Early thoughts on a PS43D450 and PS43D490

[Skeeter]

I’m very happy to report back this morning on not one but two TV’s!  In the freezing cold I upgraded my own LNB to SATCR+ 2xLegacy and also a family member's standard LNB to SATCR.  Basically the D450 was purchase for family and the D490 for myself.  Since I had to get a new LNB my old SATCR one went to the family. 

The D450 was first up on test.  A stunning looking TV!  The thinner bezel really adds to the style (Samsung's "Plasma Plus One Design").  I noticed right away that the infamous Samsung Plasma buzz was still not cured and pretty loud to my ears.  The older family members will never hear it though.   The bezel and back of the TV are very strong with no flex – it almost felt like the bezel was metal itself (the back is made of metal).  Picture performance out of the box was fine but I switched to “Movie” from “Standard” and took the brightness and contrast right down while the TV runs in.  The remote and OSD are very familiar and almost identical to my own PS50C6500, so navigating was a breeze.  I found the “Movie” sound preset to be the most pleasing but there are other nice settings like “Clear Voice”, “Music” and “Amplify”.  The family don’t have a receiver so will be using the TV sound.  The “Movie” sound has some nice bass so quite pleasing.  SD picture is excellent and the HD picture is grand!  Colours are good, no motion blur...everything comparable to my much more expensive PS50C6500.  One small niggle which was very disappointing is a non-swivelling stand...why the heck would they take this away?  It is a critical feature!  That aside, the family are 200% happy with their gift...

Next up was the D490 back home.  First thing I noticed was a different stand – a glass one with some simple styling and not black plastic like the D450.  It can also swivel!  This feature alone bears careful consideration when choosing between the D450 and D490.  With that said, and seeing as though we will be mounting our D490 and won’t need the stand, I am in the process of enquiring if I can use the D490 stand on the D450 (for the ifamily).  The PQ out the box was good once again and I settled on the “Movie” preset.  Interestingly the values are quite different to the D450!  I’ll explore this more as time goes by.  Sound was also set to “Movie” until I install the the new ceiling speakers and AV Receiver.  One thing that blew me away was the TV’s seeming ability to boost a picture over standard RF i.e. the picture being duplicated from my HD PVR in the lounge, over RF, to the bedroom.  On a 51cm CRT Samsung it is snowy and generally poor quality.  The HD channels over RF put a lot of strain on the old CRT.  On the new D490 the picture over RF is amazing!!  The HD channel over RF almost looks like...720p!  Really, really surprising but I’m not sure if it’s the TV or all flat screens that boost a picture over RF.  Also note I had to extend the RF cable to reach the D490, since it is on a small table until I wall mount it.  Even with the additional noise of a joined connection, the PQ over RF is "grand".  Buzzing is the same as the D450 but I have learned to live with it on my PS50C6500 so will do the same in this case.  If have read of people swapping their sets to try and reduce buzz, don't waste your time.  This is a Plasma artifact and something you cannot get rid of.  (Maybe more accurate is a "Samsung Plasma artifact" because people have reported that Panasonic Plasmas do not buzz)

One thing common to BOTH units is that they run stone cold...unlike my PS50C6500 which heats up like an oven, the D450 and D490 do not get hot, or even warm!! 

Another commonality is the all-new 43" size spec.  This is achieved by reducing the bezel size to good effect.  For the price I don't think 43" can be scoffed at.  What an awesome buy.

In the future I will rate the 3D on the D490, if and when I use it.  I also see that it upscales regular content to 3D which should also be interesting.

Have a good weekend, folks.

[Skeeter]

I have spent more time with these TV's, specifically my D490.  I rate this TV very highly...the sharpness with which it displays SD content is nothing short of amazing.  This is a direct comparison to my much more expensive PS50C6500!  I am guessing that the smaller screen size and 720p limitation is a much better match to an HD PVR than any other option out there.  The picture is so crisp on a channel like 101 or 201 that I found myself checking the logo, top left, just to see if I was watching HD or not!  Perhaps the 2011 Samsungs have some sort of signal amplifier built in?  Whatever the secret, this is defnitely the TV to have for regular DSTV and an HD PVR.

More on the design...while the TV is quite thin, it's not as thing as some of the sets out there.  IMHO it is thin enough and pleasing on the eye.  Then there is the much "Touch of Colour", a design deviation from the non-3D D450 model which some folk on the net hate.  Quite simply it is a translucent red strip, about 5mm in height, that runs across the bottom of the bezel.  It is hardly visible so not sure why people fuss about this.

