Samsung HL-S86W

Quick Take: The Samsung HL-S86W series consists of three DLP rear-projection HDTVs: the 61-inch HL-S6186W, the 56-inch HL-S5686W, and the 50-inch HL-S5086W. They all have a native resolution of 1,280x720, which means they should be able to display every detail of 720p HDTV sources. We have not reviewed these sets, so we cannot comment on their performance. In terms of features, the three TVs in the HL-S86W series are virtually identical, with a jack pack highlighted by two HDMI inputs, two component inputs, and a VGA-style PC input. They also all have an integrated HDTV tuner but lack a CableCard slot. This means you'll be able to receive over-the-air HDTV without an external set-top box but will need an external box for digital cable--no big deal in our book, since a cable box can provide benefits CableCard can't, such as a DVR.

Note that we have reviewed a more expensive line of Samsung DLP TVs, the HL-S87W series, which offers a higher native resolution of 1080p. Again, however, the performance of this series is no indication of how well the HL-S86W series will perform.