March 10th, 2010
There’s been plenty of talk about it over the past few months, but it seems as though 3D TV is set to arrive at any moment with Samsung leading the charge. However, there seems to be one problem that is yet to be addressed by the leading brands and that is the matter of 3D glasses.
Samsung 42 Inch TV
A standard for the 3D glasses that will be necessary to view the specialised 3D content has not yet been set! This could cause problems for consumers who’ll soon find themselves facing compatibility issues when the 3D Glasses from their new Samsung 37 LCD TV might not work with next door’s Panasonic set! Although this may not seem like a major issue, it could soon become problematic enough to put consumers off the idea of 3D TV altogether! If it’s too much hassle to upgrade from your existing Samsung 42 inch TV to the latest 3D model then why would you bother?
If each brand of 3D TV will utilise a pair of glasses with that are specific to their own TVs then what will happen if you want to invite a load of friends over to watch the latest 3D film? There’s a chance their glasses won’t be compatible with your set, even if they own a pair of 3D glasses in the first place!
If 3D TV is going to become a worldwide success then this issue needs to be addressed as soon as possible. It is issues such as this combined with the very limited amount of content that’s currently available for 3D TV that could see the format off, even before its got its feet off the ground.
Tags: Samsung 37 LCD TV, Samsung 42 inch TV
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March 4th, 2010
Cheap Plasma TVs
A recent study has shown that British consumers are spending an estimated £52 billion every year on gadgets that they have no idea how to use! Are you one of those people? It’s quite possible! Just take a moment to consider all the electronic gadgets and gizmos you own, there’s probably quite a lot. Now, how many of those gadgets do you really know how to use properly? Do you use your Blackberry or trendy iPhone for anything other than making phone calls and text messages? The answer is probably no!
Many people would argue that the reason that we don’t know how to use these gadgets is because of all the needless functionality built into them. Do you really need a camera in your mp3 player? It just confuses consumers, particularly when it comes to the matter of compatibility between gadgets and the different formats of media they utilise, this is when things can get really confusing!
However, think for a moment about your TV. You know how to use that. Even the latest, high spec Samsung LCD TV is simple to use, probably simpler than previous models. Whilst other gadgets become more complex and confusing as technology advances, TVs seem to be getting easier to use! There’s a huge range of affordable, cheap plasma TVs currently on the market that even the most technologically inept can use without any hassle.
So next time you’re thinking about spending a small fortune on the latest mp3 player with built in Wi-Fi compatibility and an integrated 10 megapixel camera that you’re never going to use, perhaps you should instead consider putting that money towards a cheap plasma TV you’ll actually use to its full potential! We’re already spending £52 billion a year on technology we can’t use, why not spend some of that on technology you can?
Tags: Cheap Plasma TV, Cheap Plasma TVs, Samsung LCD TV
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February 25th, 2010
Samsung LCD TV
Samsung have announced this week that they will be rolling out the first of their home 3D HDTVs to stores in the UK in March this year. Samsung obviously feel they stole a march on the rest of the consumer HDTV market with their announcement back in January that they had started producing 3D HDTV panels, and now they are keen to capitalise on that advantage by getting the new technology to market as soon as possible.
The good news for average consumers are the reports circulating that there will be new 3D capable TVs right across the Samsung LCD TV range, and that the technology won’t be restricted to just the top priced models. This means that if you’re a fan of 3DTV then you might want to hold off buying for a few weeks until these new Samsung LCD TVs become available.
Quite what 3D content will be available for home consumers will be largely up to what deals Samsung will or can strike with providers, as widespread adoption of the new service will most likely be dictated by the pace at which other manufacturers release their own 3DTVs. With many consumers not yet onboard with HDTV and providers having just invested heavily regarding the high resolution revolution, 3DTV may have come slightly too soon to prove an overnight success. However, anyone who had the benefit of seeing recent Hollywood blockbuster Avatar in full 3D glory will testify that at least the idea of having it in your home will be desirable to many, especially bundled with the kind of great quality seen in even cheap Samsung LCD TVs.
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February 18th, 2010
Love it or loathe it, mainstream culture can’t get enough of being skinny. Whether it’s rake thin catwalk models, celebrities poking journalists’ eyes out with their clavicles at award ceremonies or the rows of emaciated teenagers outside the local cinema on a Saturday evening, thin is in, or at least people silly enough to care about that kind of thing think it is.
But it appears television manufacturers LG are also jumping on the “size zero” bandwagon, with the release of their new “skinny frame” range. The overall size of LCD TVs is nothing compared to the chunky boxes that cluttered your living areas in the old days of cathode ray tubes, but LG believe that there is still work to be done in the area of space efficiency, and have thus released two new TVs featuring a mere 25mm of frame around the outer edge of the screen.
