Samsung PS50A756 1M, Performance and price

• Two very positive features of this display are its zero noise level and its low heat dissipation compared with units of similar size and technology

• Price: €1,999

• Specialists' rating: 5

• Text: Javier SAIZ

Of the two technologies currently dominating direct-view displays, LCD and plasma, the latter seems to be losing the sales battle. The reasons for this situation are varied, but perhaps the most important have been its higher manufacturing costs and its size. In an extremely aggressive and competitive market, margins are so tight that a small increase in production costs can mean the difference between being profitable and not. For this reason, only the biggest players, Samsung, LG and Panasonic, have continued to offer products using this technology, since their sales volumes allow them significant economies of scale. In addition, until not long ago the smallest size in which a plasma could be bought was 37", which represented a major barrier to entering ever smaller homes. However, as of today plasmas still have very important arguments in their favor over their competitors and, in certain circumstances, they are still the kings of picture quality.

The model we review here, the PS50A756 1M, belongs to the 7 series of PDP panels from the Korean manufacturer Samsung, a series made up of this model and its big brother with identical features but 13 extra inches of diagonal. This is a 50" display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, for which some interesting figures are claimed: 30,000:1 native contrast, a brightness of 1,300cd/m², 18-bit color processing and 262,144 gray levels, to name the most relevant. It also has a considerable plethora of picture enhancement functions, such as DNIe Pro, Movie Plus and the Filter Bright anti-glare filter.

The look of this display is identical to that of the LE40A656 I had the opportunity to review in the October issue, with which it shares an identical finish. In terms of connectivity, both models have the same number and type of connections, to which the plasma adds an RJ45 network port. In short, for video there are four HDMI inputs (V. 1.3), one of which is in the side connection area, a component video input with RCA stereo audio input, two SCART connectors (one RGB) and a D-sub 15 PC input (with associated minijack audio input). As for sound, the 756 can be connected to an external amplifier via either its RCA analog stereo output or an optical digital output. On the left side, easily accessible, we find the composite video and S-Video inputs, a Common Interface card slot and a USB port. Two very positive features of this display are its zero noise level and its low heat dissipation compared with units of similar size and technology.

In this unit Samsung uses a media player called Wiselink Pro, which can play photo, video or music content stored on an external storage device connected via USB or, over a data network, on a DLNA-compatible server. If a hard drive or flash memory is connected to the USB port, it must be formatted with FAT (16 or 32); otherwise the device will not be recognized. On connection, Wiselink starts scanning the content in order to locate everything that can be played. Depending on the size of the drive and the number of files it contains, this process can take some time. The list of supported formats is extremely comprehensive: in addition to the usual JPG and MP3, it can play anything from standard-resolution (720x576) XVID-compressed AVI files to high-definition (1920x1088) H.264-encoded TS (Transport Stream) files such as satellite captures. In addition to accessing files on a PC or other DLNA-compatible device, the network connection gives access to the Info Live function, which provides weather, news and stock market information via the Internet. The Anynet+ system makes it possible to control any Samsung equipment connected to the panel via HDMI, using the HDMI-CEC protocol. In practice, it will work with any device that supports that protocol, as I was able to verify with a BD player from another manufacturer, although not all possible options may be available or operation may not be optimal.

This time, unlike the one included with the A656, the remote control of the test unit did match the one mentioned in the user manual. It is large but, being made entirely of plastic, quite light. The size of the frequently used buttons is right, and their layout makes them easy to remember, so after a brief "learning period" we can find them very intuitively without having to look for them. A very important point in its favor is the inclusion of backlighting, which makes it enormously easier to locate the buttons we use less often when the room is poorly lit.

