pretty weak that they would do this...... oh well. I am sick of looking for a TV, and I am keeping this set. Seems every set has a problem of some sort.

Here are the TV's I have had the last 2 weeks

HItachi 42sd69> Sony XBR1 > LN-S4095D. Best Buy hates me.

You have a very nice TV. Samsung probably did this to avoid customer complaints about noise on the screen from closed captioning, etc. It is a shame they do not offer a way to bypass it, but product design involves a lot of compromises and that is why there is no perfect TV out there. If you're not using this TV as a glorified PC monitor, I can't think of any reason why you wouldn't get many years of satisfaction from it. And even then, its limitations aren't that bad. Stunning PQ can make up for a lot of shortcomings, and this TV looks great.

/still uses a 53" CRT-based 1080i RPTV with no DVI/HDMI/HDCP and a ridiculous amount of overscan

Apparently not. At least nothing I can find after searching through this entire topic.

Also HDMI only supports up to 1920x1080p @ 30 Hz. No 60 Hz.

VGA input supports 1920x1080p @ 60 Hz. The workaround mentioned previously involves using something in the nVidia display drivers called HDTV overscan compensation. I think all it does is reduce the effective size of the desktop even though the card continues to output 1920x1080. Your effective desktop size would be 1-2% smaller. It just makes sure nothing is cropped off the screen. I think powerstrip can do the same thing, but I'm not sure -- I haven't played with powerstrip for years. It does not address the fact that the pixel mapping is not 1:1

When I hit info on the remote my 4095 reports 1920x1080p @ 60Hz over HDMI.

When I hit info on the remote my 4095 reports 1920x1080p @ 60Hz over HDMI.

From what source? I was merely repeating information someone else posted earlier in this thread.

I finally did it! purchased the LN-S4695D online from datavis. They were throwing in a free up-converting DVD player and the price was very reasonable. I am still debating whether to buy an extended warranty from them. Would appreciate input from Forum members re: this

That sounds like powerstrip. That's what I used with my old RPTV @ 540p, which I paid $6000 for and now can't find anyone who'll buy it in like-new condition for $500 ;)
what's a "powerstrip"? is it a software utility? if it is, is there such software for the Mac? thanks.

Hello, finally purchased my 4696 and remember reading about pixelization. My set connected to charter moxi hd receiver does have pixelization on the hd channels. Is this normal, I don't recall seeing any of this on the 4692 that I saw in the store. How do I fix this ? Can I fix this? Is this inherent in lcd's? I did try to adjust the resolution on the moxi, had tried the resolution from 480i to 1081 without any significant change. Thanks ahead of time for the help.

When I went on Samsung.com's home page I was greeted by a screen showing "Imagine the Possibilities"- at IFA September 1-6. It looks to be a Samsung Exhibiiton in a trade show. There is also a picture of an LCD TV which has a product number of LE40M91B. Is this maybe their LED LCD tv that they are going to show in September???

what's a "powerstrip"? is it a software utility? if it is, is there such software for the Mac? thanks.

This is from post #1230 by SJMUELLER:

"Yesterday I went out and got an dvi/hdmi adapter and hooked up my macbook pro to my 4095... so far the results are disappointing. The highest available resolution was 1920x1080 interlaced(!). When i switched to this resolution, i got both horizontal underscan and vertical overscan (there were black edges on the sides, and the top and bottom were cut off).

After switching back and forth between all the default resolutions, it seemed like there was no ryhme or reason to the changes. This bummed me out, but i quickly regathered myself and started searching for the mac equivalent to powerstrip. I quickly found DisplayConfigX, after numerous attempts at creating different resolution settings, I still hadn't gotten anywhere. I gave up on DisplayConfigX, and tried switchResX. Again, no progress. There are so many settings that I have no idea what i should tweak, and the biggest problem of all is that every time you add a new configuration, a restart is required before you can test them!

I'm not sure if powerstrip is easier to use, but my frustrations may lead me to drag the desktop from downstairs up just to try it.

If anyone as *any* suggestions as to what settings i should use, or a url to a tutorial, please let me know!


Edit: I forgot to mention that I found an option on the macbook pro to "Turn overscan off". When i did this, the 4095 at 1920x1080 had black borders around everything. It looked as if it was displaying approximately 1344x720 in the center of the screen."

I finally did it! purchased the LN-S4695D online from datavis. They were throwing in a free up-converting DVD player and the price was very reasonable. I am still debating whether to buy an extended warranty from them. Would appreciate input from Forum members re: this

Don, still waiting for DavaVision to send mine...about two weeks. I went with the warranty and they said they would include it with my TV but to save the $11 to put the warrenty card in a box and then they instead suprised me by sending the card without waiting for the TV. I've not had a reply in 48 hours on why my TV still has not been sent and contrary to the description, it is not sent by UPS but by freight and they should change this on ebay.

I want to to believe in them but I am slowly losing faith. Another ebay buyer emailed me and has similar problems.

I saw (in German) that the Samsung LE40M91B is an LED backlit LCD with a 10,000:1 Contrast Ratio, probably dynamic. Hopefully there will be some screens released in the next few days and maybe some comparisons side-by-side a current CCFL backlit panel.

I would love an LED backlit panel, but I guess they'll carry a huge price premium for a few years.

Translated by Babel Fish from the Samsung website...

The LE-40M91B supplies by LED technology pictures with impressing luminosity
The new LE40M91B offers, owing to new LED technology, an impressing achievement in things image quality, luminosity and point of view. Of Samsung dynamic Contrast technology developed guaranteed with a contrast rate of 10000:1 a completely new contrast experience. In addition interfaces (High definition Multimedia interface) guarantee the two inserted HDMI that pictures and clay/tone are shown by digital transducers without loss at image quality. With 178 degrees the S-PVA panel guarantees a still broader viewing angle, in order to offer to the Seher also from the side brilliant a picture. For the full sound the LE40M91B SRS TruSurround XT sound supports. At the multi Media Slot attached memory cards (SD- or MMC maps) transport photos or music directly on the LCD television. The integrated Game mode makes a particularly sharp and high-contrast picture possible, which is specially to the requirements adapted by plays. Further the LE40M91B with a reduced energy consumption scores.

Don, still waiting for DavaVision to send mine...about two weeks. I went with the warranty and they said they would include it with my TV but to save the $11 to put the warrenty card in a box and then they instead suprised me by sending the card without waiting for the TV. I've not had a reply in 48 hours on why my TV still has not been sent and contrary to the description, it is not sent by UPS but by freight and they should change this on ebay.

I want to to believe in them but I am slowly losing faith. Another ebay buyer emailed me and has similar problems.

TonyK2, when did you buy it and did you receive a tracking # for the TV? If so, when? they sent me a tracking # for the TV within 24 hrs of the order (and yes, it is with a freight carrier, not UPS). So far everything has gone very smoothly... they seem to be a legit business and are also on Samsung's official website. Don't lose faith in them just yet. You probably have not yet received the TV because they only just got it in stock. I know they sold several 4695s in the last couple of weeks on ebay but they were taking pre-orders. I know this because I had sent them an email about 7-10 days ago asking how they were selling it on ebay when their official website did not have the TV in stock and they replied that they were taking pre-orders and that the TV's would be shipped in 1-2 weeks. Their official website now shows the TVs as being in stock. They probably just shipped your TV and you should be receiving it in a few days. I got a separate tracking # for the free DVD player (this is being sent by UPS) with a delivery date of Sep 6.

has anyone actually kept their 4095d?

That question implies the set is not worth keeping! :confused:

Don, still waiting for DavaVision to send mine...about two weeks. I went with the warranty and they said they would include it with my TV but to save the $11 to put the warrenty card in a box and then they instead suprised me by sending the card without waiting for the TV. I've not had a reply in 48 hours on why my TV still has not been sent and contrary to the description, it is not sent by UPS but by freight and they should change this on ebay.

I want to to believe in them but I am slowly losing faith. Another ebay buyer emailed me and has similar problems.
I purchased my 4695d from datavision via ebay and I just received word that it shipped yesterday (not by UPS as well). I am a little annoyed that they basically sold them without actually having them in stock and not clearly defining that in the description, but since it was $1400 less than the price of a XBR2 at circuit city or Best Buy and I did not have to pay sales tax, I think that I will let it slide. I had peppered them pretty good with emails and did receive a couple updates along the way. Not as good of communication as desired, but better than lots of other etailers I have dealt with.

Translated by Babel Fish from the Samsung website...

The LE-40M91B supplies by LED technology pictures with impressing luminosity
The new LE40M91B offers, owing to new LED technology, an impressing achievement in things image quality, luminosity and point of view. Of Samsung dynamic Contrast technology developed guaranteed with a contrast rate of 10000:1 a completely new contrast experience. In addition interfaces (High definition Multimedia interface) guarantee the two inserted HDMI that pictures and clay/tone are shown by digital transducers without loss at image quality. With 178 degrees the S-PVA panel guarantees a still broader viewing angle, in order to offer to the Seher also from the side brilliant a picture. For the full sound the LE40M91B SRS TruSurround XT sound supports. At the multi Media Slot attached memory cards (SD- or MMC maps) transport photos or music directly on the LCD television. The integrated Game mode makes a particularly sharp and high-contrast picture possible, which is specially to the requirements adapted by plays. Further the LE40M91B with a reduced energy consumption scores.

The tv is not full 1080P. I wonder if it is a 120hz box or the 60hz. Articles also don't mention anything about HMDI 1.3 or exactly what format it uses.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say. Overscan does not leave gaps on the screen. It is similar to a crop/zoom.


oops -- I confused overscan for underscan.


I will take the 1920x1080 image and dump it to my DSM 520 which is connected via HDMI, and then I'll let you guys know if it's overscanned ---

has anyone actually kept their 4095d?

Yep.

So are you guys saying due to overscan that this TV doesn't really do True 1080p?

No, it's 1080p.

So how much of the screen border (in inches) does overscanning effect? I am trying to figure out if i can live with this or not.

1-2% of the picture.

It's useful on SD signals to crop the twittering edge off the picture.

Video processors allow you to bypass the process, and so does Powerstrip, but we're not sure Samsungs internal processor can.

Video processors allow you to bypass the process, and so does Powerstrip, but we're not sure Samsungs internal processor can.

That is false. Powerstrip (and external processors) cannot bypass something which is done internally in the TV.

Powerstrip can only work around the issue to the extent that it can shrink the desktop area 1-2% smaller than 1920x1080 to prevent it from being cropped off the edges of the screen. Your PC will still be sending 1920x1080 to the TV, but your desktop might have an effective size of 1881x1058 assuming 2% overscan all around. As you can see, it's only a difference of 11-20 pixels on each of the sides.

That is false. Powerstrip (and external processors) cannot bypass something which is done internally in the TV.

Powerstrip can only work around the issue to the extent that it can shrink the desktop area 1-2% smaller than 1920x1080 to prevent it from being cropped off the edges of the screen. Your PC will still be sending 1920x1080 to the TV, but your desktop might have an effective size of 1881x1058 assuming 2% overscan all around. As you can see, it's only a difference of 11-20 pixels on each of the sides.

I stand corrected. I received some poor, but well intended, information over at the VP50 forum.

A very knowledgable guy came back and said:

"There's nothing an external device can do to get back the slight PQ loss by this extra step. (Overscanning) The best an external scalar can do is apply a bit of scaling in the opposite direction to get you a bit more of your visible image area back."

I also checked with level 2 support at Samsung. There's no way to turn off overscan. You can turn off other processing like DNR and DNIE (yuck) but not Overscanning.

The confirmed it's between 1-2% of the picture.

Personally, I don't like the sound of an external processor that's scaling back in the other direction to get the 1-2% back.

Folks,
After all the emails and learning about each and every set, I decided even the "erstwhile" Sony XBR2/3 had their own issues with lots of people returning them.
So, I bit the bullet on the 4095D and bought it from DataVis supposedly a samsung authorized dealer (from Samsung Website). I ended up getting their 3 yr warranty as well (of course I contemplated not getting it at all... as credit cards do offer warranties.. AMEX - doubles your manufacturers warranty for eg.). But then for a $139 didnt want to be caught in a gap-in-the-system scenario....

Has anybody that had bought from DataVis (5th avenue NY i guess), recieved everything on time or do I have reason to be concerned even with authorized dealer (even if an authorized dealer screws up I wonder where online purchasing is heading... maybe the market for "trust" is increasing more than the market for the product itself.).

I will let you know when I get the package.
I still havent initiated payment with them .. waiting for their email.. didnt want to pay through paypal.

What do you guys think?

Chandrashekar

Has anybody that had bought from DataVis (5th avenue NY i guess Chandrashekar

Nope, as a NYC resident I wish to aviod 8.375% sales tax, but it's definately a good outfit.

It just took me 3 years to read over the previous notes and the 4695/96 seem like the best TV for me.

Is better to purchase from DataVis via Ebay or their website? I.E. do you get a DVD player or better price via Ebay? Better service or protection?

Is the 'K2' mount a good mount?

I will watch a LOT of football, PS3 and movies- I am using DurrectTeeVee. Which connection do I go with?

It just took me 3 years to read over the previous notes and the 4695/96 seem like the best TV for me.

Is better to purchase from DataVis via Ebay or their website? I.E. do you get a DVD player or better price via Ebay? Better service or protection?

Is the 'K2' mount a good mount?

I will watch a LOT of football, PS3 and movies- I am using DurrectTeeVee. Which connection do I go with?

I just ordered mine less than 24 hours ago...
and given that there has atleast been a discussion on this forum about them and many saying they are a decent store, led me to get it from their ebay site (probably what you are looking for). Like you I almost bought the mount there and then I saw mountsandmore and decided I can wait it out depending on when the shipping for the TV is, because I wanted to look for a good articulating mount.... they didnt seem to have an articulating mount with their 4095 offer...
nevertheless from what I have read here and in other forums, the K-2 seems to be a popular product for mounts...

Also, I wanted to get a physical feel for the depth and everything before I buy them.
Will let you know what I do ... if you let me know what you do :-)

anyways I think there are enough mounts discussions in our forums here to help you decide if you are willing to spend the time.. but other than that I think many of them have good insurances in case something goes wrong as well :-)

ok i got a 4095d.... now when i looked at the component connection it said 1080i... how do i make the signal upconverted to 1080p...if it upconverts on its own automatically, how do i know its in 1080p state....

should i use the hdmi cable?

ok i got a 4095d.... now when i looked at the component connection it said 1080i... how do i make the signal upconverted to 1080p...if it upconverts on its own automatically, how do i know its in 1080p state....

should i use the hdmi cable?

You have a 1080p display. The only thing it can display is 1080p. Period. Everything you feed in is displayed as 1080p. The TV is simply telling you what format the source signal is in.

How does the Samsung 4095d and the 4096d compare to each other. I have looked at many websites but I couldn't find many differences except for the 4096d has a DCR tuner and the 4095d has a piano black finish. What other differences are there and what will a DCR tuner do for me? How do these two TVs compare to the new XBR2 & 3

TonyK2, when did you buy it and did you receive a tracking # for the TV? If so, when? they sent me a tracking # for the TV within 24 hrs of the order (and yes, it is with a freight carrier, not UPS). So far everything has gone very smoothly... they seem to be a legit business and are also on Samsung's official website. They probably just shipped your TV and you should be receiving it in a few days. I got a separate tracking # for the free DVD player (this is being sent by UPS) with a delivery date of Sep 6.

Don, called Datavis today and finally got a tracking number and info that it was shipped 3 days ago. They didn't bother to email me per their promise. However, I called the shipper with the tracking number and in fact, the 4695 is on its way and probably will get it about the 5th. They still haven't charged my CC yet but of course I can live with that :-) The fact I am saving lots of money makes me a little tolerant.

Fwiw, Fry's in Renton, WA has a 4696 on display now - at the end of an aisle in the back on the second row from the right.

How does the Samsung 4095d and the 4096d compare to each other. How do these two TVs compare to the new XBR2 & 3

From poster EvlAsh on a previous posting:

"...according to the spec sheets on Samsung's website, they seem to be almost identical (with a few exceptions).

4095D:
- Component Video Imput (480i / 480p / 720p /1080i / 1080p)

4096D:
- Component Video Imput (480i / 480p / 720p /1080i)
- Cable Card Slot
- IEEE 1394 (Firewire)
- USB 1.1
-glass-mounted bottom
-piano-black styling"

I've seen all of these sets (XBR2 and XBR3, 4095 and 4096, 40" and 46") and the difference is that the Sony models offer a ridiculous amount of customization features that produce the best and sharpest LCD pictures on the market today (at least until the new 46" and 52" D62 Sharps come out in October). You need a pretty good HD signal though (HD-DVD, Blue Ray, PS3, etc.) to take advantage of the XBR2/3's circuits, since it's definitely showing the flaws of SD and bad signals. The Sammy TV's are no slouch and their pictures are comparable to the Sony's (both share the same Samsung glass) but their customization isn't as deep so there's less to tweak to bring the picture out. Both brands are good for the money IF you have HD sources to feed them something that will bring the best out of them.

ok i got a 4095d.... now when i looked at the component connection it said 1080i... how do i make the signal upconverted to 1080p...if it upconverts on its own automatically, how do i know its in 1080p state....

should i use the hdmi cable?

Hi Raven,

The set is telling you the source is 1080i.

I use only the 2 HDMI ports, but some people are reporting they prefer the look of the Component connection.

Are you happy with the calibration out of the box?

I ordered Avia, and I'll see how far it gets me. Next step is SpyderTV and cracking into the service menu to disable overscanning while watching HD.

Is the 'K2' mount a good mount?



Dunno.

I just got a $75 peerless on mountsandmore. Works fine.

Hi Raven,

The set is telling you the source is 1080i.

I use only the 2 HDMI ports, but some people are reporting they prefer the look of the Component connection.

Are you happy with the calibration out of the box?

