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