Why You Can Trust CNET Samsung UNB8500 review: Samsung UNB8500
Samsung UNB8500
- Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
Samsung UNB8500
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
Editors' note (March 4, 2010): The rating on this product has been lowered because of changes in the competitive marketplace, including the release of 2010 models. The review has not otherwise been modified. Click here for more information.
If you watch football or read CNET, chances are you've noticed ads for Samsung's so-called LED TVs. The company has released three series of these super-thin LED-based LCDs so far this year, the 6000, the 7000, and the 8000 models, but it's saved the best for last. The fourth series is dubbed UNB8500, but you can remember it best as the king of LCD--for now.
Unlike the other three Samsung models, which use LED elements arranged along the edge of their screens, the company's two 8500 models employ a full array of local dimming LEDs behind the screen, yet maintain an ultraslim profile. As a result, this expensive HDTV handily outperforms its brothers and, yes, every other LCD-based display we've ever tested. It still can't match the best plasma, the legendary and discontinued Pioneer Kuro, and its off-angle picture leaves plenty to be desired, but people who claim the sweet spot in front of a Samsung UNB8500 will be treated to the most impressive flat-panel picture quality of the year.
Design
Editors' note: Many of the Design and Features elements are identical between the UNB8500 series and the UNB8000 series we reviewed earlier, so readers of the earlier review may experience some déjà vu when reading the same sections below.
The 8500 series is a sliver when seen from the side, coming in at 1.6 inches deep at its thickest point and tapering even thinner toward the edges of the panel. Samsung offers a special thin wall mount, and if you decide to keep the TV on its stand, the panel will still look pretty impressive from edge-on. From the front the set is no slouch, either. Unlike the red-tinted members Samsung's edge-lit LED line, the frame of the 8500 is basic black accented by a transparent border, which lends the whole TV a jewel-like appearance. A subtle blue power indicator, which can be disabled, provides the only touch of color on this Samsung TV.
The stand has a brushed metal surface and a transparent, swivel-topped stalk to keep the thin panel gracefully suspended above its surface and allow viewers to aim the TV toward different areas of the room--a good idea since you definitely want to remain as close to dead-center of the screen as possible.
Aside from the obvious thinness, the LEDs allow a couple other design bonuses. The UNB8500 runs a lot cooler than other LCD and especially plasma displays, and the panel itself also weighs less.
Samsung used the same menu system as last year and we still think it's one of the best. Big, highly legible text is set against transparent blue backgrounds that occupy almost the whole screen. Getting around is easy, there's helpful explanatory text along the bottom of the menus, and we liked the context-sensitive menu that provided more options depending on your current activity.
There's a different twist to the 8500's remote compared with step-down Samsung models. The included clicker features RF capability, allowing it to work without you having to aim it at the TV, or even be in the same room. RF worked great in our testing once we had "paired" the remote with the TV (a simple first step), and we really appreciated the convenience.
Another big difference is the rotating scroll wheel, an extra of which we're not big fans. While the wheel was better than it was last year, it still took a half-turn or so on most occasions to respond at first when we navigated the menu. Combined with the sluggish widgets (see below) it wasn't a user experience we appreciated. Aside from the wheel the remote is fine, with buttons that are big, backlit, and easily differentiated by size and shape. We liked the dedicated "Tools" key that offers quick access to the E-manual, picture, and sound modes, the sleep timer, and the picture-in-picture controls. We didn't like the remote's glossy black finish, however, which picked up more than its share of dulling fingerprints after a few minutes. The company also includes a small, nearly useless hockey-puck-style remote that only controls channel, volume, and power.
Features
Samsung was the first TV maker to produce a mainstream LCD with LED backlighting, the LN-T4681F from 2007. Its successor, the LN46A950 from 2008, was a significant improvement. Both of those models offered LED backlighting helped by local dimming technology, which brightens or dims the LED elements individually across the screen depending on picture content. As a result these sets can achieve much deeper black levels--the main ingredient in a good picture--than conventional LCDs or Samsung's edge-lit models, whose backlights remain illuminated or dim all at once.
