First, for those that had problems at the one year mark — thank you for reminding me! I had planned on buying the extended warranty prior to my expiration (not sure if it is still in effect, but I did get 3 extra months over the standard one year warranty by registering on-line). Anyway, so far I am extremely satisfied with my purchase! I had done much research prior to buying my first LCD and it was the massive amount of 5-stars on Amazon and all of the comments from the satisfied buyers that clinched the deal — although I did go to a store to view the quality first-hand. Even though I waited for a sale to patronize one of my local stores, since I was hesitant to purchase an item this large on-line for fear of damage in transit, Amazon’s price and service just could not be beat. All my fear’s went out the window with Amazon’s white-glove delivery service — it was first class (although I did not need them to do anything more than remove the outer box to confirm that the TV was not physically damaged) — the delivery people were friendly and courteous, and it had not been in a huge truck filled with lots of boxes — just a small van, for “just my tv” (almost

The image quality is second to none — with the sound being quite good, but I am only using the Surround-Sound speakers that are in the unit and am more than happy with them — excellent clarity and fine for those that do not need to blast out the room (I’m sure with external speakers it would sound incredible!). It is truly a pleasure to watch Blu-Ray discs with this TV. The colors and clarity are tack on — compared to others that I saw while in the store. Only one thing — for those who had not viewed a movie on HD or Blu-Ray before: some of those actors and actresses are not as perfect as you may have originally thought.

Another clincher for this tv over some others (same with the Blu-Ray player) was ease of applying upgrades. My tv/player is not hooked up to any cable, internet, etc but I can easily download the firmware onto a dedicated pen-drive and quickly apply them to the units. Just be careful to follow the easy instructions and the process is effortless.

There is only one ‘problem’ that I can think of in the year that I have had the unit — I had set the Mhz rate to 120 when I first set up the tv, thinking since I purchased it because of the faster-than-others rating, I should use it. I was shocked to watch my first Blu-Ray and watch what appeared to be a cheap soap opera — come to find out that IS what happens at 120 Hz. Well, it was terrible and at first I was disappointed — it was cool to see so much detail, but it did not feel like a movie anymore. I did a little research and found out that only for gaming and such do you need the 120 Hz setting; set at 60, the picture is still crystal clear but you feel like you are watching a movie! “Problem” solved! That’s it–overall no problems, no issues, just a great tv! Hope you enjoy yours as well!

Average Rating

4.5

Features

• Touch of Color Bezel
• Full HD 1080p Resolution
• 120Hz Auto Motion Plus
• 4 HDMI Inputs
• Super Clear Panel

Product Description

The Samsung LN40A650 incorporates a stylish look with exclusive Touch of Color. Searching for technology that will make your life easier? The InfoLink RSS feature gives you instant access to news, weather, and sports information at the push of a button. And Auto Motion Plus 120Hz delivers smooth motion action scenes that will blow you away. Satisfy your craving for the latest in HD technology with the Samsung LN40A650 LCD TV.

Specifications

Samsung adds a Touch of Color to a blazing-fast 4ms response time andrich connectivity features to redefine the role HDTVs play in the home with its forward-looking Series 6 (A650) and Series 7 (A750) LCD HDTVs. Utilizing the award-winning technologies found in all Samsung HDTVs, Series 6 and 7 HDTVs deliver unparalleled picture quality and enhanced connectivity and networking capabilities that create a true entertainment hub for any home. Series 7 takes networking and multimedia management to a whole new level. Consumers can easily enjoy MPEG and JPEG files stored on external devices by connecting through a side-mounted USB 2.0, turning their LCD into a full-scale home viewing gallery, or connect their MP3 players for a dynamic audio experience.

What’s New?

• New — 50,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio: up from 25,000:1 on 2007 models (Learn more )
• Blazing 4ms response time: down from 8ms on 2007 models thanks to a new high-speed liquid crystal
• Transparent and Opaque Color (TOC) bezel with infused color creates an ultra-sleek shape and appearance (Learn more)
• InfoLink: Get free RSS feeds of news, weather and sports right to your HDTV with a built-in Ethernet port (Learn more)
• 4 HDMI 1.3 ports: Simplay compliant, and up from 3 on 2007 models (Learn more)
• Sports and Game modes boost on-screen performance and interaction with the latest gaming systems
• Side-mounted USB 2.0 port: connect USB devices directly to your HDTV to view JPEG photos or MPEG movies or easily listen to your MP3 player through your HDTV’s audio system or your home theater system.
• Compatible with Samsung’s Home Digital Media Adapter (sold separately) for playback and navigation of Internet and stored PC multimedia