I ordered Avia, and I'll see how far it gets me. Next step is SpyderTV and cracking into the service menu to disable overscanning while watching HD.



will that help the look of pixelization... i see alot of it during my hd use...

I checked out the 4096 at Abt Electronics last night. Very nice but there was some kind of effect I couldn't fix with the settings. Was watching the Boston/Toronto game and the dark colors looked kind of odd. I dialed down the settings like I found here but something still wasn't right about it. Dark blue or black in their uniforms looked kind of liquid metallic. Kind of like if you were to spray some silver paint in some oil. The darks were dark but the shade changed quite a bit if they moved. It wasn't really anything to do with shadows since the field was lit up so well. It's like I could tell I was looking at an LCD panel.

I tried to find where to adjust the backlight but I couldn't. Maybe that would help? I didn't like that I can see the backlight when you change channels. Maybe I'm picky but that tells me I'm not getting black as black can be. I'm sure turning down the backlight would help but I couldn't find that feature. I like that I can sit 8' away and not be able to pick out the pixels. The image blends together really well. I wanna give it a second look when my wife isn't asking if we can leave every minute or so. ;)

EDIT: Just found a post where it says the energy saving setting changes the backlight level. I'll try that the next time I check out the set. I REALLY want to like this set (or the Sony XBR2 if I find it). DLP is out because of rainbows. Plasma is probably out because I see yellow/green flashes, it's too reflective, and I can't find any full HD panels for the same price as an equivalent LCD panel. SXRD looks good but doesn't have the viewing angle these do.

Don, called Datavis today and finally got a tracking number and info that it was shipped 3 days ago. They didn't bother to email me per their promise. However, I called the shipper with the tracking number and in fact, the 4695 is on its way and probably will get it about the 5th. They still haven't charged my CC yet but of course I can live with that :-) The fact I am saving lots of money makes me a little tolerant.

Tony and Don, I got a call from DataVis today to confirm my landline number before shipping. Did you guys have the same issue, they said if everything checked out fine, they will be shipping it out today.

Anyways about the Mounts, has anybody mounted on the Premier ARM mounts... can it take a 4095 fine?

The specs sheet seem to say upto 40".. can anybodywith 40" wall mounted LCD have the premier mounts.. I like their design an dprice .. just concerned on the quality and if it can take actually the weight of the borderline size of their specs.

Thanks....

Last night was the last night of the month so I headed down to Electronics Expo (NJ place) to see what I could do. They were nearly identical to Abes and changed the wires and power station from off-name to Monster- a plus. In addition, I got 16 mos financing.

Got it home and all I can say is bueno-looks good.

Then I found out Direct TV is having an issue with my box and HDMI cables- so component for now.

Are Video games ok in the beginning? Anything to avoid outside of leaving a ticker like MSNBC or ESPN?

Tony and Don, I got a call from DataVis today to confirm my landline number before shipping. Did you guys have the same issue, they said if everything checked out fine, they will be shipping it out today.

Thanks....

I bought mine on ebay. No phone call from Datavis. They sent me a TV agreement by email which they wanted me to sign and fax or email back to them. After I did that, later that day I got an email with the tracking number. With any luck, I will have it before 9/06; if not, I will have to wait until 9/11 because I will be out of town :(

Hello

I am getting my 5053 replaced by samsung for a small fee. They offered me the 4695d or 4696d. Is the 4696d their top 46 inch model? Also which are the true specs. Many here state that their component input only take 1080i and not 1080p. But on the 4696d pdf brochure on samsung site it states 1080p. Can someone clarify. Last question, these lcd don't buzz? like some plasmas :)

Hello

I am getting my 5053 replaced by samsung for a small fee. They offered me the 4695d or 4696d. Is the 4696d their top 46 inch model? Also which are the true specs. Many here state that their component input only take 1080i and not 1080p. But on the 4696d pdf brochure on samsung site it states 1080p. Can someone clarify. Last question, these lcd don't buzz? like some plasmas :)

I was looking at 50 in. Plasmas and was practically all set on one and finally I determined that the downfalls of plasma, for me anyway, were not worth the benefits! Ultimately I decided on the 4695. If you're a cable subscriber I would go with the 4696. Frankly, if you're not paying anything more, you should probably just go with the 4696 since it's a more expensive set. Some people say it looks nicer too, although I really can't notice the difference. Both sets are 1080P which is a big advantage to most of the current plasmas in that size range.

Frankly though, I honestly like the picture better on the LCD, even though it seems that many prefer the plasma. To each his own I guess.

Ultimately for me, it was the potential of burn-in if careless, lack of fixability if panel goes bad, more energy consumption and not as good over a fireplace because of how hot they run to begin with, that made me go with the LCD over plasma. And as I said, I think the picture on the Samsung LCD is really great and I would match it up against the plasmas any day.

For what it's worth!

Second everything above. betatesterzz, ask the Sammy guy you're dealing with if instead of a 4696 for an extra $300 they can give you the 4695D (same exact panel/contrast ratio/10-bit color specs/etc. minus cable card, RC 232 control, etc.) w/o paying the extra $300. The price difference between the 4695D and 4696 on retail stores is over $1,000 though, so you just might be getting a pretty good deal for $300. Plus the 4696 is 1080p so even if you don't have anything to watch now at that resolution (PS3, Blue Ray, HD-DVD, etc.) you're basically future-proof for the next 4-5 years as everything stampedes towards 1080i resolutions.

Hi Raven,

The set is telling you the source is 1080i.

I use only the 2 HDMI ports, but some people are reporting they prefer the look of the Component connection.

Are you happy with the calibration out of the box?

I ordered Avia, and I'll see how far it gets me. Next step is SpyderTV and cracking into the service menu to disable overscanning while watching HD.


I didn't think that you could adjust or disable the overscanning even in the SM.
Please let me know if it is possible because if so I might consider this set again and not just the XBR/3.

Hey:
Check out this link about Sammy's new LED backlight LCD TV comming out soon.

http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/television/samsung-ledbacklit-lcd-tv-coming-next-month-192637.php

Can someone explain why the 4695D on Sammy's website lists it at 1080P Input but the 4696 only lists 1080I input?

Thx

Are Video games ok in the beginning? Anything to avoid outside of leaving a ticker like MSNBC or ESPN?
You don't have to avoid anything. This is an LCD, not a Plasma. It won't burn in. Play away! :)

Is it just me, or is Datavision (ebay) showing an extraordinary price on the lns-5296d? I would have thought the price differential from 46 to 52 to be brutal.

Is it just me, or is Datavision (ebay) showing an extraordinary price on the lns-5296d? I would have thought the price differential from 46 to 52 to be brutal.

The price on the 4695 is dropping like crazy ...

Samsung really seems like they're priced to sell these LCD's

Probably competing with plasma to a certain degree ... LCD's really haven't been able to compete with plasma at this size in the past.

Fwiw, Fry's in Renton, WA has a 4696 on display now - at the end of an aisle in the back on the second row from the right.
A Fry's (SJ, on Brokaw) salesman yesterday tried to sell an unsuspecting person a Sammy 4692 as the latest and greatest LCD. Later told the poor customer to check out this forum.

Tony and Don, I got a call from DataVis today to confirm my landline number before shipping. Did you guys have the same issue, they said if everything checked out fine, they will be shipping it out today.

Anyways about the Mounts, has anybody mounted on the Premier ARM mounts... can it take a 4095 fine?

The specs sheet seem to say upto 40".. can anybodywith 40" wall mounted LCD have the premier mounts.. I like their design an dprice .. just concerned on the quality and if it can take actually the weight of the borderline size of their specs.

Thanks....
Didn't have this problem but where I live we do not have standard physical addresses (we all have P.O. Boxes where I live) so I "greased the skids" before I bought on Ebay and called Datavis about potential problems. I explained the situation and told DV that I do have an alternate address on the CC and didn't have a problem. I used to have problems with other online stores before I added the altenate address.

Hello everyone. I'm new to this forum and have been following this thread for a few weeks now. I'm set on the 4095, but debating where to buy. I was going to go to one of the local big box stores until I saw the information on Datavision. I can't believe they can offer this set for almost $1000 less than local retail locations. My question is this, can anyone who has purchased from them chime in on the whole process? Was it smooth sailing or a rocky road. I'm a bit leary about buying an item like this online due to the fact that if there is a problem with the set it's going to be much harder to exchange it. From what I can tell it seems to be a reputable establishment, but would like to hear from some more people with first hand experience. Thanks in advance for any reply.

I was looking at S4692D, but have seen the price of S4695D dropping, and the diff is now around $500 for which I get

- 1920x1080 pixels vs 1356x768
- QAM tuner
- Option to turn DNie off

I do not intend to use it as a PC monitor extensively, but do want to connect it to PC to watch videos stored there. I have been reading posts in this thread about 4695's inability to do 1:1 pixel mapping. My concern is not about oversan and chopping off the edge of PC desktop but rather the impact on overall picture quality.

To be frank, I have not been able to tell the difference on picture quality between 4692 and 4695 in any store setup. And on 4095 connected to Blueray player, I have seen obvious motion blur. People in this forum always blames it to the source, but could processing be a contributor, too? How do you guys explain the $600 difference between 4696 and 4695? DCR and USB can not worth that much. Here is my thought

1. Maybe 4696 has a better video processor/scaler that Samsung is not telling us
2. More likely is that The current 1080p capability is fully utilized only by internal ttuners which can bypass the video processor's oversan on 1080i signal, and thus producing better pictures. For this reason, cable customers get better pictures on 4696 than satillite custoers on 4695, and thus the demand gap, and the price difference.

I use Dish, I am really not sure how much picture diff between 4695 and 4692 even over HDMI. And what really benefits on 4695 is the DNie off option. Also I have the impression that more pixels may also produce worse SD pictures. With all these factors, I think I may save $500 and get 4692.

Comment?

How do you guys explain the $600 difference between 4696 and 4695? DCR and USB can not worth that much. Here is my thought

1. Maybe 4696 has a better video processor/scaler that Samsung is not telling us
2. More likely is that The current 1080p capability is fully utilized only by internal ttuners which can bypass the video processor's oversan on 1080i signal, and thus producing better pictures. For this reason, cable customers get better pictures on 4696 than satillite custoers on 4695, and thus the demand gap, and the price difference.
Comment?

Also on the 4696 you get FireWire on the side and the cool glass strip along the bottom. :) I'd like it better if your theories are correct though.

Hello everyone. I'm new to this forum and have been following this thread for a few weeks now. I'm set on the 4095, but debating where to buy. I was going to go to one of the local big box stores until I saw the information on Datavision. I can't believe they can offer this set for almost $1000 less than local retail locations. My question is this, can anyone who has purchased from them chime in on the whole process? Was it smooth sailing or a rocky road. I'm a bit leary about buying an item like this online due to the fact that if there is a problem with the set it's going to be much harder to exchange it. From what I can tell it seems to be a reputable establishment, but would like to hear from some more people with first hand experience. Thanks in advance for any reply.

I know what you mean.

I ended up going to BB and getting on ok deal. Got 300$ off with the holiday special but the starting price was about $400 + $tax more than some of the truly "reputable" online stores. I also want a store extended warranty on this panel. Yes, warrantys are just over-priced insurance but I sleep better with some items knowing in up to 4 years I can get a replacement TV anywhere in the US without shipping it. I am willing to pay a premium for that and you do pay quite a bit for it. With large items like an 80 pound TV, it also means a lot to not have to ship it for a return/replacement or service. Some online stores pay for shipping but some will make you pay for shipping both ways. Read the policies for returns and re-stock fees and unstand what to expect if you get a lemon.

When you go online you definitely get a great bargain and often times its just insane to pay for the in-store premium. Honestly though, without that markup big box stores can not stay in business. I think Internet shopping is what has made stores realize that they do need good return policies, price matching and convenience to compete. And that's a good thing.

For example, I paid for my 4095 last week and this week they had the 10% off deal. I just took my receipt up to customer service and 10 minutes later I got $300 back. Try that at an online store. So to me thats like getting the 4-year warranty for free. Of course with the markup and taxes I paid a lot more than going online but as long as you are aware of the trade-offs and make an informed decision you can't go wrong.

Where you really get a deal online is when the store is out of state. They still don't pay taxes on state to state deliveries. I can't imaging that will not change in the coming years but for now it's helping the online shopping surpass brick and mortar.

There are benefits to both online and store purchases and you are basically paying for insurance when you buy from a store. My advice, shop around online and look for sale adds for the big box stores. Then take the lowest in-store price and to go a local store and see if they will price match and look for 10% off on sale events (like Labor Day this weekend). If you are willing to just put the money down and forgo the extended warranty or get a warranty from a manufacturer than online may be the way to go. Just consider the price diffrence and determine for yourself which you prefer.

why does evey one hate DNie?????doesnt it help the picture??should i turn mine off.
well im happy with my 4695 it kicks ass i paid $3099 for it and got a free monster 3500mk2 oh yeah their will be"blood" i like watching horror zombie flicks on this t.v set.
know shoul i turn off DNie yes or no. some one give an insight please.
damm i like playing saints row on the 360xbox cant wait for gta4!!
p.s i just recived my knew pioneer elite vx-80 thx hdmi and all that good stuff that came with it.... i bought it for $449 at "datavis "know should i buy knew speakers i own bose Acoustimass 10 series series3 system black color.

Thanks for the reply Padrino. Those are exactly the issues I'm mulling over right now. Decisions, decisions.

I found two orphan threads/questions about Sammy 4095D and 4695 sets. Anybody here care to help these folks (and me since I'm the final stages of deciding between these two sets)?

First question/thread:
You have to be kidding me... today i go buy the monster cable for my Directv H20 and i plug it in the 2 port of the samsung 4095d.... all of a sudden i have picture... but then all of a sudden it flicks off and then on and then off and then on and then off.... what gives... so i call the samsung customer rep and they tell me that the tv doesnt accept the signal and there is probably a copyright issue with the tv....

is this true?

anyone else having this same f'ing problem...... this might be the last straw with my tv....

Second question/thread:
I just got my new LN-S4695D from J&R last night and I am having some trouble getting the colors set right. I am using a Samsung HD960 dvd player in 1080p mode. Anyone have any recommended settings?

Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone. I'm new to this forum and have been following this thread for a few weeks now. I'm set on the 4095, but debating where to buy. I was going to go to one of the local big box stores until I saw the information on Datavision. I can't believe they can offer this set for almost $1000 less than local retail locations. My question is this, can anyone who has purchased from them chime in on the whole process? Was it smooth sailing or a rocky road. I'm a bit leary about buying an item like this online due to the fact that if there is a problem with the set it's going to be much harder to exchange it. From what I can tell it seems to be a reputable establishment, but would like to hear from some more people with first hand experience. Thanks in advance for any reply.
If you go to Samsung Website they list Datavis as an authorized Internet Dealer and they also sell on Ebay as a Power Seller with high ratings and they have a large Computer and electronics Store in NYC area.

Bottom line with internet dealers that are legit like them is you should make sure 100% that is the TV you want since you won't often have return rights without some restocking fees but they ship insured just like a B&M Store. You give up the local convenience and add sales tax local but the reward can be huge depending on the panel you acquire. Datavis also has reasonable extended warranties and shipping as many dealers low ball price and get you on those areas.

If you know 100% what you want the item will be shipped via a warehouse the same as the B&M and will be insured you just won't have a local store to walk into to resolve things but that's what they made telephones for. I've bought all three of my LCD Tv's on the internet and saved enough to get my Bello Stand and one of the TV's for free. Do you homework and decide that is the panel you WANT and save a grand or so, or negotiate with the Manager at B&M using their quote to haggle them down late in the evening and it doesn't always work but all they can say no and it gives you a bargaining chip to shave the costs in your favor if you don't feel comfortable with Internet buying,.Good Luck

Double post!

Holy cow after a full week of reading this thread I finally completed it! Whew! I did copy/paste many notes though for future reference, and the FAQ/Glossary was somewhat helpfull with the common acronyms :)

So I've been watching tv thru my Sanyo 25" CRT since '92. It's still holding its picture very nicely. I considered getting a flat panel of sorts to save space for the past 6 months. Then while watching a ballgame on my friends new 50" DLP HDTV I was blown away at how I could see the colors of the eyes of fans in the stands! So I decided to browse BB and was impressed with sets like the Sony 32" and 40" XBR1's, Samsungs LN-4041, LN-4051, and respective 32" models. All blowing away my old CRT. Then, I came across the LN-S4095D. Whoah! This thing was sharp!! I watched this guy tinkering with these tiny watch gears in amazing detail, there was soo much detail that the blackheads on the guys nose were screaming for a cleansing. :eek:

So of course before I go spend wads of cash on something I plan on having for years, I tried finding some reviews, and ended up finding this website! U guys are hardcore, I have learned a ton over the past week, everything from various hookup options, calibration, bluray, etc. Thanks!

I expect to get my 4095d on wednesday. Got a good price via a friends dad at one of the brand name store. I might hook it up to a PC via VGA. If it performs like my G4 does on my Samsung 204T does via VGA I'll be very satisfied. Other then that I'm lookin forward to some quality images on my new TV. Thanks again for the very informative thread!

You will be very pleased! Congrats.

Can someone explain why the 4695D on Sammy's website lists it at 1080P Input but the 4696 only lists 1080I input?


I would like to know this too. And the 4095D also lists 1080p input while the 4096D does not.

I would like to know this too. And the 4095D also lists 1080p input while the 4096D does not.

Very simply, poor web site management. Both the 95 and 96 are capable of 1080p input over hdmi, and the 95 is further capable of 1080p input over component.

Then I found out Direct TV is having an issue with my box and HDMI cables- so component for now.



Which D* receiver do you have hooked up?

Very simply, poor web site management. Both the 95 and 96 are capable of 1080p input over hdmi, and the 95 is further capable of 1080p input over component.

It would not surprise me at all if this was a mistake on Samsung's part.

