Be Honest, Is Auto Motion Plus 120Hz Really Worth The Extra Money?

It depends on who you ask that question. Have you seen a blu-ray movie on a set with 60Hz and 120Hz? If you haven't, try asking a salesperson to set it up and see if there's a difference and whether you want to pay extra money for a 120Hz set.

That is the only way you can judge it yourself instead of listening to others.

Yes.

I enjoy it for gaming, and some blu-ray movies. For myself I would definitely say yes. It's not flawless and it works better with certain sources, but all in all no regrets.

Why not go with either Samsung LN46A550 or Samsung LN40A650?

p.s. How far will you be seating from the tv?

120hz is always on. Turn up amp at all times except Film. Games depend on taste.

Pick up the Samsung 650, 550 doesn't have 120hz. Best TV of all time (after update of latest firmware). Now at Amazon for 500 off msrp.

I just made that decision this weekend. It was between the 4665, 4071 and 46650. After much reading and store hopping I spent an hour plus at a local Best Buy on Sunday. The sales person was very helpful and set up simultaneous Blu Ray on all three. I selected to buy a 46650 at Amazon. For me at the price difference the 120 hertz was worth it. Only you know which you prefer and how expensive the price difference is to you. I am probably older then most folks in here and have bought expensive gear for years. What I have learned is that if you want to buy your second choice due to cost you need to do the following.

Don't go back into a video store for two years. Other wise everytime you go in you will see the one you didn't get and be reminded of the improvement you gave up. If you buy the 71 and have a picture source at home every time you go in the store nothing will look as good as what you have.

That's exactly what I did. 120Hz was on the list of "must-have" features I wanted to get, until I watched the effect on a huge Sony (XBR?) this afternoon. The salesperson demonstrated fast movements at 60Hz and 120Hz. The strobe-like motion at 120Hz almost made me dizzy, and my wife thought she'd be sick if she continued to watch the movie. Needlessly to say, my priorities have changed now, and I'll be concentrating on more practical features now such as better contrast, 1:1 pixel matching capabilities, and the lowest response time I can get.

FutureShop (in Canada) just got the 2008 LG30 series in, and I have to say the PQ was superb. So unless I see a Samsung on sale with similar features the next couple of weeks, the new LG is definitely a serious contender.

Absolutley.

if you don't have it you can live without it, if you have it you can't live without it.

I got a sweet deal on the 4665 from Amazon and sent it back due to the blurring while playing video games and watching sports. The set had a beautiful picture when viewing static images, but as soon as it started to show motion it became a blurry mess. I was really disappointed with it considering all the great reviews I had read. Maybe I am sensitive to the issue but even my buddies Toshiba HL147 series handled motion better than the 4665. Maybe I got a faulty processor or something but I wasn't taking the chance of getting another one. I opted for the refund and now I am going to buy a 120hz set. Deciding between the Tosh XF550 and the Samsung 650 series. If your on a budget I would say try the best 60hz set you can afford and if it doesn't work for you go 120hz. You could read a million and one opinions on here and the bottom line is you have to see and decide for yourself.

I’m researching my first HDTV purchase and very interested in this topic. I’ve played with settings and compared TVs with and without 120Hz. Sometimes I think the 120Hz is doing something and other times I can’t tell. I spent some time with a A650 running the amp at different settings including off. The set was connected to a blu-ray player running one of the pirates of the Caribbean movies with lots of dark scenes. To do a true comparison it would be great to have two TVs side by side as taurus2007 recommends and probable some more varied material. Using the one TV method I’m sure the 120Hz helps sometimes and I didn’t see any times where I thought it was hurting. Obviously the owners have the best feedback here.

To answer your question, is it worth the money, I would say get it if your buying a 2008, but don’t ignore deals on the 2007 stuff.

AMP looks like complete ****. You couldn't convince me that it was worth an extra $5 to have the feature. Interpolated black frames are the only option I've seen that don't make people look like jumpy crackheads while reducing motion blur. The only sets I know of that feature something like this is the Sharp D64 series, and the Samsung 81F.