Unlike my PS50C6500, there is no interactive TV services over the Internet which is fair given the price.  To be honest I have not used this on my 50" so don't mind that it's missing.  The ability to playback videos over USB is still a very nice-to-have.  There is supposedly a difference between the D450 and D490 with file support but I've not tested this yet.  It happens seldomly that I use the USB port but I always enjoy the functionality when I end up using it.

Onto the on-screen menus...there have been some very suble changes to the 2011 Plasma range compared to 2010.  There are a few more sound modes which I don't use anyway because of the AV Receiver.  There's also a flashy sound icon when changing the volume.  I have not compared with my 50" to see if the feature is new or not but there's now 2 auto-off models: one for no signal from a source and another if idle for 15 minutes (adjustable).  The content menus (downloads, USB, etc) are very quick compared to my 50" although not nearly as comprehensive.  Still, at least it is included on a TV of this price.

To repeat myself, the D450 and D450 43" 720p Samsung Plasmas are best buys for 2011.  I am blown away.

[Skeeter]

I also came across this review which is a good read:

Allow me to give a little background before I start on my review. I am the owner of many high end high def televisions. My stable currently consists of a Panasonic 65" VT25, a Samsung PN58C8000, a Samsung UN55B8500, and an LG 50" PX950. In the past, I have owned Pioneer Elite Kuro's and other high end sets as well. I wanted to put this information out there, so that you would know what I am comparing this PN43D490 to when I am reviewing it. I picked up this set for the kids play room. I really wasn't expecting too much. I found a terrific deal, and picked it up for less than $670. I figured the size is pretty decent at 43" and it's 3D, that's all I really needed in this case.
Well, like it says in the tagline, I got a whole lot more than I bargained for. This is a superb HDTV! I literally couldn't believe my eyes the first night we hooked it up. I got it all connected, and then fired it up to start adjusting and calibrating the picture settings. (Hey, my wife and I have to spend more time than we would like to in that play room). ABC's Castle was the first show that came once I got it fired up. I switched to the default "movie" mode in the picture settings, and I was utterly in awe of what I was seeing. I thought to myself, "the black levels are at least as deep as the ones on the PX950." I decided to go into our bedroom and turn on the same television show to compare the picture performance. I'm telling you right now that this television performs on par with LG's flagship plasma from 2010, and not a huge amount below the Samsung PNC8000 and Panasonic VT25 series. This is why I felt compelled to write a review. I've had several mid-end plasma, LCD, and LED backlit LCD televisions over the past few years for a variety of different purposes. This one outperforms all of them. Do not get caught up in 1080P vs. 720P (which is actually 768P). This television, and practically all good 720P sets, accept and display 1080P signals just like a 1080P set does. At sizes 50" and below, you will never tell a difference between 1080P and 720P unless you are viewing the television from a distance of 5 feet or less. How many people view their television this close to it? Almost nobody. In the past, I have placed sub 50" 1080P and 720P sets side by side and viewed the same content on them. The human eye simply can't tell a difference if they are viewing the television from a logical or reasonable distance.

Allow me to tell you how I tested this set, and made the determination that the performance was comparable to the LG PX950 set. I happen to have two copies of Avatar on blu-ray. Avatar is a good disc to use to judge black level and color accuracy performance. I put in the Avatar blu-ray on both the LG PX950 set and this PN43D490, in order to make some comparisons. The level of black achieved by this D490 series Samsung is equal in most scenes, and better in others than the black level of the PX950. I also viewed many 2.40:1 films on both sets to compare the letterbox bars. The letterbox bars on the D490 series get just a hair darker than they do on the PX950 series. Thus, confirming that the black level performance is just the slightest bit better. You wouldn't notice this if you weren't looking at both of them and comparing them, but it's worth mentioning nonetheless. I am astonished by the black level performance of this television. The fact that a budget television like this can perform up to par with the flagship television of the previous year from another top of the line brand is absolutely stunning to me. I've had a few other low to mid-end Samsung plasma's in the past. Most recently, the B550 series from 2009. The black level performance of this D490 is superior to them all. You're getting the black level performance of a much higher-end set while paying much less with this television. It's also worth noting that not a single LCD television in this class can hold a candle to the black level performance of this set.

