Samsung LN37A550 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

Background:

Bought a new LCD TV to watch the Olympics in high-definition. I thought I would buy locally, but I wound up using Amazon instead, mostly because the exact make/model wasn't easily found where I live. I looked closely at all the affordable makes (eg, not Sony or Panasonic, but Toshiba, Samsung, Vizio, LG, Sharp, etc.). I also looked at Consumer Reports to get reliability reports, and decided to not buy an extended warranty as a result (LCD TVs are very reliable). My brother bought a Toshiba TV and really likes it. I thought even the Vizio TVs looked good.

I ultimately chose this particular Samsung model on the strength of my affection for their cell phones and for the very good reviews overall, particular for this particular TV. I needed a TV that would fit my entertainment armoire, meaning either a 32" or 37" (I'm very glad I chose the 37" now that I've got it).

Positives:

The picture really is outstanding, period. By that I mean that, right out of the box, without doing anything except tuning to a digital TV channel, the resulting picture is gorgeous. Flesh tones are natural. Colors are vivid. The whites are WHITE and the blacks are deep ebony. And I didn't touch any of the oodles of control settings that are available (if you are a tinkerer, you'll leave all the settings you can tweak...I just wanted something that looked great without any fuss). I like the side jacks to make hooking things up easy. I only use a digital broadcast TV and DVDs -- no cable or satellite -- and both broadcast TV and the DVDs look great.

The remote control is long and slender -- not particularly noteworthy except is can be illuminated if you want (not a big deal for me). It's much more than what I'm used to.

I haven't used the feature yet, but I like that it's got a USB port -- it'll make showing photos really easy in the future. It also provides an easy way to update the TV's firmware in the future.

Negatives:

If you've read any reviews on this set at all, you'll read that the audio is unimpressive, even disappointing. Mind you, the speakers aren't in front of the set -- I'm not sure where they are, actually -- and the sound that comes out is really inadequate to the picture. Even using the equalizer function, the sound is not rich or inviting at all. So, sound is the weak link for this TV. However, I've hooked my TV up to my stereo, so for movie watching, I'm not using the TV speakers. For watching TV news or a lot of other shows -- even the Olympics -- the TV sound is adequate, just not great. But you already know that by now.

One other thing I don't like is that, when hooked into my stereo, the Mute button on the remote doesn't mute the sound. That wouldn't be a problem if my stereo had a remote with a mute button on it, but I've got an older Yamaha receiver without a remote. So, it's a drawback for me, maybe not for you.

Oh, and I was thrown for a loop by the product dimensions -- the published dimensions don't include the TV base! I estimated a space for the TV that would be less than 24", but with the stand, it's more than 24"! Beware!

In sum, if they had added a nicer, beefer speaker system built-in, it'd be a 5-star product. If you've got a home theater set-up, this is a 5-star TV, hands-down. If you're going to use the built-in speakers, however, it's only a 4-star product. Go to a local electronics dealer and be sure to test out the sound on the TV you want to buy. My brother did this and chose his Toshiba TV on the strength of its picture AND sound.

My wife and I were blown away by the quality of this television. I must say that we were equally impressed with the delivery occuring 2 days earlier than the estimate from Amazon. LOL - a representative with Best Buy tried to tell me that the televisions Amazon sells are used. Having been an Amazon customer for a long time, I knew better. The best price, no sales tax, and free delivery - Amazon is awesome as always!

This TV has an excellent picture but poor, tinny, sound. The sound equalizer needs to be set high on both the low and upper frquencies to produce acceptible audio. A separate sound system would be a plus. Also the PIP function operation is poor and difficult to set up. It requires a separate sound setting when PIP is activated. The manual is not clear as to what component requirements are needed to activate PIP. The W-Link feature works very well to display digital pictures stored on a camera memory or storage device.

Great picture for HD broadcasts; makes non-HD look only fair in comparison. The picture-in-picture feature is a bit of a dissapointment. It's not as easy to use as my old tube-type Panasonic. It is not possible to switch between the 2 pix with one click, and you have to perform a separate set of steps if you want sound with the secondary pic.

Ordered the 37" TV based on space limitations of our existing TV cabinent actually wanted a much larger version for our house and may still get another one around Christmas time. We received the TV sooner than expected! Very Nice Picture quality and sound. Great Value for the money! We have HD Cox Cable Service> One feature that I was interested in was the P.I.P. feature of this TV but apparently that feature is not able to work properly with digital feed cable???? Not sure Why? It will work if you want to use an auxillary feed such as a dvd player interfaced with cable TV. But if you are trying to view one cable channel and scan thru the rest of the cable channels or DVR to see what else is on, it won't allow it. If I'm missing something on this, please let me know! I have read the manual on this feature and it appears somewhat nebulous. Other than that little bit of aggravation attempting to get that particular feature working properly....The TV works great...After playing around with the custom settings on the TV it seems to have a much better picture on "Cinema" setting rather than on Sports or Games setting. Currently watching the Bejing Olympic Games and watching a couple of Pre-season Football Games and Very Satisfied with the quality of the the Picture. Thinking about purchasing another Samsung for a different room of the house. Very Good Value $1025, You will be requiring an HDMI cable $60-$90 to connect DVR's, surround sound or other Auxillary devices!!!!!!!Free Shipping>>>Amazon has done it again, Love you Guys!!!!!!!