Even so, think about this a bit... how many and what devices are capable of real 1080p output? Uh, not STBs as we don't see ANY rumors about that and a lot of indication it's going to be a real LONG while before this happens. I'm not into gaming, but I recall the 360 doesn't do 1080p, but may do it in the future. Oh, the PS3 is supposed to do 1080p from day one. Ah, but my understanding is that it will ONLY do that via HDMI, that going through component get down rezzed... due to the fact that HDMI has "content protection" that isn't available via component.

Very simply, poor web site management. Both the 95 and 96 are capable of 1080p input over hdmi, and the 95 is further capable of 1080p input over component.

Is this verified? Is this misinformation? Sorry but if you go to samsungs site, Look at its brochure(PDF) also look at the specs tab its says the 96 can do 1080p over component. Why would samsung remove this in their higher end model? Be it higher end meaning just a few more input options and a small design change(looks) ;) .

I also have DirecTV and an H20 HD receiver. I just bought the 4696 and I am having trouble with HD channels using the HDMI cable. All my HD channels just come in for 1 second, and then cut to black for 5 seconds or so. The this keeps repeating. I called DirecTV and they could not help me. Has anyone else had this problem? Does anyone know why this is happening? Any ideas how to fix it?

I also have DirecTV and an H20 HD receiver. I just bought the 4696 and I am having trouble with HD channels using the HDMI cable. All my HD channels just come in for 1 second, and then cut to black for 5 seconds or so. The this keeps repeating. I called DirecTV and they could not help me. Has anyone else had this problem? Does anyone know why this is happening? Any ideas how to fix it?

This is a known issue with many TV's, particularly newer Samsungs. My 4095D has the same problem. Directv is already working on a software fix.

Directv Support Forums Discussion (http://forums.directv.com/pe/action/forums/displaysinglethread?nesting=1&lastPage=&currentPage=1&rootPostID=10152293&showPostBody=)

This is a known issue with mant TV's, particularly newer


Well that sucks! :mad: I also have an H20, along with an HD Tivo, and had my eye on the 4096D, among other models.

Just another factor to consider on my next purchase. :(

Is there a 1080p LCD flat panel set that doesn't have this problem currently?

Fwiw, Fry's in Renton, WA has a 4696 on display now - at the end of an aisle in the back on the second row from the right.


Visited Fry's in Renton and saw this TV a few days ago. The sales people at Fry's are absolutely clueless!! Don't go there expecting to get anything resembling "information" about anything.

It was, however, in fact a 4696D although the 1080p signal from a Samsung BD-P1000 blue-ray looked absolutely terrible, there was strange horizontal-line distortion via the HDMI input from the blue-ray player. I got the sales person to swap in a completely new HDMI cable, and also a completely different P1000, but the problem remained. It might be that there were either two faulty cables and/or two faulty blue-ray players. Looking at a 720p signal from a Sony DVD player (either via component or via HDMI) looked very nice however, no noticeable compression distortion or ghosting. I also looked at some SD signals on the
4696D --- standing back about 10 feet they look fine, but getting any closer and you start to see significant distortion and artifacts. They also have a 4096D on display, and it also looked nice, but I didn't have as much time to test it out as the 4696.

In sum, it is to early to decide on this, at least based on this visit to Fry's since they couldn't get a 1080p signal from the blue-ray working. The SD signals are such that you better not be too close to the TV when watching.

I have this LCD connect to a directv hd 20 set top box and it works great, life like picture, i have had the LCD for 2 days now and i'm very pleased. i had a issue with my mac mini connected to hdmi port blinking in and out turned out tobe a bad cable its working just fine fine, i'm also using a RCA DRC257N up convert dvd player thru hdmi and the picture is not good at all, getting a blue ray plaer instead...i'm new to the forum and i love..from california

I have this LCD connect to a directv hd 20 set top box and it works great

Do you have it hooked up via HDMI?

yes hdmi working just fine for me

the funny thing is that it only works with the hdmi on 480p mode..... sucks balls...

I'm not into gaming, but I recall the 360 doesn't do 1080p, but may do it in the future. Oh, the PS3 is supposed to do 1080p from day one. Ah, but my understanding is that it will ONLY do that via HDMI, that going through component get down rezzed... due to the fact that HDMI has "content protection" that isn't available via component.

Hey Riverside_Guy. perhaps I can clear some things up for you.

1. The Xbox360 cannot and will not be able to do 1080p, even with the upcoming HD-DVD player add-on. The 360 is capable of receiving a 1080p source from the HD-DVD add-on, but it is only capable of outputting a 1080i signal, and that is over component.

2. True, the PS3 will do 1080p over HDMI from day 1, but it will also do 1080p over component as well. This was a major concern people had since the lower end version of the PS3 does not have HDMI. The problem comes in, however, with the ICT copy protection on blu-ray discs (HD-DVD as well, but PS3 does blu-ray). If Hollywood decides to implement such protection, then 1080p over component may be history. That is because the HD signal will only be passed through an HDCP compliant cables, like HDMI and sometimes DVI, to HDCP hardware. If the protection is in place, and component analog cables are used, then the HD signal will be down converted to standard definition signal making blu-ray and HD-DVD basically useless compared to regular DVDs.

It is important to note that since Microsoft decided not to include an HDMI output on its HD-DVD add-on that they may know that Hollywood will probably not put on copy protection on this discs, at least not until about 2011 it is estimated. But the only way to be sure that you will be safe guarded against this upcoming protection no matter what is to get the HDMI PS3 version. But, it's still worth noting that 1080p can still be done on the PS3 over component.

Jared

We just found the burn in on this samsung in our test Lab. Due to we debug a lot 4:3 channels with it, after three months the left bar is there forever. When we watch HD, it looks like a vertical grey ghost line (about 1/4 inch) on it. The right side has no problem.
This has made all my coworkers reconsider of buying Samsung LCD.

the funny thing is that it only works with the hdmi on 480p mode..... sucks balls...

Whu? You talking about the H20?


We just found the burn in on this samsung in our test Lab. Due to we debug a lot 4:3 channels with it, after three months the left bar is there forever. When we watch HD, it looks like a vertical grey ghost line (about 1/4 inch) on it. The right side has no problem.
This has made all my coworkers reconsider of buying Samsung LCD.


I thought LCDs weren't susceptible to burn. :confused:

I thought LCDs weren't susceptible to burn.

I found this (http://erms.samsungusa.com/customer/sea/jsp/faqs/faqs_view.jsp?PG_ID=3&AT_ID=14974&PROD_SUB_ID=41&PROD_ID=154) on Samsung's website yesterday. Kinda scary. I switched my sat box to show dark gray bars instead of black. I do have my "energy saver" (aka Backlight) set to medium and my contrast and brightness properly calibrated. I would be awfully pissed if I ever got burn-in. I do watch a mix of 1.33, 1.78, 1.85, and 2.35 material on this set. Maybe during commercials I should stretch the screen out or something.

Although much less susceptible than Plasma TVs, LCD TVs are still subject to screen burn in (image retention). In general, you should avoid keeping a static picture or a picture with static elements (black bars, black borders, logos, etc.) on your LCD TV for more than two hours at a time.

If you are using your LCD TV as a computer monitor, the same general rule holds true: Avoid keeping a static picture or a picture with static elements (black bars, black borders, logos, etc.) on your LCD TV for more than two hours at a time. Make sure you change the image on your screen periodically. Also, if you intend to leave your PC unattended for long periods of time, or you leave the same image on your screen while you work on other things for extended periods of time, you should set up a screen saver that goes on after about twenty minutes, or set up your monitor so that it turns off if unattended for more than twenty minutes.
Changing Picture Size If Your Watching TV For Long Periods of Time

If you are watching your LCD TV for an extended period of time, and you have black bars, black borders, etc. on the screen, it is a good idea to change the size of the picture occasionally if you can.

To change the screen size, follow these steps:

1. Press the Menu button on our remote. The Main menu appears.
2. Use the Up or Down arrow button on your remote to select Picture. The Picture menu appears.
3. Use the Up or Down arrow button on your remote to select Size, and then press Enter. The Size screen appears.
4. Use the Left or Right arrow button to select the size you want, and then press the Enter button.

Note: Some sizes or modes may be grayed out or unavailable depending on the format of your video source.

6. Press the Exit button to exit.

Important: If your remote has a Still button that freezes the picture, try not leaving the picture frozen for more than fifteen or twenty minutes. Although you can leave a static picture on your screen for up to two hours, regularly leaving the screen frozen for extended periods of time can cause temporary or permanent image burn in.

Thanks for that link joekun.

This is the first time I've heard this. This makes LCDs a little less appealing for me, even though I'm still leaning that way. I've had a CRT RP for 4 1/2 years and I do all the things that were mentioned in that page to be safe anyway. Now I feel sorry for the person who leaves their Xbox 360 on pause for hours at a time, thinking their LCD won't be susceptible to burn in. :o

I did some more research for my own edification and read in a few places that LCD image retention is not permanent, unlike some other forms of burn-in. Apparently it only requires that you turn off the TV for as long as you displayed the image to get rid of the image retention. I read this in a few places online (did a google search), and would be interested to know if it is true.

I found this (http://erms.samsungusa.com/customer/sea/jsp/faqs/faqs_view.jsp?PG_ID=3&AT_ID=14974&PROD_SUB_ID=41&PROD_ID=154) on Samsung's website yesterday. Kinda scary. I switched my sat box to show dark gray bars instead of black. I do have my "energy saver" (aka Backlight) set to medium and my contrast and brightness properly calibrated. I would be awfully pissed if I ever got burn-in. I do watch a mix of 1.33, 1.78, 1.85, and 2.35 material on this set. Maybe during commercials I should stretch the screen out or something.

It seems that this should never be a problem if you use your screen for watching TV because the picture is constantly changing.

And... If you use your screen as a PC, a screen saver should solve the problem.

I did some more research for my own edification and read in a few places that LCD image retention is not permanent, unlike some other forms of burn-in. Apparently it only requires that you turn off the TV for as long as you displayed the image to get rid of the image retention. I read this in a few places online (did a google search), and would be interested to know if it is true.

I'd be interested to hear more on this this too.

And I'm not sure by what lmsyl wrote if he meant the Sammy was left on for 3 straight months in the lab with the power always on. If this was the case, would the LCD have to be powered off for 3 straight months? :p

i don't understand why people don't believe their own experience with LCD displays. LCD's have been used as computer monitors for years and years. Personally I have never experienced any burn-in in any that I have used. Have you? I think this is way overhyped.

I'm no LCD expert, but based upon my own experience I would say there is ZERO chance of the TV being permanently damaged, especially from a mere 20 minutes as that post would have you believe.

I'd be interested to hear more on this this too.

And I'm not sure by what lmsyl wrote if he meant the Sammy was left on for 3 straight months in the lab with the power always on. If this was the case, would the LCD have to be powered off for 3 straight months? :p

Since the posting came from Samsung's web site it would seem to have credibility.

BUT: How the heck do black bars burn in? Black being the lack of any color.

And how is it that most of us have been using LCD's as computer monitors for years with no sign of trouble with burn in?

I don't think I'll worry about this too much or switch between picture zooming options. I'll add black bars to the list of risks I could take in life, like sky diving, volcano tourism, cave diving and swiming with poisonous fish.

http://erms.samsungusa.com/customer/sea/jsp/faqs/faqs_view.jsp?PG_ID=3&AT_ID=14974&PROD_SUB_ID=41&PROD_ID=154

I use a Dell 2005FPW LCD monitor with my computer. A friend of mine turned off the power saving option (to watch a movie, I think? :confused: ) and left the screen on afterward. I now have a dark "smudge" in my screen where my desktop wallpaper was darker. I tried leaving the screen off for a few days, and also a few programs that are designed to rapidly cycle pixel values, but it seems like I'm stuck with it.

I don't think it's very common, though, from what I've read.

I use a Dell 2005FPW LCD monitor with my computer. A friend of mine turned off the power saving option (to watch a movie, I think? :confused: ) and left the screen on afterward. I now have a dark "smudge" in my screen where my desktop wallpaper was darker. I tried leaving the screen off for a few days, and also a few programs that are designed to rapidly cycle pixel values, but it seems like I'm stuck with it.

I don't think it's very common, though, from what I've read.LCDs don't have phosphors to burn in so what is it that could retain the image on an LCD?

I think it's just a case of the crystals in the display retaining their previous value. Apparently it's not permanent in most cases, though I can't seem to do a thing about mine. Another solution is to create an image that's the inverse of the one that the screen retains ( i.e. white bars instead of black) and display it, or just create an all-white image and blast that for a few hours/days. Neither one worked for me though. I've accepted my lot in life.

Good grief, just when I've almost made up my mind, along comes a post about LCD burn-in. This is discouraging to say the least, as this was a major factor in my purchasing decision. It's starting to feel like the search is never going to end. :(

why do you people hate DNie?????i need a answer!!!!!


I would not worry about it too much. Most home theater purists will hate many types of image enhancement processing since it changes how the image looks. Also, for many sources it probably adds false contours and contrast and color saturation that makes the image look bad. The only place where it may may make sense is in some sources that are too soft.

In the end, the TV lets you try it and even compare side by side DNie on and off. If you don't like it you wont use it. I don't think it adds much to the code of the TV. Sony has similar image enhancing processing as well and most people will tell you to turn all of these types of image enhancement. off.

I say judge for yourself and make up your own mind. Thats the goddammm answer :cool:




On another note MAN THIS THREAD IS QUIET. Isn't there any new owners of these panels over the long weekend sales etc. I will be getting mine on Friday and I am sure to post some details. I am just wondering where all the new owers are. To busy wathing there new TV I hope.

Good grief, just when I've almost made up my mind, along comes a post about LCD burn-in. This is discouraging to say the least, as this was a major factor in my purchasing decision. It's starting to feel like the search is never going to end. :(


Don't get caught up on this burn in issue. Out of all the Samsung lcd threads I've read this is the 1st person to say there tv was damaged by burn in.

I was browsing at the local tv place today and I saw the LN-S4696D ( 46" 1080P LCD ) and the LN-S5797D ( 57" 1080P LCD ) and I must say that I almost went after the Sony 50" a2000 set, until my eye's were in complete amasement with looking at the 46" lcd, as well as the Sony 46" XBR3, so far it's a tie, cant decide.
The Sony 46" LCD XBR2 looked amazing as well.

I'm really glad I have waited. The Sammy 46"(4696D) lcd or the Sony 46"XBR3 would be my first hdtv purchase and looking for some feedback.
I'm a Comcast cable subscriber, and have not bought any HD-DVD or Blue-Ray DVD yet, I'm waiting on that one. How are regular DVD's being up-converted looking? Standard Def looking ok?
Thanks as always.

Well I'm somewhat relieved to see that people think this is a non-issue. I had a 55" rear projection HDTV years ago and was always paranoid about watching 4x3 material on it, but with proper calibration I never had a problem. I would like to know how exactly LCD image retention occurs just so I can be careful.

I started out my search for a new TV with two "value" LCDs from Costco that failed to impress in any way. Finally I bit the bullet and just got what I really wanted, my 4095 and it's really impressed me! I've been watching a lot since I bought it on Friday, HD looks incredible, be it 720p or 1080i. Even SD looks just fine after proper calibration, no worse than my old 27" CRT. I am sitting about 9'-10' away though.

This TV is going to be used almost exclusively for television watching, as I have a projector for movies. I doubt I will be feeding it a 1080p image very often even after I move up to an HD optical format. Still I think that 1080p is worthwhile. The first time my wife looked at this set deinterlacing a 1080i channel she said "now it looks like HD". Prior to getting the Samsung she was wondering what the big deal was.

Hello, buddy,
hope you can get answer soon.
Yours sincerely,

is it hdmi 1.3 compliant?
Hello, buddy,
hope you can get answer soon.
Yours sincerely,

Very simply, poor web site management. Both the 95 and 96 are capable of 1080p input over hdmi, and the 95 is further capable of 1080p input over component.
Hi,
yeah, according to your answers, indeed it is a piece of cake, I think.
Thank you .
Have a nice day everybody...

yes, I am also facing with the same problem, hope we can get the answers as soon as possible.
www.algogo.com (http:// www.algogo.com)
one on-line electronic store
Thanks,
Yours sincerely

What's the minimum number of posts before one can use URLs? :rolleyes:

Anyway,
I don't mean to sidetrack this thread on the burn in paranoia but I see it mentioned in the Official Sony 40", 46" XBR2, XBR3 LCD thread (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=683533&page=95&pp=30) as well.

I've never owned an LCD of any kind, TV or pc monitor, although I will be getting a laptop very soon. As I said, I'm still leaning towards a flat panel LCD (Sony, Tosh, Sammy, or Sharp) but I plan on watching a lot of SD programming in 4:3. From what I've read, if LCDs are susceptible to burn in, they are much less vulnerable than Plasmas & RP CRTs, correct?

I was all set to get a rear-projection set, probably a Mitsubishi, at my local electronics store until I saw the new LCD's, which completely blew me away. I am real picky about losing detail and brightness when viewing off axis, and the RPTV's were dismal at best when compared to the LCD's. The store had the Samsung LN-S4695D, the Toshiba 47LX196, and the Sony KDL-46XBR2. They all 3 were awesome. Question: has anyone compared the 3 sets? And it seems that even though the MSRP of all 3 is roughly the same, I noticed that online I can get the Samsung for a few hundred less. Any comments?

On another note MAN THIS THREAD IS QUIET. Isn't there any new owners of these panels over the long weekend sales etc. I will be getting mine on Friday and I am sure to post some details. I am just wondering where all the new owers are. To busy wathing there new TV I hope.

Still waiting for mine to come in.

I saved a ton of money on a 4695D at a certain online retailer, but they're telling me that I should expect to wait 14 to 21 days from when the order was processed which was on 8-26. I will be really pissed if it is any longer than that!

