Samsung LN40B550 40" LCD HDTV 40-inch 60Hz 1080p LCD HD Television

TV's just fine. It was the delivery that was very bad. Showed up 2 hours late, did not unpack the set; he delivered and ran, didn't even bring it inside.

I bought this TV over a month back. (Waited for a month to write a detailed review)
I did a lot of research before buying this TV. As everybody is, I was confused too between 1080/720, 40/46/50", LCD/Plasma, Samsung/Sony, and so on ...The more options you have, the more confusion.
Samsung is the best brand in LCD TV today. Thats why I chose Samsung. 40" made sense for my small house.
I am watching a lot of DVDs and the picture quality is absolutely stunning. I am yet to watch HDTV but I can only imagine how good it would be too.
This TV does not have PIP. Whoever loves that feature, should pay more and go for the higher version.
I got this TV for $660 and love the price I got it on amazon (There was a promotion going on and I grabbed it right in time). The TV was delivered within 3-4 business days. The courier on my request installed the TV as well. (Installing this TV is the easiest thing. My 15 month daughter can do too :-))
When I watch TV at home, I cannot tell any difference between 1080/720 or 60/120 Hz. The differences are very minor. I don't understand what the red touch of color means.
All I would like to say is the picture quality is stunning.
I went to Sams/Best Buy and compared Samsung LCD TVs with others and inferred that Samsung LCDs are much better in picture quality than the rest. Always better to go with the best brand TV.
I am buying 5 year extended warrant from DTV express for just $99. (Plus the original 1 year warranty by Samsung)
If you can, you should buy the warranty. It is like insurance.

I have had this TV for about 3 months now. The picture is excellent and the sound is very good.

The tv arrived on time in perfect condition. I currently using my tv for my computer monitor. The display is wonderful.
I like putting on a 1080p movie, sit back and relax. This tv has an amazing picture. The price is great. I am very satisfied with this tv. The only con is the sound is a little cheap, but who cares. You shoudnt be watching a movie with tv speakers in the first place.

The TV looks great and has a great picture. The "Red Touch of Color" marketing was misleading. The color is so light you would never notice. I assumed it lit up the way they advertised it. The title was misleading. Otherwise, I am very happy with it. Very user friendly.

I purchased this TV online with a discount coupon code from Amazon.com, and was hesitant about purchasing a new TV online, but I must say, the experience has been nothing but bliss. The TV was hand-delivered by a contracted company from Amazon, and the price was well worth what I paid compared to buying it at a Best Buy or other public electronics store (no tax, free shipping, points on my Amazon card). I'm not going to bother getting into specifics, but I am giving this review based on what I thought were the TV's positive attributes (and very few negatives). This TV is my main unit in my apartment, and I have a HD antenna attached (flawlessly integrates with the TV's tuner), a Playstation 3, a HD-DVD player and HD Cable Television attached to it. The TV has an optional side HDMI input (on the right side of the TV) that I use to attach to my laptop's HDMI output to stream online movies, etc. The contrast ratio is excellent, with a 70,000:1 ratio, and the depth of black is excellent on the television. What I also liked was the fact that the TV is Energy Star efficient, and you can adjust the rate of power conservation (low, medium, high). Just note that the more energy you save (on high), the darker the TV's picture gets.

Positives:
1. Full 1080p resolution
2. 4 HDMI's (3 in the back, 1 on the right side of the TV)
3. USB input (for pictures, audio, etc on a flash drive) this input is located on the right side of the TV
4. Energy Star efficient
5. Game mode to preserve the TV's picture
6. Easy to use interface

Negatives:
1. The Red "Touch of Color" border isn't really noticeable unless you have the TV in a very bright room (which I wouldn't recommend). This is purely a cosmetic concern, not a functional one.
2. No DVI input for a laptop computer (but it does have a side HDMI input and an analog laptop input). This is not really a negative, but just something I noticed.