LG LCD TVs
There is no doubting the clean, clear lines of the new LG LCD TVs, but whether the new look is worthy of an upgrade in its own right is debatable. As yet, the two screens, 50 and 60 inches respectively, are only available in Korea anyway, and with so many great deals available on a similarly sized LG 42 LCD TV you are probably better off shopping around for an older model if in the market for a new screen right now. It is an interesting glimpse of a super-thin future though, perhaps when LCD screen, DVR and satellite decoder will be combined in to a single, slender pane on the wall.
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February 11th, 2010
Samsung LCD TVs
When new technology comes out, we all expect it not only to work but also to fit in seamlessly with the gadgets and gizmos we already have. You could argue that this is only logical, but some developments in recent times have moved the goal posts quite significantly in ways you might not initially think of. Take HDTV for example. Everyone loves the increased picture fidelity and vivid colours that help make their viewing experience even more immersive, but the extra detail means extra data, not just being transmitted from studios and stadiums to your home, but also being saved and stored by OnDemand services and home DVRs.
Samsung 32 Inch TV
The extra data capacity required for HD broadcasts and recording has had a significant knock-on effect on the supporting infrastructure, with many facilities requiring full scale overhauls of their equipment. The effect is even being felt at home, with Sky now offering a HDTV DVR system with a whopping 1TB of storage, allowing viewers to store a similar volume of HD programming as they could with their traditional “low definition” systems. The BBC’s iPlayer service offering high definition versions of their programmes has also required a large number of households to upgrade their broadband packages, as a standard 2 or even 4mb/s service will struggle to stream the extra data.
Not to worry though, HD is probably the biggest jump we will see in terms of data bandwidth requirements for a long time, meaning that if you’ve just splashed out on a new Samsung 32 inch TV and DVR then its storage capacity will probably last you a long while. In fact the next step will most likely be along the path of integration, with Samsung LCD TVs having full digital program recording and even internet browsing available all in one box.
Posted in Samsung 32 Inch TV, Samsung LCD TVs | 2 Comments »
February 11th, 2010
Cheap Samsung LCD TVs
Last time we checked, “widgets” were those little boxes of air which gave your tin of John Smith’s Smooth its creamy texture, but the internet age is not only take over our lives but also taking over everyone’s terminology it seems, as mentioning having a “widget” in your beer would now have you greeted with more than a few sideways glances. This is because “widgets” are now little mini software applications designed to integrate with and add functionality to existing programs and applications. The advantage of “widgets” is that they allow system designers to release fairly bare-bones software, which is significantly cheaper than having to design sprawling operating systems catering to everyone, and allows consumers to add only the functions they need and want, leading to a cheaper and more efficient experience all round.
Samsung LCD TV
Samsung have been using this “widget” system to great effect in their Internet@home service, a project allowing for integrated home internet surfing and shopping via their televisions. Their customers are treated to a certain level of functionality with the standard software that comes bundled with their Samsung LCD TV, but then can add on extra bits and pieces such as an application to give them travel updates or news headlines. Samsung are now taking this one step further by teaming up with Negravision to allow their customers to browse and order other Samsung products via their TV. Quite how many of their TVs they expect to sell to people who already have one we shall see.
As the technology develops in the future it will still work on TVs brought now, so if you’ve been looking in at cheap Samsung LCD TVs with a view to buying then you can relax in regards to future proofing. As always though, it’s best to look at cheap LCD TVs from other manufacturers too before taking the plunge.
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February 3rd, 2010
Cheap LG TVs
Virgin Media subscribers have a whole load of new reasons to be happy over the coming months, with Virgin announcing the addition of several new HD channels to its “XL” package. The new channels will start appearing with Eurosport HD in April, followed by a plethora of others from the BBC, Channel 4, ESPN and MTV over the subsequent weeks. This is obviously good news for sports fans as Eurosport currently carries comprehensive coverage of the Tour De France and European Athletics Championship, along with World Superbikes and World Touring Cars championships for those who prefer watching men dressed in leather rather than spandex.
It will also allow Virgin subscribers to enjoy the World Cup in high definition should the BBC decide to simulcast on their HD channel, no doubt further upsetting the nation’s grannies as their Coronation Street is pushed back to 11:30pm.
Cheap Samsung TVs
Quite what the quality of these HD channels will be is anyone’s guess. There is already a clear discrepancy between the signals broadcast by Sky and Freesat, so until Virgin’s arrive it will remain to be seen if these extra options will be worth switching providers for. However, if Virgin Media can successfully twin HD channels with their excellent range of On Demand services then their competitors will have to work jolly hard come renewal time.
