BEST 50" DLP available today
Pros:
Amazing picture and value today at $1149 delivered price.
Cons:
Some have reported humming noise issue but my set is 100% perfect (so far).
The Bottom Line:
With picture so bright I had to turn it down and LED lamp rated at 20,000 hours, this could be my last TV purchase for a number of years.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
This is the opinion of an admitted GadgetAholic. One reason I live in Vegas is so I can attend CES (Consumer Electronics Show) every year and see all the new toys before they hit store shelves.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Do not trust the 3/5/08 review completely. I ordered my new unit from buy.com on 3/11/08, arrived 3/14/08 and there is NO NOTICEABLE HUM OR ANY OTHER NOISE under ANY conditions. In other words, you may or may not receive a unit with that defect if you believe his post and a few others I found on the web.
Samsung HL-T5087S is now the 5th DLP I've purchased and probably the 20th big screen or projection TV over the past 27 years. My former 5087W (2 year old) has now been demoted to downstairs living room.
Why I believe the HLT5087S is best 50" DLP available today:
1. I saw all the new stuff at 2008 CES 2 months ago. Texas Instrument did show a new Samsung set that will offer a 15,000 to 1 brightness ratio but the HLT5087S is already so bright, I had to turn it down from the factory default settings.
2. The 5087S is supposed to have same brightness ratio as my older 5087W but I am certain it is brighter so it's newer circuitry and/or new LED lamp vs. the older quartz lamp that is producing the brighter picture.
3. Better audio sync. My 5087W lacked a QAM tuner so I solved that issue by using the Samsung DVD-AR650 as the HDTV tuner, HDMI to the TV and digital audio cable to Samsung HTSQ70 Home Theatre System. Just could never get the sound to be perfectly in sync with the picture. Now I feed the digital audio from 5087S to HTSQ70 and it's perfect.
4. Faster start-up. 5087S picture is fully illuminated & ready for channel surfing in 7 seconds. 5087W took 28 seconds. These times based on my actual tests using Harmony One Remote Control.
5. Slimmer cabinet. 5087S is about 2" thinner so it sits closer to my wall.
6. LED lamp is rated at 20,000 hours and quartz lamps in other models rated at only 7,000.
7. Built-in QAM tuner receives ALL the unscambled HDTV channels through my basic Cox Cable service which is only $11/month.
Audio Notes: If using with Samsung Home Theatre Systems (HTS) connect audio using a digital cable and set your HTS to DIGITAL IN to avoid a sound delay between TV and HTS audio output. When watching a DVD or TV channel via Samsung DVD Player or DVD Recorder, use HDMI cable to connect DVD or DVDR to TV and standard audio cables to connect DVD or DVDR to HTS. Then set HTS to AUX 1 input setting because DIGITAL IN will result in a sound delay between TV and HTS that can NOT be corrected. In Menu settings for HTS, set audio delay to 0 milliseconds.
Over the past few months I tried mating this Tv with a number of Home Theatre Systems. Finally settled on the Philips HTS-3566D/37 which I got at Costco for under $200. Without having to adjust anything except the speaker volumes to balance the sound in my room, this HTS syncs perfectly with the sound from the Samsung TV using the HDMI or Aux inputs. The high gloss style also matches perfectly with the TV. Most importantly, the overall sound quality from the 5.1 system sounds great to my ears that have been accustomed to expensive Bose speakers for years.
Remote Note: If you plan to use with a Harmony One Remote, you'll want to shorten the ON delay time for TV. My older HLT5087W needed 28,000 milliseconds (28 seconds) but HLT5087S only needs 7,000 milliseconds (7 seconds). In other words, this TV is "up & running" 21 seconds quicker than TVs using quartz lamps.
JULY 12, 2008 UPDATE: Last week I visited local Best Buy and Circuit City stores to see the latest Samsung HL50A650. Cabinet looks identical to the HL-T5087S but the picture is noticeably dimmer. With only a 2500 to 1 contrast ratio for the HL50A650 vs. 10,000 to 1 for HL-T5087S, the specs verify what I saw. The quartz lamp in the HL50A650 means it also takes longer to warm up when you turn it on. Glad I got the HL-T5087S before Samsung came out with their newer and inferior model.
After 4 months with my HL-T5087S I am happy to report flawless operation. If/when I see any new TV with a better picture, I'll report it here.
