings) using my Verizon Fios cable box was almost unwatchable. I spent a couple house “tweaking” all the settings to find the best picture quality. I am still playing around with the settings trying to get it perfect (I dont think thats possible with this TV). The picture quality has improved significantly but I still could not get rid of the clouding issue. Also, I had to turn the 240hz feature OFF, as the picture quality with it on was not good. Why am I paying for that feature if you can’t use it?….Every show has different picture quality, some shows are too bright while others become too dark. I am not about to update settings every time I watch a show!

Clouding Issue: The LED backlighting creates a tremendous amount of clouding in dark scenes. It is very annoying to see while watching a program in the dark. Samsung should be embarrassed for putting out this product. The clouding issue seems to be alot more pronounced while watching from the cable box. The picture quality when using the Blu Ray player is significantly better.

I did NOT see any light shining in from the edges in a darkened room as other reviewers have mentioned.

Pros:

Very Thin

Sound Quality better than I expected. It was better than my previous Samsung TV..

Easy to use TV interface and remote.

Picture Quality using the Blu Ray player was excellent.

HDMI 1.4 compliant.

Cons:

Clouding Issue

Not able to use the 240 hz feature.

Overall picture quality when not using a Blu Ray DVD is just OK.

Picture is not “plug n play”

I was not able to test out Netflix or any apps yet although the internet connection seemed to be working fine as I updated the software on the TV and Blu Ray without any problems. Nor was I able to test out the 3D quality. I bought the TV before Samsung announced the 3D glasses promotion and I didnt feel like dropping $350 on the glasses…just yet, as I wasnt sure I was keeping the TV.

After using this product for a few weeks and giving it a solid chance, I decided to return it. I REALLY wanted to like it, I just can’t. I noticed the Samsung UN55C8000 55-Inch 1080p 3D 240 Hz LED HDTV has just been released and has a function called “precision dimming”. Samsung claims that feature will take care of the clouding issue, although I havent confirmed this with my own eyes. So I will be returning this TV and getting the 8000 model. Amazon by the way has been great with handling the return.

This TV has plenty of positives..it looks great, the interface and remote are very good. Sound Quality happens to be very good. But I couldn’t get over the poor picture quality..not from a near top of the line LED Samsung TV with a MSRP of $3300.

I would NOT recommend this TV. Either wait for the reviews on the 8000 model or for Sony to release their LED TV’s over the summer.

Review by Nothing Shocking for Samsung UN55C7000 55-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Black)
Rating:
For those looking for this bit of information, I have the TV and it is hdmi 1.4, Amazon has it wrong in the Description and you can even find this information in the Product documentation if you don’t want to take my word for it. This TV also can upgrade a 2D hdmi 1.3 signal to 3D. The cloudy lighting issue some see with the Edge-lighting technology reported on the 2009 product has been greatly improved for 2010 and I can’t really say I even noticed it a in a black scene. Folks need to stop using past products to review current products, this is 2010 and not 2009. Outside of that, performance wise you will be blown away and will feel less pain knowing you just spent your child’s college fund.

Review by LCDTVBuyingGuide for Samsung UN55C7000 55-Inch 1080p 240 Hz 3D LED HDTV (Black)
Rating:
HIGHLIGHTS

Strengths

Aesthetics – 1.2″ depth with 1″ bezel. Great looking TV.

New Swivel quadrapod stand

Good deep black levels – Avg. to good contrast.

Excellent color saturation

Optional 240/120Hz feature for sports programming

Great connectivity options for such a thin TV

3-D Enabled for future programming

Weaknesses

Proprietary Wifi Internet TV Network

240Hz feature with Film based content (turn off feature)

Price

Difficult ISF calibration

At times over saturation of colors

Slightly Weak Volume/Audio output

Blue tone inconsistency across gray scales

HD 1080p Picture Quality: There is nothing subdued about this LED TV, from its super thin good looks to its super saturated colors. Blacks are rich and deep and colors vibrant if not over powering at times. Some dark shadow detail is lost and and subtle color notes forgotten. But it’s a colorful picture many will relish. Read our extended picture notes below.

Black Level/Contrast: With color information both light and dark appearing so deeply saturated, contrast effect is excellent. Blacks appear inky and sometimes lose dark shadow detail. White light sometimes is distractingly too bright. Contrast appears more intense on the screen than the average of 191:1 post calibration ANSI checkerboard pattern contrast that we measured – probably due to the effects of the LED backlighting and saturated colors.

