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| Date Reviewed: 07/02/2006 |
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Strengths: Myriad of input options, 2 HDMI, 2 component, etc. Very light and compact, Easy to use menu and setup, great price
Weaknesses: Image quality worse in dark room, remote feels/looks low quality, speakers mediocre
Summary: I did lot of research before settling on this DLP tv. I contemplated plasma, LCD, LCD projection, and DLP projection before ultimately settling on this TV. I wanted to get the 1080p model (HLS-5087W) but it was not in stock and also about $600 more, which I thought was not worth the extra price. The TV was easy to setup and move. The unit is very light (~60lbs) and has a plethora of hookup options which was great. I've been feeding the TV non-HD signals from my cable and the quality is still decent. DVDs looked great through the component hookup, so I'm excited about the HD cable box I'll be getting soon. My initial drawback about DLPs was having to replace the lamp after about 3-4yrs but this unit is built so that an average consumer can exchange the bulb w/o a professional having to come-in........I looked at the instructions on the Samsung website. Plasmas and LCDs eventually start losing brightness after couple years but DLPs can be maintained with a new bulb, so although it may cost $200-300 I think it's well worth it, especially considering that DLP units are significantly cheaper than plasmas and LCD, highly recommend this unit.
 100% of People (31/31) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 06/14/2006 |
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Strengths: Price, Appearance, 2 HDMI Inputs
Weaknesses: No IEEE 1394 Input
Summary: This is a great DLP for the price (I paid $1650 shipped). It is only 720p, but if you wanted the equivalent 1080p set, expect to pay a 50% premium. The 2006 model comes with 2 HDMI Inputs which comes in handy since I have 2 boxes that have HDMI - my cable box and my DVD player. Two negative things about this TV are the lack of cable card support and lack of a QAM tuner.
100% of People (11/11) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 08/22/2006 |
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Strengths: Good picture, lightweight (lighter than my old 27"). lots of features, can even view jpegs and liten to MP3's (nice feature)
Weaknesses: Sound was average, better than what I had though. I have to adjust the picture a little but besides that, its a great TV
Summary: As I mention about the sound not being as I might have expected but anyone buying a TV like this will probably hook up Surround so thats no big deal. the TV features an internal mute when adding surround. Nice that they show you the instructions to replace the lamp, looks really easy to do yourself and would save $$$$ because I dont even want to know what a TV repair man would charge for this process that looks to take about 2 minutes to do. Overall, I am very happy with this TV and saved about $500 ordering off the net as compared to Circuit City.
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| Date Reviewed: 10/01/2006 |
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Strengths: Very thin bezel
All black cabinet
Very functional zoom modes
Excellent tweaking abilities
Fantastic picture
Excellent overall value
Weaknesses: Mediocre sound system
Slightly directional remote
No Variable Audio out
Summary: I recently ordered this television after 2 months of looking at sets from various manufacturers in local stores. I found only slight differences in picture quality and I noticed the "Screen Door" effect on several of the LCD Projection sets. I did not notice any "Rainbow Effect" on the Samsung DLPs and of course, it being a DLP, it didn't have a "Screen Door" problem. The set was purchased from Circuit City for a final price with tax & delivery of only $1223 after rebates. I couldn't find a deal this good on a brand new set anywhere on the internet and I searched for several days. TV looked great right out of the box and after tweaking a bit, it looks fantastic from most all sources. Picture is especially good on DVDs through Component inputs and excellent with over-the-air digital broadcasts. I was able to get the sound system tweaked (via the built-in equalizer) to my liking so the lack of variable audio output is not a big deal to me. The TV's built-in sound system is adequate for me at the moment. I plan on purchasing a spare lamp just in case, although from what I understand, they should be good for 2000-4000 hours. Next step is a good up-converting DVD Player for the ultimate picture quality from disc. So far, I'm extremely impressed and glad I made this purchase. Hopefully longterm durability will be good as well.
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| Date Reviewed: 07/19/2006 |
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Strengths: small frame fits where other 50" screens won't, not too heavy, two HDMI inputs plus USB for jpgs and MP3s
Weaknesses: picture quality settings take lots of tweaking, missing some features compared with similar HDTVs
Summary: Reviews at PriceGrabber and similar sites seemed very favorable for the HL-S5086W, so I checked local stores vs. Internet pricing. Best Buy, Circuit City and Fry's Electronics all drop prices about 20% when on sale, but were still high compared to Amazon.com, where I bought the unit with free shipping and a $100 rebate for effectively $500 less than local (and didn't have to pay the 8% AZ tax). Amazon has run this special before.
I purchased an entertainment center first (bought locally, great quality and price, manufactured by Aspen Furniture) and wanted to fit the largest screen unit; this Samsung at 45.5"x32.3"x15.7" and 63 lbs. was a perfect fit. There are at least three different picture enhancement settings beyond the normal contrast-brightness, and it took a while to get a natural looking picture, but I'm pretty satisfied now.