In the 756's menu we find the usual entries of Samsung panels, very similar to those of the A656 discussed earlier. Among the most noteworthy features is the inclusion of manual color temperature control and an almost complete CMS (Color Management System). In addition to the preset modes common to practically all displays, that is, standard, cinema, dynamic, etc., we are offered the possibility of adjusting the picture with commendable precision (see analysis and calibration box), something that unfortunately few manufacturers include in their products. What's more, it is not only important to include the controls but for them to be truly effective and to have the necessary adjustment range, granularity and precision. For the most frequently used parameters there is a key on the remote control that gives quick access to them, saving us many "clicks". A curious detail I found is the panel's insistence on activating Movie Plus at its minimum setting every time I switched it on; despite having disabled it in the previous session, I could not find a way to make it stay as I wanted. Movie Plus is designed to "improve" motion smoothness, and on some occasions some people will appreciate its effects, but on others it gives film-source material a certain "video" look.

As happened with the A656, the 756 refused to accept anything other than RGB from my DVDO VP50 video processor or my HTPC. When YCbCr was selected, whether 4:2:2 or 4:4:4, the image appeared completely pink; however, with a BD player from another manufacturer there was no problem at all for the two to negotiate one of these latter formats, something really curious, though not a major problem either.

Standard-resolution video processing is average for its category. With the HQV test DVDs it is easy to verify that this panel correctly detects 2:2 and 3:2 cadences without any problems, but at the same time it has a marked tendency to show jaggies, especially visible when watching DTT. Using a DVD player with good deinterlacing capability and feeding it a progressive signal will allow us to avoid this drawback.

Thanks to the available setup options, very high accuracy can be achieved when calibrating the Samsung to the D65 standard. The most noteworthy point is its superb color fidelity which, being perhaps the quality most easily appreciated by our eyes, above other factors such as contrast or resolution, puts this display in a very favorable position against many of its competitors. Since the settings are per input, it is possible, and even advisable, to use two separate players for DVD and BD, calibrating each to the corresponding standard (Rec 601 ITU/EBU for PAL DVD and Rec709 for Blu-ray) to get the most out of this plasma. Perhaps the 756's least favorable point is its black level, which once calibrated ends up at figures very similar to those of the A656 LCD, but with a better level of shadow detail, although far from that achieved by other devices using plasma technology. One way to mitigate this lack of black, which is most clearly perceived when using the panel in complete darkness, is to place a low-power lamp behind it.

Although, once adjusted, the picture is excellent with well-mastered DVDs, as a good "Full HD" panel it truly shines with BD discs. Although both formats carry very similar color information (8bit, YUV 4:2:0), the greater number of pixels with "correct" content, as opposed to "scaled" pixels with "calculated" information, gives colors a greater sense of "solidity", and this, combined with the format's greater sharpness, raises the level of enjoyment by many points.

On the sound side the Samsung "does the job"; for everyday use, the built-in speakers provide good dialogue clarity and their power is more than sufficient, but for watching movies, more powerful bass and greater volume are missed.

CONCLUSION

Until very recently it was unthinkable for a 50" plasma to cost less than €2,000. With the PS50A756, Samsung offers one with outstanding capabilities at a very competitive price. Despite having points that could be improved, such as those described in this review, the final balance is clearly in our guest's favor, achieving superb value for money, so I can only give it a well-deserved recommendation.

Diego Cortiñas, Television Product Manager.



The plasma 7 series is one of our major bets (also available in 63") within the Samsung Crystal TV series. It combines not only the ecological value of its materials but also total connectivity via the DLNA standard, multimedia entertainment straight from USB 2.0, and RSS content directly from the Internet.

Samsung PS50A756 1M, Performance and price

Specifications

RESOLUTION 1920x1080p. ASPECT RATIO 16:9. CONTRAST 30,000:1. BRIGHTNESS 1,300cd/m². VIEWING ANGLE Over 175 (H/V). SOUND 10W x 2. TUNER NTSC 4.43, PAL-B/G, D/K, I, I/I', SECAM-B/G, D/K, L/L, AV Multi. CONNECTIVITY 3 HDMI, 2 SCART, 1 PC input, 1 component video input, 1 S-Video input, 1 composite AV. DIMENSIONS 41,240 x 765.5 x 96 mm (without stand). WEIGHT 39.2 kg (without stand). DISTRIBUTOR Samsung (902101130).

Price: €1,999