We have three, yes three of these 40" Samsung TVs in our household. We are rather belated adoptors of consumer technology because we like to wait for prices to drop before trashing our old stuff and bringing in new ones. This was the year to replace all our old TVs. After reading many reviews, conducting online research and talking with salespeople at the "big box" electronic stores, we learned Samsung offered one of the best flat screen TVs in the market today. The B550 series represented the best value for our money. You don't have to be a videophile to learn the basics of what to look for in an HDTV - the dynamic contrast ratio, 720p vs 1080p and 60hz vs 120hz vs 240hz, all relating to picture quality. You will pay premium prices for units that have dynamic contrast ratios of 80:000:1 and above, 1080p which gives you more pixels hence greater picture detail, and response rates [how quickly the images get refreshed] of 120hz and 240hz. Try to get a unit with the highest contrast ratio you can afford, and go for a 1080p over a 720p. As an average consumer, it is hard to see the difference between refresh rates of 60hz and 120hz. This Samsung has just the right combination of a 70,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 1080p and 60hz for a family to fully enjoy the benefits of owning an HDTV. And if you've got cable hook-up, it gets even better! The unit also offers multiple connections for peripheral devices like DVD players, game consoles, etc. The sound quality is also great as it has an equalizer. Plus despite its large screen size, the unit is not heavy. A woman of average height and weight can carry [albeit somewhat awkwardly] this set to the second floor and mount it to its base with little difficulty. Is there something we like better? Absolutely! The 46" version :-)

I trully enjoy this TV and it's quality Samsung HDTV LCD LN40B550 and would recommend it to others

Great buy and great TV - service was fast and the carrier even hooked up the TV and showed us how to use the remote and etc. Very pleased.

Nobody could even touch the Amazon price and I was very satisfied with my 40 inch Samsung. But a few months after the warranty ended the picture got noticeably worse and the unit would turn on sometimes and other times would not. The repairs cost $250 and the 2 shops I visited told me this was a common problem (power supply and picture board) with Samsung TVs. I'll buy on Amazon again but not a Samsung product.

I ordered with Amazon's statement that if order was made in time, delivery would be made on certain day. The day arrived (yesterday) and we got a call...to "set up" delivery. What? We said we thought delivery was happening that day, simple response, "Nope, didn't make it out." They offered Saturday delivery with Thanksgiving. What even happened to Friday? Point is, Amazon's "order now for delivery by X date" is a hypothetical promise, not to be counted on. I believe Amazon should defer to "under promise and over deliver". There was no shot of this item being delivered by Weds., and why it was stated as reasonable, creates for poor service experience. I have not received the set yet, so I can't review it, but point needs to be made that false promises impact service experience and that promise was simple reason I chose to purchase from Amazon. They need to take it more seriously or find less loyalty from customers expected Amazon to say what they mean. (I understand shipper is not Amazon, but point is they make the promise). Whatever the promise states, I suggest you expect 4-5 days more and only buy if that delivery date works for you.

This is the second Samsung LCD 40 inch 1080p television I have purchased. This purchase was a gift for my daughter's family so I wanted it to be perfect... and it is! The picture is astonishing and watching the football games on Sunday is like having the perfect seat in the stadium! Movies (Blu-ray) and video games seem to come to life with color, depth, and clarity. I think the picture is so remarkable because of the true black color within the LCD. I seldom write reviews; however, while I feel the picture and the price of this Samsung is perfect, it was the delivery by Amazon which made me write the review. I was very hesitant about this purchase because I was worried about the LCD being delivered and damaged by freight. But everything about the delivery was, also, perfect. The company contact me three time via phone to give me status updates and confirm a time for delivery. They showed up within a few minutes of the arranged time, unloaded the LCD, brought it into my home, unboxed it, then turned it on to check if everything was working properly! Like I said it was perfect and completely eased my concerns about making this type of purchase via Amazon. My family and I set the LCD up in my daughter's home in less than ten minutes and were watching the HD NFL Football game truly amazed at how great the picture and sound was. I would highly recommend this Samsung LCD and the service Amazon provided to make this present.... well perfect!

This is my first LCD, however I have looked at many many TV's in person as well as online, read all the reviews possible, including on AVSforum, etc. After much searching, I decided on this TV from Newegg on Black Friday sale, $400 off.. got it For $705, and it was worth every penny plus more... I am using it with a Philips DVP5990 upconvert DVD player through HDMI, Motorola Comcast DVR through HDMI, Nintendo Wii through Component(480p) and Playstation 2 through Component (some games 480p/i and some others 720p)... EVERYthing, including the crappy Comcast Signal, looks amazing on this set! I set up custom settings by mixing the settings [...]
I HIGHLY recommend this TV to anyone that is looking for a 40" TV!

