Samsung H5500 (UE48H5500) TV Review

Thanks for the review mark. Ive been looking at the 40" version of this. I don't watch an awful lot of tv. But love sports and the football mode. And alot of HD films
 
Does anybody own this model or the 40" version. The reviews iv'e seen look decent enough to consider it
 
What is that HUB for Daren. Hope that doesn't seem a stupid question lol
 
Hi Mark, I have had this TV for around 4 months now but in its 40" guise, so hopefully be able
to help out DarenD its a great tv for the money, mine was only £349 in the Currys world cup promotion was planning to buy the H6400 before seeing this one and didn't need 3D, Smart hub is fantastic, great tv for gaming and the 40" seems to be the sweet spot for my room and setup having a Samsung BD6500 Smart Blu-Ray and Pioneer VSX-329 AV receiver running to it as well, Xbox looks fine and no problems with lag even in Game Mode set-up, if its any help to anyone as per a previous thread and to avoid paying out for professional calibration here are my settings I have been using...

Picture Mode Movie
Backlight 17
Contrast 98
Brightness 47
Sharpness 0
Color 50
Tint G50/R50
Advance Settings
Dynamic Contrast Off
Black Tone Off
Flesh Tone 0
RGB Only Mode Off
Color Space Auto
Gamma +1
Picture Options
Color Tone Warm2
Size Screen Fit
Digital Noise Filter Off
MPEG Noise Filter Off
HDMI Black Level Low
Film Mode Off
LED Clear Motion Off
White Balance
Setting Value
R-Offset 24
G-Offset 25
B-Offset 27
R-Gain 20
G-Gain 22
B-Gain 20

Anyone thinking of going for this tv in any of the sizes I would say go for it...one of the bargains of the year :D
 
Fantastic. Thanks for the heads up beano. I have a 6 series in my bedroom 37" and Galaxy tab 3. 2 questions beano my living room ain't that big i have 42" tv an LG. Which i have had for 4 years now. Would 40" be ok?. And second question the football mode have you noticed any blur when watching football? iv'e not seen any blur on my 6 series
 
I own a Samsung 46F5070, so basically last year's model without any Smart TV features. It's not bad, but does have noticeable DSE. The same TV in a store showed similar amounts of DSE. I purchased a 50H5570 not too long ago, hoping it has less DSE, but it was basically the same, maybe a little bit less pronounced. Always funny to read how a review sample is free of such faults, or in this case only shows "faint amounts of panel array banding". I wish I could get a hold of one such TV.
 
The Sony KDL50W705 is also worth considering, another great mid ranger.
Maybe it's just me, but I fail to see the need for anything smaller than 50" in a living room *unless you live in a shoebox/modern apartment*
 
Fantastic. Thanks for the heads up beano. I have a 6 series in my bedroom 37" and Galaxy tab 3. 2 questions beano my living room ain't that big i have 42" tv an LG. Which i have had for 4 years now. Would 40" be ok?. And second question the football mode have you noticed any blur when watching football? iv'e not seen any blur on my 6 series

I sit bout 8 feet from TV so 40" is ideal for me from that distance...Football mode is a gimmick and not really used it, just switches to dynamic mode but is cool that you can record highlights to a usb drive or a memory stick, the recording function I use a lot anyway as is useful to record DVB channels while I'm gaming or watching a movie, You can even stream to your Galaxy Tab in another room using the Smart View on the TV and even streaming to the TV or Gaming on your Tab to the TV via Screen Mirroring ;)

Ps... not noticed any blur to speak of but depends on how much you are looking for it and what channels your watching it on... HD looks amazing
 
I roughly sit about 8 feet from my TV 40-42" is fine for that distance any thing above looks out of place IMO. my friend has 50" in his living room and doesn't even sit 8 feet from the tv and it looks stupid. I think we get the right tv for the room and not to show off the size and the tv. We got to think of our eye's also
 
I roughly sit about 8 feet from my TV 40-42" is fine for that distance any thing above looks out of place IMO. my friend has 50" in his living room and doesn't even sit 8 feet from the tv and it looks stupid. I think we get the right tv for the room and not to show off the size and the tv. We got to think of our eye's also
Well, each to their own but I sit 9ft from a 55" and it's perfect for me. When I see people's 32" TVs in the living room it's almost impossible to watch them because they feel like an iPad!
Nobody ever complains a cinema screen is too big!
 