As much as local dimming helps, it's important to note that the number of LED elements behind the LCD screen still can't come close to matching the number of pixels in the LCD itself (1,920x1,080, or roughly 2.1 million), so the dimming isn't as local as it could be. Some of the elements remain lit in "black" areas, for example, which can produce visible "blooming" onscreen. In contrast, so to speak, plasma and OLED technologies can fully darken and illuminate adjacent pixels. Samsung says the 8500 has even more LED elements, or dimmable zones, than its previous local dimming models, but won't specify an exact amount. See performance for details on how all of this mumbo jumbo affects the 8500's picture quality, and how it compares to plasma.
The other big item on the 8500's spec sheet, and one that affects picture quality to a much smaller extent, is its 240Hz refresh rate. Its main benefit is better motion resolution than 120Hz models, although the difference will be nearly impossible to discern for most viewers. Unique to the UNB8500 series is an LED Motion Plus control that engages a sequential backlight scanning system to further improve motion resolution, at the expense of some light output. Samsung's Auto Motion Plus dejudder processing is also onboard, and new for 2009 it includes a nicely implemented custom setting that lets you tweak blur reduction and judder.
Interactive features: Samsung's main interactive capability is supplied by Yahoo widgets. The system gathers Internet-powered information nodules, called "snippets," into a bar along the bottom of the screen. The model we reviewed came with widgets for stocks, weather, news, and Flickr photos, plus YouTube, Yahoo video, sports scores, games, and Twitter.
New widgets include TV Guide, which features local TV listings, and Rallycast, a sort of superwidget with access to text messaging, Facebook messages, and, most interestingly, the ability to track your fantasy sports teams from a number of providers. The TV Guide widget basically duplicates the channel guide found on digital cable and satellite boxes, and unless you don't have a guide already or the one on your box's guide is particularly annoying, you probably won't find much use for this sluggish widget. The Rallycast widget worked well to display our Yahoo fantasy football team (it also supposedly works with ESPN and CBS fantasy systems, although we didn't test those), and while response time was still pretty slow, we loved being able to see our teams' scores--although not enough to pay the $15 monthly subscription fee. We didn't test the other Rallycast miniwidgets ("widgettes"?).
For more information check out our full review of Yahoo widgets. That review was based on our experiences with a Samsung UN46B7000, and our impressions of the system on the UNB8500 series are mostly the same, including its sluggish response time. It's worth noting that the widgets system on Sony and LG TVs, while more limited in terms of content, is also much more responsive.
Other interactive features on this set abound. It can stream videos, photos, and music from DLNA-certified devices via the network connection, as well as from its USB ports, which can connect to MP3 players, USB thumbsticks, and digital cameras (we didn't test this capability). There's also built-in "content," such as recipes, games, workout guides, and a slideshow of high-def art and photos with music. The content section also features a download option, allowing you to get more content, such as additional galleries, games, recipes, etc., using an interface on the TV.
Picture adjustments: Samsung offers its usual myriad picture adjustments, starting with four adjustable picture modes that are all independent per input. This model also features a pair of picture modes, called "Cal-Day" and "Cal-Night, that require activation and adjustment by a qualified calibrator. Since we restrict our reviews to user-menu control options available to everyone, we didn't incorporate those two modes into our tests.
The five color temperature presets are augmented by the ability to adjust each via a custom white-balance menu. Other adjustments include three varieties of noise reduction plus an automatic setting; a film mode to engage 2:3 pull-down (it also works with 1080i sources); a seven-position gamma control that affects the TV's progression from dark to light; a dynamic contrast control that adjusts the picture on the fly; a "black tone" control that affects shadow detail; and a color space control that lets you tweak the Samsung's color gamut.
You can choose from four aspect ratio modes for HD sources, two of which let you move the whole image across the screen horizontally and vertically. As we'd expect from a 1080p TV, one of those modes, called Screen Fit, lets the UNB8500 scale 1080i and 1080p sources directly to the panel's pixels with no overscan--the best option unless you see interference along the edge of the screen, as can be the case with some channels or programs.