They've had my money since 8-23.

Whu? You talking about the H20?




yeah the h20...... i decided to keep my 4095d.... the x360 looks amazing on it but progressive scan dvd looks pretty bad.. not sure why.... and also is this tv known for pixelization.... in espn hd there are alot of pixels when watching the football game...

yeah the h20...... i decided to keep my 4095d.... the x360 looks amazing on it but progressive scan dvd looks pretty bad.. not sure why.... and also is this tv known for pixelization.... in espn hd there are alot of pixels when watching the football game...

I am having the same problem. My ESPNHD is just not as clear as it should be. I know what the TV is capable of seeing it use DVDs and from watching it in the store, but I'm not impressed with the way it is showing up at home. The picture is better than standard def, but it isnt as good as it could be. Does anyone have any ideas why this is happening? Are there settings I can change? Do I need to purchase some new equipment? I'm also on Directv and also using the H20 receiver.

Well for directv, i had the problem with the h20 hdmi cable... i am just using the component cables... no big deal... but yeah i am having the same problems as kempersbh... i thought the picture would be much better... here is a question for you... can i return a tv without the original box it came in....

I finally bit the bullet and got the 4696 yesterday. I'm getting OTA digital, and it's amazing! Haven't gotten to tweak the settings much yet, other than some suggestions from Bear that was posted here. My question is on DVD playback. I'm using a Denon upscaling DVD player set to 1080i, DVI to HDMI cable, RCA cable to the TV, with optical output to my receiver. I have noticed a delay in sound, just not synched right when using the receiver instead of the tv for sound. Any ideas? Also, I'm getting a "color bloom" when black scenes are on, it looks like purple taking over. I plan to try component cables and turning the resolution back to 720 on the DVD player and see if this helps. Any suggestions on this? The picture on OTA stuff is great, no motion, great black levels, and the wife even noticed a difference from the old CRT! Thanks!

Well for directv, i had the problem with the h20 hdmi cable... i am just using the component cables... no big deal... but yeah i am having the same problems as kempersbh... i thought the picture would be much better... here is a question for you... can i return a tv without the original box it came in....

Probably depends on where you bought it from. I bought it from Magnolia and they told me that I could return it without the orginal box and it would be no problem. Raven, if you return it, are you thinking of getting an XBR2? I was considering this to see if it would fix my picture quality problem.

Kemper, etc.,
What output settings are on your H20? Are you leaving it as "native" or are you setting it to 1080i (for example)?

If you set the output to 1080i, the H20 is doing the 720P->1080i scaling for you. If you're leaving it native, then the display is doing it.

Before my purchase, I'm interested in understanding this problem too.

I have it on native.

hdmi problem on the h20- i only get picture when on 4801/480p mode.... if its on 720p or 1080i, it flickers the picture on and off... it has to do with the directv box... they are aware of the problem and a fix is coming this month...

i was thinking of the xbr2 but i am also thinking about the toshiba 42 inch... wondering if that helps....

and also is this tv known for pixelization.... in espn hd there are alot of pixels when watching the football game...
I've got my 4095 hooked up to an HR20 and have the same pixelized ESPNHD that others here are seeing. However, my local Fox station is also 720p but compressed to MPEG-4 by d* (as opposed to the MPEG-2 of ESPNHD) and the picture looks great! No pixelization whatsoever, even on fast moving images. I believe this is probably caused by over compression of the ESPNHD feed by D*.

I've got my 4095 hooked up to an HR20 and have the same pixelized ESPNHD that others here are seeing. However, my local Fox station is also 720p but compressed to MPEG-4 by d* (as opposed to the MPEG-2 of ESPNHD) and the picture looks great! No pixelization whatsoever, even on fast moving images. I believe this is probably caused by over compression of the ESPNHD feed by D*.

I believe the question everyone wants answered is ...

Can something be done about it? ... ESPN is a high priority Channel for me.

Also, does this pixelization occur on other TVs?

And what about the other competing satellite company?

Thanks in advance.

I thought D* was working on a software fix for the HDMI issue. :confused:

Just decided to upgrade to the LNS5296d. I hope it is worth the extra $ I added instead of the 4696d upgrade. They said mine won't ship for 3 weeks. Looks like I'm getting the 2nd batch from the factory. :)

Really can't find much info on the lns 5296d, I just hope the dynamic contrast ratio stays @ 1:6000. I noticed that larger lcds have lower contrast ratios. Also I hope It has all the inputs and pq that the 4696d has.

Can someone direct me to the samsung LNS 96d vs sony xbr2/xbr3 forum. I can't find it :confused:

Can anyone tell me as I looked at the LNS4696D and the LNS5796D sets and were stunned at their lucious looks, I was considering the XBR2 or the upcomming XBR3, so I guess what I'm looking for is can anyone tell me whats better with the 4696D LCD or the 5296D LCD sets VS the Sony XBR2 or the XBR3? I have been waiting for purchase my first HD TV for quite some time, looking for some feedback, thanks!

Sorry if this has been answered I have been searching and can't find a definitive answer in this thread since the 4695 and 4696 have come out...

Can you toggle DNie on the 95 and/or the 96?

How does DNie affect

1.) HD Programming
2.) SD programming
3.) DVD
4.) Console
5.) PC

on the 95 and 96

I am having the same problem. My ESPNHD is just not as clear as it should be. I know what the TV is capable of seeing it use DVDs and from watching it in the store, but I'm not impressed with the way it is showing up at home. The picture is better than standard def, but it isnt as good as it could be. Does anyone have any ideas why this is happening? Are there settings I can change? Do I need to purchase some new equipment? I'm also on Directv and also using the H20 receiver.

It's called HD-lite. If you visit the satellite forums, you'll hear a lot more about it. DirecTV broadcasts many of their HD channels in 1280 x 1080 interlaced rather than 1920 x 1080 interlaced, which is much lower in resolution than 720p (1280 x 720 progressive) or 1080i (1920 x 1080 interlaced). Dish is better but they also have some channels in HD lite at 1280 x 1080 interlaced.

For more info, go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hd_lite

Also, aren't there problems with H20 with this line of Samsungs when using HDMI? Maybe you can address your PQ issue with DirecTV and they can throw in this fix along with the HDMI fix.

Owners and those in the Know...

I was about to buy a 4692D earlier this summer but read about the 96 and decided to wait for either a) a much cheaper 92 or b) the advance features of a 96 (and now the 95!)

So, based on these criteria which would you reccomend, the 92,95,96?

1. Biggest priority: HD programming image (especially sports) and DVD movie image (standard for now, may upgrade to Blu or HDVD)
2. SD images
3. Console
4. PC
5. This is my first HD purchase ( I want ease of use, I want things to work and will sacrifice perfection for things that are plug and play)
6. This will be my main TV and only HD purchase in the the next 3 years.
7. I have Comcast Digital Cable, XB360, and 2PCs(ATIx850 on XPS Desktop, ATI Mobility X1400 on Latitude Laptop)
8. PC gaming is a major plus but great HDTV is much more important to me.

Been reading many negative posts on these sets lately. The DVD performance is a particular concern. This TV will mainly be used for SD television viewing and DVD viewing. I know that standard definition will never be great with any source and is to be expected; however, the problems with picture quality when using upconverting DVD players and the problems with sound sync when using an external receiver definitley does not sound good at all. Are these common problems?

Been reading many negative posts on these sets lately. The DVD performance is a particular concern. This TV will mainly be used for SD television viewing and DVD viewing. I know that standard definition will never be great with any source and is to be expected; however, the problems with picture quality when using upconverting DVD players and the problems with sound sync when using an external receiver definitley does not sound good at all. Are these common problems?

I've had the 4696 for 2-3wks now and haven't seen any of those problems... however my dvd player is only capable of 480P. I also am using a direct cable connection (Adelphia blew me off until this Saturday to install the cable card). Channels 2 through 6 are the worst but they look as good or better on the 4696 than any of the other televisions in the house. From what I was told, channel 2 in Atlanta is on a "temporary feed" (whatever that means) and is the reason that it is THE worst channel.

Jerz

A company selling through Amazon has the LNS4695D for about a
quarter of the price of the LNS4696D. Why would they sell this unit
so cheap? It is a new unit and all looks fine. Just sounds too good
to be true. Anyone else check this out yet?

Sorry if this has been answered I have been searching and can't find a definitive answer in this thread since the 4695 and 4696 have come out...

Can you toggle DNie on the 95 and/or the 96?

How does DNie affect

1.) HD Programming
2.) SD programming
3.) DVD
4.) Console
5.) PC

on the 95 and 96

Most everyone here is of the agreement that DNie should be toggled to Off. So should Noise Reduction.

These extra video processing layers aren't necessary, and they mute the picture, but check it out yourself.

In PC, you'll want the Game Mode.

You're going to want to buy a basic calibration DVD, as the factory settings are pretty harsh.

I tend to agree with others who set the TV to Dynamic, 95 contrast, 30-40 brightness, Medium backlight.

It's a very bright set, so don't worry about the old day when LCDs were dim. :)

A company selling through Amazon has the LNS4695D for about a
quarter of the price of the LNS4696D. Why would they sell this unit
so cheap? It is a new unit and all looks fine. Just sounds too good
to be true. Anyone else check this out yet?

It should be like 10-25% less, but not that much.

Be sure the dude has a top rating, that's for sure.

It could be a lemon. :eek:

It should be like 10-25% less, but not that much.

Be sure the dude has a top rating, that's for sure.

It could be a lemon. :eek:

The store in question has no rating - it's just set up. It's a scam. It also says "e-mail before ordering" lol

Been reading many negative posts on these sets lately. The DVD performance is a particular concern. This TV will mainly be used for SD television viewing and DVD viewing. I know that standard definition will never be great with any source and is to be expected; however, the problems with picture quality when using upconverting DVD players and the problems with sound sync when using an external receiver definitley does not sound good at all. Are these common problems?

These are the best LCDs out there. Both the Sony and samsung 1080p sets have crummy SD, relative to HD. I had to watch the Yankess last night on SD, and sure it was way worse than HD, but it was entirely watchable.

I have the Toshiba HD-DVD player, and the upconverting is terrific, no problems at all. The HD discs obviously rock, but I just watched The Transporter upconverted, and it looked a good bit better than it ever looked before.

I can't speak to sound delay, I just use the internal speakers. I find it impossible to believe it's a wide spread problem.

I picked up my S4695D last night and it looks great in the bedroom on this Z-line stand http://www.designjournalmag.com/shop/img/big_189343.jpg

I was able to get a 720p resolution from my HTPC via a DVI->HDMI cable but not 1080p. When you try to send a 1080p signal, the set does not sync and just searches for the signal. I understand that the 95 model is not supposed to support PC via HDMI, but is this only 1080p resolution because 720p worked great? It looked stunning as compared to my 61" HLN Sammy DLP in the family room.

Does the 96 model allow 1080p from PC via HDMI? I do understand that I can go VGA and get 1080p from the PC on the 95. I will compare that tonight.

The other features of the 96 model are not important to me as I do not need cable card (DirecTV) or USB as HTPC takes care of that need.

So far, so good on the set, just considering if I may need to make the move to the 96 model. I still need to do quite a bit of tweaking of the video settings.

What settings are others using?

Thanks in advance,

Later

Folks ... what is HTPC?

chandunthegreat, HTPC=home theater pc...

cheers,
cambryn

Okay, I need opinions FAST, so anyone who can let me know one way or another about these specific points would be a HUGE help to me (I've read through this entire thread already, but I would like very specific opinions on these things from current owners). I currently have an SXRD 55 A2000 rear projection set, but, the silk screen effect on it is driving me absolutely insane, so I need to go to a flat panel. That said, a reflective screen like on a plasma would be even worse given my viewing environment, so it looks like LCD for me by default. I'm looking at the 5296D (since that won't be too big a hit from my current 55" screen). Now areas for opinion:

1) How do the black levels compare to most rear projection sets you've seen. This is what I'm sure I'll miss most from my SXRD... but the SSE is just unbearable.
2) Can this set accept blacker-than-black and whiter-than-white over the HDMI and component ports? I know that the A2000 can, and I believe this sister set (the XBR2 LCD) can as well, so I'd assume this could. If not, is this fixable in the service menu?
3) Is 1080 over HDMI from you PC possible? I understand there will be overscan, but the post a few above mine says that he can't even do it at all... is that right? I'll be connecting via VGA currently, but that would likely change in the future, so an upgrade bath is necessary.
4) Does this set do 2:3 pulldown with 1080i material or only 480i material? For 5K, I would hope that it would be both.
5) Finally, subjectively, how do darker movies (such as Batman Begins) fair on this set when viewing at night? I'm not taking about a pitch black room, just nighttime with regular ambient room lighting?

I have a VERY limited time-frame left to return the A2000 to Crutchfield, so the more responses I can get in the next day or two the better.

Thanks in advance to any and all replies.

I've been pouring through this forum trying to find the answer to this question. No luck so far so, here it goes...

Has anyone found that the video "mode" gets set back to Dynamic some time after setting to Standard or Custom? It doesn't happen right away for me. I can set it and go back and check it and the setting sticks but, some time later, perhaps after changing inputs (and changing back!) the settings get whacked back to the default Dynamic settings.

For the 50 millionth time, use the search function.

Samsung does not have 1:1 pixel map over HDMI, period, end of story.

D-sub is available, but D-sub aint no digital.

There are programs that can reduce overscan, but you end up with less than 1920X1080.

In short, your choices for 1920x1080p PC digital signals are:

SONY XBR2/3
Westinghouse 42" or 47" 1080p

Shame that Samsung chose to not mplement a full pixel mode for their TV's.

In short, your choices for 1920x1080p PC digital signals are:

SONY XBR2/3
Westinghouse 42" or 47" 1080p



The Sharp D62 line will do it. So will the new Mitsubishi line. Sharp's D62 panels are supposed to be spectacular; Mitsu's will be nice as well, since they are using the Sony/Sammy panels.

Both are due in stores next month.

So,

I read some more and its looking like the 95 is the answer for me. The reason I am posting here and not a general thread is I want to know about how the 4695 handles signals.

I am going to buy some other components with the TV; but this system (all components) will probably be my number 2 system in about 2.5 years. (I rent now and am buying in 18-24 months so Im not going all out here but can't wait for HDTV any longer!)

Will I still get good signals if I run all my components(COMCAST, DVD, Xbox360, and PC sometimes) through my receiver (probably a DENON 2807) with a single HDMI into the TV? Or will I be better off running some of these video sources directly to the TV? Also, any recomendations on a good but basic DVD player.

The main reason I am asking is I am really focusing on the TV here but will also be picking up a receiver and wonder if its worth spending the money on one with 1080p switching and HDMI or whether to just wait a few years when I really build my system nuts to bolts and just use my 5 year old yamaha for now.

Thanks

The Sharp D62 line will do it. So will the new Mitsubishi line. Sharp's D62 panels are supposed to be spectacular; Mitsu's will be nice as well, since they are using the Sony/Sammy panels.

Both are due in stores next month.

I thought sharp had its own 8th gen plant to make the glass of these new panels. the specs are 2000:1 ratio 10000 dynamic contrast. so I dont see how this is the same panels as the new samsung 95/96

I even looked on the japanese site
http://www.sharp.co.jp/aquos/index.html

For the 50 millionth time, use the search function.

Samsung does not have 1:1 pixel map over HDMI, period, end of story.

D-sub is available, but D-sub aint no digital.

There are programs that can reduce overscan, but you end up with less than 1920X1080.

In short, your choices for 1920x1080p PC digital signals are:

SONY XBR2/3
Westinghouse 42" or 47" 1080p

Shame that Samsung chose to not mplement a full pixel mode for their TV's.

That answered one question. What about BTB/WTW and your OPINION of the black levels/detail vs RP sets?

the new sammy have top not black levels. from all the sets I saw so far. only the sony xbr2 rivals them in terms of blacks. ( not surprised since it's the same panel ).

as for whites.....wow...blinding snow white. that 92% CCFL backlight will seriously blind someone. hhehehhe. it's so pure white it makes most plasmas look dull and grey.

ofcourse RP sets have great blacks...but personally i dont like how the contrast shifts side to side and you must sit dead center of a Rear projection set to fully enjoy it. toss in replacing bulbs every few months or so....multi colors streaks...yes i see them.

there is no comparing a sammy 95/96 to a rear projection. sammy all the way.

These are the best LCDs out there. Both the Sony and samsung 1080p sets have crummy SD, relative to HD. I had to watch the Yankess last night on SD, and sure it was way worse than HD, but it was entirely watchable.

I have the Toshiba HD-DVD player, and the upconverting is terrific, no problems at all. The HD discs obviously rock, but I just watched The Transporter upconverted, and it looked a good bit better than it ever looked before.

I can't speak to sound delay, I just use the internal speakers. I find it impossible to believe it's a wide spread problem.

Got some questions for ya on SD viewing if you can help me out here. Our new 4695D TV (put on a waiting list) will be used mostly for SD viewing so how would they compare to say like a Sony 40" direct view CRT? I haven't seen a better TV for SD viewing than the Sony 40" direct view so is this Samsung LCD set only as good as plasma or other microdisplays (LCD RP, DLP, LCOS) for SD viewing? I know it's great on HD viewing but this TV will do about 80% SD viewing until we get a HD DVD or Blu Ray or what not, which looks about a year away for my family. And this TV will be replacing our Sony 50" LCD rear projection TV. Thanks a bunch.

For the 50 millionth time, use the search function.

Samsung does not have 1:1 pixel map over HDMI, period, end of story.

Shame that Samsung chose to not mplement a full pixel mode for their TV's.


Couldn't Samsung issue a firmware update and have this obvious missing feature enabled somehow?

There must be a reason they didn't include it originally, no? I highly doubt Samsung "forgot or didn't bother to look into" 1:1 pixel mapping.

