The Samsung UN46B8500, a 46-inch, 1080p LCD TV, is a top-notch performer with an ultra-thin profile and LED-backlighting with local dimming, hence its hefty $3599 price tag. Also included in that price, presumably, is the ability to access streaming content through the LAN port. But the poor offerings and maddeningly awkward interface make the online content all but useless.
The UN46B8500, like most of Samsung's 7000 and 8000 series TVs, is a higher-end unit designed to be the hub for your home theater. As such, it has all the latest ports, including 4 HDMIs, Ex-Link, DLNA support, and 2 USB ports for music, photos, and video clips, as well as hard drives. There are surprisingly few "legacy" ports – only 1 set of composite and component AVs, so Samsung is assuming the rest of your home theater system is as up-to-date as your TV.
For all its features, the menu interface is surprisingly easy to use. All the options are clearly laid out, although it does get confusing once you delve into the pre-loaded content, which is fairly useless anyway. Do you really need your TV to lead you (in the scantest possible explanations) through a handful of yoga poses or cooking recipes? No, there are already thousands of DVDs, television shows, and entire networks, that cover the topics much better.
The streaming content, called Internet@TV, offered on this TV is just terrible. Firstly, Samsung failed to garner the content providing partners that make this feature worth having, like Netflix, Amazon on demand, Pandora, or others. The content providers are limited to Yahoo and a few other also-rans. Secondly, the interface is irrationally, painfully slow, heaping frustration upon your disappointment.
On the plus side, the audio performance of the Samsung UN46B8500 is fairly good. While the bass was muffled, the surround sounds was surprisingly convincing.
Performance (Read the full lab performance results at Televisioninfo.com)
The first thing we have to talk about in regards to the Samsung UN46B8500's performance is the local dimming technology, made possible by the LED-backlighting. Local dimming can be turned on or off, and you may want to experiment before you settle on a setting. Yes, the blacks get blacker, and that's good, but when the feature is turned on, some detailing can be lost in the shadows. Pixels that are almost black become completely black.
The black levels with local dimming on are amazingly low. With local dimming off, they're still impressive. The whites are bright no matter the setting. The contrast ratio is also excellent in either setting, but it's 4x wider with local dimming turned on. The color performance was very good in all our our tests.
The UN46B8500 has features like Auto Pro Motion 240Hz that are supposed to make your picture look smoother, but in most instances, makes the motion look cartoonish and prone to artifacting. You can, and should, turn these features off for the best performance.
As an LCD TV, the Samsung UN46B8500 is still guilty of a narrow viewing angle, measuring only 37 degrees in total. If you have a wide room to service, you may want to consider a plasma screen instead.
Comparisons (Read more in-depth comparisons at Televisioninfo.com)
Comparatively, the Panasonic TC-P50U1 is much, much cheaper ($1299) and has a plasma screen for deep black levels and a wide viewing angle. However, the contrast ratio was weak and it lacks all those cutting edge ports found on the Samsung.
The LG 47H90 ($1300) is also significantly cheaper, but falls short of the UN46B8500's performance results. It also lacks the ports of the Samsung.
Finally, the Sony KDL-52XBR9 ($2500) is cheaper and stands up to the Samsung's performance, even besting it in some areas. The Sony not only offers streaming content, but it's much better than the Samsung's. However, the Sony is a bit boxy, and the Samsung's slim, sleek profile can't be denied. Is the high style worth an extra $1000? Probably not, but that's your call.
Overall, the Samsung UN46B8500 is a very good television that seems a bit pricier that necessary. Yes, we can see paying extra for the thin design, but falling so far short on streaming content should almost warrant a discount, not an additional fee.
For a more in-depth review, visit the Samsung UN46B8500 Review at our partner TelevisionInfo.com