Features Overview

• Full 1080p HD (Learn more)
• Automotion Plus 120Hz image interpolation technology provides smoother motion (Learn more)
• 178-degree viewing angle from all four axes with Super Patterned Vertical Alignment (Learn more)
• Better clear panel technology for deeper blacks and more vibrant colors (Learn more)
• Hidden speakers with SRS TruSurround XT audio (Learn more)
• Cold Cathode Flourescent Lamp (CCFL) and Wide Color Enhancer technology offer a wider color range (Learn more)
• Picture-in-Picture (PIP) enables convenient simultaneous viewing of TV programs and video or PC sources
• V-Chip system1 allows blocking of rated TV and movie programs determined by the parent to contain objectionable content.
• Trilingual on-screen displays in English, Spanish or French.
• Variable sleep timer to turn the TV off in varying time intervals.
• Auto wall mount compatible: 3-dimensional operation via TV’s remote control; no external IR receiver required.
• Swivel stand included
• 1 year parts and 1 year labor warranty (90 days parts and labor for commercial use), with in-home service, backed by Samsung toll-free support.

What size TV should you get?

Step-Up Features

• Series 7: Internal flash memory (1GB) with pre-loaded interactive content such as cooking recipes, children’s entertainment, HD artwork and more; Integrated woofer for an enhanced audio experience; DLNA-Compatible: for better interopability with electronics, computers and mobile devices from many different manufacturers (Learn more)
• Series 8: super-slim 1.9-inch thick profile

Good TV but hidden issues. – K. Sethuraman -
I got this TV Aug 2008. Within a couple of months, the red frame change shape and had to call in customer service to repair it. They had to replace the frame which changed shape due to overheating of the tv. Again now Mar 2010, I see that there are capacitor problems. My TV is dead now because of a power supply problem and got an estimate of 0 to repair it. This issue is not related to the capacitor problem but another issue altogether. I have a surge protector, but the power supply just died. The TV is awesome otherwise with respect to quality, picture and looks. But there are certain defects that you tend to see after the warranty expires.

Great Picture, But Too Many Problems – Jason Durbin – S.F. Bay Area
I bought this HDTV in May 2008 from Amazon based on both Amazon customer reviews, third party reviews, and Samsung’s reputation for quality HDTVs. While I was initially quite happy with the product, very good picture, features, ease of setup, etc., after only about 9 months of use, the TV began displaying an error about “Fan No. 2″ and shut down after about 10 minutes of viewing.

A call to Samsung support got a technician out who, after dismantling the HDTV, identified a faulty buck plastic fan, apparently intended to cool the graphics chips, that had failed. He replaced it and we were back in business

Seven or so months later, I turned on the set the day after having watched the Saints/Colts Super Bowl game and noticed a buzzing sound and alternating red and green horizontal “scan” lines progressing up the display. The picture was good but the scan lines were distracting and indicated a problem that could get worse

A call to Samsung support, of course, found me out of warranty and likely requiring an LCD panel replacement which also likely would cost more than the value of the HDTV.

Samsung needs to bring the component reliability up before I buy again even though the picture/feature quality is good.

Great tv, but volume on bezel is problematic – Jon Hellman -
We have owned the TV for over a year now and throughly enjoy this TV. That said, there are two issues, one moderate to major and one minor that may prove problematic at a later date.

The TV has the volume control as a touch panel on the right hand side. We use this frequently. The panel is not actual buttons, but some type of touch sensor. The last month the volume control has begun to act up. While watching, the volume will go begin climbing to max volume. Typically, the TV gives a warning that this is about to happen because it will move one or two steps (e.g. From 15 to 16). Then less than a minute later it starts moving all the way to 100.

This is not a remote issue as we have been able to duplicate with all remotes with the batteries removed.

We have had moderate success cleaning the side panel to remove all smudges on the glass. But given a couple weeks, it begins to act up again. Since it worked fine for over a year I am concerned it is not a cleaning issue, but a sensor that is failing.

The non-issue is the remote. It works fine, but has begun to rattle. Something has broken loose in the remote. No problems yet and may last many years more.

I try a firmware update and a good cleaning. If problem persists Samsung will hear from me.

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