I've read that sonys and samsungs panels(7th Gen) on their xbr2/xbr3 and lns-95d lns-96d are the same. Can someone explain why sonys 46xbr3 comsumes less power(227 W) than samsungs LN-S4096d(250W). When compared to the LNS4696d the difference is much greater (310W vs227W). 83W for lcds with the same panel seems like a huge difference. Is it just sonys' circuitry is more energy effiecient? Can someone in the know ;) explain?

Is pixel mapping only important if you're going to be gaming or hooking up a pc to the display? I've narrowed my choice down to a Samsung or Sony 1080p lcd and won't be doing any gaming nor hooking up a pc. Do I need to worry about pixel mapping with regards to regular viewing?

Regarding the multiple questions how the '96 PDF on Samsung's site does not show 1080p for component, click here:
http://www.samsung.com/Products/TV/LCDTV/LNS4096DXXAA.asp?page=Specifications

from website:

Panel Type: Wide (16:9) LCD

TV System: American NTSC Std Color

Channel Coverage: VHF VHF 2-13,
UHF 14-69
CATV 1-125 (up to 181 preselected channels)

Audio Power: 10W X 2

Connections: R/F Input 2 (air/cable)
HDMI in 2
Component (Y/Pb/Pr) in 2(480i/480p/720p/1080i/1080p)
Composite video input 1 side 1 rear
Sound monitor out 1
Optical Sound out 1
PC (RGB) Input 1
Headphone jack 1 side, 1 rear
RS232C 1

Order Code: LNS4096DX/XAA

UPC Code: 036725240612

Warranty: Consumer use 1 year parts and labor
Commercial use 90 Days

Is pixel mapping only important if you're going to be gaming or hooking up a pc to the display? I've narrowed my choice down to a Samsung or Sony 1080p lcd and won't be doing any gaming nor hooking up a pc. Do I need to worry about pixel mapping with regards to regular viewing?

Not an expert but from what I have read you can still plug in a computer if you want to regardless of the lack of pixel mapping. However, you will have to do so via the analog connection. This will result in an image not as sharp.

If you aren't going to plug in a computer I don't think it matters. Furthermore, for pixel mapping to matter anyway you would need a video card that could display at 1920.

Been reading many negative posts on these sets lately. The DVD performance is a particular concern. This TV will mainly be used for SD television viewing and DVD viewing. I know that standard definition will never be great with any source and is to be expected; however, the problems with picture quality when using upconverting DVD players and the problems with sound sync when using an external receiver definitley does not sound good at all. Are these common problems?
I have no such issues on my three LCD's - they are the most trouble free of any panel and I don't know who the hell said they had LCD Flat Panel burn-in as it's next to impossible due to the nature of it being transmissive light flowing through glass - ever see a flashlight burn in on a mirror or a window. I own 3 and have 300 on my network with ZERO burn in and the ones on my network run 24/7 for nearly 4 years most of them. I don't own a Samsung LCD FP but I've yet to see a single one in the "S" series look bad in any store.

Install a damn HD DVD or Blu-Ray on those 1080P LCD's and they'll blow you away - screw the upconverts - I own the Oppo 971 and sammy 850 and they cannot touch the HD DVD and I've seen Bluray on the 4696 at CC and it was the best looking display in the store. I cannot imagine owners being so cheap as to spend $4K or so and then go on the cheap with an inferiror upconvert then why bother with the new 1080P Toy too feed it dog doo doo 480i(p).

Where are you getting all these negatives. Feed the panel crap and you get CRAP back! Don't let the obsessive HTPC crowd taint what is a great performing panel - the HTPC obsessiveness presented on this thread is ridiculous when they have their own dedicated forum section to live obsession and let people that want it as a HT TV "Display" Discuss and if you don't like it show us where it says HTPC in this section of the Forum - this is for display discussion not obsessed HTPC hobbyists. For some reason this thread has been taken over by this group whereas you do not see this occur in the plasma sections. Flame on or use the Ignore List I don't return to read your rants as you've muddied this thread with HTPC garbage.;)

Not an expert but from what I have read you can still plug in a computer if you want to regardless of the lack of pixel mapping. However, you will have to do so via the analog connection. This will result in an image not as sharp.

If you aren't going to plug in a computer I don't think it matters. Furthermore, for pixel mapping to matter anyway you would need a video card that could display at 1920.

I guess I will have to return my 4095 since it must be my imagination that I am getting a crystal clear, sharp, full screen image from my PC through HDMI.

It has been repeated over and over in this thread that you can get a beautiful signal from your pc through HDMI. Nvidia cards allow you to make the adjustments to resize your desktop. And you cannot tell if it is 1:1 or not unless you use a mind numbing test pattern. If I wanted to stare at a test pattern all day I could have just bought myself a poster.

LOL, I guess the HTPC zealots are not in the plasma threads because a HTPC zealot would not want a plasma!

(I actually had an HTPC about 5 years ago. I hated it. With my CRT based RPTV it was fine for video but useless for general PC work. These days I just want to be able to use a bloody computer on my TV. Completely different goal, but I digress. Funny how when I started messing with computers, a TV was the monitor of choice!)

These Sammies are very nice machines...

Where are you getting all these negatives. Feed the panel crap and you get CRAP back! Don't let the obsessive HTPC crowd taint what is a great performing panel - the HTPC obsessiveness presented on this thread is ridiculous when they have their own dedicated forum section to live obsession and let people that want it as a HT TV "Display" Discuss and if you don't like it show us where it says HTPC in this section of the Forum - this is for display discussion not obsessed HTPC hobbyists. For some reason this thread has been taken over by this group whereas you do not see this occur in the plasma sections. Flame on or use the Ignore List I don't return to read your rants as you've muddied this thread with HTPC garbage.;)

Not trying to ruffle your feathers here, just wanted to get other opinions. The comments I was asking about, upconvert DVD performance, burn-in, and sound sync, were posted in this very thread. It's not like I'm scouring the net for negative comments; they're right here. Also, I'm not flaming these sets, in fact I'll probably own one shortly. It's a lot of money to spend on a television, and I want to get as much information as possible before making a decision. Try to bear with the newbies, we may be 2,500 post members like you one day. ;)

Samsung USA does a bad job of updating the specs of their TVs. Example is this 4696d component 1080p input fiasco.

In addition when you call there customer service line, they seem not to know more than what a lay person can find on the web.

Anyone knows why it seems like samsung downgrades the models shipped to the USA. Are we getting their 6 month old models. Or is there some kind of trade laws preventing them from selling us their top of the line tech.

Example. I pre-ordered the 5296d. When trying to do research? I barely can find anything. All the info I can find looks like a exact cut and paste of 4696d. So I called samsung, the person helping me tried his best but I knew more about the tv from what I found on their web site ;) .

I went on the Samsung Korean site. I found the LN52M71BD. It looks exactly like the LNS-5296d, its dimension and weight are exactly the same. But its specs are better. 7000:1, 6ms, 180 degree viewing angle. etc What is going on here?

Is samsung just un-tweaking the capabilities of its LCD when they ship them here? Or are the specs just lost in translation ? :D :confused:

I just hope the specs stay as close to the 4696d as possible. Before the 4696d came out I thought they would have a dynamic ratio of 7000:1.

Can any of you 95/96d owners tell where your LCD TV was manufactured? Mexico,Korea, China, etc? Thanks

I guess I will have to return my 4095 since it must be my imagination that I am getting a crystal clear, sharp, full screen image from my PC through HDMI.

It has been repeated over and over in this thread that you can get a beautiful signal from your pc through HDMI. Nvidia cards allow you to make the adjustments to resize your desktop. And you cannot tell if it is 1:1 or not unless you use a mind numbing test pattern. If I wanted to stare at a test pattern all day I could have just bought myself a poster.

I guess you will. Smart Ass.

I don't own one yet so I wouldn't know. But I have read repeatedly here that there is NO pixel mapping over hdmi (or otherwise for that matter). So, you are saying you can plug in your PC via HDMI, great! Still no pixel mapping. I don't even care as I'm sure the image will look great anyway. Furthermore, if you read the original post you would see the original poster doesnt care either.

I guess you will. Smart Ass.

I don't own one yet so I wouldn't know. But I have read repeatedly here that there is NO pixel mapping over hdmi (or otherwise for that matter). So, you are saying you can plug in your PC via HDMI, great! Still no pixel mapping. I don't even care as I'm sure the image will look great anyway. Furthermore, if you read the original post you would see the original poster doesnt care either.

They don't explain it very well but most LCD TVs zoom in just a bit (~2%) as part of there video processing. There are lots of reasons for this....

The VGA/PC connector on many LCD TVs bypasses most of the video processing which is why its often the one that does not do this small percent of zoom (called overscan). Its also the reason many people see the VGA input as a bit flat and washed out when used for movies etc.

So using the VGA input you can get 1:1 pixel but ONLY if you push 1920x1080 which you need a pretty decent system to do. If you send any other resolution, even through VGA, you will don't 1:1 pixel. So in that one case HTPC running video at 1920 you should get the cleanest high detail in things like text, and spreadsheets and PC applications.

The thing is, if you have a really good video card I think even a non 1:1 looks pretty amazing so you can use HDMI you just many need to compensate for the overscan or live with it. Most HTPC front ends take overscan into accounts so its not an real issue anyway.

The time it realy comes into play is when you want to run Windows "applications" using an LCD TV. And to that, I say buy a PC monitor and leave the TVs to running video and HTPC applications and you are 100% fine. Most people don't take into account that most of the time you are watching a source (DVD, Console, HDTV, SDTV, etc) that assume some amount of overscan. There are often image problems on the edges of these sources due to this fact.

So the perfect HDTV would let you switch back and forth between all aspects of the Video processing, including overscan, but that TV proably does not exist on the consumer market.

I will be getting this TV today and I will be testing the VGA input for Xbox 360 to see if it looks any cleaner but after reading up on it I think component may end up being the best connection after all. The 360 after all does not push 1920 so its not 1:1 anyway but some say it looks better. You pretty much have to try it on your own to determine what you think is the best.

Hi all, I got my 4695 Wednesday from DataVision! I got a surprise call from the shipper saying the truck was roaming around trying to find my house. The shipper never actually called me prior to this but as WS said, "all's well that ends well." The deliveryman was real helpful and actually helped me put it in the house (technically only curve side delivery). I inspected the outside box very carefully (including to make sure it wasn't a 4692--4696 would have been OK -)) and all was perfect. The box was in a Samsung box in pristine condition and as far as I could tell I was the first one to open it. I took a picture of the box and that is picture one of the first attachment below. Took me a moment to figure out the unpacking diagram but basically at the bottom of the box on each side you see a white square and you squeeze a tab to pull out the white square on each side. This releases the sides and the bottom basically remains and you just pull out the TV. Checked out the TV and no obvious damage. Hooked it up via HDMI to COMCAST HD DVR and boom after switching to HDMI#1 source I was up and running with a perfect picture. The instructions were pretty easy to read. I really ran into no problems. Only a slight disappointment...and very slight. My 26 Samsung LNR269 LCD has an automatic dimming function that compensates from low to bright ambient light but you have to do this manually via the "energy saver" function and this baby is bright at night. What the 95 has that LNR269 doesn't have is a feature to turn off that stupid blue eye. I have had to block the blue eye from the LNR269 in my bedroom it is so bright. The 4695 also take about 4 more seconds to come online but after all this is a huge TV compared to my tabletop LNR269.

From an entertainment perspective I am very happy with this TV. What you do need with your TV in my opinion is a sound system. For such a nice TV it would be a crime not have at least a basic one. Even my cheapo JVC sound system I've had for 8 years blows the two 10 watt onboard speakers out of the water. If you are going to spend 3K for this TV spend at least 2c's for a sound system....even if it is the bottom of the line.

As a side note: I bought several HDMI cables from ebay for $7 each and have noticed no difference between them and my $50 expensive HDMI cable. Also decided at this time to forgo the Blu-ray (wait until in a couple of years a Blu-ray recorder with more features sells at K-Mart for $99 :-) but got instead the Samsung DVD-R145 DVD Recorder upconverter for a quarter of the price. It fits my needs to play my extensive existing collection of DVDs as well as being able to record in almost all formats including DL discs.

I don't claim to provide a technical review but just one story or data point. I bought the LNR269 26 inch as a prototype before getting the big living room LCD and was very happy with it. I am even happier with the 95. Included as attachments are three pictures (the box it was shipped in and two pics of the TV).

congratulations! links to the pix don't work tho.

im waiting to get either a 4696 or 5296!

Those images don't work, I guess because of the referer tags. Strange,
did you click the link or copy and paste? There is no password or anything that would only allow me to see them. Maybe if you paste these directly into your browser:

angelfire.com/trek/tonykendall/images/samsung1.jpg
angelfire.com/trek/tonykendall/images/samsung2.jpg
angelfire.com/trek/tonykendall/images/samsung3.jpg

They are about 400K each.

Also, I edited my orginal posting and just attached three jpeg files which you should see now.

T

Angelfire doesn't allow direct linking to images. The only way for us to see the images is for you to create a web page that inlines the images.

Update: If they are copy/pasted into the browser they work, but if they are clicked in the message they won't... and if they've already been clicked, it's necessary to clear the cache.

Nice set of pics Tonyk2 (I did copy-paste them to the browser and could see them fine). :)

Thanks, Tonyk2, it's always nice to read an informative first-hand account. Quick question for you: where did you get the aquarium? Is it video, or a still?

Thanks, Tonyk2, it's always nice to read an informative first-hand account. Quick question for you: where did you get the aquarium? Is it video, or a still?
Hi Kaijo, I just selected pause from my DVR. Picture is from the the HD Discovery channel.
T

Ah, thanks. I just moved to a pretty dry area, and I'm thinking it might be nice to get some fake water for my apartment.

Ah, thanks. I just moved to a pretty dry area, and I'm thinking it might be nice to get some fake water for my apartment.
You can buy one of those aquarium DVD's but I've read if you have a cat or dog that they go crazy when they see it on HD...but not on a SD. I guess they know quality :-)

Tony, how is the set with SD material? And do you notice any motion blur on fast action sports? If you can take a few shots with SD material on, it would be greatly appreciated. Congrats!

You will want to check this out if you are wondering whats next with Samsung

http://www.samsungexhibition.com/blog/blog.jsp?userid=Jonathan&view=-1837867521&seqno=105

how much of a difference does turning off DNie have on the samsung 4695. I was at a store and comparing it to the xbr2/3 lines. at first the colors on the sammy were just there. Then when I really looked closer ( source was cable on component - mulifeed playing time warner HD )

the xbr2 seems to be a bit smoother on gradients and there appear to be more noise ie mosquito like noise on the sammy( Mets game was on, more noise on baseball park walls )

I did not get the chance to turn off DNie so I am wondering if that would get rid of the noise I saw esp. on the baseball game and while fast action moved. macroblocking a bit more pronounced, however I know these sets in store are not calibrated. just straight out the box settings.

ofcourse I am being very anal however it was there. esp next to an xbr3. The sammy 4695 held its own in terms of color, backlight, black levels, and overall crisp text.

I want to know this before I pull the trigger on the sammy, the xbr2/3 is a bit pricey and I cant see spending more for essentially similar quality as the sammy. so please post optional settings and I will go back to store, tweak a bit. After you guys tweaked your sets, are the difference that much better, I guess i need to know from those of you who played with the sammy.

overall i know you guys are happy about the samsung 40-4695 line. I am willing to overlook this whole lack of 1:1 mapping cuz my pc usage will be minimal and to be honest sitting next to an xbr3....i found the sammy to have an overall more punch.

Great pics TonyK2. That picture looks fantastic. I'd also be interested to get your views on SD. Congrats on the new TV.

Got mine on Friday. Spent some time with SD, DVD, and a few consoles to get an overall impression.

First thing first, this is a great looking TV and the black laquer finish does not reflect light to any degree that would bother most people. I think it looks great on or off.

Since I know SD TV would be the least impressive I started there. Depending on the quality of your CABLE/SAT SD signal you will proably see very diffrent results. From comcast the low changes look fairly poor but watchable. The channels that have a good signal to start with, though, look pretty good. I was comming from a top of the line XBR 32 HD ready TV so I was expecting a let down but it really is not that bad.

I will say this, if you primary source of material is SD sports and you don't have HD in your future you will be disapointed. This TV, like most HD LCD TVs, doe not do that well with fine detail on SD sports. I was watching the US OPEN and I certainly had a better picture with my old 32 tube but it was still watchable. On the plus side other SD station looked nearly as good as my old tube TV so overall SD TV is still decent. Bottom line is you need to have higher def source to really use this TV and if you don't you should just wait or stick with your old Tube.

Next, I tried my DVD player. Its component, progressive but not upscaling so its putting out 480P. It looked very nice. Its no HD-DVD but it will do. I am actual picking up a upscaling Denon 1730 and I am hoping for a step up in picture quality but my old DVD player looked very good so I am looking forward to that.

Finaly, I tried out the Xbox 360.... (more later)

That sticker on the left side with all the logos easily came off my set... I then attached it to the backside!

You will want to check this out if you are wondering whats next with Samsung

http://www.samsungexhibition.com/blog/blog.jsp?userid=Jonathan&view=-1837867521&seqno=105

Looks great. But what's up with the sub-1080p resolution?

That sticker on the left side with all the logos easily came off my set... I then attached it to the backside!
Funny, I did the same thing.

Great pics TonyK2. That picture looks fantastic. I'd also be interested to get your views on SD. Congrats on the new TV.
Riptide, in my opinion, with cable (COMCAST) I don't notice much of a difference for SD between the 45 and my old JVC 36 inch monster CRT. In some cases, I think it is slightly better. However, if alll I was going to do was was SD I wouldn't have bought the TV...well maybe because 480P DVD does look like HD and the new upconverting DVD recorder will supposedly bring it up to 720P.

As others have said, if you look very close SD is not a pretty sight but about 6 to 8 feet away looks OK for SD.

