new LCD?

It's not just the TV world that's eagerly awaiting the high-definition (HD) revolution -- both Microsoft and Sony are touting it as the reason to upgrade to their next-generation games hardware. And as the first commercial source of high-definition material, Microsoft's Xbox 360 is likely to drive as many flat-screen sales as HD broadcast or Blu-ray.
The television range that Microsoft has chosen to show off the 360 is Samsung's LC range, and this 40-inch model is the flagship product. As well as being fully high definition-ready, the television is nicely styled, has DNIe picture processing and features a PC input.
Editor's note: As this review is based on the UK's LE40R51B, specifications may vary slightly from the LA40R51B available in Australia. Samsung regional has confirmed that both models are based on the same underlying design.
DesignIn terms of pure aesthetics, Samsung's LCD looks gorgeous. The most striking flourish is the speaker grille, which angles down to a point at the centre. It may not sound like much on paper, but it fits in with the minimalist design perfectly -- there are very few logos adorning the set and the power button has a small LED in the centre. It's a shame the remote control doesn't share this modern approach -- it looks like it's from a completely different production line. It's simple to use, but the plasticky finish and dull grey colour mean it will be shunned in a modern living room.
In terms of connectivity, every single demand for high definition and standard video needs has been met. If you upgrade to an HDMI DVD player, you'll benefit from an all-digital picture and you'll have the component-video inputs spare for your PlayStation 2 or Xbox. Any other games consoles or camcorders will have to go in the composite or S-video inputs, which are unhelpfully also located on the rear, so there's no easy access on the front or side. Finally, there's a VGA input for use with a computer or media centre, although you can also use the HDMI input by buying a DVI adapter.
If you're planning to invest in a lot of new technology to handle high definition in the near future then you might run out of inputs. HDMI splitter boxes are already available, but they're expensive. Samsung's TV is very good value, so it can be forgiven somewhat for its stingy allocation, but Toshiba has taken the lead by including two HDMI inputs on its latest range of similar-sized LCDs. Helpfully, the Xbox 360 will support VGA, so if you're not using a PC then that will free up one input.
FeaturesBudget televisions from Philips have cut costs by omitting internal picture processing, but Samsung's 40-inch LCD boasts the full suite of DNIe enhancements. Helpfully (for us reviewers at least), there's a button on the remote to see side-by-side comparisons of the technology on and off. With DNIe enabled, improvements such as sharpness and contrast depth are very noticeable. We tested it with an old DVD transfer of Ronin (i.e. not the Special Edition), and it cleaned up the picture as well as boosted the contrast. Previous LCD owners will have noticed how LCD screens amplify the noise that is a negative effect of MPEG compression (and thus evident on DVD and digital TV), but DNIe makes a good stab at cleaning it up. The closer you are to the TV, the more noticeable it is, but DNIe is an excellent technology for reducing this. Sony Wega Engine LCDs are the best at reducing blockiness in our experience, but no matter what LCD panel you use, it simply makes you yearn for high definition even more.
Other more standard features of the TV include Picture in Picture, SRS TruSurround XT and picture/sound presets. There's Dynamic, Movie and Natural for video, plus Movie, Music and Speech modes for audio. If you like to tinker around with the standard settings (which we found useful on the video side, and you may wish to invest in a calibration DVD), then you can engage Standard mode and then play around with every setting to fit. We did notice one misfiring pixel, which was blue coloured on our review unit, but it wasn't intrusive and is actually quite minimal for a set of this size.
One point to make is that many users of this television series have complained about visual tearing when using high-definition video. The problem has been alleviated via a firmware upgrade, so if you notice it you should get in touch with Samsung for the required cable, or even have a word with your dealer before you buy. The only time it raised its head was when we used a Dell XPS computer plugged into the VGA socket. At a 60Hz refresh rate, there was some "tearing", which was especially noticeable with high-definition Windows Media Video (WMV). We had to use Nvidia's toolset to force a higher refresh rate, but the television didn't like this and text became illegible. Video still looked fantastically detailed, though, especially WMV and Apple's new selection of HD movie trailers.
PerformanceWe can see Samsung's LE range really kick-starting the mainstream takeup of LCD technology, as the range brings strong picture performance to a budget price. Sure, go up close to the screen when it's playing a DVD and you'll see noise around people and contrasting colours, but when you're at the optimal viewing distance, Samsung's DNIe processing does a brilliant job of masking it. Contrast levels are deep, making the picture look almost three-dimensional, and the colour reproduction is faultless, even down to usually tricky skin tones.
High definition is where it's at on the Samsung, though. We tested HD video from a computer at 720p and Sony's HDR-HC1 camcorder at 1080i (which the Samsung scaled down). Images were so detailed that it was almost unnatural, and you could go right up to the screen without seeing any pixelation. It was a luxurious experience that impressed onlookers, and even though there cope with its relatively huge size without problems.
The 20W speakers are also very good. The HDMI input supports digital audio, so both video was some smearing from Sony's camcorder, the overall impression was that the panel could and audio signals can be sent in the highest quality possible to the display. What impresses the most is how low these speakers go -- but please invest in a home cinema setup if you have any sort of respect for this LCD giant.

wah,so good,i also wanna buy,cnet has convince me!