Samsung LNT4665F or LNT4661F?

[kcrossley2]

I've finally narrowed my 46" LCD TV choice down to these two Samsung models. I also visited CC this past weekend and checked them out. Both looked amazing, but that's coming from someone who currently owns a 32" Sony picture tube, so I may not be the best judge of LCD picture quality.

I'm planning on putting this set in a 19 x 20 two-story family room with five top windows and five bottom windows. The bottom windows have room darkening blinds, but the top windows are uncovered. Fortunately, there is no direct sunlight, but there is still lots of ambient light during the day.

Based on these conditions, which set would you purchase?

Thanks,
Kelly

[pulsation]

It sounds like the TV will be in a bright room. Personally I would go with the 4661, its a solid set overall and you won't have any glare to worry about. If you can control the light in the room and want to use it in dimmer conditions, get the 4665. I personally have the 4665 in my bedroom and love it. The glare definitely takes some getting used to though.

[wsfanatic]

Go with the 4661F. The matte screen is better suited for the room you're going to put it in.

[tomanystraydogs]

CNET Samsung LN-T4665F review

CNET Samsung LN-T4661F review

[zoman504]

Check out the LNT XX61/XX65 owners thread, a lot more useful info in there, those cnet reviews suck.

[kcrossley2]

Originally Posted by zoman504

Check out the LNT XX61/XX65 owners thread, a lot more useful info in there, those cnet reviews suck.

Holly crap Batman!

That thread is 145 pages long! After reading more than 40 pages, it seemed like both Samsung sets suck, which wasn't what I was expecting. All I wanted was a simple, "You should buy this set because..." Any help would be much appreciated.

BTW, aside from the screens are there any significant differences between the 61 and 65?

Thanks,
Kelly

[Chris NYC]

These sets don't suck. There's a lot of people who have had HDMI problems with the earlier firmware but things seem to be settling down with the latest. The 4665 is ok if you don't have direct sunlight hitting it.

[kcrossley2]

Originally Posted by Chris NYC

These sets don't suck. There's a lot of people who have had HDMI problems with the earlier firmware but things seem to be settling down with the latest. The 4665 is ok if you don't have direct sunlight hitting it.

I'm glad to hear that. I'm sure this is personal, but I though the 4665 looked better than the 4661 in Circuit City, but it was in a rather dark environment and there were no windows. I guess if I find that glare is a problem, I can always return the set and purchase a 4661 instead.

So, I'm assuming your 4665 is fine?

BTW, how well does it handle an SD signal. I currently have DirecTV SD. I assume that I'm going to have to upgrade my service. Is that correct?

[Chris NYC]

Originally Posted by kcrossley2

I'm glad to hear that. I'm sure this is personal, but I though the 4665 looked better than the 4661 in Circuit City, but it was in a rather dark environment and there were no windows. I guess if I find that glare is a problem, I can always return the set and purchase a 4661 instead.

So, I'm assuming your 4665 is fine?

BTW, how well does it handle an SD signal. I currently have DirecTV SD. I assume that I'm going to have to upgrade my service. Is that correct?

My 4665 is fine, but I lucked out and got the latest firmware (Amazon). You need to look for one that was manufactured in at least May. See the first post of the official thread for more info.

SD does not look so hot. You're going to want to get HD service.