The boob-tube for the next generation?
Written: Nov 20 '03
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Pros: Light weight, picture quality, PC compatibility, inputs
Cons: Sound outputs, menu system, black level, some video noise
The Bottom Line: This is the boob-tube for the next generation. Picture quality is amazing, and the technology is built to last.
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| amstel78's Full Review: Samsung HL-N5065W 50 in. HDTV-Ready DLP TV |
Television over the years has become a vast wasteland. For me, and millions of others, choosing how to view that wasteland has become an increasingly difficult question to answer. The market has become flooded, or should I say saturated with differing technologies; all designed to do one thing: present the viewer with an image. I am here to present you, dear reader, with my view on the Samsung HLN5065W.
Let me get started with my review with an overview of this particular TV, and then I'll get into the PRO's and CONS.
Overview:
The Samsung HLN5065W is definitely a jaw-dropper. Picture quality (as long as it's coming from an HD, DVD, or PC source) is excellent. On the other hand, SD signals do not come out looking great, and depending upon what type of SD signal you're inputting, chances are you're going to see dithering, banding, video noise, and other artifacts on the screen. To put it mildly, this unit will practically show you every video or picture flaw being inputted.
Pros:
The HLN5065W has many good things going for it. When it comes to inputs, you'd be hard-pressed to complain. For example, it has the ability to input a DVI or VGA,SVGA,XGA signal from a PC or DVI enabled media device. I presently have my PowerMac MDD connected to this TV via the DVI jack, and get stunning results at its native resolution of 1280x720. Couch computing has never been more fun.
The back panel also houses the three sets of component video-ins. One set is 480i-480p, and the other two sets are for 480p, 720p, and 1080i. There are also several S-video inputs, two RF inputs, a monitor out, and an RS232 serial port.
The HLN uses a new display technology called DLP. I'm not going to get into the technical details of how DLP works, since there are many reviews and technical white papers available on the internet. But to sum it up, DLP uses a colorwheel and a digital mirror chip to project the image onto the screen. Because the chip is based on mirrors, and not LCD or Plasma, you don't have to worry about stuck pixels or burn-in, respectively. Black levels are also much improved over current plasma and LCD technology, and the best part about DLP is that it's never supposed to wear out! Well, bulbs will burn out, and motors may cease to function, but the technology behind this chip is supposed to allow it to remain functional long after LCD and Plasma based sets have given up the ghost.
Faroudja DCDi and DNIe: yes this unit has the Faroudja chip. After much speculation and investigating, it has finally been proven that the HLNxx65W series units do in fact contain the Genesis FLI2300 DCDi chip. What does this mean? It means that non-progressive sources are automatically rescanned, then projected on screen in a progressive fashion. The Genesis/Faroudja chips are award-winning deinterlacing units, that until recently, were only found in professional grade projectors and televisions, often costing $20,000 and up. The benefit of having this chip in the TV for the layman, basically allows you from having to buy a progressive scan DVD player to enjoy the full PQ of the TV. DNIe on the other hand, does not deinterlace an incomming signal, but it does enhance it. I've seen improvements with picture, such as sharpness, color and contrast by using Samsung's DNIe feature.
The Cons:
Every thing that's good, has to have at least one or two bad things to mar it's image. The Samsung HLN5065W, albeit a great TV, does have a few flaws.
My biggest gripe with this unit has been it's audio output capabilities. Most high-end sets now have some sort of audio passthrough capability built in. This means that every source you connect to the TV, it's audio can be passed through the set and into your AV receiver or amp and only need one connection. Not so with the HLN. There is a monitor out function built into to the TV, so your RF and S-video inputs can have it's sound pumped out to an AV receiver without using seperate cables. The DVI, VGA, and Component inputs do not have a passthrough feature. This means that if you want to hear the audio coming from your component DVD player through your AV setup, you're going to have to run seperate cables into your AV receiver. Too many, it may not be that big of a deal, but when you suddenly have around 4 to 5 devices all connected to your TV, all of a sudden wiring can become a problem.
Overscan and underscan - what the hell is it? Well when you connect a PC to the DVI port, in order to get a 1x1 pixel mapping at 1280x720, the HLN automatically overscans the image. This means that a few pixels around the entire border of the image get cut off. This isn't a big problem if you're using a home theater PC to just play DVD's or movies, but it can be annoying when you are doing regular computer work. Underscan on the other hand, will take your 1280x720 image and shrink it slightly. The whole image is now displayed, but text can become fuzzy or slightly distorted because you are no longer seeing the image at 1x1.
Menu system, black-levels, and video noise: The menu system seems a bit archane, especially for a 3500 dollar TV. It's functional, but ugly. Black levels, although represented much better through DLP than LCD or Plasma, is still lacking compared to traditional CRT's. For example, in a movie scene where the surroundings are black, it will come out more as a very dark gray. Hopefully in the future, the technology will improve this aspect to the levels of CRT televisions. And finally, video noise: Since this TV is now purely digital, what you put in is what you're gonna get. There was a saying once I learned when I was programming, "garbage in, garbage out." This can also apply to the quality of signals you put into the set. If you attach a device that does not put out the greatest quality signal, expect to receive and view the same on the monitor. For example, my Dish Network PVR-501 is attached via composite cables. It looked fine on my older Sony 27" Trinitron, but now looks grainy, soft, and otherwise unimpressive. Try to keep your inputs all digital, and you would expect to receive better results.
To conclude my review, I just want to say that this TV is an excellent value for the money. It may cost a bit more than traditional CRT RPT's, or LCD units but quality and durability in the long run offset the cost. As with any major purchase over a thousand dollars, I do recommend that whoever decides to purchase this TV look into getting an extended warranty. I purchased my set from PC Richard and Sons, and their warranty covers everything except abuse. Also, if I call in with a problem more than three times, they are obligated to give you a new replacement TV, or refund your original purchase amount. All in all, it wasn't a bad deal. I give this TV two enthusiastic thumbs-up!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 3700
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Epinions.com ID:
amstel78
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Reviews written: 12
Trusted by: 2 members
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