T

Thanks TonyK2. I watch a lot of SD television, but will also be using it for DVD (Blu-ray or HD-DVD when the prices fall a bit) and PC viewing, so it will pretty much serve every purpose. My seating arrangement will be about 8-10 feet away from the set, so it should be fine. Thanks a lot for the info.

For the 50 millionth time, use the search function.

Samsung does not have 1:1 pixel map over HDMI, period, end of story.

D-sub is available, but D-sub aint no digital.

There are programs that can reduce overscan, but you end up with less than 1920X1080.

In short, your choices for 1920x1080p PC digital signals are:

SONY XBR2/3
Westinghouse 42" or 47" 1080p

Shame that Samsung chose to not mplement a full pixel mode for their TV's.

Does any Sony or Samsung display 720p (1360X768) over HDMI?

Thanks i want a 32" Samsung but I want to hook up my PC digitially, so maybe I will get a 32 sony.

Thanks

So... The Xbox 360 component versus VGA/PC hookup on this TV.

The short answer, components wins. Component simply looks better and more importantly you can use all the video adjustments including color saturation which is critical. Hooking the 360 up with the VGA does give you a slightly (and I mean slight) better clarity of image however the image is washed out. No amount of contrast increase or brightness ajustments get you a vibrant image.

Since the VGA/PC connection does not allow these ajustments I would argue that the VGA connection is a bit of an afterthought. I understand why you don't want to process the image from a VGA input but not being able to adjust the color saturation makes it much less useful for a console. A good video card from a PC may allow image adjustments that could fix this but I have not tried a PC out yet. For Xbox 360 though the only negative when using component is the 2% overscan that some games (like GRAW) did not account for. For most game the overscan is expected and is not even an issue. So I would rather give up 2% of the screen to get a much better looking image.

Quality wise the 360 looks amazing. Crystal clear and I don't notice any motion blur in the game I have thrown at it. The "Game Mode" also looks good and reduces the amount of processing but you can still adjust things like color to make it look its best.

I also checked out the PS2 on the system and it produced a very good image. Show of the collosus even help up zoom in 16:9 mode. One thing I think that is required for the older consoles is a component connection. The image just looks much deeper with better black level when you use these hookups.

All in all, I am very happy this this TV. While the next generation of LED backlight LCD TV will likely blow this panel away, its certainly one of the best LCD TVs out there and look close to plasma in dark sceens and even better in bright ones. The LCD TV problems have certainly not been eliminated by a long shot but this TV reduces those issues quite a bit and given the right source, the TV really shines.

The only question I have is if the upscaling DVD player will make standard DVD look even better. I thing it looks pretty good already but I am hoping for a bump in quality.

NOTE: DNIe is not very useful if you don't like sacrificing quite a bit of detail for percived contrast ration. I would only use this in rare occations for sure.

Samsung USA does a bad job of updating the specs of their TVs. Example is this 4696d component 1080p input fiasco.

In addition when you call there customer service line, they seem not to know more than what a lay person can find on the web.

Anyone knows why it seems like samsung downgrades the models shipped to the USA. Are we getting their 6 month old models. Or is there some kind of trade laws preventing them from selling us their top of the line tech.

Example. I pre-ordered the 5296d. When trying to do research? I barely can find anything. All the info I can find looks like a exact cut and paste of 4696d. So I called samsung, the person helping me tried his best but I knew more about the tv from what I found on their web site ;) .

I went on the Samsung Korean site. I found the LN52M71BD. It looks exactly like the LNS-5296d, its dimension and weight are exactly the same. But its specs are better. 7000:1, 6ms, 180 degree viewing angle. etc What is going on here?

Is samsung just un-tweaking the capabilities of its LCD when they ship them here? Or are the specs just lost in translation ? :D :confused:

I just hope the specs stay as close to the 4696d as possible. Before the 4696d came out I thought they would have a dynamic ratio of 7000:1.

Can any of you 95/96d owners tell where your LCD TV was manufactured? Mexico,Korea, China, etc? Thanks
As previously noted, my understanding is that the current generation of Sony and Samsung LCD flat panels are made in the same plant. Is anyone able to verify this? If this is the case, the differences between comparable models of the 2 brands should be relatively limited. Video processing certainly may favor one brand to a certain extent, of course.

Secondly, would also the current owners be able to tell me where this set (LNS 4696/ 4096) is manufactured? Thanks, in advance.

So... The Xbox 360 component versus VGA/PC hookup on this TV.

The short answer, components wins. Component simply looks better and more importantly you can use all the video adjustments including color saturation which is critical. Hooking the 360 up with the VGA does give you a slightly (and I mean slight) better clarity of image however the image is washed out. No amount of contrast increase or brightness ajustments get you a vibrant image.

Since the VGA/PC connection does not allow these ajustments I would argue that the VGA connection is a bit of an afterthought. I understand why you don't want to process the image from a VGA input but not being able to adjust the color saturation makes it much less useful for a console. A good video card from a PC may allow image adjustments that could fix this but I have not tried a PC out yet. For Xbox 360 though the only negative when using component is the 2% overscan that some games (like GRAW) did not account for. For most game the overscan is expected and is not even an issue. So I would rather give up 2% of the screen to get a much better looking image.

Quality wise the 360 looks amazing. Crystal clear and I don't notice any motion blur in the game I have thrown at it. The "Game Mode" also looks good and reduces the amount of processing but you can still adjust things like color to make it look its best.

I also checked out the PS2 on the system and it produced a very good image. Show of the collosus even help up zoom in 16:9 mode. One thing I think that is required for the older consoles is a component connection. The image just looks much deeper with better black level when you use these hookups.

All in all, I am very happy this this TV. While the next generation of LED backlight LCD TV will likely blow this panel away, its certainly one of the best LCD TVs out there and look close to plasma in dark sceens and even better in bright ones. The LCD TV problems have certainly not been eliminated by a long shot but this TV reduces those issues quite a bit and given the right source, the TV really shines.

The only question I have is if the upscaling DVD player will make standard DVD look even better. I thing it looks pretty good already but I am hoping for a bump in quality.

NOTE: DNIe is not very useful if you don't like sacrificing quite a bit of detail for percived contrast ration. I would only use this in rare occations for sure.

Define 2% on 360.. as in my screen gets cut off or as in more jaggies showing cuz it not properly showing the screen or scaling it if you know what i mean.

if possible post some 360 shots, since i am interested in this set I would not want to have to drag my 360 to the store before I buy. lol :)

It's called HD-lite. If you visit the satellite forums, you'll hear a lot more about it. DirecTV broadcasts many of their HD channels in 1280 x 1080 interlaced rather than 1920 x 1080 interlaced, which is much lower in resolution than 720p (1280 x 720 progressive) or 1080i (1920 x 1080 interlaced). Dish is better but they also have some channels in HD lite at 1280 x 1080 interlaced.


Also, aren't there problems with H20 with this line of Samsungs when using HDMI? Maybe you can address your PQ issue with DirecTV and they can throw in this fix along with the HDMI fix.

Yeah, I noticed how crappy the ESPN HD picure looked on pretty much all of the TV sets at Circuit City last weekend. I don't think you should base any conclusions about the picture quality capabilities of a TV set based on ESPN HD. I'm glad I am more of a movie buff than a sports fan, because I would be pissed with ESPN trying to convince me that that crap they have on ESPN "HD" is really an HD signal.

has any one heard any updates on when the 5296 will be out? last thing i read was sept. 8. when i started the search for a flat panel tv...i wanted a 50" plasmas (panasonic) at the time...then i realized that an LCD panel was the better choice for me but they didn't have 50" lcds...the biggest ones were 46"...now that they've announced a 52...i'm waiting...but i've been waiting a while for 4696 and they just barely came out...

has any one heard any updates on when the 5296 will be out? last thing i read was sept. 8. when i started the search for a flat panel tv...i wanted a 50" plasmas (panasonic) at the time...then i realized that an LCD panel was the better choice for me but they didn't have 50" lcds...the biggest ones were 46"...now that they've announced a 52...i'm waiting...but i've been waiting a while for 4696 and they just barely came out...

They said my will ship last week of Sept and I should receive no later than the 2nd week of october depending of which distribution center it ships from. They would not give me a specific date when I asked.

Hi all, I got my 4695 Wednesday from DataVision! I got a surprise call from the shipper saying the truck was roaming around trying to find my house. The shipper never actually called me prior to this but as WS said, "all's well that ends well.".....

Nice pictures and comments...

The shippers for Datavision tried to deliver my 4695 on 09/06 but I was out of town and therefore I will have to wait until Monday (09/11) to get it :( I too, did not get a call from them before the attempted delivery (I know since my wife was home). I see that you have the exact same stand that I got for the TV. Got mine at Target..where did you get yours? Mine is silver (I would have preferred the black but they only had the black in the larger size which I did not want.

P.S: Did you plug in the TV and test it while the delivery man was still there or was it just a visual inspection? I also got a couple of cheapo HDMI cables from ebay.. nice to know that they work just as well as much more expensive cables.

I saw some reduced prices on the Samsung LCD panels at Crutchfield for those that care. The 5296 went from 6k to 5k.

Define 2% on 360.. as in my screen gets cut off or as in more jaggies showing cuz it not properly showing the screen or scaling it if you know what i mean. if possible post some 360 shots, since i am interested in this set I would not want to have to drag my 360 to the store before I buy. lol :)


Overscan is not related to PQ (or jaggies) in this case. Since the Xbox 360 is putting out 720P and the TV is 1080P it always has to scale. There is no way to get 1:1 on the 360 unless you have a fixed 720P digital display. I guess you could argue that with the PS3 it could effect PQ since it can put out 1080 but I doubt its going to make any diffence at all.

The "2%" is the amount of overscan or the amount that gets cut off around the edges. The only game where people have even noticed it is in GRAW. The outline of the HUD in graw is very close to the edges of the screen and with 0% overscan the entire line can be seen. 2% is not that much either. My old Tube EDTV in 1080i mode was more like 5% so its much better than that. Tube TVs have more difficulty with geometry which is one of the reasons for overscan in the first place. Maybe years from now when most TVs are digital they will get rid of the expectation of any overscan but for now 2% is not bad at all.

You can take a look at this thread for a discussion:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7288828

The first picture there is showing what look like a 3-4% overscan. I see more of the image than that since the 4095 since its only 2%. I see almost the entire outline of the hud.

Honestly, this is really a mistake by the GRAW developers. Most people playing Xbox 360 will have at least 2-4% overscan and some Tube TVs have more than 6%. So they should (in general) not throw things like that around the edge. Its such a minor thing though. Its just a blue line around the edge of the screen. While some HDTVs do have 0% in some input modes, 2% not much to give up. I believe most video processors (even HDMI 1080/720) overscan and its the exception to not do any overscan. I am not saying its optimal but because of edges of sources having no data (black bars) or sometime using that area for digital data (look like noise around the edge) most TVs stick with some small amount of overscan. Trust me, this is not a big issue and game developers will most likely account for this 99 times out of 100.
From Microsoft: "Games must display all text and menu items critical to gameplay, using the game's default settings, within the inner 90 percent of the x and y resolution for all display modes. While games may allow players to adjust the screen position and sizing, default game settings must adhere to this requirement. Although a minimum of 90 percent is required for title safe area... the safe area varies widely across TVs."
As far as posting images, I may try that but my crappy 200DPI camera can not do the image quality for Xbox 360 justice. For my own sanity, I had a friend of mine who owns the Sceptre (or Scepter?) LCD TV come over for some comparisons. He was dissapointed. Not in the Samsung but in his own LCD :). He kept saying, pop in some game and I will show you where is shows ghosting or jaggies. And on the 4095 we could not see any of the issues he was talking about! The image always sharp and there were no signs of ghosting, motion blur etc. He was also impressed with the clarity of the text, the black level, and the great color representation (his does not have the best reds).

My feeling at this point is that this TV is one of the best for Xbox 360 display. This pannel realy shines when its fed high rez sources.

The only negative, in my experience, is that LCD TVs (including this one) are still not the best in very dark sceens. Most games are not all that dark but in the caves of oblivion , for example, the weakest aspect of LCDs are apparent. In these dark sceens some of the contrast is lost in black. But to some extent that was to force you to use a torch :) I had the same problem on my old TV but I am pretty sure on the high end plasmas these sceens do look better. You can read all about this on other threads in paticular LCD verus Plasma threads.

On the other hand, brighter scenes always look amazing. Plasma may handle dark scenes a bit better but I still feel like this LCD comes pretty close for dark sceens and it does much better in PQ especially in a typically lighted game.

Thanks Padrino, great explanation.

The only negative, in my experience, is that LCD TVs (including this one) are still not the best in very dark sceens. Most games are not all that dark but in the caves of oblivion , for example, the weakest aspect of LCDs are apparent. In these dark sceens some of the contrast is lost in black. But to some extent that was to force you to use a torch :) I had the same problem on my old TV but I am pretty sure on the high end plasmas these sceens do look better.

Padrino, I'm interested in the 4095D Sammy myself. Have you turned off DNIe and switched from Dynamic (the Sammy equivalent of torch) to either Custom or Standard settings? Have you tweaked the black/contrast to boost the details on the black portions of the game/movie/show? I tried doing all those things with a 4605D LCD at CC that was showing dark movie clips that looked awesome on the Panny plasmas (particularly darkened rock formations in 'LOTR: The Two Towers') but were ugly blotches of undetailed black on the Sammy LCD. After I tweaked the 4695D it looked much better than before and showed more details on the dark clips (though still not as clean-looking as the Panny plasma). I'm not trying to fool myself (or you) into thinking the 4095D Sammy can compete with top-of-the-line Pio or Panny plasmas, but aren't you being a bit harsh with your comments about the 'Oblivion' caves having little to no contrast? If enough tweaking is done I think you could be surprised what some tweaks and service menu modifications can do for your set. Just ask Bear5K! ;)

Greetings.............
Thanx to a lot of good & useful info in this thread I decided while back that my second display will be Sammy 4095D (my 1st NEC 50XR5A).
I got my Sammy last monday and I wanna tell you guys for some reason I haven't touch my plasma since. And my plasma isn't too bad either!! The PQ is awesome
in HD and eventhough I'm sitting about only 6 'to 7' away but with the help of my
DVDO VP30 it is a pleasure to watch this display at native 1080p even in SD.

To people who are not 100% sure, Go for it , U won't regret it!

Thanx again to all........................John

I think you guys should start a 4095/4695/96 owners thread about calibration similar to the xbr2/3 and post settings/ pictures.

Nice pictures and comments...

The shippers for Datavision tried to deliver my 4695 on 09/06 but I was out of town and therefore I will have to wait until Monday (09/11) to get it :( I too, did not get a call from them before the attempted delivery (I know since my wife was home). I see that you have the exact same stand that I got for the TV. Got mine at Target..where did you get yours? Mine is silver (I would have preferred the black but they only had the black in the larger size which I did not want.

P.S: Did you plug in the TV and test it while the delivery man was still there or was it just a visual inspection? I also got a couple of cheapo HDMI cables from ebay.. nice to know that they work just as well as much more expensive cables.
Hi Don,

I don't think freight will wait while you test your TV...in most cases they will just drop the TV by the curb but the driver did help me put it in the hallway. Last time I had freight it was a big cedar chest which was slightly damaged. Got a new one but they never wanted back the one slightly damaged so got a bonus.

As I mentioned previously, and you may already know this but I didn't, when you get the TV locate the two white plastic squares at the bottom of the box. Squeeze together the tabs on the white square which will release it and pull it out. Do that on both sides and then pull up the box and the bottom remains. I was about to use a knife...glad I finally understood the diagram. :-)


Anyway, got the stand from Fry's and do think the piano black model was the best. It goes very well with the 45/46 and I got rid of my old wooden stand and I don't think wood, however nice goes as well with glass and a glossy black...silver is good as well but of course of matter of aesthetics. One thing for sure IMO, the Samsung is just more elegant than Sony and most of the others and has really made the living room much more elegant than having a monster CRT that seemed clunky. Also freed up a little space.

Frys had the larger stand (for DLP and 50 inch plus plasma) but think the 48 inch stand the best for the 45/46 (one inch left on either side). I certainly wouldn't pay $125 for a HDMI cable and seen them that high.

It's been four days and all is well with the 45. Should get the Samsung upconverter DVD recorder tomorrow and see if there is any difference between that and my old 480P player. Even on the 480P Star Wars III is impressive and does look really HD...not just marginally so.


One other comment...may seem trivial but I really like the fact that you can swivel the TV as sometimes I might sit somewhere else. All large screen TVs should have this feature. Moves with one finger.

Tony

P.S. Overall I will have to give DataVision a very positive write up on ebay. Being an authorized Samsung dealer is important. Many people have gotten burned using nextag or even cnet ratings which I think are maniuplated by some unethical vendors. I think the best place to get a legitmate online retailer is...well right here on the AVS Forum...opinions by real people. Of course, if you don't know what you want, I think Westa said correctly, don't buy via online.

Hi Don,

.... Should get the Samsung upconverter DVD recorder tomorrow and see if there is any difference between that and my old 480P player. Even on the 480P Star Wars III is impressive and does look really HD...not just marginally so.



If you are waiting for the freebie DVD player from Datavision, you may be interested to know that it is a factory refurbished unit and not a brand new unit. Mine seems to be working well (I got my DVD player a few days ago, but as noted in my previous post, I have yet to take delivery of the 4695)

Don

Padrino, I'm interested in the 4095D Sammy myself. Have you turned off DNIe and switched from Dynamic (the Sammy equivalent of torch) to either Custom or Standard settings? Have you tweaked the black/contrast to boost the details on the black portions of the game/movie/show? I tried doing all those things with a 4605D LCD at CC that was showing dark movie clips that looked awesome on the Panny plasmas (particularly darkened rock formations in 'LOTR: The Two Towers') but were ugly blotches of undetailed black on the Sammy LCD. After I tweaked the 4695D it looked much better than before and showed more details on the dark clips (though still not as clean-looking as the Panny plasma). I'm not trying to fool myself (or you) into thinking the 4095D Sammy can compete with top-of-the-line Pio or Panny plasmas, but aren't you being a bit harsh with your comments about the 'Oblivion' caves having little to no contrast? If enough tweaking is done I think you could be surprised what some tweaks and service menu modifications can do for your set. Just ask Bear5K! ;)


DNIe is not worth much as I suspected. I turn in off for every mode. It can be turned off in every mode (even torch mode :)).

