Samsung HU6900 4k UHD TV...

Caporegime
Joined
8 Sep 2005
Posts
27,713
Location
Utopia
While I know the various pluses and minuses of UHD TV's are hotly debated right now, Samsung have come out with and cheap and cheerful line of 4k TV's which are now dramatically reduced where I live (non-EU), and I just picked up the 50" UE50HU6900 for the equivalent of £500 (cheapest UK price is around £800 I think, see AVForums thread below).

The 55" version was reviewed here http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/ue55hu6900-201405233782.htm

Verdict was:

The Samsung UE55HU6900 is a case of you get what you pay for. Yes it’s 4K, but only when the picture on screen is mostly still. Once the camera starts panning, resolution drops away quite noticeably, and unfortunately there’s no motion-enhancing technology available on the set to reduce blurring.

The television is not without its virtues: contrast performance was good by LED LCD standards; input lag was low for an Ultra HD TV; plus greyscale, gamma and colour accuracy were top-notch after calibration. But we’re not entirely convinced the 55in HU6900 is the best choice on which to spend £1500, especially considering its lack of native 24p playback and Netflix 4K streaming. Buy it only if you’re going to view 4K photos most of the time.

However, important to note at the time the price was 1500GBP, and also that it now does appear to have 24p playback (confirmed on an AVforums camera screenshot) and 4k Netflix in the latest firmware update. I have confirmed the Netflix, but not the 24p (haven't played any relevant 24p material yet, only streamed from my PC and Netflix).

AVForums thread is here https://www.avforums.com/threads/anyone-heard-of-samsung-ue55hu6900.1879742/

So, my take...

TV is now setup and I have had a play with it for the last 24 hours. First thing I did was put on some 4k demos. Wow, jaw-dropping. Telecine judder at that resolution was also barely noticeable, or at least it did not detract from my enjoyment of it, especially on the football demo which was just staggeringly detailed. Anyone who says you can't notice the difference between 1080p and 4k (I have viewed high quality demos of both) on a 50-55" screen needs to go to Specsavers. The detail, especially in crowds of people etc, is unreal. Kind of like the clarity of looking at it with your own eyes in person.

Motion handling? Yes, I see why some people criticize it in reviews, it's not perfect, but at the same time it's not that bad. Adding motion control gives the dreaded soap opera effect, but I found that setting a Custom option with a setting of 1 or 2 for judder control improves things while still retaining that movie feel. It's objectively a little worse than my Samsung F6500 (which is a higher model and a great performer), but after calibration using the same online guide as the F6500, the colours are great.

I also played some PS4, Shadow or Mordor, and found that this is an area where the Motion Plus setting at "Standard" really helps. It wasn't 'bad' per se with Motion Plus disabled, but putting it on really gives it a smooth clearness which made it feel like 60fps and it was very nice.

Sound-wise I haven't tested as I have a Sony CT-260 soundbar, but I'm guessing nothing stellar as per usual for TV speakers.

I still haven't decided whether to keep it in my bedroom or move it to the living room, but either way I think for £500 it makes a great secondary TV at the minimum, probably best when viewed from around 3m away.

Very happy with the purchase and either way for 500 quid I don't regret the purchase and will report back further when I have lived with it for a week or so. :)
 
Last edited:
£500...

Cheapest I can find ...... just noticed you don't live in the UK.

That's an incredible saving! There £1000~ from what I can find. Not quite ready for 4K myself, not enough content to warrant it yet. Plus I don't want to get rid of my plasma.
 
£500...

Cheapest I can find ...... just noticed you don't live in the UK.

That's an incredible saving! There £1000~ from what I can find. Not quite ready for 4K myself, not enough content to warrant it yet. Plus I don't want to get rid of my plasma.

I went from a good Panny Plasma to an LED (Samsung F6500 is my main TV) and to be honest I haven't looked back. Picture quality once calbrated is great... SD suffers of course, but HD is fantastic, and I cannot live without smart features now, they just completely transform the way you use your TV. :)

PS: Cheapest in UK seems to be the 55" version @ 800GBP, see AVForums thread for details.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom