Samsung UN55B7000 TV
When Samsung released their 7000 Series LED HDTVs in the first quarter of 2009, they redefined the standards for television viewing quality, appliance energy-efficiency and home entertainment decor. Although they have since been outdone by the Samsung Series 8000 and most recently the 8500 , the UN55B7000 is still a very fine LED TV for its price. Although the UN55B8000 and UN55B8500 exceed the UN55B700 in certain specific product features, the quality provided by Samsung’s UN55B7000 TV may still be adequate for your needs.
The Samsung UN55B7000 is third among the best LED TVs of 2009 because it only offers a 120Hz refresh rate where the Samsung 8000 series provides 240Hz. UN55B7000 has a 4ms response time; the 8000 series halves that with a 2ms response time. On the other hand, if a smaller price and a smaller size are more important to you than perfect picture quality, the Samsung 7000 Series may be your answer. The 8000 series has only the 55 inch and 46 inch set options, but 7000′s include the UN40B7000 which is a bit over half the price of the UN55B8000. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a 55-inch screen, then the UN55B7000 saves you only about $250 over the same-size UN55B8000 and the feature/picture improvements may be worth that 9% price increase. (Prices based on Amazon discounted princes at time of article writing.)
Samsung UN55B7000 LED HDTVs deliver unparalleled picture quality and enhanced connectivity while also helping you reduce your carbon footprint with the reduced power consumption of the LED screen. Using Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) as its primary light source–rather than traditional Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamps (CCFL)–this cutting edge HDTV also offers the benefits of an ultra-high contrast ratio and a slim depth that allows for a more artful design.
The Samsung’s UN55B7000 LED HDTV boasts high dynamic contrast ratios, complements of the ground breaking LED light source. It also incorporates a number of innovative features to reduce the motion blur and image judder, which traditionally plague LCD HDTVs when displaying fast movement. The Auto Motion Plus frame interpolation technology utilizes a 120Hz refresh rate helps ensure crisp, easy viewing of sports, video games and movies.
The UN55B7000 features Samsung’s new Internet@TV online content service. Developed with Yahoo!, Internet@TV uses either a wired or wireless Ethernet connection to access content onscreen from Yahoo!, Flickr, YouTube and more with the push of a button. The widget-based interface and scrollbar run along the bottom of the screen for easy browsing of the latest programs and content. And this HDTV is accented by Samsung’s TOC (Touch of Color), which offers a hint of a translucent color around the edges of the unit for a uniquely fashionable look.
Samsung UN55B7000 Review
Samsung LED 7100
Wow! Do you want the best picture available today. Look at the Samsung 7000 series LED TV.
I have had this for a week now and am very, very pleased with the set. I have the 7100 series from Best Buy. This is a special model only sold through Best Buy. It is the same as the 7000 except for some cute little add ons. One being the ability to scroll through a series of museum paintings. This allows you to use the set as a picture viewer/screen saver and when used with your audio system makes a nice back drop for a party or something of that sort. You can not add pictures. It also allows you to go to the internet and use Yahoo widgets and about five other widgets. There are also a couple of games built in. Will most people use these features? Probably not!
The other feature is the Touch Of Color which I really do not care for anyway. The 7000 is generally $300 cheaper than the 7100 so you chose.
The 7100 series is on sale the week of Apr 28, 2009 for $3,100. This is a $600 price drop. This is the same thing that happened to the Sony 240 hz set. In January 2009 it was $3,900 and is down to $2,800. If you want to wait, it will drop more but that is technology.
My wife usually does not say anything about the TVs we have except if she can not get the remote to turn everything on. She and my son were watching James Bond – Quantum of Solace on bluray. She told me that it was like sitting in the director’s chair on the set. The quality of the bluray screen is so clear that it takes on a 3D appearance. The colors are true, the whites are white and the blacks are black. There is no bleeding or blurring of motion. The dark scenes are just as life like as the light scenes.
If I spend this much on a TV, then I will also have a good sound system so the built-in speakers are not a problem. The TV remotes are not that useful. The small round remote is useless. Again, I have the set connected to an amp, a cable box, a bluray player and an old VHS player. I use a programable remote so I do not use the Samsung remote.
The thinness of the set makes the set shrink from the viewer. I mean my old 56′ cabinet was two feet deep. This set is 1 and 1/4 inches deep. It hugs the wall so well that it does not dominate the room even though it is 55″. The most important part is that there is little to no heat generated by this set. It uses 40% less power than an LCD of the same size. This should help the set last longer and save power on AC and set top use as well.
When using this set to compare pictures make sure that you look at about a dozen different high definition stations. The high definition stations are not all the same! HDNet1, HDNet2, The Science Channel, and ABC in my area are tremendous with the quality in the order shown above. The worst are CBS, PBS, and TBS. There is a big difference in video and audio quality of these stations. Again, look at several stations your area may be totally different.
I had planned to purchase the Sony 240hz TV. I am so glad that I did not. The matte finish on the Sony does little to cut down glare but really, really mutes the picture. The colors and picture on the Sony are also muted by the matte finish.
The picture on the Samsung LED is like looking through a really, really clean window. In other words – awesome!
Pro: Picture quality.
Con: Price.