I am messing around with the picture settings and it helps quite a bit. Basicly 3 of the 4 modes are completely configurable (Custom, Standard, and Dynamic) and "Movie" mode by passes some of the image processing which has better detail in dark sceens but sacrifices some contrast.

The factory settings for all of the are just cranked contrast and diffrent color temps but they are all configurable so if you set the contrast, brightness, etc to the same they (Standard, Custom, and Dynamic) all look the same.

So I will configure one for Xbox 360, one for Day viewing and one for night viewing and one for DVD. Its a pretty good setup since you can configure basicly 4 difrent setup and most likely one will be close to what you want. With LCD time of day will make you want to adjust the contrast/bright but the menus are pretty good. I would like direct access to brightness and contrast but the remote does not have them (you have to go through menu). I am hoping its like Sony and you can still access those codes through some remote code. I have the Harmony remote and they often are able to access remote codes that are not on the remote itself so I am crossing my fingers.

As is the case with other LCDs I think plasmas are better with very dark sceens and LCDs are better with bright ones. The settings can make an improvement but it won't make it perform the same black gradations as plasma.

One tip, when you are looking at one in a store (or anywhere) make sure you stand back the correct distance. What looks a bit blotchy standing right in front of it may look perfectly fine at 8 feet. Always evalute LCD at the distance you will be sitting at home.

I also notice that the blotch dark sceens are more noticable with SD and DVD but with the new HD DVD it does much better but still not as good as the best plasmas.

Thanks for the tips though, I will take a look for Bear5K information. Maybe a LN-S4095/4695/4096/4696 owners thread is a good idea.

If you are waiting for the freebie DVD player from Datavision, you may be interested to know that it is a factory refurbished unit and not a brand new unit. Mine seems to be working well (I got my DVD player a few days ago, but as noted in my previous post, I have yet to take delivery of the 4695)

Don
No, getting a DVD recorder separately.

Tony

Got some questions for ya on SD viewing if you can help me out here. Our new 4695D TV (put on a waiting list) will be used mostly for SD viewing so how would they compare to say like a Sony 40" direct view CRT? I haven't seen a better TV for SD viewing than the Sony 40" direct view so is this Samsung LCD set only as good as plasma or other microdisplays (LCD RP, DLP, LCOS) for SD viewing? I know it's great on HD viewing but this TV will do about 80% SD viewing until we get a HD DVD or Blu Ray or what not, which looks about a year away for my family. And this TV will be replacing our Sony 50" LCD rear projection TV. Thanks a bunch.

The 4695 will not perform as well in SD than those other options, but the difference won't be huge though.

Are you sure you'll be watching 80% SD?

That's pretty hard to do, unless you're into the 3 Stooges. ;)

I too would be interested in a settings only thread. At least for confirmation!

how much of a difference does turning off DNie have on the samsung 4695.

It's a pretty big differance on the 4095.

If you are waiting for the freebie DVD player from Datavision, you may be interested to know that it is a factory refurbished unit and not a brand new unit. Mine seems to be working well (I got my DVD player a few days ago, but as noted in my previous post, I have yet to take delivery of the 4695)

Don
Don, actually I am in the wait for the DVD player....hopefully I get it in working order... I didnt quite expect it to be a "brand-new" one anyways :)

But I have to agree with Tony2k that they have been good in delivery and prompt on replying to queries (by email).

But there is always one splinter in that head of mine... how di I know the TV was not a refurbished one... is there a way to look for that?

Nevertheless, have recieved the 4095 and watched the USOPEN final in style !
and comcast gives (proably thats the way others have had it) both, channels in HD and in SD. so you can make a direct comparison between for eg: TNT-HD and TNT-SD.

I am yet to recieve my HDMI cable that I ordered....
Need to post some pictures too. will do that.
And yes I whole heartedly support the settings thread being proposed... I am still trying to get the best feel of hte colours.

Don, actually I am in the wait for the DVD player....hopefully I get it in working order... I didnt quite expect it to be a "brand-new" one anyways :)

But I have to agree with Tony2k that they have been good in delivery and prompt on replying to queries (by email).

But there is always one splinter in that head of mine... how di I know the TV was not a refurbished one... is there a way to look for that?

Nevertheless, have recieved the 4095 and watched the USOPEN final in style !
and comcast gives (proably thats the way others have had it) both, channels in HD and in SD. so you can make a direct comparison between for eg: TNT-HD and TNT-SD.

I am yet to recieve my HDMI cable that I ordered....
Need to post some pictures too. will do that.
And yes I whole heartedly support the settings thread being proposed... I am still trying to get the best feel of hte colours.

These TVs (4095/4695/4096/4696) are so new that it is highly unlikely that the TV you received is a refurbished unit. My TV arrived today and everything appeared to be brand new and sealed. The DVD player came in a box that clearly said "Refurbished" in bold letters; the absence of this on the TV box is another indication that it is not (refurbished, that is). I had to take a few minutes off from work to receive the TV so I have not yet had a chance to play with it. Just did a quick hook-up to my Dish HD receiver and my DVD player. HD programming on Dish looked stellar, as did the DVD on a panasonic progressive scan player (does not up-convert). SD, however, was disappointing (looked worse than my previous RCA rear-projection HDTV). Have to see if fiddling with some of the settings will improve PQ on SD.

Great TV. I received the tv on last Friday. Watched the US Open as well on CBSHD. So far i havent noticed any lag with XBOX, XBOX 360, and PS2 even without the game mode off. I havent tested the gamecube yet.

However, I may have received a defective one. Sometime the color will get really weird, very bright shiny colors appear on some parts of the picture like on the face of a person and in other places. I called Samsung and they are sending out a repair person. For now the TV started to work properly again. It works for hours and then wierd color thing for hours, it is rather eratic.

One complaint about ps2 using Component cable is that, the tv underscans, creating left and right black bars which are about 1 inch each. I dont think this is a certain game issue because PS2 settings meu also appear this way. I think it has something to do with the tv having extra pixels because of the resolution of the tv. The same ps2 with same component cables worked flawlessly on my rear projection tv in widescreen mode without any left and right bars. I also tested the ps2 with dvd movies(1:85:1) and the movie filled up the whole screen without any side bars.

Personally i am very happy with the tv especially the image quality even with the defects (I am sure samsung will take care of this).

Great TV. I received the tv on last Friday.

What model (40/4695D, 40/4696)?

So... The Xbox 360 component versus VGA/PC hookup on this TV.

The short answer, components wins. Component simply looks better and more importantly you can use all the video adjustments including color saturation which is critical. Hooking the 360 up with the VGA does give you a slightly (and I mean slight) better clarity of image however the image is washed out. No amount of contrast increase or brightness ajustments get you a vibrant image.

Since the VGA/PC connection does not allow these ajustments I would argue that the VGA connection is a bit of an afterthought. I understand why you don't want to process the image from a VGA input but not being able to adjust the color saturation makes it much less useful for a console. A good video card from a PC may allow image adjustments that could fix this but I have not tried a PC out yet. For Xbox 360 though the only negative when using component is the 2% overscan that some games (like GRAW) did not account for. For most game the overscan is expected and is not even an issue. So I would rather give up 2% of the screen to get a much better looking image.



How in the world did you get the XBOX 360 VGA connection to work? I bought one for my 4095 and I get a screen saying "not supported".

How in the world did you get the XBOX 360 VGA connection to work? I bought one for my 4095 and I get a screen saying "not supported".

I had no problem getting it to work but if you got a "not supported" resolution you could have hooked up the Xbox to another display (I also used my PC Tube Monitor) to change the resoution to something the Samsung would support.

The good news is you are not missing much IMO. The Samsung 4095 synced fine to 640x480, 800x600, and 1280x1025 all at 60Hz. Its possible that the Xbox 360 was defaulting to a VGA resolution that TV could not support but when I first hooked my 360 up to a VGA display it went to 640x480 which the Samsung seemed to handle fine.

I went ahead and create an OFFICIAL Samsung LN-S4095/4695/4096/4696 Owners Thread (www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=722482) For listing your TV calibration and other question to/from owners of these TVs.

good move man, I was wondering why there wasnt a thread on this.

I went ahead and create an OFFICIAL Samsung LN-S4095/4695/4096/4696 Owners Thread (www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=722482) For listing your TV calibration and other question to/from owners of these TVs.
May want to add the 5296 as the new cost effective king size LCD trumping the 50" PDP's as it is available for order for under $4K via authorized Samsung Dealer. :)

I saw some reduced prices on the Samsung LCD panels at Crutchfield for those that care. The 5296 went from 6k to 5k.
That price is $1300 above the Samsung authorized Dealer Datavis <$4K. You could buy another panel for the bedroom or get a quality AVR. ;)

I have a 5296 on order from ABT. They matched DataVis price. This is to replace a Sharp 45-5U that failed and could not be repaired. Sharp bought it back from me for nearly the full purchase price after 9 months of service. Although I felt Sharp handled this very well I think I'll pass on the next gen of Sharps and give Sony / Samsung a try. I spoke with Samsungs product manager who told me that the 52's are now shipping to distribution centers and should be at the dealers in the next 10 days. ABT shows a delivery of 9/22 which tracks well with that data. I have a full calibration setup (Spyder/CalMan) so I'll post a full report once I have it up and running.

May I ask you why you chose ABT over DataVis? I'm thinking of ordering from them in the coming months, and I'd appreciate any information regarding that decision.

That price is $1300 above the Samsung authorized Dealer Datavis <$4K. You could buy another panel for the bedroom or get a quality AVR. ;)

I'm struggling to decide between the Sammy 52" and the Sony XBR3 46". The PQ of the Sammy 46" and the Sony 46" are very similar IMHO. I love the looks of the Sony and the features but that extra 6" sure sounds good. And that price is awesome.

Decisions..decisions..decisions! :confused:

That price is $1300 above the Samsung authorized Dealer Datavis <$4K. You could buy another panel for the bedroom or get a quality AVR. ;)

That's awesome Westa, now what can you do to get that 57 down to 5k? :D

I went ahead and create an OFFICIAL Samsung LN-S4095/4695/4096/4696 Owners Thread (www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=722482) For listing your TV calibration and other question to/from owners of these TVs.

Might have been better to get a mod to change the title of this thread. Or to dump the contents of this thread into that one. In reality, we're talking about a 95/96 series Samsung LCD thread.

Having 2 threads covering the same material doesn't seem to really fit with the AVS model...

I chose ABT as they are local to me and have a fabulous reputation for service and customer support. They agreed to provide free delivery and adjust the cost so that my final price including tax would be equal to datavision's price with shipping. Could not turn that down. I have purchased from DataVision in the past (Syntax 32) and was very happy with their price and service also. If you are ever in the area the ABT store is a real treat to browse.

These TVs (4095/4695/4096/4696) are so new that it is highly unlikely that the TV you received is a refurbished unit. My TV arrived today and everything appeared to be brand new and sealed. The DVD player came in a box that clearly said "Refurbished" in bold letters; the absence of this on the TV box is another indication that it is not (refurbished, that is). I had to take a few minutes off from work to receive the TV so I have not yet had a chance to play with it. Just did a quick hook-up to my Dish HD receiver and my DVD player. HD programming on Dish looked stellar, as did the DVD on a panasonic progressive scan player (does not up-convert). SD, however, was disappointing (looked worse than my previous RCA rear-projection HDTV). Have to see if fiddling with some of the settings will improve PQ on SD.

Yeah with SD, I found that keeping the tone to warm 1 or warm 2 helps...
I will post my settings in the Officiial samsung thread created.... maybe we can see which we all like.

how great is the quality on the vga on this set. I really love the way the set is. ie design.

I read all the pages here ( as much as I could ) and all I saw was people bitching about overscan.

I want a set that I will use pc once in a while hence why i need to know how good is vga on this. ie are the colors clean, not washed out.

and can someone confirm 1920 on hdmi at 60hrz. overall I saw this 4695 in person and i cant find flaws in it at CC while playing the sammy demos. give or take some minor Digital noise artifacts, I think the set is Kick ass...awesome colors and great blacks.

I am still on a fence about this. esp since the xbr2 is pretty much similar..price wise. how would you guys compare the 4695 to the xbr2/3 line..

I read all the pages here ( as much as I could ) and all I saw was people bitching about overscan.

I want a set that I will use pc once in a while hence why i need to know how good is vga on this. ie are the colors clean, not washed out.



What's absurd is people complaining about SD quailty *and* overscan.

You need the overscan to trim a little flickering edge.

As for PC, if you're using it once in a while, 1-2% overscan will not bother you.

I got my 4696D about 2 weeks ago and it has been a learning experience to say the least. I started with a Basic Cable hookup, just moved out my old t.v. and plugged in the new one. The picture on the few digital channels that were available was amazing but unfortunately the PQ of the standard analog channels was miserable. What a let down. I had spent a couple months looking for the right t.v. and had been holding off until I could get this one. My wife was UNHAPPY and therefore you know the saying....

Anyway to make a very long story short I strung new RG6 cable to the cable companies demarc, added a 12db amp ahead of a 3 way splitter and voila the PQ on 95% of the channels was beyond expectation.

Now that the wife was happy I was able to start on a project I was interested in. After a bit of an investigation, I decided to get an inexpensive out door UHF antenna from Radio Shack. I put it on the roof after trying it in the attic and it added a bunch of over the air digital channels to our viewing pleasure. I used "antenna web" to figure out the directional position and than checked the "titantv" website to see what digital broadcasts I should be able to get. I get all but one. Since they are digital it's a better PQ than the same local channels coming over the cable.

I also hooked up the optical digital out on the 4696d to my ONKYO 5.1 system and the sound is as good as I've personally ever heard coming from a TV.

Used the USB to display some pictures but haven't spent a lot of time figuring the ins and outs of that yet. It seems there is a difference in what you see in slide show mode and single picture mode. My friend says you have to modify the resolution of the original picture to get the slide show to display the picture at full screen. I'm not sure that is correct or not.

Anyway, I'm finally happy with the purchase. I think this is an excellent tv but if you have a garbage signal going into it you are going to get a garbage display.

Hi, I just found this great website about a week ago and have been trying to absorb all that I can.

I am ready to purchase the Sammy LNS4696D if possible, but I am unable to locate a large retailer that has one set up....same is true for the LNS4695D.

I'd really like to see one in action prior to buying.

My plan is to buy either monitor (based on availability) along with the Yamaha YSP-1000 home theatre (or the upgrade to YSP-1100). I plan on using my cable provider's PVR as opposed to Tivo as well.

I am in central NJ and unable to find an active display for these TVs...does anyone know where I can see these TVs in action????

Any help for this noob is appreciated.

Sharps New Aquos LCD coming out October 1st!

Model No. LC46D62U.


I bring this to this thread because I was all set on the 4695 until I started reading about this one. Piano gloss bezel, hidden speakers ... looks sharp, but that's just the beginning!

4ms response time

4 wavelength backlight

Native contrast 2000 to 1

Dynamic contrast 10000 to 1

1080P

15W + 15W speakers


Very interested to see if this set is in fact superior to the 4696 or XBR in PQ. The statistics are quite compelling though to say the least!

Sharps New Aquos LCD coming out October 1st!

Model No. LC46D62U.


I bring this to this thread because I was all set on the 4695 until I started reading about this one. Piano gloss bezel, hidden speakers ... looks sharp, but that's just the beginning!

4ms response time

4 wavelength backlight

Native contrast 2000 to 1

Dynamic contrast 10000 to 1

1080P

15W + 15W speakers


Very interested to see if this set is in fact superior to the 4696 or XBR in PQ. The statistics are quite compelling though to say the least!

Wow! I get my sights set on the Sammy and now this! I had been interested in the Sharp Aquos prior to looking at the Sammy....hmmmm, read the specs, interesting.

mctruck

I think you can find these at Circuit City (Eatontown has had them on display)

Wow! I get my sights set on the Sammy and now this! I had been interested in the Sharp Aquos prior to looking at the Sammy....hmmmm, read the specs, interesting.

I was just about to pull the trigger on a 4695, I still may for that matter, but it doesn't seem that we'll have to wait too long to at least compare. Who knows, maybe the Samsung will still be better.

Ironically, once the new Sharps are in stock and dealers start competing with one another on price, it appears that they might be $500 less than the Sammys.

I guess we'll have to see about the PQ before we get too excited.


Man, this purchase for me has become a marathon. Started with the debate between Panny, NEC and Pioneer Plasmas and have switched to LCD's and am debating between Samsung, Sony and Sharp. I've spent an inordinate amount of time on this already ... It kind of sucks actually.

mctruck

I think you can find these at Circuit City (Eatontown has had them on display)

The CC's by me don't have them yet!

mctruck

I think you can find these at Circuit City (Eatontown has had them on display)

Mark,

Thanks, I'll check them out this weekend. All BB, CC, EE near me still do not have any on display.

I was just about to pull the trigger on a 4695, I still may for that matter, but it doesn't seem that we'll have to wait too long to at least compare. Who knows, maybe the Samsung will still be better.

Ironically, once the new Sharps are in stock and dealers start competing with one another on price, it appears that they might be $500 less than the Sammys.

I guess we'll have to see about the PQ before we get too excited.