Just received this TV so it's too early to rate the TV itself, but I can tell you the sound is more than adequate. I do want to commend the delivery service "Pilot" The gentleman called to tell me he was on his way. He unpacked the TV, put it on the stand, reconnected my VCR, put batteries in the remote, stuck around til the TV programmed itself with the cable and to make sure everything was working. Thank you!

After checked all the price for 40" LCD TV from Costco, Bestbuy....on Black Friday weekend.I ordered this Samsung LN40B550 40-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color for $704 (Amazon.com) on Nov 28,09 get it Dec 5,09 (was estimated Dec,2). Pilot men set up the TV (it's pretty heavy for a woman). The sound is decent. The picture is outstanding. I be fond of it. Highly recommend.

Got this for $705 11/30/09. With two day shipping I scheduled my delivery for 4 days later and gave them all morning. No email, no call, no friggin smoke signal to let me know they weren't coming. One wasted 1/2 a day of missed work later they came at ~7 at night with no word. Shipping company was PILOT, avoid them, couldn't even contact them. I wanted to buy another TV as a present but I just don't trust Amazon to ship it anymore. Sad part is I could see they picked it up in my state (Pa) on Monday and still couldn't get it to my house by Friday. Were they carrying it here on foot? Same as other reviewer the truck was unmarked and the driver called a few minutes before he got there and needed directions. It was pretty shady

Anyway, on the TV, very solid, great bedroom TV. I have a bad back and it was still light enough. Looks great. If you are still on the Hz debate and thinking of going the next level up I'd have to say save your money. I haven't seen any ghosting on anything, but I haven't tried video games. Having seen the 120 or whatever at a friend's house I actually thought it looked worse. The picture gets that home-video look to it on an LCD when response is too high. I'd pay extra not to have that.

Just got this TV yesterday. I've watched both SD and HD programming on it so far and have to say that I don't really see a difference between it and my 4 year old Sony 40 inch 720P LCD. Now, it weighs almost half that of my old Sony but the picture quality seems about the same. I guess I was expecting something drastically different. I haven't watched a Blu Ray yet so maybe I'll see a difference there, but I'm thinking it won't be that significant. This is a bedroom TV so I wasn't expecting the same kind of 'wow' picture I get on my living room plasma TV, but was still hoping for some improvement over what I have been watching. That isn't to say the picture is bad, so please don't interpret my comments in that way. The picture is pretty sharp and the colors look good. Doesn't seem to get hot at all, which is good for a bedroom, too.
One thing that puzzles me is that Amazon's description as well as Samsung's websites describe this TV as being able to play MPEG via the USB port. However if you download the actual user manual from Samsung it says only MP3 and JPEG files are supported... no MPEG. I tried anyway with my thumb drive and sure enough, it will only display pictures or play music but won't play (or even acknowledge) the MPEG files. So that is some pretty bad information from Samsung... not sure why they claim it can do something when it really can't. If I had known this before purchasing, I probably would have gotten the 530 model instead. But it is not worth the hassle of returning at this point.

For me this set was the best value around for the mid level LCD HDTV market. With impressive stats, performance and reliability I have fallen in love with this HDTV. Standard definition TV is looks good on this set but with my Xbox 360 watching DVDs and gaming is taken to a new level (as compared to the CRT TV that this is replacing). Even with the now relatively low 60 hrz refresh rate games and up-converted DVDs shine. There are plenty of ports to hook up all of the peripherals that one would ever need (although no S-Video).
There are a lot of options to customize the settings for this HDTV but I have been happy with the factory default setup. I have tested out the game mode with Halo 3 and it works great, but even without the game mode on, games still look stunning.

