Samsung PN50C7000 50 inch Plasma TV
Nov 17th, 2010 | By SimonPicture quality is definitely the main reason why we would choose one brand over another. It doesn’t matter how much cheaper the competition may be, but if the picture looks terrible you couldn’t pay me to sit in front of the TV and actually stare at the tube!
Straight out of the box I put a picture up on the screen from my USB drive to check out the viewing angle. Plasma TVs are generally know to have excellent viewing angles and the PN50C7000 is no exception. In this field of poppies, the colors are extremely vibrant regardless of how you look at it. If you don’t have your couches directly in front of the TV and may be viewing it from odd angles, then a plasma might be worth the investment for that reason alone.
Viewing angle
Reading Text
With a 50″ TV, it doubles as a great monitor. Individual pixels come up clearly and the large contrast ratio makes it easy to see.
iDisplay 2
A more technical way to analyze picture quality, but not as fun as sitting in front of the TV for hours upon hours to come up with a qualitative value is to use a quantitative program to judge against a benchmark. In this instance I used X-Rite: iDisplay 2. Originally designed for monitors (CRT and LCD), I’m using it configured for LCD displays, despite having a plasma display. I’ve configured the TV to take the input signal from my laptop and will adjust the backlight, contrast and brightness on the TV to make sure the iDisplay 2 has the best possible picture. The software takes about 10 minutes to run and I was amazed how few changes were required to meet what iDisplay 2 says is calibrated. The default settings for Standard display mode is Cell Light @ 10, Contrast @ 95 and Brightness @ 45. After calibrating the TV I was left with Cell Light @ 11, Contrast @ 95 and Brightness @ 70. The overall improvements increased the liveliness of colors and gave the white a more pure white appearance and less of a grey color.
2D and 3D Performance
The best way to really test a TV out is to sit in front of it and judge if you like it. I was definitely more than happy to do that job and the video quality was amazing. Dark scenes in movies were pitch black and not some dark grey color. There were no bright spots on the screen or bleeding around the edge. Most of the time spent in front of the TV will be with 2D content, pretty boring for a TV capable of 3D performance. One neat feature was the real-time converter, a Samsung engine that converts 2D content into 3D as you watch it. I tested this out with The Mummy Returns. I wasn’t too sure what to expect and while the effects of 3D were there, I found it to be very subtle. It’s almost as if there was just enough 3D content to ever so slightly pop out of the screen, unlike watching a full 3D movie.
Here’s a few captures of The Mummy Returns in 2D:
Here’s the same scene in 3D, converted from 2D.
HD 3D TV
The real reason why anyone would pay the premium to buy a 3D TV is to be able to watch 3D movies in the native format. This year we saw a huge number of movies being released in 3D. Objects coming out of the screen increases once experience by a huge factor, it’s hard not to like it. With the PN50C7000 you can join the bandwagon and be the center of entertainment with your friends and family. As noted before, the PN50C7000 has a built-in 3D converter to change 2D movies into 3D experience. This is nice e but having a dedicated 3D Blu-Ray disc is much much better. To try out the 3D experience I have a copy of Monsters vs. Aliens. Without the Samsung 3D Active glasses, the movie looks blurry.
Once you put on the Samsung 3D glasses the images start to have some depth and come out of the screen. It’s hard to picture this with just a 2D picture….
The 3D effect is more profound when there is a row of people lined up or when objects fly into the view.
Here are some more pictures:
If you were expecting the 3D effect to be as profound as what you saw in the theatres, then you’ll be disappointed. Watching a 3D movie at home is a great experience but it doesn’t have the same capabilities as what James Cameron did with Avatar 3D. The pictures in the TV do pop out to create a 3D effect but in theatres it felt like you were walking with the characters on screen. Am I disappointed? Most definitely not. I still think my movie experience was greatly improved with the PN50C7000!
While I was originally concerned about the reflective screen, I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the FilterBright Antiglare coating that reduces the reflection even in the afternoon sun. The picture was great at all angles in the afternoon, something I haven’t seen even in the latest LCD displays.