Yes but this discussion isn't about a 32". 32" is more for the bedroom. If you sit 9 feet from a 55" then your eye sight will go before mine lol. But like you say each to there own.
 
I you can't see a 40" or 42" TV from 8 feet or 9 feet away you must be pretty much blind lol
 
I you can't see a 40" or 42" TV from 8 feet or 9 feet away you must be pretty much blind lol
Sure you can SEE it, but I mean you dont get that immersive cinematic experience at those sizes at that distance. According to most viewing distance guides (which should be taken with a pinch of salt anyway) 8-9 feet is ideal fo 55" or even 60"+
Plus you have to factor in that most movies are in 2.35:1 so on 42" you are losing even more screen real estate
 
Agree with Loopthrough, i sit seven feet away from my 55" sometimes only 2-3 feet.
 
Agree with Loopthrough, i sit seven feet away from my 55" sometimes only 2-3 feet.
Thanks buddy! I mean once you go big you can never go back. Amazing how quickly you get use to the cinematic experience and can't settle for less, ain't it!
 
This looks like a good candidate for a kitchen television for me. The 40" one is surprisingly cheap at John Lewis as well :)
 
Decided to go for this TV for our main living room as there is no routed network cable the Wi-Fi and Smart is a pro for me. The lack of 3D is also a pro. Infact my con list still hasn't got anything written on it.
 
Very interesting review. I just returned a 48" H5000 as the dse was atrocious. Not to mention motion blur watching football. I'm wondering if the H5500 is blessed with a better panel?! The H6400, which I now have, is a huge improvement though dse is still evident to a lesser degree. The debate about screen size is also interesting. There was a time when I thought 37" would be absurdly big! Now I'm thinking 48" is a tad small.
I think there is a massive prejudice towards any TV which is over 50" based on our assumption (often wrong) that it is outlandishly big. The fact is, we can sit a lot closer to screens of this size and not only enjoy the detail but actually see an improvement over smaller sets.

I think the problem arises when a living rm's 'aura' is dominated by the sheer scale of a TV. A room which might be used for socializing and reading as well as watching TV might not benefit from such a monstrosity! Even if HD content is best enjoyed at extremely large sizes.

Quite a modern conundrum methinks!
 
Very interesting review. I just returned a 48" H5000 as the dse was atrocious. Not to mention motion blur watching football. I'm wondering if the H5500 is blessed with a better panel?! The H6400, which I now have, is a huge improvement though dse is still evident to a lesser degree. The debate about screen size is also interesting. There was a time when I thought 37" would be absurdly big! Now I'm thinking 48" is a tad small.
I think there is a massive prejudice towards any TV which is over 50" based on our assumption (often wrong) that it is outlandishly big. The fact is, we can sit a lot closer to screens of this size and not only enjoy the detail but actually see an improvement over smaller sets.

I think the problem arises when a living rm's 'aura' is dominated by the sheer scale of a TV. A room which might be used for socializing and reading as well as watching TV might not benefit from such a monstrosity! Even if HD content is best enjoyed at extremely large sizes.

Quite a modern conundrum methinks!
I would try the H6200 uses AUO panels in the 50" and 55" sizes and according to the DigitalVersus review is pretty damn fine, very similar to Sony's W7 and W8 series, possibly sharing the panel or a variant of it. Or, just go for the 50" W829, which would be my personal recommendation unless you have specific requirement for the Samsung models.

If you put a large TV in the corner and have other focal points, such as a fireplace or nice window, it won't even seem so large and that will be like "the TV corner". Also, if you don't want a large screen to dominate a small space, consider hanging pictures near it with bold frames that will lessen the effect. Lighting also plays a part and remember most of them only look big when they're off because of the "big black lump" effect!
 
Last edited:
The Dutch consumer organisation has recently tested the 48H5500 and is far from a best buy. Deal breaker (for me) is the moderately smooth image and irregular distribution backlighting (clouding).

The test of AVforms of the H5500 however results in a best buy. Maybe is the "Dutch" H5500 panel different? (panel lottery?)
 
Thing is this is a £520ish panel with a 5 year warranty with John Lewis/Richer sounds, Amazon go down to £514 I think. It aint gonna be perfect but its a sweet price which makes the best buy more improved. If you want better then spend more IMO.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom