HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was excellent. It generally did a very good job displaying the fine detail of HD content, but the image was also slightly oversharpened, but not to the point of being a distraction. Color accuracy was excellent, so colors, especially flesh tones, looked very natural and lifelike. Contrast--the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites--was good, so images had depth and dimension, typical of most models we test. The brightness level was good, making it a suitable choice for most rooms. The model had fairly deep black levels, just shy of the best models, which gave dark scenes better depth (though quality does degrade as you move to the sides - see viewing angle). There was visible banding (unnatural contours) on scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, rather than smooth transitions. Film mode operation for HD film-based content was excellent, with no visible jaggies along the edges of objects during motion scenes. Deinterlacing was very good, with minimal jaggies visible when converting 1080i video content, such as from cable, to the display's native resolution.
VIEWING ANGLE. This Samsung has a narrow viewing angle overall, below-average performance among TVs for this attribute. Only those seated directly in front of the screen will see the best picture quality. When we viewed the TV from the sides image quality degraded significantly. The picture showed a strong loss of color, so flesh tones looked very washed out. Black levels visibly brightened, reducing contrast especially on dark scenes. When viewing the image from above or below eye level to the screen, the vertical viewing angle was good. The picture showed some change in color, contrast, and black level.
MOTION BLUR. This Samsung TV has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. This is better than average for LCD displays with the basic 60Hz frame rate. Although this TV includes a "LED Clear Motion" setting that was slightly effective at reducing motion blur it limited the brightness of the image, so we left the feature off.
SCREEN REFLECTIVITY. Though not as mirror-like as on some models, this screen surface is glossy and therefore susceptible to reflections from a nearby lamp or window. It does a good job reducing glare from ambient light and maintains contrast in a brighter room environment.
SOUND QUALITY. This model has fair sound quality with below average performance. It's acceptable for typical programming, but shortcomings become obvious with movie soundtracks and music. Bass was notably absent, as was treble detail, and the overall sound was notably closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments, though quality does degrade at the highest settings. At high volume, we noticed and some cabinet resonance, which compromised the sound quality during loud moments. If sound quality matters to you, you might want to add a soundbar or other external speaker system -- but if this smaller-screen set is a secondary TV, you might find its sound quality acceptable.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. Samsung includes a basic remote that has traditional button navigation controls and number keypad. The buttons are backlit which makes make them easy to read in a dark viewing environment.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV provides advanced Internet capabilities via its "Smart Hub" portal with access to a library of applications, and a full Web browser. Movie streaming services include Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, HBO Go and HBO Now.
CONNECTIONS. This model has two HDMI inputs-- one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one "component/composite shared" input (which means you can only use one type or the other at a time). It also has one USB port, an optical digital audio out, an Ethernet port, WiFi wireless networking; DLNA, to access files within your home network; Casting, which allows you to send streaming content from your mobile device to the TV via your home network; Screen mirroring, where the image on your smartphone or other compatible device can also appear on the TV. Note: HDMI and other cable connections made to the rear-facing panel will protrude beyond the panel's slim depth.
INCLUDED IN THE BOX. A printed user manual. A quick start guide. An electronic manual in the TV's menu. A remote control with batteries.