AMP = Gimmick

Some people say AMP looks good for games, and I will admit that I haven't seen games on the 71/650, but TV and movies look horrid with AMP. People say AMP gives a soap opera effect, but soap operas don't look horrible. Soap opera's do have a smooth 60fps, but AMP doesn't add the same smoothness as a source naturally shot at 60fps.

Yesterday while waiting for my car (in the shop for scheduled maintenance), I went to a nearby Best Buy store and browse around to kill time. Happen to see this 52" Sammy (didn't look for the model #) and it had this line in the middle to show one the right side AMP "on" and the left side AMP "off" playing some in store Hi Def source. I viewed it for at least 20 minutes looking whats the difference between AMP on and off...IMHO the "off" position looks better but not a whole lot. But if the TV is selling for the same amount of $$ as with the regular non-AMP unit then I would definitely take it (may come handy in some viewing situation).

Let's separate Auto Motion Plus from 120hz.

Even if you turn off AMP, you still have a 120hz TV. And that alone may be worth the extra money to some.

Why? It lets you watch a 24p source with no telecine judder.

That is why there is an entire thread in this forum dedicated to identifying 120hz sets that do 5:5 pulldown (no interpolation.)

The thread is here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=997138

It is of course all a matter of taste.

We have an XBR4 with 120 Hz. Recently we stayed at a hotel that had an LG LCD flat screen and I noticed jerky movement in many scenes on TV shows that I have never noticed on my home set.
After that experience I'd definitely say 120 is worth it!

I'm looking at the Samsung 40A650 but cannot decided whether I want to go with a set with the 120hz refresh rate or get a slightly bigger model (46in) without the 120hz. Trying to keep the cost around $2000.

I would be mostly interested in seeing how sports, mainly football look on a 120hz set. I could definitely notice a difference when in Best Buy and they were demo'ing the 120hz side by side with a tv without 120hz.

If football look considerably better than I would probably go with the 120hz set.

Well, I'd say that it's worth using AMP, but only set it at a neutral position of Medium-Low, if there is such a thing, because if you crank it all the way up, you may get into some problems. I would just set it to one setting for everything, and don't look back.

Indeed. I am not trashing 120hz, but since the thread title is specifically asking about AMP I thought I would share my negative experience with it.

well first of all, theres no proof the samsungs are doing 120hz with amp off.

Only you can decide.There is evidence to suggest that both high and low frame rates can induce nausea.
It can be overcome but 120hz mcfi may turn out to be good for the eyes but bad for the vestibular system. More info

fyi - love it myself

I agree as well, I was just saying that I'm not dogging 120hz. The Sammy AMP displays have blurry 60hz motion with AMP turned off.

Its only after you have had amp for a while, then when you look at the older sets without amp do you really see how good amp is and how jumppy it is with no amp.

I love sony's I am awaiting the w4100 series from sony this spring for the 120hz. I have a sony lcd about two years old and I cant take the cometing and lag i experience watching sports. From what I hear 120hz is a little overated and am thinking about getting a plasma (panasonic) cuz they deal with motion alot better.

Jumpy during panning scenes on non AMP sets, sure, but that has to do with 60fps instead of 24fps. Nothing to do with AMP. AMP making people "jumpy" in regular still scenes. Horrible horrible stuff.

The set does not change its refresh rate. It is always 120hz.
With AMP turned off, the Samsungs simply repeat the frame as necessary.

http://ultimateavmag.com/flatpaneldisplays/208sam4671/

Ok, you don't like AMP we get it, besides, it's not like it can be turned off or anything . So lets say the Sammy's don't have AMP on, would you say they have one of the best pictures, if not the BEST picture of all consumer LCDs out there?

I would definetly say they do myself, as an owner of a LN46a650. I would also like to say AMP is excellent for CG movies and any nature shows as well as sports.

Mosh~~

Can't live without AMP or 120 hz after seeing 60 hz sets again.

Once you go AMP, you won't go back.