Samsung DLP TV? (1 Viewer)

[Matt Brighton]

A friend of mine is looking to add a new TV to his home theater. He's looking in the $4000 and under range and size-wise is looking from around 40-42" (16:9, not 4:3). He mentioned the Samsung DLP or a Panasonic. I told him I'd check around.

Anyone know anything good/bad about either one of those units or have any suggestions about what might be better? Space isn't a problem, but when I mentioned a projection unit, he was looking for something a bit smaller in size.

Any ideas or thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Leo_P]

I have a Samsung 43" DLP and at this point I'm highly disappointed. I'm seeing rainbows and internal reflections. Right about now, I'm thinking I want my money back.:frowning:
I'd tell your friend to go look at a DLP set and see if he can see rainbows. Even though, to be honest, I never saw rainbows in a showroom, only at home.
As for me, if I can get Samsung to do the right thing, I'll probably get an LCD RPTV. Sony's coming out with a 42" soon. Panasonic makes a 50" one but I'm not sure if they make a set in the 40-42" range.
Then of course there's plasma. With a little leg-work your friend could find an 42" EDTV set in his price range. I'd get a plasma in a minute but for one thing: burn-in. I play a lot of video games and watch a lot of movies and burn-in is not something I wanna worry about.
Last but not least is LCoS. Philips makes a 44" tabletop model in your friends budget. But it seems that some people are seeing rainbows on it and since it's a fairly new technology (much like DLP) some bugs are still being worked out.
Also, make sure to check out this place. You'll find a lot of info there.
Good luck.

 

[Parker Clack]

Matt:

As you know you can find a lot of information here too.

As far as recommendations for a RPTV I would have your friend go into several stores and check out the various models out there.

I just saw a Panasonic 50 inch LCD RPTV and the picture looked great. I have also seen the Samsung DLP and the Sony LCD RPTV.

To my eye the Samsung's picture looked the best in the way of color and contrast. The problem with DLP type projectors is your friend could be bothered by the rainbow effect that some people are susceptible to. The newer generation DLP have a higher spin rate on the color wheel that is used to help minimize this effect.

The Panasonic was at Circuit City and the Samsung and Sony models were at Best Buy and Brandsmart respectively. I would have your friend go into the various B&M stores in your area and have him look at them himself. Also, have him check the sets out with a regular cable feed and DVD as the majority of them are using High Def feeds and this will make any of them look really good.

Parker

 

[*Luke*]

I have the current generation Sammy DLP in a 61"....I have strained to see the rainbow effect and am yet to see it. Perhaps the prob is solved? My monitor is 2 weeks old. If you have an HHGregg locally the sticker on a 61" is 4999 but I was out for 4165. But tell your friend to remember the DLP has to sit on something....a matching stand is available and of course negotiable also.

 

[Leo_P]

Even the DLP televisions are capable of rainbow artifacting?

Hell, yeah!
I envy people that don't see rainbows. I see them ALL the time. The real shame is that if it weren't for the rainbows AND internal reflections, this set would be perfect. The picture truly is breath-taking with HD or a DVI DVD player.
Oh well, at least it ONLY cost me $3000 to find this out!

 

[PaulHeroy]

I've seen the 50" and 61" HLN series Samsungs at separate local stores, and noticed the rainbow effect fairly easily on both, although mainly when I tried to see it by doing things like turning my head or moving my eyes. I didn't have to do extreme things, though... so I'd definitely recommend checking these out before buying. Having said that, the picture can look very very appealing -- bright, saturated colors, sharp image, good black level.

 

[John Geelan]

The 43" Samsung would be perfect for your friend. It's only 38" wide btw.