Dark Shadow Detail: As a result of the super saturated blacks, shadow detail can get lost in some scenes. In others, it was fine.

Color Rendition/Color Accuracy: Color saturation is a strength of these new LED backlit Samsung LCDs. Colors are super vibrant even if on the unrealistic side at times. It’s what our society (maybe not so much purists) likes these days. On rare occasions there is some over saturation within blacks.

Motion Lag: The UN55C7000 did a good job eliminating motion lag and judder with the 240Hz feature turned on. However, turning the Automotion Plus feature off does introduce some side to side judder (jerkiness). Neverthless, we recommend this action for especially film based DVDs and movies on broadcast TV.

480i DVD and Broadcast Viewing: For any film or broadcast TV non-sports based material start by turning off the 120Hz/240Hz rate feature as follows: Click Menu/picture/Scroll down to Picture Options/Press enter/Scroll down to AutoMotionPlus 240Hz/Press Enter/Scroll or press to Off position. It is important to turn this feature off (see more on this feature under features section below).

Calibration Settings: Calibrating white balance was somewhat difficult on this TV. Blue tones continue to lack consistency in these edge lit Samsung LEDs, To dial in close to D6500 follow the following picture settings: Click here for extended notes and technical information regarding calibration.

Picture Settings

Picture Mode: Movie

Color Temp: Warm 2

Brightness: 44

Contrast: 93

Color: 43

Tint: G47/R53

Sharpness: 10

Backlight: 7

Picture Settings

Black Tone: Off

Dynamic Contrast: Off

Gamma: 0

Flesh Tone: Off

Edge Enhancement: Off

Digital NR: Auto

HDMI Black Level: Low

Film Mode: Auto 1

Color Filter: Off

3-D Content Viewing Note: At CES 2010 we had our first chance to see this TV in action with 3-D content from DirecTV. There was notable eye strain as scenes changed. I found myself blinking a lot and started to get a headache fairly rapidly as my eyes tried to focus and refocus. It was not a smooth viewing experience. The upside to this is that I believe the tired eye experience was primarily due to the content from DirecTV and not the fault of the TV. I believe the content was rapidly patched together for the show and not likely typical of future 3-D content.

Aesthetic Considerations: The 55C7000 comes with a 15 to 20 degree swivel quadrapod (our word) table top stand. The stand is heavy, sturdy and gives and expensive quality with its gloss chrome metallic finish. The new 4 legged stand is a gutsy move and I like it. There are accompanying screws to further secure the stand to the TV. The super thin 1.2″ screen depth is accompanied by an improved 1″ bezel frame surrounding the screen. This is an improvement of an inch over last years model. The bezel frame itself comes in a new Touch of Color called Mystic Earth but which is a charcoal gray color. The frame really appears gloss black/charcoal gray.

Remote Control/Menu Funtionality: The backlit push button remote control for the 55C7000 is simple, basic and straightforward without the flash of the highest end Samsung models. This standard remote control contains a discrete button called P. Size for changing the video aspect ratio. The overlaid Menu system is very attractively laid out and thorough, but slow and cumbersome to navigate.

Audio Output: Sound volume levels seem weak from the 15W X 15W built in speakers. We can understand the challenges for speaker placement in a 1.2″ deep TV. For a majority of programming changing the mode to movie, and utilizing the Clear Voice feature will help a lot to improve voice tone in DVD and broadcast material. SRS TruSurround is a useful feature for HD content but it doesnt help voice tone. Overall, audio delivery from the UN55C7000 was slightly better than last years model, which was not impressive.

Features: The Samsung UN55C7000 is loaded with extra features, some surprising, others more useful. AutoMotionPlus “240Hz” Refresh Rate: This is a true 240Hz with greatly reduces motion lag and judder in sports programming. But that’s the only format for which we recommend it. Media Play: Use this feature connected through USB to keep picture and video files. Clear Voice, SRS and Movie sound options are listed above under Audio Output. We mention the new 3-D ready feature under the PQ section above. Click here for an overview of all the new features on this TV.

Internet Connectivity: The 55C7000 series expands the list of potential Internet partners with Blockbuster, USA Today, Netflix, VUDU on Demand, as well as the previously offered Yahoo news, Flikr, witter, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Video. These options are nice improvements from last years package and make it more viable.. Response time is still a little slow when clicking on the various options. This feature is wireless with an optional accesssory.

For the full review see LCD TV Buying Guide