HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was very good. It did an excellent job displaying the finest detail of HD content. We did note some added edge enhancement processing, but it wasn't distracting. Color accuracy was excellent, so colors, especially flesh tones, looked very natural and lifelike. Color temperature was slightly on the warm side, lending images a reddish tone. Contrast--the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites--was good, so images had depth and dimension. 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). Brightness level was only fair, dimmer than most even with the backlight turned up, and is not the best choice for a bright room. In scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, the model did a very good job producing a smooth transition without distinct, coarse bands. There was slight display non-uniformity that created brighter cloudy areas most noticeable on very dark scenes (or in the black bars of a letterboxed movie). We routinely see this issue with LCDs and severity can vary from model to model. 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.
ULTRA HD PERFORMANCE. Overall UHD performance is very good with excellent HD-to-UHD upconversion. All native 4K content (non HDR) we played on this model, including movies and test videos, was presented in full 4K detail with excellent fidelity when played back via the TV's HDMI input. Via the USB port, high-resolution photos were displayed in full 4K detail. With regular HD content, the TV's HD-to-UHD up-conversion processing was generally excellent with the edges along diagonals of image content looking very smooth with minimal jaggies.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. HDR performance is not effective. The display's lack of high peak brightness capability (by HDR standards) did not enhance the realism of our 4K test videos mastered for high dynamic range, while the overall image was dimmer in tone than expected and lacked the contrast we expect from our HDR test videos. It did a good job reproducing a greater range of nuanced shadow detail from black to white, with no obvious banding on areas of the image that have subtle shade variations. There was no visible loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas. Brighter colored objects remained nicely saturated.
MOTION BLUR. This Samsung TV has good motion performance, with some blurring on our motion tests. Although this TV includes a "LED Clear Motion" setting that was slightly effective at reducing motion blur it limited the brightness of the image and also added some flicker to the picture, 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 good sound quality; about average among the models we've tested. When watching a blockbuster movie, a concert, or TV show, it delivers decent performance but falls short of the better performers. Bass was adequate, which added some fullness to the sound but a bit lacking in clarity, and treble was nicely detailed, while the overall sound was a bit closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments, but quality does degrade at high volume settings. At high volume there was audible distortion which compromised the sound quality during louder scenes. Overall, most people would find this 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 have high contrast labeling making them easier to read in a dimmer viewing environment. The TV's stand is 32 inches wide.
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 three 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 two USB ports, 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. Analog connections are made via special breakout cable adapters (included) that attach to the TV as single plugs.
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. Breakout cable adapters (one composite/green component with stereo audio, one component with blue and red ). A detachable power cord.
ABOUT ULTRA HD TESTING: We test UHD picture quality using 4K movies, videos, photos, and test patterns to confirm these displays deliver performance to this format's full potential. We check the TV's ability to reproduce 4K image detail, as well as high dynamic range (HDR) for TVs that support this capability. Image quality is tested using a 4K movie player connected to the TV's HDMI input, as well as from files stored on flash drive plugged into the TV's USB port. We also check how well the TV can upscale HD movies to the display's higher UHD resolution while keeping artifacts such as "jaggies" along the edges of image content to a minimum. The best UHD TVs, and HDTVs, present high fidelity images that reveal the full quality of the best source content without degradation.