Other features: We appreciated the three power-saver modes, which further reduce energy use. As far as other conveniences, Samsung throws in picture-in-picture, an "E-manual" on a USB stick that displays the manual onscreen, and a customer care screen that includes the firmware version for when you need to call the company. We're also big fans of the new-for-2009 capability to get firmware updates via an online download, rather than making you go to the Web site, as was the case before. Another nice touch: the last firmware version is retained by the TV automatically, so you can return to it if you don't like the update.
The UNB8500 series offers good connectivity, as long as your AV system doesn't have many analog components. The highlight is four HDMI inputs, arranged vertically along the shallow connection bay on the back of the TV (note that fat cables might not fit the nearly flush sockets very well). You also get two USB inputs, a VGA-style PC input, and a single component-video input that can be converted to accept composite video instead. An RF input for antenna or cable, an optical digital audio jack, and the Ethernet port complete the picture (Samsung's optional wireless adapter is available for $80 list, or you can use a third-party wireless solution). If you need to connect more than one analog device, you'll need to use a switcher or an AV receiver.
Performance
For viewers seated directly in front of the screen the Samsung UNB8500 delivers the second-deepest black levels of any display we've ever tested, after the Pioneer Kuro plasma from 2008. Those excellent blacks fall off the farther you move from dead center, however, which is an issue that prevented the UNB8500 from scoring even higher in this category. Aside from that, and its glossy screen, the expensive Samsung hits all the right notes, from color accuracy to video processing to fewer drawbacks in general than other LED-based displays. The entire package scored the same "9" in picture quality as the Panasonic V10 plasmas, the highest score we've awarded this year, and if it wasn't for off-angle issues, the UNB8500 would be the clear winner between the two.
Our standard setup of the Samsung UNB8500 began, as usual, by selecting the Movie preset, which delivered the most accurate initial picture. Like most Samsung sets we've tested this year, the grayscale in Movie's default Warm 2 color temperature preset was still relatively blue. We improved it somewhat with the user menu fine color temperature controls, but the midtones still measured a bit blue.
We're sure a professional calibration that took advantage of additional
During our calibration we noticed that, as with the LN46A950 from last year, the 8500's LED Motion Plus setting dimmed overall light output considerably, so with it engaged (see video processing below) we had to crank the backlight control to 8 out of 10 to achieve our standard 40ftl light output. That's not a big deal, however, and the TV was still capable of plenty of light output. After calibration gamma measured a respectable 2.264 versus the ideal of 2.2.
The Samsung LN8500 series begs to go up against the best TVs from this year and last, and happily we had most of them on hand for our side-by-side comparison. From the LCD camp our lineup included the local dimming Samsung LN46A950, the Sony KDL-55XBR8, and the LG 47LH90, the edge-lit Samsung UN46B8000, and the standard-backlit LN52B750. We also threw in the best plasmas from 2009 and 2008, respectively: the Panasonic TC-P50V10 and our reference Pioneer PRO-111FD. For the majority of our image quality tests we used "Watchmen" on Blu-ray.
Black level: When seen from the sweet spot directly in front of the TV, the black levels of the Samsung UNB8500 series were the darkest and most realistic of any display in our lineup, with the exception of the Pioneer plasma. The difference was obvious in our side-by-side comparison, where the 8500 beat even the superb XBR8 and the V10, its closest competitors.
The effects of its black levels showed up best in extremely dark scenes, such as when Dreiberg first steps into his apartment in Chapter 5 and the only illumination is the light from the street coming through his doorway. The shadows in the rest of the apartment, Dreiberg's silhouette, and the letterbox bars and other black areas, were inkier and deeper than all but on the Kuro. We also noticed the difference between the 8500 and the lighter displays, albeit to a lesser extent, in brighter scenes such as when Dreiberg confronts Rorschach in his kitchen. The 8500's extremely deep blacks made every scene more lifelike and enjoyable.
Shadow detail on the 8500 was superb as well, albeit not quite as realistic as on the plasmas. When the cops investigate the scene of the Comedian's murder, for example, their dark uniforms blended into the black background a bit more than we'd like to see, and although we could still make out every detail, some shadows seemed just a bit too dark given our overall gamma target. The 8500 still surpassed the other sets in this regard, however.