Man, this purchase for me has become a marathon. Started with the debate between Panny, NEC and Pioneer Plasmas and have switched to LCD's and am debating between Samsung, Sony and Sharp. I've spent an inordinate amount of time on this already ... It kind of sucks actually.

I'm right there with you. This has been a huge learning curve for me since I haven't kept up with the changes for the past few years.

I am still concerned about the setup and execution of this purchase which looks like it will cost in excess of $5K. Lost of cabbage for home entertainment. I like the fact that the Sharp is cheaper than the Sammy. But if I can't compare side by side, I'm SOL.

I am also looking for a 46" 1080p LCD but I decided to wait to see the Sharp offerings:

by that time there should be more competitive models in good supply and this could mean some serious price competition


So if you can wait just a little longer.....

I am also looking for a 46" 1080p LCD but I decided to wait to see the Sharp offerings:

by that time there should be more competitive models in good supply and this could mean some serious price competition


So if you can wait just a little longer.....

I can wait, I have waited this long. Still reading up on issues concerning wall mounts, power sources, the need for upgraded cables and any other components for home theatre besides the monitor, sound system and PVR. I may get an additional DVD recorder, still waiting to see what happens with Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD.

I am also looking for a 46" 1080p LCD but I decided to wait to see the Sharp offerings:

by that time there should be more competitive models in good supply and this could mean some serious price competition


So if you can wait just a little longer.....

I'm becoming impatient. I had already ordered the 4695 at MyTaxFree and then after waiting almost 3 weeks and having found out they placed an unauthorized charge to my credit card a week after the purchase, I cancelled the order.

MyTaxFree can certainly cross me off their list as a potential buyer .. but hey if this new Sharp is "all that" then maybe it was a blessing in disguise!

what is the one difference between the S4695D model and the S4696D model??

thank you.

www.samsung.com log on. pull up specs. ... read. or use search features here.

what is the one difference between the S4695D model and the S4696D model??
thank you.
4696 has CableCard slot, USB and Firewire port on the side. And "cool looking" glass strip along the bottom.

Also, earlier in this same thread (post 2302) starbucks66 had a theory:

“People in this forum always blames it to the source, but could processing be a contributor, too? How do you guys explain the $600 difference between 4696 and 4695? DCR and USB can not worth that much. Here is my thought…
1. Maybe 4696 has a better video processor/scaler that Samsung is not telling us
2. More likely is that The current 1080p capability is fully utilized only by internal tuners which can bypass the video processor's overscan on 1080i signal, and thus producing better pictures. For this reason, cable customers get better pictures on 4696 than satellite customers on 4695, and thus the demand gap, and the price difference.”

--Anyone else have thoughts on this theory?

Also, earlier in this same thread (post 2302) starbucks66 had a theory:

“People in this forum always blames it to the source, but could processing be a contributor, too? How do you guys explain the $600 difference between 4696 and 4695? DCR and USB can not worth that much. Here is my thought…
1. Maybe 4696 has a better video processor/scaler that Samsung is not telling us
2. More likely is that The current 1080p capability is fully utilized only by internal tuners which can bypass the video processor's overscan on 1080i signal, and thus producing better pictures. For this reason, cable customers get better pictures on 4696 than satellite customers on 4695, and thus the demand gap, and the price difference.”

--Anyone else have thoughts on this theory?

Seems to be quite speculative.

I'm curious though ... What display do you believe satellite customers receive the best picture on?

I have no clue. I have seen them both at big box stores running 1080p feeds via HDMI from manufacturer hard drives. They both look great. I'm going with the 4696 and will have it hooked up to Verizon Fios TV in about three weeks. So, I guess I'll report back then with more info.

edit...The only reason I'm going with the 4696 is due to the fact my wife likes the glass strip on the bottom. The real question I'm grappling with, is do I go with the Verizon DVR box, or the Tivo S3? Will there be a difference in PQ? I'm too much of a nubee to know these things. I still don't really understand what a CableCard does.

I have no clue. I have seen them both at big box stores running 1080p feeds via HDMI from manufacturer hard drives. They both look great. I'm going with the 4696 and will have it hooked up to Verizon Fios TV in about three weeks. So, I guess I'll report back then with more info.

edit...The only reason I'm going with the 4696 is due to the fact my wife likes the glass strip on the bottom. The real question I'm grappling with, is do I go with the Verizon DVR box, or the Tivo S3? Will there be a difference in PQ? I'm too much of a nubee to know these things. I still don't really understand what a CableCard does.
The TIVO S3 is a new HD DVR I believe and you definitely would want that with a 1080P display.

The TIVO S3 is a new HD DVR I believe and you definitely would want that with a 1080P display.
What good does that do me if there is no 1080p content to record?

Sorry….Did not mean to get OT. This is a thread about the sammy displays. Didn’t want to turn it into a “fios DVR vs. fios with Tivo S3” thing. Tried to start a new thread about that here:
linky here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=723985&referrerid=47984)

Mark,

Thanks, I'll check them out this weekend. All BB, CC, EE near me still do not have any on display.


I went to Eatontown today, they did not have either TV on display or in stock. CC is redoing their showroom next week and mahe have one soon on display.

I am very frustrated, I went to 12 retailers today in Eatontown, Woodbridge and Bridgewater (CC, EE, BB) and no one has a LNS4695D (or even heard of the 4696D!) on display.

Am I going to have to go to NYC to see this damn TV????? They all say..."this set is 1080p and will look just like the Samsung". BS.

I am fed up.

Samsung has a "factory" showroom at Columbus Circle. Undoubtedly you can see it there. Only caveat is that (at least as of the last time I was there back in February) the ONLY source they have is their internal PC based network. No cable. No ability to look at SD material. No DVD players hooked up, although I really pressed them on that one and the guy switched inputs to what was obviously a made up DVD, it has one 90 second scene from LotR and that was it.

Samsung has a "factory" showroom at Columbus Circle. Undoubtedly you can see it there. Only caveat is that (at least as of the last time I was there back in February) the ONLY source they have is their internal PC based network. No cable. No ability to look at SD material. No DVD players hooked up, although I really pressed them on that one and the guy switched inputs to what was obviously a made up DVD, it has one 90 second scene from LotR and that was it.
Yes, Be careful in these showrooms when they are showing you these sets. Like I said before…The sets I saw (4695 & 4696) were showing 1080p via HDMI from a Sammy proprietary hard drive thingy, with content that was shot in 1080p. Of course it's going to look better than everything else. All this hardware was hidden under the table. Make them take out a good up scaling DVD player or whatever and hook it up if you are going to make your decision based on eyeballing PQ.

I got my 4696D about 2 weeks ago and it has been a learning experience to say the least. I started with a Basic Cable hookup, just moved out my old t.v. and plugged in the new one. The picture on the few digital channels that were available was amazing but unfortunately the PQ of the standard analog channels was miserable. What a let down. I had spent a couple months looking for the right t.v. and had been holding off until I could get this one. My wife was UNHAPPY and therefore you know the saying....

Anyway to make a very long story short I strung new RG6 cable to the cable companies demarc, added a 12db amp ahead of a 3 way splitter and voila the PQ on 95% of the channels was beyond expectation.

Now that the wife was happy I was able to start on a project I was interested in. After a bit of an investigation, I decided to get an inexpensive out door UHF antenna from Radio Shack. I put it on the roof after trying it in the attic and it added a bunch of over the air digital channels to our viewing pleasure. I used "antenna web" to figure out the directional position and than checked the "titantv" website to see what digital broadcasts I should be able to get. I get all but one. Since they are digital it's a better PQ than the same local channels coming over the cable.

I also hooked up the optical digital out on the 4696d to my ONKYO 5.1 system and the sound is as good as I've personally ever heard coming from a TV.

Used the USB to display some pictures but haven't spent a lot of time figuring the ins and outs of that yet. It seems there is a difference in what you see in slide show mode and single picture mode. My friend says you have to modify the resolution of the original picture to get the slide show to display the picture at full screen. I'm not sure that is correct or not.

Anyway, I'm finally happy with the purchase. I think this is an excellent tv but if you have a garbage signal going into it you are going to get a garbage display.

So basically, even SD on this TV looks pretty good? I'm going from a 40" direct view tube and I'm hoping that this TV would be close to the SD quality from a tube TV since we do mostly 80% SD viewing. I don't have too many HD channels or an HD DVD player to take advantage of anything higher than 480p. But I'm getting this TV to be future-proof and I MAY soon get more HD channels via DISH Network though not sure when. Thank you for any feedback and help you can give me. I'm contemplating on this or the 4692 model for hundreds less.

I purchased a 720p Samsung 4692 last week and discovered later that the 1080p 4696 model is also available. I have not been able to see it in a showroom (its currently only in the warehouse), can anyone that has compared both post their findings? I'm considering the upgrade sight unseen.

(1) has anyone has observed marked improvements in image quality (HD/DVD)? Possibly due to better resolution/processing or black/grey ability?

(2) are there any concerns about the 1080p signal the 4696 accepts? I'm a bit wary of being an early 1080p set adopter (for example, is there any reason to thing the upcoming PS3/bluray won't be compatible with the 1080p signal the 4696 requires for example?)

Thanks!

I purchased a 720p Samsung 4692 last week and discovered later that the 1080p 4696 model is also available.

(1) has anyone has observed marked improvements in image quality (HD/DVD)? Possibly due to better resolution/processing or black/grey ability?

I've only seen them in stores hooked-up to split signals. Because the signal is not 1080p both the 4692 and 4696 look identical picture-wise. The 4695D and 4696 hooked-up to 1080p material though (like the watch-making and 'Chicken Little' segments of the Blue-Ray demo, or Hard-Drive 1080p looped demos) looked phenomenal because they match the set's resolution. If you plan on playing PS3, connecting a computer or an HD-DVD/Blue-Ray player to your new HDTV then the 4692 will still provide an OK picture, but one that's below what the things you're connecting to the TV can deliver. If all you plan to do is watch HDTV 1080i signals or upscaled DVD's then the 4692 will do just fine.

(2) are there any concerns about the 1080p signal the 4696 accepts? I'm a bit wary of being an early 1080p set adopter (for example, is there any reason to thing the upcoming PS3/bluray won't be compatible with the 1080p signal the 4696 requires for example?)

From plenty of hands-on reports and opinions (particularly from our Grand Poobah of hands-on store 1080p testing Therese! ;) ) the Sammy 4X95D/96 sets accept the signal, unlike so-called 1080p sets from JVC, Toshiba and a few others. Problem is that, unlike the 1080p sets from Sony, Sharp and Westinghouse, the Sammy LCD's don't let the 1080p signals pass unmolested and process them to the point that there's a perceived 2% ovescan on Sammy LCD's. Whether 2% of missing picture due to overscan and no 1:1 on the Sammy is a big deal is up to your own personal needs. So there!

Has anyone confirmed the mute 182 Pwr sequence works on Sammy ?

Pardon my first post here.

Considering the 720p and 1080p version of the new Samsung sets.

For broadcast television, sattelite and cable wouldn't the 720p set actually have a clearer picture since these sources would have to be scaled up for the 1080p display?

Chris Magid
RTVF

Considering the 720p and 1080p version of the new Samsung sets.

For broadcast television, sattelite and cable wouldn't the 720p set actually have a clearer picture since these sources would have to be scaled up for the 1080p display?

Samsung sets scale all signals (1080p and 720p) which is why their sets, unlike others (Sony, Sharp, etc.) exhibits 2% overscan. In an ideal world the Sammy would let the 1080p signal pass unmolested and be displayed 1:1. But you're right, it's easier for a 720p set to properly display 720p HD broadcasts (like Fox's and ABC's) than 1080i broadcasts (which would look identical on 720p and 1080p broadcasts).

Samsung TV's look like crap with Verizon Fios. Hook it up everyday and all the techs hate it when the see a Samsung TV in the house

Hook it up everyday and all the techs hate it when the see a Samsung TV in the house

I hear the same from people in New York that have TWC techies come to their place: the cable guys just plain don't like Sammy TV's. Why??!! It's off my list because of the 2% overscan but it doesn't look like that much of a garbage set! :confused:

www.samsung.com log on. pull up specs. ... read. or use search features here.

They where asking someone that knew the answer, you dont need to respond if you dont know the difference in the 2

They where asking someone that knew the answer, you dont need to respond if you dont know the difference in the 2

thanks for the support..

i went to samsung.com, pulled up both televisions side by side, and it did not show one difference. I am assuming that there are a lot of people on here that know there stuff. I appreciate all the information from this site..

Also, earlier in this same thread (post 2302) starbucks66 had a theory:

“How do you guys explain the $600 difference between 4696 and 4695? DCR and USB can not worth that much. ”

--Anyone else have thoughts on this theory?


I've also wondered about the price difference. I can find NO reference to any PQ improvement, processor, etc.

Only thing I could come up with was maybe the DCR technology was an expensive Mfg trick to be compatible with all cable, &/or large R&D expense, and they are charging more to recoup those costs.

CadJoe

I've also wondered about the price difference. I can find NO reference to any PQ improvement, processor, etc.

Only thing I could come up with was maybe the DCR technology was an expensive Mfg trick to be compatible with all cable, &/or large R&D expense, and they are charging more to recoup those costs.

CadJoe


1)DCR
2)Cable Card
3)active USBport -not only for service(95d back panel-service2-looks like one in the manual)-Wiselink
4)Wiselink software
5)Firewire IEEE- 2
6)DNET software
7)Design -glass speaker reflector on bottom
-4696d- circular stand
- slightly rounder backplate
8)Size- 4696d - + .1 inch depth size
9)Viewable screensize- 4696d has + .1inch width and height
10)extra s video on the side panel for the 4695d

My subjective observations- through visiting at least 30 different retail stores in the past month with various hookups.

1)4696d - has a wider range when adjusting the various settings such as color contrast, brightness.
2)Also noticed the factory mode setting are different, the movie mode on the 4696d is more refined, blacks are deeper. dynamic mode- overall picture sharpness is better at closer distances.


Overall both set have very good PQ and it is very hard to tell the difference if you just visit a few stores with different hookup(cable-store feed,hdmi hard drive, hdmi-blueray, component-store feed, etc)

If you have the extra $- get the 96d, but if its between getting a Ps3($599) + 4695d or just 4696d its a tougher choice.

I'm still waiting for my 5296d. I hope the PQ is as good as the 4696d.

It appears to me, from the pictures I have seen on the internet, that the bezel on the 4695 is the gloss black and the bezel on the 4696 is the flat black. Am I correct? I have not been able to find the 4696 anywhere by me to see for myself.

I'm not really too fond of the glossy look.

Thanks in advance.

It appears to me, from the pictures I have seen on the internet, that the bezel on the 4695 is the gloss black and the bezel on the 4696 is the flat black.

Yes there is a difference. Jsummars in post # 2473 said his wife prefers the 4696.


4696d - has a wider range when adjusting the various settings such as color contrast, brightness.
2)Also noticed the factory mode setting are different, the movie mode on the 4696d is more refined, blacks are deeper. dynamic mode- overall picture sharpness is better at closer distances.

I fully believe it has more capabilities on PQ because of the cost, but Sammy has not documented anything being different, processor, etc for greater PQ.

CadJoe

Yes there is a difference. Jsummars in post # 2473 said his wife prefers the 4696.




I fully believe it has more capabilities on PQ because of the cost, but Sammy has not documented anything being different, processor, etc for greater PQ.

CadJoe

Thanks.

I'm still not clear though about the bezel on the 4696. Is it flat black or gloss black?

Thanks.

I'm still not clear though about the bezel on the 4696. Is it flat black or gloss black?

Also, can anyone tell me what the native contrast ratio is on this set?

For instance, Sharps new set claims a native contrast ratio of 2000 to 1 and a dynamic contrast ratio of 10000 to 1.

thanks.

Thanks.

I'm still not clear though about the bezel on the 4696. Is it flat black or gloss black?

The bezel on the 4695 is silver and the one on the 4696 is a clear glass (I have the 4695; I have not seen the 4696 in person but have read that it has a clear glass bezel. If anyone knows for sure that that is not correct, please feel free to correct me)

Thanks.

I'm still not clear though about the bezel on the 4696. Is it flat black or gloss black?
It's gloss black. It does reflect but wife and I don't notice it that much.

The bezel on the 4695 is silver and the one on the 4696 is a clear glass (I have the 4695; I have not seen the 4696 in person but have read that it has a clear glass bezel. If anyone knows for sure that that is not correct, please feel free to correct me)

Maybe I'm using the wrong term, by bezel I mean the frame around the TV.

Does anyone know whether it is a piano gloss black or a flat black on the 4696.

Thanks.

It's gloss black. It does reflect but wife and I don't notice it that much.

Thanks.

Although not the answer I wanted. In fact, I was going to purchase the 4695 until I saw the pictures of the 4696 on Samsungs website. The bezel on the 4696 sure looks like a flat black in their picture.

Oh well.

I guess I'm back to the 4695 .. at least I'll save some money!

OK, if it is the part around the screen you are talking about, then it is glossy, piano-black on the 4695 (I think it is the same on the 4696; the difference is in the sound reflecting strip on the bottom). I actually like the piano-black bezel on the 4695. To each his own, I guess!

1)DCR

1)4696d - has a wider range when adjusting the various settings such as color contrast, brightness.
2)Also noticed the factory mode setting are different, the movie mode on the 4696d is more refined, blacks are deeper. dynamic mode- overall picture sharpness is better at closer distances.

I hope the PQ is as good as the 4696d.

Diff between 95 and 96 makes you wonder if there is a PQ difference between the 4096 and the 4696, other than size.


I seem to find there is MORE info about the sammy's if you go to support, then downloads, and click on the quick reference for the model #. Shows the back inputs, side inputs, and even a full image of the remote.

It even confirms that YES the DNIe is disabled in MOVIE mode.

http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/EM/200608/20060811173154687/EN/3_sub.htm

Click on HOME and it shows BOTH model numbers for the same reference book.

CadJoe