If interested, this was my Amazon review, please see update after two weeks at the end...
Out of the box, it was decent, maybe even good. I went on high def junkies and followed dnice's 100 hour screen prep (I used the wrong settings for the first 20 hours, but they weren't drastically off from the correct ones), then input his settings and I cannot possibly imaging a more purely perfect picture.
Zero buzzing. I has strongly considered the Samsung until i read all the buzz buzz bad reviews.
For anyone who has brightness/glare concerns, this screen is plenty bright and there is very little glare. I live in an east-facing top floor corner apt which has seven large windows (4 on the east wall, 3 on the south wall) and I have a 20x20 skylight; my apt is very bright. Not an issue whatsoever. The screen does an amazing job of filtering out over-head light. If you walk up to the tv and look down on the screen, it becomes extremely dim, which is exactly what you want from an overhead view. As soon as you walk away, the pic is perfect, especially at or above eye level. Viewing angles are good for all angles (except for looking directly down on the tv from point blank range); very clear.
The sound is very good for a television, but I have a 5.1 set up, and I recommend the same to all. 10x better with a real audio setup.
The remote control is a pos. I don't really care, I'll get a harmony or something.
The picture is so incredibly clear and real. No over-saturated colors, not retina burning over-brightness. It simply looks perfect.
I did about 20 hours of research prior to making this purchase. in the early going it struck me that I might be able to get a huge tv, with one of the best pictures, considerably cheaper than the rest of the competitors. It didn't really make sense until I continued reading and reading. Eventually it just became clear that most people have NO IDEA what they are talking about when it comes to tv tech.
Here's some of the things close friends and family (who claimed to be in the know) had to say (all idiotic, and completely uninformed):
"You can't possibly consider plasma any longer. It's too f@#king heavy and the picture goes bad after a time. LED is the way to go. I've been thru all of them, and LED is plainly the very best, the thinnest, the lightest, etc."
"I would go with OLED. So LCD is a thin display with an LED backlight thus there are no "true blacks" as there's always bleedthrough. For OLED, when the individual OLED is showing black, it is actually switched off completely. The only downside, but the margin is thinning, is the lifespan of OLED monitors. If you're not watching much though, then who cares. It also costs a little bit more. But it's the most cutting edge of the three. Plasma just cold sucks."
"LED--no brainer"
"it is a tv, not a work of art! What are you looking for it to do for you? just buy a cheap one that will fit where you want it to and don't look at it as na investment."
"I looked at all of them this spring, to me the LED was a better value. Go to tigerdirect.com, see if you can find a deal."
"Plasma is the oldest technology and supposedly the srcreen eventually burns out. I have one of the originals and it is still awesome. LCD is newer technology, LED the latest technology. Both have better viewing angles. LED is the brightest picture and I think the best technology now with the widest viewing angle. I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. They are all good. The differences are mostly diminimus."
"Patrick & I bought the hype and purchased a 60in LED. It was great for hockey but made movies look like home videos. It was a deal breaker. Took out back and got a plasma. No looking back."
Do not listen to your idiot friends and family. They are merely parroting the nonsense that they hear other people say. Thank (fake) god I didn't listen to anyone and did my own research. And by the way, the tv is like an inch and a half thick. How that is "so big", when it is sitting on a wall ten feet away, is beyond my comprehension. Who cares if LED's are light and thin, are you carrying your tv to and from work every day?
If you read all these reviews (and comments), and then do a bit more reading on avsforums and hidefjunkies, there is no way any reasonable person can come away with anything but complete certainty that this tv is a screaming deal, and more importantly, one of the best pictures available, at any price point.
Jason
UPDATE:
Two weeks later, I need to alter my review regarding brightness/dimness:
1) Watching Game of thrones using DNice's settings, I found the picture to be a bit too dim, to the point that I had to search for an alternative. I tried Vivid, which for most viewing is way too fake and saturated but for Game of Thrones it seemed pretty good (for SNL it was awful and DNice's settings were perfect). Cinema mode was also better but the colors were not as ...errr colorful. Game mode was also decent.
2) In a brightly lit room on a sunny day, Dnice's setting will be too dim for almost everyone, certainly for me. The other settings worked pretty well though and I'm still very happy overall. I would like to find a new setting which i could overwrite one of the default settings so I could use that in day light hours, and then mostly use DNice's settings in night time hours (with the exception of Game of Thrones or other fantasy based programming, where color saturation actually seems to fit the content, as opposed to the news or SNL where real colors seem more natural to the eye).
3) Got a Harmony One, it is really convenient but I haven't yet figured out how to control the channels (on my direct tv) AND the volume (on my AVR) WITHOUT having to toggle the touch screen from SAT to AVR. I'd love if there were no toggle needed at all. Currently I have to look at the remote, press touch screen buttons rather than just going by touch. If anyone knows how to do this, or if it is even possible, I'd greatly appreciate your input.
I'd love to hear some feedback on this.
Jason
So can I start the slide break in late?