The color accuracy is also quite good. In comparing it to the PX950, I found that it is not quite as good as that set. However, the color accuracy performance of this D490 is vastly superior to many of the comparable sets I've owned recently. When you use "movie" mode, and dial in all of the different settings just right, this set can compete with the color accuracy of many high-end sets. Flesh tones are spot on. Primary colors are nearly flawless. The grayscale is a little warm, but all in all, you could never expect more for a television in this class. It puts LCD's in this class to shame, and slightly outperforms LED backlit LCD sets such as the Sony EX700 series.
The 3D picture performance of this set is outstanding. You don't get quite as much depth or have images come quite as far out into the room as you do on the high-end plasma 3D sets, but there is practically zero crosstalk. I'm sure that this can, in part, be attributed to the smaller size of the television. However, it's still excellent to witness a 3D picture this great on a television this affordable. The 3D picture performance of this television makes the Samsung UNC8000 and UNC7000 series LED-LCD's, as well as the Sony HX-909 and HX800 series 3D performance look like absolute drivel. On the LED-LCD sets, you have to view 3D content from dead center, and you can't let your glasses tilt to the side at all. If you move off angle, or try to lay down or rest in the way that tilts the glasses to the side, you completely lose the 3D illusion. Cross talk is also severe on the LED-LCD sets. No such problems exist with this D490 series Samsung. I put on the glasses and walked all over the room. I layed down on my side on the couch. In spite of all of this, the 3D performance remained the same.

The video processing performance exhibited by this television is on par with many high-end plasma, and 240/480Hz LCD's. It trounces it's 120Hz LCD competitors in this price range. Watching sports is a true delight. There is absolutely no motion blur whatsoever. I haven't noticed a single instance of hitching, jerking, stuttering, or any other issue common to 120Hz LCD's and plasma's of a few years ago. 1080/24p performance is flawless. I didn't notice any of the usual hitching motion that you usually see with 3:2 pull down engaged for 24p film viewing. There is nothing in the picture settings that definitively defines a dedicated cinema or film smooth video processing mode for 24p content, but I wouldn't be surprised if the television has one built in, and automatically engages a dedicated video processing mode for viewing such content. It handles 24p content that well. This television also handles standard def content well. Jaggies on the edges of images were resolved excellently. Noise reduction and edge enhancement automatically engage when viewing standard def content, and such programming is upconverted properly to give a solid picture.
I do have one major complaint about this television. It doesn't allow you to name/label the inputs! I am flabbergasted by this! I know that some of you might not mind this as much as I do, but labeling the inputs on a television has been standard on practically every television, made by every manufacturer, in any class, for close to 5 years now. It's as if they simply forgot about this. It was almost enough to make me lower my overall score to a 4 star rating, but with this D490 series, you're simply getting way too much television for far too little money to rate it any lower.

What's great about it: Black level performance, color accuracy, video processing
What's not so great: No labeling/naming the inputs! what a disgrace!

Source: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Samsung+...&skuId=2121834

I can confirm that one CAN label inputs on both the D450 and D490 models.  This is done by pressing Source > hover over the input you want to rename > press Tools.

[Crankshaft]

Does the 450 also 'boost' the signal?

[naughty]

The picture is so crisp on a channel like 101 or 201 that I found myself checking the logo, top left, just to see if I was watching HD or not!  Perhaps the 2011 Samsungs have some sort of signal amplifier built in?  Whatever the secret, this is defnitely the TV to have for regular DSTV and an HD PVR.

no difference by much in the picture quality on the 2011 models to the older ones when it comes to a 720P plasma for the suitability of watching TV - I have been saying it for years - any source will look at its best in its native resolution so to watch our current HD channels you will definitely find it a lot better on a HD ready TV rather than on a full HD model hence it will probably slaughter most other higher end (read far more expensive) units for that purpose even though it may not be as good for blu-ray and other HD sources

I suspect that this is due to the lack of excessive scaling and i am also pretty happy with my my older model PS50C431 for the purpose of TV and i reckon it works better than the equivalent full HD models for my purpose (watching TV mainly and mostly sport too)

this begs the question as to whether its actually a good thing to have two screens ie one to watch TV and a full HD one to watch blu-ray - either way Samsung Plasma's are really fun TV units - they may not be as technically good as the Panasonic ones but they allow you to have fun while you watch the content and thats what the whole idea is all about ie to be entertained ..... so if you watch the screen to analyze whats going on with the picture and the contrast you may want a technically better TV but if you just want to lose yourself in the pure escapism of TV viewing and movie viewing without trying to overthink it then these Samsung Plasma's are certainly topnotch for the little money you pay for them   

Either way glad that you are enjoying the TV's, cos when you do it makes it all the more worthwhile in having invested to purchase them 

[Doogle]

Very interested to hear about the 2D to 3D conversion on the 490?  Any experiences? Is is just a gimmick?

[Skeeter]

@Crank: I suspect it's the same as the 490 purely because an oldskool tv is not suited to todays widescreen pictures, amongst other things. Cannot test because the 490 is my secondary tv while the 450 is the family's primary tv. Again last night I was marvelling at the PQ on the 450. It seriously beats my main Plasma. For the price it is a very sweet deal. I am sure most things are the same on the 450 vs 490 besides 3D, swivel base and TOC styling. I could have saved some money by buying a 450 for myself as well with no regrets, just because of the PQ.

