Samsung LNT5271F 52" Diagonal 1080p HDTV LCD

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from digital cable (but not HDTV cable), and different stations provide some difference in signal quality.
Even standard resolution TV is now often offered in the HDTV proportioned image - use "Zoom 1" and your screen will be filled.
- I'd been happy enough watching a high quality, old 25" CRT screen, and an LCD TV of about the same size. Your brain has a lot to do with the way you perceive TV, and a smaller screen sufficed for me. No - that small screen will not have the impact of a movie screen when you view a Lord of the Rings movie - but the average TV detective show or sitcom? - not so much. When I first started viewing this 52" TV, from about 12' away, I felt like I was having to move my head and eyes just to take in the large image. Initially I thought that a 40" TV might have been a better choice. After a few days of viewing, I got used to the large image.. more than that - I really enjoy it. Absolutely NO buyer's remorse!
- I've seen high quality HDTV - and frankly I am avoiding it for a while to save subscription fees. My guess is that it will be superb on this set - more like looking through an open window, than at a TV screen.

ISSUES:

TILT ISSUE:
> This TV is shipped with base attached, and is supposed to stand vertically on the provided base. The provided manual does not indicate that any adjustments for this exist.
- My unit tilts back, with the top of the screen 7/8" further back than the bottom of the screen.
- Apparently this is a common problem, since my sister took delivery of the same model, on the same day as I did, and her TV tilts forward by 1".
- These small tilts are not that big a deal, but it appears to indicate a weakness in the base or the attachment design - something is bent... and perhaps under designed for strength.

- I've just today notified Amazon about the tilt problem - I'm waiting for their response.

REFLECTIONS
> The screen has a glass like finish and is highly reflective. If you have lights and windows opposite the screen - you WILL see reflections depending on the light source locations and viewing angles.
Lights can be turned off, but windows are a different problem. My viewing room has windows on the wall opposite from the TV, which admit some light - the drapes are not ""blackouts". The reflected images of my draped windows are definitely there during the day. The reflections are most noticeable in the dark side bars if I am using a 4:3 viewing mode. In full screen display modes, the TV picture swamps the reflected images. At night - I have no window reflection problem of course! If you have bright windows in your viewing room, you should consider reflections when you make your choice of TV type and model.

LCD SCREEN BURN-IN
> The Samsung manual warns against viewing this TV without using the entire screen area (i.e. using the 4:3 display mode for standard format TV display) Samsung's recommendation is to view less than 5% of time without full screen. There is also a warning about displaying stationary images.
- Screen burn-in issues definitely exist with old CRT's, and plasma screens may have similar problems. At this time, I am not sure this is a real problem for a good LCD TV. The manual's warning may simply be a case of editing text from other types of TV manuals.
- In any case - especially if you should be concerned about this problem... displaying 4:3 (standard) programming with the "Zoom 1" option will fill your screen (use "16:9" option and things will be distorted). The image will be larger (good - you may prefer it) and you will lose a bit of the top and bottom of the full picture (a loss - but not usually that noticeable).

DEAD PIXELS
> I am happy to report that contrary to the experience of purchasers who have written other reviews, my set appears to have no dead pixels, both at time of delivery, and now - four weeks later.
> Samsung's dead pixel warranty can be found on the Samsung website, and they do NOT guarantee no dead pixels, just a relatively small number of dead pixels.
> Dead pixels are a fact of life when producing large LCD panels at reasonable prices. "Random defects" occur, and throwing away all panels with any defects raises the average production price. (Computer chip production shares this type of problem - not all manufactured chips test good. Conceptually - think about painting a wall and being satisfied only if not one piece of dust was embedded in the paint.)
- A very small number of dead pixels will not significantly reduce viewing quality. However, most of the "dead pixel" instances mentioned in other reviews on Amazon are of entire lines of pixels, bands and squared shapes. These are not the conventional random dead pixels. These problems indicate something more serious - and should not be discounted by the minimum dead pixel warranty limits.
- My advice is to aggressively pursue any dead pixel issues with the seller as early as possible. You may get satisfaction in excess of the Samsung warrantee.

Samsung LNT5271F 52" Diagonal 1080p HDTV LCD

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time, someone said to me, "Whats so special about this TV? High definition is just a hype-trend."... "GASP.." said my friends... i looked at my buddy and he said, "show him..." I knew what he was telling me to do. I switched inputs to my blue ray player, pulled out the infamous PLANET EARTH and pressed play. The rest of the night we watch the clearest picture known to man. After the night was over, my friend whispered to me, "You proved your point... Now, where can i get this TV?"

-C

Samsung LNT5271F 52" Diagonal 1080p HDTV LCD

...

time, someone said to me, "Whats so special about this TV? High definition is just a hype-trend."... "GASP.." said my friends... i looked at my buddy and he said, "show him..." I knew what he was telling me to do. I switched inputs to my blue ray player, pulled out the infamous PLANET EARTH and pressed play. The rest of the night we watch the clearest picture known to man. After the night was over, my friend whispered to me, "You proved your point... Now, where can i get this TV?"



-C