If you haven’t yet joined the HD revolution then this is yet another good reason to pull your finger out. Fortunately, despite the end of the January sales there are still a plethora of cheap Samsung TVs and cheap LG TVs available, just make sure you read our previous blog on the different types of High Definition first (Confusion - Now in HD) to ensure you’re able to make an informed choice.
Posted in Cheap LG TVs, Cheap Samsung TVs | 1 Comment »
January 27th, 2010
Samsung 42 Inch TV
There’s comes a point when every household has to assess the value of owning more than one television. If we take a one TV house, for example, and we can surmise with a fair deal of accuracy that this one television will be in a communal space such as a living room or kitchen, then what happens if it’s a family house and there are arguments over whose turn it is to select their Thursday evening show? Or if the house is shared accommodation with friends, these arguments can be more problematic—someone might want to unwind in front of a David Attenborough documentary, another needs their fix of Coronation Street and perhaps a third will lose sleep wondering what has happened to Jack Bauer if they miss the latest instalment of 24.
Samsung 37 Inch LCD TV
Time to consider multiple television sets for the house. But this does not have to be a headache; on the contrary, it can be an opportunity to upgrade the communal TV set. If your housemates all watch different shows normally but you are all sports fans, why not put the bog standard TV set in the living room into another part of the house and invest in something more suitable for the communal watching experience? A Samsung 42 inch TV will provide a far better experience watching your team’s World Cup efforts together.
Of course, there may still be problems: who’s turn is it to watch their chosen show on the recently acquired Samsung 37 inch LCD TV in the living room, and who has to watch their show on the small box jammed in a corner of their bedroom or resting on the kitchen counter, but at least all concerned can watch their chosen show, and look forward to the communal viewing experiences around their high tech set in the living room when those special occasions arise.
Posted in Samsung 37 inch LCD TV, Samsung 42 inch TV | 5 Comments »
January 21st, 2010
Samsung 37 LCD TV
So just when you thought you had it all figured out, that you knew your plasmas from your LCDs and your LCDs from your LED LCDs and your giraffes from your pumas, along comes something new and even more confusing – Laser Phosphor-based Displays, or LPD for short.
LPD displays work in a similar way to plasma screens, in that a light is used to excite a pixel sized amount of phosphor in just the right way to make it glow red, green or blue. What is different is the light source, with LPD screens using laser diodes to activate the phosphor cells. Now lasers always make stuff sound exciting but in reality the technology is very similar to that used to read DVDs in your computer or DVD player. What is impressive is that manufacturers predict a 75% reduction in power usage compared to existing HD TV technologies, and whether you’re thinking about your wallet or the environment you can’t help but like that.
LG 32 LCD TV
As usual any new display technology will probably find its way in to corporate and event screens long before your average LG 32 LCD TV at home, but by being able to display a range of colour TWICE the size of LCD screens it could be a technology that catches on. I wouldn’t put that new Samsung 37 LCD TV on hold just yet though, as at present none of your DVDs would be able to make the most of all those colours anyway. It remains to be seen whether LPD screens will have issues with backwards compatibility because of this, but it would give the film industry a great excuse to make us re-buy all our favourite movies on yet another format!
Posted in LG 32 LCD TV, Samsung 37 LCD TV | 8 Comments »
January 20th, 2010
Now we’re clear on the differences between Plasma and LCD TVs, it is time to take a look at the difference between LED and LCD screens. This comment is actually slightly misleading as LED screens are just a certain type of LCD screens. LED screens have the same kind of liquid crystal display producing colours and shapes for the viewer; the difference is in what kind of backlight is used.
Samsung LCD TVs
Traditional LCD TVs use a fluorescent lamp to shine through the liquid crystals of the display to produce the image. These kinds of lamps use the same technology to produce their light as the strip lights in your office, and a similar method to energy saving light bulbs in your home. LED LCD TVs differ in that their light is provided by a net of Light Emitting Diodes (essentially very small lights) across the back of the screen. Most LED TVs use all white lights, while in others the LEDs are red green or blue, which in turn provides richer, deeper colours.
The main difference between them is that LEDs offer complete control of the light intensity at any point of the screen, allowing for better colours, contrast and all round picture quality, whereas traditional LCD backlights will always have some areas of the screen darker than others.
In reality the benefit can only be seen on screen sizes over 40”, so if you’re in the market for a Samsung 32 LCD TV then there is no need to pay the premium for an LED backlight. However If you need a larger screen then there are a variety of different Samsung LCD TVs featuring the technology. The best news is that LED TVs soak up on average 40% less power than their fluorescent cousins, so you’ll be doing your bit for the environment too.
Posted in Samsung 32 LCD TV, Samsung LCD TVs | 3 Comments »