@Doogle: I think 2D upconversion to 3D will not have a lot of depth but I cannot say for sure. Would have loved to get the 3D glasses but I ran out of budget buying the 450 last minute!

Sent using Tapatalk

[naughty]

sad thing is though that you wont even be able to just borrow someone elses glasses just to check because the older models all used infrared while the new models use bluetooth to link to the glasses so you will need to get the right glasses to work with your TV

[Skeeter]

All in good time.

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[2Nice]

Hey all, Im a big fan of plasma's, had an LG 42" plasma for about 8 years and loved it, although the resolution was 480i , the picture was still brilliant especially in sport and i love my EPL soccer. Have a Sony 40" LCD HD ready 720P in the bedroom. Decided it was time to upgrade and decided to sell the plasma - managed to get R3000 for it, so it was sold 2 months ago. Brought the Sony into the living room, connected to Hd Pvr and wow HD was really good especially in sport , but the picture still wasn't to my liking, LCD -the picture is not natural, colors are not true, SD was terrible , i missed my plasma although 480p compared to 720p - the motion flow on the LCD didnt compare to the plasma. Did a bit of searching for another TV, Always wanted an LED, especially in the stored they looked so good, Game had a special last week for a Samsung 40" FHD LED 5003 for R4999 - thought wow thats a bargain, read a few reviews -they were positive. I have a door on the opposite wall to the TV , so went for LED- since its a combo between LCD and plasma and review mention motion flow was comparable to plasma and rich colors etc. So went out and bought it, 1st impression - the glossy finish actually reflects more light than the plasma for some reason. Could see reflections off myself as well, especially during dark scenes. The colors were good, clarity and  definition was brilliant, SD was ok as well, connected my PS3 and played a bluray movie and concert, was expecting much more - considering it will be 1080P - i HAVE my PS3 and other devices connected directly to my Marantz receiver - so everything is HDMI - man i was expecting much more - there is hardly any noticeable difference between 1080p and 720p unless your nose is right up to the TV, we sit about 3m away from the TV, was dissapointed, expected more detail, wasnt much different from the sony LCD. Watched HD soccer aND wasnt too impressed, definition was lacking, something wasnt right, decided to return it, Then this week game had another special for a PS43D490 with 3D but 720P only, i told myself im not gonna fall for that FHD hype anymore, did lots of research on this model and was only good things to say, Game has it for R4999 - wow wat a bargain and its 3D, got it yesterday, and instantly from the time i installed it, it produces a WOW picture, needed some calibration, the picture is so natural something i missed from  my old plasma, but this PS42D490 puts FHD LED's and LCD'S to shame - SD is like HD in most channels, HD is amazing, cant comment on the sound as everything in running off my HT, watched a bit of HD soccer, players are much bigger -lol compared to the 40" colors are accurate, motion flow is perfect, very rich colors. Watched real steal last night, man was i blown away - the richness and natural colors, blacks and deep on this baby are awesome, no fake soap opera effect like LCD, everything is natural and life like. Still testing and calibrating for optimum pics, so if anyone has best video settings please post it here. Its 1 day and im already in love with this TV - havernt tested 3D as yet as i need 3d glasses as it did not come with, busy upgrading my PS3 firmware to play 3d as well. Guys this HD ready Plasma is a steal @ R4999 @ game currently, you wont be disappointing.  I think only OLED will beat plasma when they come out, but will be crazy expensive, untill then Plasma ESPECIALLY this model and the PS51D450 - 550 ARE THE WAY TO GO.

[WaterHond]

Great post 2Nice (and the guys that posted last year!) - thanks a lot for the mini review. I just need to find a buyer for my 2 yr old 40" Samsung HD ready plasma so I can have an excuse to upgrade....!

[Music_Lover]

I actually want to thank Skeeter for the review and Naughty for the endorsement of the picture qualtiy of the Samsung HD Ready plasmas.

I purchased the PS43D452 for my bedroom from Game and the whole package is nothing short of superb. It is only used for TV viewing connected via HDMI from my HD PVR and RF from SD PVR. All in all a great budget TV.

[2Nice]

Update on the D490.

I started experiencing motion blurring like a ghosting effect while watching sport especially soccer, even on HD, not sure if this is an issue with the TV as it just started recently, its quiet noticeable and bad on the eyes, tried adjusting setting on the TV and PVR  WHICH DID NOT RESOLVE.

Movies are fine for some reason, i watch allot of soccer so if any1 know of any issues or settings to correct this, please post it..  is there a way to check the sub field motion settings?

this is very weird for a plasma and might have to take it back..

[Skeeter]

Very late post but mine are still perfect. No issues at all except for HDMI-CEC compatibility.