Better than 2009's Samsung edge lit LED LCD's...just not enough to eliminate a few issues/flaws
I've owned this television for a few weeks now and I've been putting it through a battery of tests using a variety of different sources and room lighting conditions. To get right to the point I am returning it -- it will be picked up this week -- and waiting for either the UNC8000 precision dimming edge lit led set or perhaps either the XBR-HX900 or XBR-LX900 from Sony. The C7000 is a good TV. It compares favorably -- if not signficantly so -- to any of the edge lit led lcd's that Samsung released in 2009. However it doesn't hold a candle to the UNB8500 that was released late in 2009. It is also outperformed by Vizio's latest (552) the Sony XBR 8 and even LG's LH 90 gives it a run for it's money and outperforms it in a few important areas. Essentially the performance of the C7000 is either matched or exceeded by multiple televisions that cost significantly less. If you are not a videophile and do not concentrate on picture performance in a completely darkened room I'm sure this television will suit you just fine. However if you are a videophile and/or picture performance in a completely darkened room and accurate reproduction of theater film viewing is very important to you this television is not for you. This TV exhibits many of the same problems that plagued Samsung's 2009 series of edge lit led's -- namely a lot of light shining through from the corners top and bottom and sides of the picture while viewing in a darkened room -- and does not perform the way you would hope for a television that costs this much. Samsung did improve upon the fluctuating back light problems of last years edge lit led's. This television does not have a fluctuating back light problem at all. However I must come back to the issue of light shining through from the edges of the screen. It's a big concern for anybody who wants to reproduce a natural theater experience and view films the way they were meant to be seen. You simply cannot recreate that experience with this television. When you view a film -- or any other content -- in a completely darkened room it is impossible not to notice the light shining in from the edges. That is a huge problem for a lot of us. I will say that when you are viewing a film in a bright room this television is an outstanding performer. It is also an excellent performer for viewing sporting events animated features and other lively bright content in a brightly lit room. Of course most of us do not wish to pay $3300 to only be completely happy with our televisions when we are watching them in a brightly lit room. The light shining in from the edges also creates the potential to create a lot of problems with 3D viewing once we have sufficient 3D content available. Imagine trying to immerse yourself in a 3D viewing experience and not be able to focus on the 3D atmosphere due to the fact that there is light shining into the viewing area. I just don't see it working. It seems that it would be a major obstacle in viewing 3D content. Imagine going to see Avatar in 3D or IMAX 3D and having light shining into all of the edges of the film. There's just no way that it wouldn't distract you and take away from your viewing experience. I foresee this being a huge problem for 3D viewing once we have the content. I will discuss some of the positives of this television because I don't want anyone to think it's a bad television. I would have really given it 2.5 starts out of 5 but Amazon doesn't allow for a half star so I went with 3 because the positives probably do outweigh the negatives on this TV. The color accuracy is what we have all came to expect from Samsung which is to say it's flawless. The black level is outstanding -- if not up to par with the local dimming led sets such as the 8500 and the XBR8 or the Pioneer Kuro 151 plasma -- and does not have the fluctuating backlight problem. The black level is definitely better than last years edge lit led sets. The video processing and motion resolution is beyond reproach. It appears that this particular feature is probably comparable the 8500 which is the only lcd in history to be able to resolve all 1080 moving lines. It will be interesting to see if this television can do that once the reviews come out and the video processing has been tested. This television handles 24fps content perfectly and reproduces the proper cadence of film based content. It is definitely a good television it just has some major flaws and is outperformed by a few sets that cost over $1000 less. The potential for 3D viewing problems definitely exists and Samsung needs to find a way to cure the problem of having light shine in from the edges of the screen.More detail ...
