I hope you can help. I recently sold my 2 1/2 year old 56" Samsung DLP to a
friend. I am back on the market for a new TV. I am considering the LED
based Samsung 61" DLP (HL-T6189S). It sounds like a vast improvement over
the model I had including 1080p, LED and support for HDMI version 1.3. I am
finding however it is very hard to get expert advice on this exact model.
Do you have any comments on this one?
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Hello Jeff,
The most recent review I could find of a Samsung LED-based DLP projection
set is at Cnet, from David Katzmaier, whom I worked with some years ago at a
predecessor to CNet called etown. David's video criticism closely parallels
my own, and I generally agree with his assessments. If anything he is more
critical than I am of image quality. Here's the link to his review.
http://reviews.cnet.com/projection-tvs/samsung-hl-t5687s/4505-6484_7-32313063.html?tag=txt
The LED-based Samsung he reviews is from the same new LED DLP series as the
61-inch that you are considering, and I expect its performance would be very
similar or identical.
I've been using a conventional projection-lamp-based Samsung DLP for almost
four years and it's generally very good, except for the inevitable "rainbow
effects" that I see occasionally.
The new three-LED light source eliminates the color wheel and rainbow
effects, although the LED light source fires sequentially, so theoretically
that's a big advantage over the older DLP models. I still find the "punch"
and contrast of DLP images really excellent.
I saw the 1st-generation LED-based Samsung at CES two years ago and felt
that its picture quality was largely comparable to the conventional non-LED
Samsung sets.
Since then, a number of other HD set makers have greatly improved, including
the
flat-panel LCD and plasma sets from Samsung. I've always found the Panasonic
plasma flat panels to be excellent. You should also take a look at the
latest
Sony LCD 1080p rear-projection models, which Sony has discontinued.
The Sony LCD flat panels are the best LCD panels I've seen, although I still
find that plasma panels produce deeper blacks than any LCD and superior
image quality and contrast viewed from the side. In my opinion, Pioneer
plasmas are overrated and overpriced. The Sharp LCD panels at this year's
CES were excellent, except when viewed from the side.
Al Griffin recently gave a Samsung
52-inch LCD flat panel (LN-T5265F) an excellent review in the Sept. issue of
Sound & Vision magazine. You could find that one online at
www.Soundandvisionmag.com .
If I were to replace my Samsung, I'd think seriously of a flat-panel plasma
from Panasonic or Samsung, or perhaps a Sony LCD flat panel. It's a tough
decision, but picture quality from the best new 1080p sets is very close and
price may influence your choice as much as anything.
Hope that helps.
Kind regards,
Alan