Like other local dimming LED-based LCDs we've tested, the 8500 evinced some "blooming," where a brighter object will bleed into a darker adjacent area, but the issue was less intrusive than on any other local dimmer we've tested. When Rorschach's flashlight illuminates the framed picture of the Comedian and Nixon in Chapter 3, for example, the light bleeds into the bottom letterbox bar to a lesser extent on the 8500 than it did on the XBR8, the A950, and the LH90. Likewise the lighter cloud around the scrolling credits or the icons and text from our PS3 was less noticeable on the 8500. Blooming was still visible, especially from off-angle, but it was never distracting. Naturally only the local dimming sets, not the edge-lit or standard LCDs, nor the plasmas, exhibited blooming.
Finally we really appreciated that the backlight on the 8500 didn't introduce noticeable fluctuations when the scene changed from dark to light and back again, as it does in the intro credits, for example.
Color accuracy: The UNB8500 scored very well in this category, albeit not up to the standards of our reference Kuro or the LG LH90. Its main issue was a slightly bluish grayscale in the midtones, which we couldn't correct with the user-menu controls without sacrificing other areas. As a result, skin tones, such as the faces of Jon Osterman and Janey Slater at the carnival in Chapter 18, or Sally Jupiter as she confronts The Comedian in Chapter 22, appeared a bit paler and cooler than on our reference display and the LG. As we mentioned, primary and secondary colors, such as the red of the blood on the Watchmen logo or the yellow of the NYC cabs, was spot-on.
Thanks mostly to the 8500's excellent black levels, colors throughout the film were beautifully saturated and lush, looking more lifelike than any of the other sets aside from the Kuro. We also appreciated that dark areas stayed relatively neutral, instead of turning bluer as they did on the LH90 and other Samsung LCDs, or (worse) greener as they did on the Sony XBR8.
Video processing: The 8500 has more processing options than any HDTV we've tested this year, but the result is superb performance in this category. We'll begin with the set's motion resolution, which came in at the full 1080 lines on our test, equaling the best plasmas we've tested (Panasonic's 2009 models, such as the V10) and surpassing the best LCDs, namely the LG LH90, the Sony XBR8, and the Samsung A950.
Samsung's UNB8500 only achieved this mark when we engaged both the Auto Motion Pro 240Hz (any position aside from "Off") and LED Motion Plus functions. Disabling the latter softened motion resolution somewhat on our test pattern, scoring the standard 240Hz mark of between 900 and 1,080 lines. Adjusting the Blur Reduction slider between 0 and 10 affected motion resolution accordingly; we preferred 10, which gave the best results. Turning off the 240Hz processing entirely left the TV at the standard LCD mark of between 300 and 400 lines, regardless of whether we engaged LED motion plus. As usual it was difficult to spot the effects of this improved motion resolution in normal program material, despite the large numeric differences seen in specialized test patterns.
Like other Samsung displays, the 8500 also includes customizable dejudder processing, and as usual it works great. We set the Judder Reduction slider under the Custom setting to 0, leaving Blur Reduction at 10, and the 24-frame look of our 1080p/24 source came through correctly. We tested both "Watchmen," during the scene when Osterman locks himself in the intrinsic field chamber in Chapter 19, and our standard "I Am Legend," where the camera flies over an aircraft carrier. In both cases the proper rate of film was preserved, without undue smoothing or the hitching motion of 2:3 pull-down.
Undue smoothing was introduced when we increased the Judder Reduction slider or selected either the Standard or the Smooth presets. Some viewers might like the effect but we didn't, and in most cases it made the film appear too much like video. We compared the Sony and Samsung's Standard modes, along with the LG's Low setting, during the camera movement at the beginning of Chapter 19, and as usual we preferred the Sony's Standard to that of the other two, mainly because it preserved some judder. Of course, the Samsung's slider lets you dial in exactly how much you want, which is a great option for tweakers who are particular about their judder.
Uniformity: The biggest weakness of LED-based LCDs comes in the arena of off-angle viewing, and the 8500 follows suit. When we moved just one couch cushion to either side, the blacks lightened considerably, becoming brighter, more washed-out, and less realistic, and taking the rest of the image quality down with them.
Even when in the sweet spot, simply hard leaning to either side caused the far edge of the screen, especially letterbox bars and other d