On a side note:
*The red Touch of Color is not noticeable but I do like it as there is also a clear glass/Plexiglas bezel around the whole set.
*The speakers and sound on this set are fair to good... but for me just perfect. If you are particular about high quality sound you could always just connect a surround sound system to the thing and not use the built in speakers.
*I have been impressed with the quality and reliability of Samsung LCD HDTVs (I have an older model that has been working fine for more that 3 years, despite a lot of daylong use) I expect this one to last just as well as the technology has improved a bit since then.

I would highly recommend this model to everyone, especially those in the under $1,000.00 price range. This is a good bang for the buck LCD HDTV.

This is my first LCD. I am 72 and not tech savy. It arrived as promised and was unpacked by the shipper and set up on its stand. I was told not to run it for at least 2 hours so that it could warm up because when it arrived we were having temps in the low 20's. It is working very well and was so easy to connect to my cable outlet. The pic is clear and the colors sharp. It does not have the touch or color as advertised, but that is of little importance to me. Compared to my old tube set this is half the weight and there is no comparison. I wish I had gotten this a long time ago.

I could not be happier wiyh this purchase. would never have considered such an expensive and important item online.....except that I trust Amazon, and have never been unhappy with a purchase from you.

Exactly as described, gorgeous HD picture, easy instructions, prompt delivery. For $700, this was a great buy.

Purchased this tv last month to replace a last generation 37" flat screen CRT. What an amazing difference! We don't have cable but we get crystal clear, uncompressed network signals over the air and the images look gorgeous, especially the ones that broadcast at 1080i. Sports at 60 Hz, such as NCAA basketball and football, NBA, NFL and NHL, look brilliant with no blurring that I can see at all. Not sure what the 120 Hz and 240 Hz could possibly add to the experience, but they might. I'm really stunned that we lived with standard def for so long! Purchased an upconverting DVD player (HDMI) soon after purchase as the old DVD player (5 years old; component outputs) only displayed at 480i resolution. The old one looked good but the new images, upconverted to 1080 (not sure if its 1080i or 1080p as the TV only says 1920x1080), look fantastic, even from three feet away. After randomly tinkering with the video settings for a couple of weeks, I used the THX video tests which come with any Lucasfilm disc to calibrate the Movie and Standard picture modes and got excellent results. I notice no glare on the screen, no flashlighting (whatever that is), no image problems at all except the ones that are a result of getting channels over the air.
The sound is by far the best on any TV I've ever had. Use Movie mode with the virtual surround set to on for everything, but make sure to turn 3000 Hz in the EQ section down as it emits an unpleasant hiss if up too loud. No trouble hearing dialog (a maddening problem on the old standard def tvs, even in stereo mode) with 5.1 set to on on every DVD I've watched, with audible differences in spatial sound location over the stereo mode.
I can't say enough good things about this TV. My opinion may be jaded for just having upgraded to HD but this TV even looks great turned off. Oh yeah, got a SQ04 circuit board. Not sure if that matters but during research there was considerable discussion on forums about which circuit board you got with this TV.
I highly recommend this TV.

The purchase experience was great from start to finish. The price was right. Delivery was great. Delivered right when it was supposed to and in perfect condition.
I can't say enough about the ln40B550. It is beautiful. The only drawback is the sound. If you connect it to a surround sound system your there. I did some research and went with the cheaper 60hz rather than putting out for the 120 or 240hz. I don't know how it could be much better though. PS3 Games, blue ray, and HD stations really shine.
Our cat attacks the animals on the screen.
I purchased the samsung bd3600 blue ray with streaming video also. a nice addition to the TV.

I was searching for an affordable LCD HDTV and can across this one and I loove it. The picture is nice and the sound from this TV is amazing. Most are not very loud but this model is fantastic.

Also own a 46" Samsung. Did the research again and we got the 40". The picture is great. The sound, well I'm used to the surround on my 46" even though, could be a bit better, would have given 5 stars. For the price you can't go wrong.

Samsung LN40B550 40-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

What's not to like a really good brand TV for around $700

70,000 contrast ratio...

