This TV is superb. Its so colorful, clear and thin that the image looks like its floating. Its like looking through a window. I did have to take some time and read some forums on which settings to use, but once I calibrated this TV correctly I was blown away. If you are not into that sort of thing, here is an easy place to start: put the TV into movie mode, turn the backlight down to 8-10, contrast down to 85-90, and motion plus to ‘clear’. Play around from there and you’ll find your sweet spot.
The Samsung UNES7100 series of LED-based LCD TVs from Samsung is only the company’s third-best announced for 2012, but it has the features equivalent to the 2011 flagship’s.
Please ignore the little bump along the top center bezel; this image is of the step-up and otherwise similar-looking UNES7500, and we’ll replace it with the proper image, sans bump, when we can.
★★★ Buy Now ! Before Price Gone Up or Sell Out ★★★
STRENGTHS
- Super Light Flowthrough from Ultra Clear Screen
- Pitch black bars top and bottom of screen with 16:9 movies
- “Complete” Internet Options and Apps availability
- Peak Whites and Brightness
- Thin Depth and easy appearance
- Solid Performance in 3D Viewing
- Built in Wifi and Web Browser for Full Search
WEAKNESSES
- Screen uniformity from edge lit LEDs if backlight too high
- Some may not care for the 4 legged stand
LAS VEGAS–Last year Samsung introduced a TV with a bezel just 0.2 inch wide, and I couldn’t help but gush that “the picture comes as close to naked as you’ll ever see outside a projector.”
This year the company offers that sexy all-picture look on three series of high-end LED TVs announced at CES, the least-expensive of which is the UNES7100. Available in three sizes, its main differentiator compared with the other two–the UNES7500 and the flagship UNES8000–is lack of the company’s new Smart Interaction voice/gesture control feature.
By the way, if anybody’s counting Samsung’s inches it’s LG, who says its thinnest-bezel sets, seen in models like the LM6200 series, have frames measuring “less then 5mm” thick. A quick bit of math tells me that 5mm equals 0.1969 inches. So technically LG’s new 2012 bezel is barely thinner on the spec sheet; I’ll wait until I can measure both in person before I declare a fractional winner.
In 2011 the only Samsung LED to include local dimming of any stripe–dubbed “micro-dimming plus” by the company–was the edge-lit UND8000 series. All three of Samsung’s edge-lit, 0.2-inch bezel beauties get it this year. The feature is designed to improve contrast and black-level performance by dimming certain zones on the screen independently. In my review of the D8000 I found it worked relatively well, albeit not as well as full-array local dimming as seen on TVs like the Sony XBR-HX929, LG LW9800, and Sharp Elite.
The 2011 UND8000 was actually a disappointing performer overall, however, because of its inferior screen uniformity–the edges were much brighter than the middle. Perhaps Samsung has improved that aspect of picture quality on the 2012 ultra-slim-bezel models, but we won’t know until we can test one.
Aside from the bezel width and micro-dimming plus, as well as a 240Hz refresh rate, the UNES7100 shares essentially the same features as the UNES6500.
Pricing and availability were not announced, although I expect these and other Samsung LEDs to arrive as early as February 2012.
Samsung UNES7100 series features:
- 0.2-inch thin bezel
- Micro-dimming plus local dimming
- Edge-lit LED backlight
- Includes two pair of 3D glasses
- 240Hz refresh rate
- Smart Hub connected TV suite
Features the UN55ES7100 has:
Stupendous HD viewing quality from the Clear LCD Panel!
Yes, the viewing quality from the clear but anti-reflective screen on this Samsung offering is stupendous. I have seen it in action and the contrast is amazing. You get the same picture quality (almost) as the top two models. Black levels are fantastic.
Dual Core Processor!
This is an important treat due to the fact that it allows you see a split screen – watching on one side while browsing the Internet on the other through the…
Built In Web Browser!
The built in web browser allows you to search all the Internet but as importantly…
The robust Samsung Smart TV Options Built In!
Samsung’s Smart TV options are robust on the UN55ES7100. They have more than 1500 Apps available now and all the standard ones like Netflix, YouTube, Hulu Plus, Twitter, Facebook and many more.
Smart Content Tailored to your Needs!
With this feature which you will likely never use, you can tailor your searches for such categories as Fitness, or Kids programming.
Active 3D TV Viewing is Stunning and Magical!
Yes, you get the very best quality and from my perspective flawless 3D viewing on this LED 3D offering. There is no flicker, added judder, or blurring when viewing the very deep presentation of 3D content.
Plus, for this 2012 model you get 4 pairs of 3D glasses included. This really helps with the value proposition.
2D to 3D Conversion – Better than last year but an Average Feature.
Conversion from a 2D to 3D signal looks a ton better than in the past on the 55ES7100 but still leaves a lot to be desired. You probably are not going to give up your 2D viewing.
An Area for Improvement!
One area I personally would like to see more time spent improving the 55ES7100FXZA is the sound quality. It can be a bit tinny.
Specifications
Inputs
- Inputs
- HDMI 3 Inputs
- USB 3
- 1 x Ethernet
- 1 x Component In
- 2 x Composite In
- 1 x Optical Digital Audio Output
- Anynet+ (HDMI-CEC)
Dimensions
- 55″ diagonal
- TV without stand: 49.6″ x 29.2″ x 1.2″