Samsung 32" Video Game and Movie Machine

I'm still a bit perturbed that the television I bought for video games and movies, decided to spontaneously combust in my family room. Actually, it really exploded, and it was a Toshiba LCD TV, which I thought would be ultra-reliable. I had never had a problem with any electronics manufactured by Toshiba, and as I returned this television to be exchanged, I decided to go with a Samsung instead. It was a price based decision, as due to the recent economic issues, I'm not getting a COLAincrease or yearly raise. I haven't had a lot of experience with Samsung, but as far as I'm concerned, this television is a winner. It was in my price range at $575, and I've had it for more than three months now, without any problems.

This television is so light, that I miss the old days of bear hugging our huge screen one, to move it to another room. I'm just kidding on that, because the extra workout was never appreciated, and when it had to be moved I used to complain for hours before getting the job done. This television weighs in at a grand total of twenty four pounds, so its even easier to carry around than the dog food bag I purchase each month. My initial set up of getting it out of the box was a breeze, and I decided to play it on an entertainment center table, instead of mounting it on the wall.

It might have seriously been easier to mount on the wall. There was a bag with four screws, attached to the television and base unit, and I had a terrible time getting these to stick together. The base screws were a royal pain to tighten, and aligning the television up with them required a lot of concentration. Even after considerable sweating, the television wasn't tightly enough secured, so I had to go through the process again. There's no 100% foolproof way of getting these into the television unit secure enough or it not to lean a bit. It will keep the television on the base, so that you don't have to worry about it falling, but there's a bit of an improper angle even with it firmly entrenched. This doesn't diminish viewing opportunities, but sometimes you have to point the television in the proper direction.

I am totally blown away by the clarity of the televisions colors and images. The 1366x768 pixels guarantees an optically inspiring experience each time, and sometimes I have to pinch myself, and realize how great this is compared to the black and white television I had years ago. You can get bigger screens, but I like this 32" size, as each color is crisp without any blurrying. That sometimes occurs in an older LCD Sylvania that I have upstairs, which isn't terribly annoying, but it can create a bit of frustration during video games and certain movies. I watched an underwater documentary on DVD with this television, and I couldn't believe the image quality. It was almost as if you were there, and even my wife who's not known to praise anything electronic, was duly impressed by this as well.

This is the ultimate video gamers television. I play a lot of games, such as Mortal Kombat vs. DC Comics and Madden Football, that require a television that can produce images quickly. This television has not let me down at all, and its unbelievableseeing some of the stadiums on here. The crisp, clear graphics enhanced by the HDMI ports this television has, make it a gaming experience that my family and friends appreciate. One of my friends was disappointed that he didn't get this television, as he spent a few hundred dollars for another, that doesn't have the clarity that this one offers. You can see fine details of backgrounds in games with this, and even minute details such as shadows with ease.

The sound is above average, although I am planning on adding some speakers to this eventually. You are not going to get 300 watts of sound with this product, but what you will get is sound good enough to be confused for a high quality boom box. There's no static or other background noise, and its more than loud enough for music videos, or to connect your IPOD for workouts down in a family/exercise room. At volume 10, which is not even 1/4th of the total capability, other family members upstairs are yelling at me to turn the television down. I don't know what's so annoying about video games at high volume, but they don't like it! There are plenty of ways to connect this to a receiver based system, but most will be satisfied with its original settings.

There are plenty of connections, but one thing I don't like about the left side panel, is that there's a 1/2 inch indentation there. This doesn't require a lot longer set of wires, but its something to consider if you are struggling for room. I would have like some of the connections to be on the front of the television, but it is kind of useful for keeping wires from ruining a rooms appearance, which is what my wife feels about this issue. Personally I like wires, and would enjoy it more if they were easier to attach. Even with the annoyances of how this panel is placed, I do like the setup. The digital audio port is on the top side, as well as the PC and HDMI connections. All of the video game and other auxillary connections are at the bottom, so this makes sense when having cable boxes, Tivo's, and other high tech devices to worry about.

The remote control does not glow in the dark. I was a bit disappointed by this, because I loved that option when I had the "Exploding Toshiba." The Rolling Stones were correct that you "can't always get what you want," but for the most part I really do love this remote control. The instructions say that it has a maximum range of twenty three feet, but due to being curious, I tested it from fifty feet with success. Its kind of funny changing channels from my side yard, like I used to do to drive my parents crazy, when I was a young boy.

Juvenile based humor aside, the remote is the perfect size. It will fit in the palm of your hand, and is durable enough to take a couple of throws during furious temper episodes while watching sporting events. The power button on the top is easy to access, as are the "Source" and "TV" ones. The numbers are right up at the top as well, along with the volume and channel controls. The mute button is a bit on the small size, but is easy enough to use, and all of the important command buttons such as "Menu" and "Picture Size" are at the bottom. The remote uses two AAA batteries, of which are included in the television package, and I haven't had to replace them yet.

Programming your television is easy! I'm not the most technically gifted person, when it comes to electronic products, and have spent hours of frustration with other televisions. The instruction guide that came with this television is excellent, and using the menu button to set up preferences is easy enough for the caveman from Geico. The menu button allows you to change the backlight, contrast, brightness, sharpness, color, and tint, and I like the graphs that show where you are at on each one's level. Here you can change your language preferences, and also configure your television to other devices that you intend to use.

For parents concerned about what their children are watching, there's of course a V-Chip to use. This can lock out inappropriate programs, such as Mr. Ed and Sesame Street, which have been scientifically proven to traumatize youngsters. There's a clock option you can use to set up the proper time, and I am as always thankful for the sleep timer to save money on electric bills. You have the options to set this to 30, 60, 90, 120,150, or 180 minutes, and this can be done on either the television itself or the remote control. Our electric company lies to us all of the time on their commercials, but they are right about LCD/Plasma TV's eating away more electricity than older models, so this is a handy option to use.

I am very happy with this television, and one of my favorite features is the beeping noise it makes when you turn it on or off. It reminds me of the autopilot feature on commercial planes. This television doesn't seem to get as hot as other LCD's I've had, and there have been no problems with it turning on. Occasionally, some LCD TV's can take awhile to show images, but this one starts up immediately each time. You can't go wrong with this model, and I was pleased to see that it has been rated highly by respected publications. It hasn't blown up like my Toshiba did, and considering how much abuse its taken from high definition movies and video games, I'm even more impressed by its overall quality.