Does your 2011 Samsung "D" plasma have brightness pops? - Page 5

That makes some sense, but in a dark environment it still doing pop. I just don't like it at all, it make the picture wash out a little bit, taking away black levels. I have a older unb558000 led LCD, and it does that too, but only to the image, not the top and bottom black bar. But my pn64d8000 does that every time a brighter image appear. And sometime on a dark image too. I can live it with, but rather not have it.

I think that's what he's saying -- even in a pitch-black room, you'll still have the TV as a light source, and when something light/bright comes up on the screen, the sensor on the TV sees that broadcast light and see it as someone turning on/off lights in the room.

That's a great theory! I'm inclined to say "Aha, that's it!", however, I believe I've read in other threads (I think Panasonic, specifically) that this doesn't have to do with the light sensor, but that it's something involved in other image quality mechanics.

Personally, I think it has to do with energy, namely why Standard Mode seems to not get brightness pops, and "coincidentally" is the only mode with an Energy Star-approved icon next to it. I think that the companies are trying to strive (or forced to) for certain energy efficiency requirements, and that they believe that Standard Mode is the most efficient. The other modes are more energy-intensive, so they have this programmed "feature" in them to cut corners and try to save energy however it can.... aka brightness pops.

Your theory is easily tested, however... just covering up the sensor! I'm going to try this tonight and will report back how it went. Great theory and makes sense.

Hopfully thats works, cause even in a dark room with no light, I still see pop. Let's hope it works.

Where is the sensor?

Nvm I get it. Lets hope it work. Where is it located? What tv do you have?

Ahh, shoot. It doesn't work :/ I have a 59D6500.

The sensor is next to the red power light. After turning on the Eco sensor, I took a bright LED flashlight and put it on a box right in front of the TV. The box put the flashlight right in front of the sensor, and I moved it right in front of the sensor so that it was powerfully engulfed by the light, but not reflecting on the screen (to skew the image results of brightness pop detection).

I watched the TV quickly adjust the brightness based on the flashlight, as it quickly brightened the picture. It was a gradient change, and not a quick "snap" like the brightness pops are.

I then left the flashlight there, putting the screen in full-brightness mode. However, it still did brightness pops in scenes that have dependably popped before.

So no luck Looks like it's built into the software, independent of the sensor. I think it's -still- possible that the TV is somehow incorporating sensor data in lieu of these brightness pops, as it's too uncanny that so many people have felt like their new TVs are initially fine, only to have the brightness pops grow worse over the first couple weeks.

I've tried resetting the TV to factory default, but the brightness pops have stayed the same. Perhaps before the TV is turned on for the first time, it has a "one-time" function to evaluate the setting's lighting levels for the first 50 hours or whatever of use, before it makes its "permanent" decision on the amount of brightness pop to do. But of course, this is just speculation.

From my tests, Standard Mode nearly does away with brightness pops, but I think it still has them. I think the only real solution is to twist Samsung's arm to fix the problem, just like the Panasonic users did.

In fact, I'm going to start creating the Facebook group right now. This problem is ridiculous. I can't believe that Samsung let this go out with -every- single TV, and just hope that people wouldn't notice. I'm sure it has to do with having their arm twisted by the government (and business competition) to be as energy efficient as possible, and I think this brightness pop "feature" is a means of cutting corners to save energy.

I rather pay more electricity to have no pop up. Why cant samsung just have a option for those who want it? Yes defiantly need a firmware update.

So where is the facebook page?

Make one

I dont think it's a widespread as the panny line (was) I would guess that half the ppl that voted "yes" are just sammy haters.. sad but true fact...the other half telling the truth

I have a pn51D550, in the first week, i don't have "pops", but now 2 weeks later that fluctuation is there, i think samsung must release a firmware update and solucionate this problem, at least in europe and australia already have updates

I'm from Perú, and this is my first comment, i hope you understand that my grammar level is not that good

I told Jay that I would make this one, as he suggeste the idea and was a "founder" on the Panasonic facebook page (and subsequent positive results via a fix)

What do you mean they have a fix? Has there really been a pop/fluctuation fix over there? My understanding was that it was -panasonic- who had the fix, and had it first appear in Europe.

I believe the main reason why Europe and Australia have updates first is because of the stricter laws in those countries regarding consumer rights, this is also the reason why they cost almost double the money. IIRC some countries (Norway) require a mandatory 5-years manufacturers warranty and if a product isn't performing as intended the consumer can get a full refund.

