Samsung LE37A559 Review

37in LCD

Picture
Sound
Features
Usability
Value

Excellent budget offering from Samasung.

HD Ready:

yes

Resolution:

1920 x 1080

Rating:

90%

Reviewed: 12 July 2008

Note

The LE37A559, LE37A558, LE37A557 and LE37A556 are essentially the same, i.e. they share the same panels and picture processing technology. Slight cosmetic differences serve to differentiate some of these models, and the A556 is sold exclusively by Dixons/Currys/Amazon as mark of their greater purchasing clout - we imagine ...

Design

Remove the 'Crystallized' Rose-Red finish of the step up A656 series and the A559 gives us design in its purest form. No clever design touches or extra embellishment in any shape or form leaves us with a standard glossy black unit.

Far from being a disappointment aesthetically, the 37A559 reminds us of the simple pleasures of a no frills look. Samsung's ultra smooth gloss black finish presents in this panel a supremely simple but effective and ultimately pleasing design.

Features

The LE37A599 sports one of the latest incarnations of Samsung's picture processing technology, DNIe + (Digital Natural Image engine). With a Motion Optimizer, Contrast Enhancer, Detail enhancer and Colour Optimizer, DNIe + works to improve these four main aspects of the LE37A599's performance. DNIe has a track record of producing impressive results on previous LCD and Plasma offerings from the Korean electronics manufacturer.

Screen: 37in 16:9

Tuner: Digital

Sound System: Nicam

Resolution: 1920 x 1080

Contrast Ratio: 30,000:1

Other Features: DNIe + picture processing, Ultra Clear Panel.

Sockets: 3 HDMI, 2 SCART, Component Video, Composite Video, PC input, USB.

Unfortunately, Samsung's take on 100Hz processing, 'Motion Plus' is one of the features that is lacking on the lower spec A559 and the number of HDMI inputs are down from 4 to 3 compared to the higher spec A656 range.

The A559 keeps apace with its higher spec sibling sporting a 1920 x 1080 full HD resolution supported by a claimed 30,000:1 contrast ratio. The screen also benefits from a dynamic contrast system where a backlight is dimmed to boost black levels during dark scenes.

With an innovative mix of high and low reflection layers, Samsung's 'Ultra Clear Panel' works to improve contrast ratio and black levels whatever the lighting conditions actively adjusting its responses depending on ambient conditions. 'Ultra Clear Panel' is Samsung's evolution of their 'Super Clear Panel' technology found on previous LCD and Plasma screens.

Entertainment mode on the LE37A559 presents the viewer with three pictures presets from which to choose, 'Movies', 'Games' and 'Sports'.

Performance

If it wasn't for their high end A5656 series raising the bar for LCD performance, Samsung's A559 range would be seriously challenging the concept of what constitutes a mid range LCD TV. As it is, the A559 looks set to raise the bar as much for mid range LCD performance as the A656 did for top end screens.

Black level performance for a 37in LCD for this price, has simply not been available up until now. Not quite as rich and not quite as deep as the best Plasmas or even Samsung's own A656 series, the performance is not far off the best LCD TV's and is certainly class leading at the time of writing. Again, for the price, not much can match the subtle graduation of shadow detailing on darker scenes which gives depth and realism in these situations.

Such an accomplished black response produces an excellent backdrop for on-screen colour. Not quite as subtle as the best LCD TV's we have seen, its vibrancy bordering on a little too 'garish' at times, the LE37A559 nevertheless performs well in this respect. Apart from the odd inconsistent facial tone (which are notoriously tricky to perfect) colours generally present themselves as wholly realistic with a vibrancy that few screens can match.

High Definition (HD) material on the LE37A599 is incredibly realistic. Some of you will find the pin sharp, video like way on-screen film characters are portrayed a little disconcerting, but for most, HD material will leave you mouth open wide as the Full HD resolution produce pictures of incredible detail, sharpness and vibrancy.

Translating a Standard Definition (SD) into 1920 x 1080 pixels was never going to make for a truly accomplished picture performance, but the LE37A599 does as good a job as we could have reasonably expected. With a poorer Freeview source, there is an element of on-screen noise and motion blur (the 37A559 suffering to a degree from the absence of 100Hz 'Motion Plus'). With cable or satellite (especially Sky's 1080i) the A559 is one of the more accomplished SD performers we have come across displaying a composure that few LCD TV's can match.

Along with most LCD TV's we come across these days, the LE37A559 has a rather underwhelming acoustic performance. Most screens these days have sacrificed a compact design for visible speakers which inevitably weakens the acoustic ability of the screen.

Conclusion

Samsung have pitched the LE37A559 perfectly. As a mid-range alternative to its high end A656, it offers just enough performance to make you think twice before going for the more expensive option. Its overall performance places it above the mid range scale in general LCD TV performance, and will give some other manufacturers' high end offerings a run for their money.