For my taste, the picture quality is superb. I tweaked it to my taste and I rate the picture quality outstanding. I paid 656. I've been looking for years and that price even beats the black friday 2009 price at Costco (w/ 10% sales tax!) The sound is inferior to my old Proview 32 inch (proview had large side mounted speakers) with it's downward firing speakers, but I use surround sound through my Denon/Polk system anyway. I was close to returning it when I tweaked the sound by turning the dynamic sound check off. This created chirping and crackling, even at low volume. I Turned this feature back on and now it's fine. It's a nice looking set too. Bezel not too crazy glossy with no warpages in the plastic and I like the matte finish on the screen. I'm not a fan of the touch of color models so this clear bezel cover is best for me.

Absolutely love this TV! The most beautiful picture I've ever experienced. From the delivery guy to set-up, it was a breeze. I really appreciated being able to buy it online, not having to transport it myself nor carry it into my home. Just opening the box and recruiting my 16 year-old to lift it out and onto the stand. Not one single problem with this TV.

Looks great, If you are worried, the red border is not garish or really noticeable on the frame. My son set it up by himself and adjusted the widescreen to automatic and we were up and running. We have really enjoyed the TV. The small criticism I have is that the width of the infrared receptor is small, in other words, if you leave things near the receptor, it is harder to switch channels.

The TV is everything it's supposed to be. I upgraded from a projection SD TV so this one is fabulous. The delivery wasn't so fabulous. The so called "white glove" service was more like "brown glove". It was two days late from the scheduled delivery, nobody ever called. I managed to figure out who the delivery service was but couldn't get a human to ask about delivery. After much pounding of my telephone's keypad it finally defaulted to a person who gave me a day but not a time period. Amazon was zero help with delivery.

The delivery company's statement of service said there would be two drivers and they would do a complete set-up. The, one, driver barely managed to get it into my house and out of the box then had no idea how to do anything other than plug in the power. I'm a techie so it didn't matter and delivery was free. I guess you get what you pay for.

PS: The "red touch of color" is a marketing gimmick as it can't be seen under any lighting conditions except a direct spot light. It didn't have anything to do with my decision to buy this model.

This TV is great. It has a great picture and look to the screen quality. The ToC gives a nice asthetic feel to it and I love how my PS3 games and Blu-ray movies appear on the television. I definitely recommend the TV to anyone looking for a nice, relatively large flat screen for a reasonable price.

However, if the shipper is Pilot Air or through Amazon.com specifically, I DO NOT recommend ordering it. Granted, I ordered the TV in the winter time and live in the Midwest. I was expecting it to be delayed, as the many blizzards that rip through this area during this time of the year. What I was not expecting was making all the calls I did just to track my TV down!! Let alone, I find out it had been deferred several times to other locations all over and around the city I live in. My town is not that small (around 100,000 people) and shipping shouldn't have been as frustrating as it was. And after all my aggravations, I did receive my television, perfectly in-tact... just 3 weeks later than I anticipated.

If you must pay a bit more and have UPS ship it, I would highly recommend doing that. The money you save is not worth the hassle that this shipper caused me.

This is my first HDTV, but I've been watching HD at friends places for a few years now. This TV has everything I was looking for - a great picture, multiple HDMI inputs (for cable box, gaming console and stereo), swivel stand and top brand. For $750 I consider it a bargin. If your looking for great sound in your room, it's worth investing in a sound bar or true surround stereo system, but out-of-the-box in our small living room the sound is sufficient. I highly recommend this TV.

You have to compare model numbers when your comparing ratings and prices. There seems to be too many and can be confusing. This particular model lives up to my expectations.

I needed to replace a defective Magnovox TV (32" LCD flat screen) so choose this Samsung LN40B550 40" 1080p LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color. I started researching different brands of TV's, read reviews (very helpful), shopped prices and finally decided on this Samsung model. I found this same set on sale at Costco with free shipping but decided to check out prices at Amazon. I discovered I was able to save consider money (over $200.00 plus) by purchasing it through Amazon even with paying extra shipping charge. I bought my set on 2/6 and it was brought to my home on 2/14 by freight company (they could have delivered it a few days earlier but that didn't fit my schedule). The set was brought into my home, unpacked, plugged in to make sure it was working, remote checked and I was given option of having box taken away. What a great delivery process! I was able to hook it up to cable box, attach my blue ray disc player & Wii console by myself (I'm a senior). This TV is awesome & the right choice for me. Since I'm not an electronic wizard I was looking for a TV that suited my needs. This certainly does that & more. I would recommend this Samsung model, picture color is beautiful, remote is perfect size, manual gives all the instruction I need, sound is good, easy to operate & perfect for my bedroom. Watching the Olympics on my new TV is a great experience.