Well Im Australia and have the 64" 8000, and I have brightness pops, and they are there in standard mode also. I've seen one firmware update since unboxing <30 days ago and that is the only update. So unless somethings come out in the last 18h this is a nonsense rumour that we getit da fix!


Also crazy amount of graininess (or noise, what ever you call it) in bright panning areas, e.g Xbox360 dashboard - scroll the white tiles left/right with bumpers for speed - and inside those normally solid tiles, you see all sorts of crazy. A comment in another thread states it to be standard with Samsung even back to 2010. Now in all fairness you need to be close to see it - but I cannot tie what is happening there to any logical rythme or reason, certainly my prior plasma did not do this.


Further to this I have screen peeling. Luckily JB-HI Fi has 60day returns on A/V equipment over $3k. Currently lurking to eveluate if it's worth getting a replacement due to the peeling or something else alltogether and do away with all this silliness.

I remember few years ago there was this guy in Australia that had a first generation Samsung LED HDTV that had a strange video processing glitch that effected light output, after Samsung repaired the set things only got worse from that point! Every time he moved his set or even barely touched it the panel would short out for a few seconds flashing bright white light, Samsung did nothing. The man I speak about went to the Better Business Bureau or whatever you call it in Australia, anyways to make a long story short Samsung was forced by law to refund his money! Find out what your rights are, Samsung would rather you did not!

Cool story. Not sure it's relevance, misquote perhaps.

Ok everyone, I've created the page to voice our complaints and hopefully have our cries heard and remedied by Samsung!

Here is the link:

Samsung Fluctuating Brightness Facebook Page

Please go there, click on "Like", and then follow the instructions under "Info". Please post your experience with the fluctuating brightness on what wall, and then follow the steps to report the issue with Samsung.

Hopefully Samsung will follow Panasonic's example and fix our TVs like Panasonic fixed their followers' TVs!

I'm also starting a website to voice this issue as well, to maximize the reach of our issue, to hopefully gain the notice and remedy of Samsung. Stay tuned!


Here's an animation I made of the issue, for those unable to see the issue:

http://i.imgur.com/NLTgg.gif

PN59D6500: I've had this set for nearly two weeks, for the most part I really like it, but the brightness pops are really an issue that needs to be corrected. I tried all the different suggestions posted here and they have not helped. I studied it a bit last night on a scene that would recreate "pops" every time. It looks to be a dynamic change in the very low end of the gray scale, or like its missing a few steps of gray/black. Instead of rising out of black smoothly it jumps up a few percent at a certin stimulus.

coldblackice, the animation also shows the white level changing, are you seeing this as well as the brightness pops?

I've had my PN64D7000 for a day now, and I noticed it with the first movie I watched. Like the person above me, I was able to recreate it on the same scene every time. It's a bit annoying, and if a fix is possible, it would be great to have. I'm going to post on that Facebook page and file a service ticket.

I'll have to double check. The animation was a general idea of what of looks like. I feel that it's not just confined to blacks, but that there's an overall washing out or even a gray tint-like covering that pops across the screen. Ill double check though to see if actual pure white is being affected.

I Just want to revise my statement above, looking at 4:3 content or 2.35 content, the black floor is what rises and pushes up the lower end of the gray scale. I estimate a 5% jump in brightness in the bottom 1/4-1/3 of the gray scale. There seems to be no effect in the mid to high end of the scale during a "pop".

I've had my Australian PS51D5500 for about 5 weeks now and haven't seen any brightness pops in the low end.
I get some fluctuations in the high end on bright scenes but nothing too distracting.

I use standard mode mainly for TV and PVR but watch Blu Rays in movie mode.
Calibrated both modes for brightness/contrast etc. using DVE DVD.

Firmware was updated a couple of weeks ago but hasn't changed anything visibly.

Just got my tv yesterday & i notice the pops. If an update does not come in the next two weeks i'm switching to Panasonic since they've fixed the problem.

I was patient because I saw Samsung often updates the firmware of my TV and the Panasonic 2011 models (the alternative buying option) had disturbing brightness fluctuation problems as well.

Now that I am over at least five firmware updates and it seems like Panasonic fixed their bug (and may be because I search for it since I heard about the Panasonic update but it could also be my last update, or absolutely random...) I now notice it too often to ignore (more than one times every day), I just got mad about it.


Here is the problem:

I just sit here and type this message (yes, right now, this plasma is my PC monitor...) and sometimes I notice a big brightness jump (three times in the last 20 minutes!).

It looks like it comes out of nowhere because the dimming is absolutely smooth and seamless. I never notice any negative jumps, but the positive jump is hard to miss (I never measured it but I guess it's at least 20 cd/m^2 for a bright picture).

Other times I play with a video game and I notice that something is wrong. The whole image is much more noisy than usually (the dithering noise is usually transparent from my normal viewing distance) and the whole image quality doesn't feel as good as usually. And guess what... I get a brightness jump and I realize the picture felt bad and looked noisy because the TV was dimmed again! After the jump it's nice again.

So, the dimming happens with almost-static and dynamic image contents (and with both low and high APL). The jump usually triggered by a significant APL change but that's not a rule either.


I didn't catch it with CinemaSmooth yet, but I guess it's just because it's harder to notice during movies. Or my be it only happens with 60hz, I am not sure...



My calibrated settings for the 60Hz input are:
cell/contrast/brightness: 18 95 77 , gamma -3, Warm2 + adjusted 2p WP and 10p WP/TRC for gamma 2.35, custom colorspace for Rec709 gamut)
Every tiny-miny features (dynamic contrast, energy saving, etc, etc) are ALL disabled.


I tried to turn on the ECO sensor and set the limit to 18 (same as the main cell light) but it didn't help. I also disabled the entire ECO sensor support from the service menu (it disappeared from the user menu) but it didn't help! (I though it helped but it's still here, I just didn't notice it for a while after I disabled it from the SM.)

So, I guess it's not the ECO sensor...


What else could it be???


May be it's related to the panel or other temperature? (I couldn't notice any correlation between the previous APL and/or room temperature but that doesn't mean it couldn't be the source of the issue.)

May be the Motion Lightning or Dynamic Contrast is always ON? (For example, the noise reduction was stuck on High when you set it to OFF before it was fixed by a firmware update.)

Has anyone called Samsung and had a technician come out? I have the pops as well and have been waiting to see if a fix was going to become available. I have tried to just live with the pops but I just can't deal with them any more. My warranty is about to expire so I called Samsung and they are going to send a technician out to look at it. Hopefully they can do something.

The pops occur in every viewing situation but are easier created while playing a video game. Depending on the game you can swing the camera around and change the lighting to create the pops. It really makes the picture look washed out. Then move the camera around and the pop goes away and the picture looks good again. It is very annoying, and unacceptable.

Guys, just a reminder -- please join ("like") this Facebook group and post your issue. This is how the Panasonic users received their fix, being collectively and outwardly public and vocal about it:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Sa...976163?sk=info

Go here, read the Info section, file a support ticket with Samsung, and then post your complaint on the wall!



Samsung is telling people individually that there is -NO- problem and that -NO- one else is having this same issue. It's a bold face lie, and there are many many numbers and examples of people who are having this same issue.

The issue is not whether or not someone's plasma is fluctuating brightness -- ALL the TV sets are fluctuating brightness -- it's just a matter of people who can see it and people who can't. If you can't see it, you're lucky! But as we've seen over and over again, you'll probably see it very soon

Carry the flag! Spread the link!

My guess as to what it is --

I believe it has to do with power consumption and energy efficiency. From my tests, 'Standard Mode' has -significantly- less brightness pops, in fact they're almost all but eliminated. All of the other modes, however, are rampant with them.

I don't think it's a coincidence that 'Standard Mode' also differs from the other modes with having an Energy Star icon next to it. I believe that Samsung has programmed in energy-reducing features into the other modes, but not in Standard (or at least to the degree of the other modes).

I think it's essentially a hard-coded Eco Sensor. I believe they are trying to "sneak" the Eco sensor into the TVs, even if the user disables the setting in the menu. I wouldn't be surprised if this is for the nod and approval of the government (maybe even tax cutbacks), especially in lieu of the current world energy crisis.

Well I have a Samsung tech coming out. I'm going to see what he says. I will let everyone know. When I called Samsung they told me that it was the eco sensor but I told them it was off. They made me do a reset on my TV and to see if that would do anything. I knew it wouldn't and it didn't. Still got the pops. So the techs coming out.

I have tried standard mode and still get them. I don't know how someone couldn't notice them. Maybe some people are just pickier than others.

I think it's definitely a matter of people seeing them vs people not seeing them, and not a matter of one TV doing it and another TV not doing it.

I'd wager to say that the tech is gonna see it and say "Wow, that shouldn't be happening. You just sit tight and wait to hear back from Samsung HQ!"

And then you won't hear back from them again :/

I guess...

I believe...

I don't think...

I think...

It's a conspiracy -- "...I wouldn't be surprised if this is for the nod and approval of the government (maybe even tax cutbacks), especially in lieu of the current world energy crisis."


Oy vey.

Larry