I intend to get a Samsung Home-Theatre-In-A-Box (HT-Q40 with component video or Q70 with HDMI) which I'd heard work well with this TV. The USB port on the TV is kind of neat for pictures or music, but the HT-Q70 can also play DIVX movies from a USB flash disk. (another FYI: for $8 HDMI cables, try Svideo.com)
I was also considering Samsung's HL-R5067W which differs a bit in size, has an IEEE 1394 connection for digital camcorders, a slot for a CableCard (for HDTV without a set top box) and picture-in-a-picture. I could have used all of these features, but in the end chose the HL-S5086W based on size, price and availability. If you are in the market, check out both. If you can budget another $600 and want the sharpest picture, look at the HL-5087W which is a twin of the HL-5086W but does 1080p (non-interlaced, highest resolution HDTV that outperforms the 1080i picture for fast motion scenes).
Overall, I'm pleased with my purchase and can highly recommend this unit.
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| Date Reviewed: 07/14/2006 |
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 Terrific picture but poor support Strengths: HDTV image quality is great
Basic tech support is good, but.....(read below)
Weaknesses: Channel changing is slow to respond.
PIP (pic'n pic) is useless.
TV tuner\s (in my case) are a lemons.
Remote's button placement could be better.
There's been no request for feedback from Samsung.
Summary: As stated above, if you're lucky to get a Samsung TV which works, great. You've been blessed, but if you need support from Samsung, other than just talking to a technician, then good luck. You'll learn your lesson and maybe make a post like mine.
Yes, I did my research before purchase and it came down to Samsung. Lucky me, I got a lemon. Three tuners later, I still have technical problems with it and Samsung won't follow through (I'm still under factory warranty) and replace it. Samsung will not work with me to replace my "lemon" tv.
You too can be treated like cattle if you have a problem with a Samsung.
This is not a "sour grapes" but a real life situation.
64% of People (7/11) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 06/22/2006 |
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Strengths: Features, 2 HDMI inputs, price
Weaknesses: Sound, needs replacement bulbs vs other technologies, no PIP
Summary: Nice TV. Has 2 HDMI inputs which is nice if you have a upconverting/hidef DVD player and a digital cable box. Although the cables are expensive. Great picture with digital input. Not very good for analog input. This is my first really nice TV so I thought the sound would be much better. I was wrong. If you want good sound, expect to spend some more bucks on a home theater sound system, which is what I plan on doing. It has bulbs that have a few years lifespan so expect to shell out a few hundred bucks every once in a while. I don't think the other technologies require replacement bulbs or parts (like LCDs, LCD projection, Plasma). The bulbs can be replaced by the owner though so that is a benefit.
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| Date Reviewed: 07/22/2006 |
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Strengths: Great colors, sound, and brightness
Weaknesses: Need to replace bulb after a few years
Summary: If you're getting this TV make sure you get an HDTV cable box and an upconverting HD DVD player. The HDTV channels and the movies with the upconverting player are amazing. If you like throwing away $4000 to get a similar plasma so you can hang it on a wall, this TV is not for you. For everyone else, I highly recommend it.
29% of People (2/7) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
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| Date Reviewed: 06/08/2008 |
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Avoid Purchase
Strengths: good picture, good features
Weaknesses: Parts wear out quickly
Summary: I must disagree with the other reviewers here. I purchased this TV on May 2006. Four months ago I replaced the color wheel, bulb, and ballast. Well here we are now and the lamp has gone out again. Thank God I purchased the extended warranty. It has already paid for itself.
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| Date Reviewed: 12/08/2006 |
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Strengths: Amazing picture and PLENTY of inputs. The display is very bright and vivid and CRYSTAL CLEAR!! Can't beat the DLP technology. Very thin and light. this 50' is only 13' deep and light as a feather!
Weaknesses: Absolutely NONE...if i could go back...id still definitely buy this one, and i recommend it to anyone looking for a great HD TV
Summary: This is just an amazing value. No complaints at all. I have had this tv for a little over a month and have NO regrets of buying it. HD channels look amazing. XBOX 360 looks amazing, DVDs look great. The PC input is great. Standard definition channels are definitly not HD quality but its that way with any HDTV. I bought this TV from circuit city on sale for $1299 with two years of no interest. GREAT DEAL!!
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| Date Reviewed: 10/24/2006 |
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Strengths: Plethora of HD hook ups, easy to use and overall very good picture quality.
Weaknesses: Remote is not the most user-friendly
Summary: Very good TV for the money. HD picture is high quality and aesthetic appearance is top-notch. Much happier with this than my current Plasma TV. Excellent picture from front and all sides makes it easy to set up a home theater setting.
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| Date Reviewed: 09/25/2006 |
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Strengths: Great picture with HD and SD
Weaknesses: Lag only if you hook game systems up with regular RCA cables(yellow, red, white). Use component if you can.
Summary: I've had this for about a month now and I really love. It's got a great picture, even with my older DVD player. Xbox 360 looks astonishing on it. I don't think there are any real problems with it.
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