2nd Samsung purchased in the last 2 yrs - great picture - easy hook up - delv. was fast & packed well

This TV is great. Especially for the price. When I first switched over to HD, the difference is amazing. As far as this tv goes, the picture is very good. Sound is alright if you are just listening through the TV speackers. The Touch of Color is almost non-existent and seems to be a marketing ploy. The touch sensitive buttons on the actual unit are very hard to operate and they do not seem to light up making them even more difficult to find and use. The 60 hz of this tv used to not bother me too much but after watching a lot of sports, it becomes apparent that the refresh rate is a little slow. Overall this tv is a great buy, especially for a new hdtv owner. Now if i had only gotten the bigger one...

Samsung 40" LCD TV. TV received in excellent condition and set up by delivery person. TV works well and produces an excellent picture.

I like the clarity of this basic HDTV but the sound is not that great like most TV's
The only thing I don't like is the amount of time it takes to switch channels. Being a channel switcher I don't like the 5 or more seconds that it takes. Samsung said that probably will have a software fix in the future for this. Does anyone else have that problem?

Ihelps to be computer savy in order to understand and navigate through the steps in the user manual. The TV was delivered three days after I ordered it by Pilot Freight Services. I was very pleased with the manner the box was secured in the truck. The driver helped me carry the box inside the house but said he wasn't allowed to unpack for inspection. As the TV weighs only 33 lbs I could do it by myself. I have never had any problems of any kind. So "If it ain't broke don't fix it" We live in the country 20 miles away from the nearest farm and our house is surrounded other buildings. I replaced the old roof antenna with a new one and a twin lead with a coaxil cable. The TV picture is beyond our wildest expectations and the sound is superior to our old analogue TV. We receive over thirty stations. We watch the news from our dinner table 19 ft away and all other times we watch from 11 ft away. We wouldn't want a larger size screen. The viewing angle is great. Besides watching VCR tapes we don't use the other available features and therefore cannot comment on those.

Purchasing was great and easy.
Delivery was quick and safe.
Product is outstanding.

If you must pay a bit more and have UPS ship it, I would highly recommend doing that. The money you save is not worth the hassle that this shipper caused me. This TV is stunning. It has a great picture and look to the screen quality. The ToC gives a nice asthetic feel to it and I love how my PS3 games and Blu-ray movies appear on the television. I definitely recommend the TV to anyone looking for a nice, relatively large flat screen for a reasonable price. However, if the shipper is Pilot Air or through this sight specifically, I DO NOT recommend ordering it. Granted, I ordered the TV in the winter time and live in the Midwest. I was expecting it to be delayed, as the many blizzards that rip through this area during this time of the year. What I was not expecting was making all the calls I did just to track my TV down!! Let alone, I find out it had been deferred several times to other locations all over and around the city I live in. My town is not that small (around 90,000 people) and shipping shouldn't have been as frustrating as it was. And after all my aggravations, I did receive my television, perfectly in-tact... just 2 weeks later than I anticipated.

Granted, I ordered the TV in the winter time and live in the Midwest. I was expecting it to be delayed, as the many blizzards that rip through this area during this time of the year. What I was not expecting was making all the calls I did just to track my TV down!! Let alone, I find out it had been deferred several times to other locations all over and around the city I live in. My town is not that small (around 90,000 people) and shipping shouldn't have been as frustrating as it was. And after all my aggravations, I did receive my television, perfectly in-tact... just 2 weeks later than I anticipated. If you must pay a bit more and have UPS ship it, I would highly recommend doing that. The money you save is not worth the hassle that this shipper caused me. This TV is stunning. It has a great picture and look to the screen quality. The ToC gives a nice asthetic feel to it and I love how my PS3 games and Blu-ray movies appear on the television. I definitely recommend the TV to anyone looking for a nice, relatively large flat screen for a reasonable price. However, if the shipper is Pilot Air or through this sight specifically, I DO NOT recommend ordering it.