Great Deal Samsung LNT3242H 32-Inch LCD HDTV
I already have a Samsung LN-S4095D (40″, 1080p) for the family room and I bought the LN-T3242H for my bedroom. It is noticeably lower picture quality than the big Samsung; it’s not just the lower resolution – I only ever watch 480i content anyway. The analog tuner is also not so good – PQ is better if I watch the DVR from the room next door on the composite video input. The main thing I notice is that blacks are nice and black but there’s not much effort at grayscale rendition.
However, it is perfect for the application and less than half the price of the 40″ set.
I looked at several 32″ sets (Vizio, LG, Toshiba) and the Samsung is much better all round. Toshiba is a very thick profile and has next to no input flexibility. Vizio enclosure is ugly.
I’m not sure if I should hate the TV or Time Warner Cable in NYC – D. Lamblin – New York, NY United States
I have had this TV for three years. Generally I like this HDTV, the build quality is good. It shows a very decent picture for HD channels, and an okay version of standard broadcasts. I personally cannot seem to get any HD over the air due to my street level location in Manhattan, so I haven’t tested that part of the feature set. Interestingly it runs Linux and you can get the source at [...] but you probably won’t be able to actually build or deploy it to the TV because there’s no clear documentation for the process.
There is a problem with it that I consider to be just serious enough to make it un-recommendable, while not serious enough to make me spend money on another TV. Mainly because I don’t watch much TV. Also If you use a cable box, you will probably never notice this. I have downloaded the latest firmware and updated it via USB, yet I still have the same problems I’ve had since the first week. Specifically the problem is that the TV needs to be retuned approximately bi-weekly, though I tend to hold off to about once a month. Why it needs to be retuned is because after the any tuning it will forget some channels every few weeks. Yes, it just forgets them. E.G. there is channel 2-1 (CBS) and 5-1 (FOX), which will sometimes get deleted so that you skip them until you undelete them in the not so easy to use channel-list feature, or sometimes they will disappear from the channel list entirely so you cannot just undelete them and must retune your set. Occasionally they will stay on the channel list, but will forever be totally black as if there’s no signal there anymore. This sounds mildly-painful, but when you realize that you can only auto-tune, and that this takes a FULL 40 MINUTES, redoes all your channels, turns back on all the shopping and preaching channels you may have deleted, clears all of your favorites, and finally might miss a channel that was working before you re-tuned, you realize that it’s actually a huge pain. Also as it’s a 40 minute process, you will miss whatever show you planned on seeing.
Aside from this problem I also find that it will sometimes forget my favorites, or move a favorite tag to a channel I did not favorite. This is odd but I’ll live. Also the info box is always off into the future by one hour despite having the current time set correctly. If I turn on daylight savings, it is off by two hours into the future. So I can’t find out what show I’m watching now, I can only find out what show will be on next. There’s no index of these either (except the cable provided channel that lists that stuff).
To be fair, I’ve been told that what’s happening is due to Time Warner Cable. However TWC denies doing this. Also I doubt any such capability to remote command the tuning in a TV exists. It would be crazy of them to mess with customers like that, but it would allow them to “solve” customers’ problems by renting them a cable box. But again, other televisions aren’t behaving this way with the same service. So I am apt to believe the firmware driving this TV is unreliable. Apparently it is outsourced from Samsung to a small consultancy in California that likes to sell Linux based firmware solutions to big companies. But apparently there’s nothing in it for either Samsung or the consultancy to fix such issues, as it’s better to discontinue the TV and ship a newer one with new firmware and features.
Great For Extra Room – Jerry L. Lambeth – NC
Purchased this TV for spare bedroom/den/man cave. Picture is great with digital cable, really good with regular cable. Easy set-up. Perfect size for smaller rooms.
Rating : 4.0
Price on Mar 25, 2010 07:45:10 : $899.99
Availability : N/A
Samsung LNT3242H 32-Inch LCD HDTV Features
- 7000:1 Contrast Ratio
- (3) HDMI, (2) Component Inputs
- Side Jack Pack
- SRS Tru-Surround Sound
Samsung LNT3242H 32-Inch LCD HDTV Overviews
It’s easy to see – and hear – why Samsung’s LN-T3242H is an exceptional value. It offers everything you want in a 32″ wide-screen HDTV LCD, including a sleek, gloss-black frame to enhance any d?cor.The 720p resolution and a 7000:1 dynamic contrast ratio combine in a remarkably crisp, high-quality picture with deep blacks and brilliant color, while its fast 8ms response time delivers smooth action sequences.SRS TruSurroundXT produces full, 3-D sound from two side speakers. Full connectivity, including three HDMI ports, lets you plug in everything from PCs to video cameras and more.
Samsung LNT3242H 32-Inch LCD HDTV Specifications
For anyone looking for a great value on a 720p HDTV, Samsung’s 2007 model LNT3242H 32-inch flat-panel LCD is an excellent choice. As Samsung’s entry level 40-inch LCD, it offers a 7000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, a 170-degree viewing angle, an 8ms response time panel, 3 HDMI inputs, and SRS TruSurroundXT from two side speakers. Between the design update, the aditional connections, and improved contrast ratio this model represents a distinct improvement on the popular comperable 32-inch Samsung from 2006 (LNS3241D).
The Samsung Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe) Video Enhancer refines all analog NTSC and wideband video inputs for an overall improvement in picture quality. DNIe improves contrast, white level, picture detail and incorporates digital noise reduction to improve lower quality video inputs. The 3D Y/C digital comb filter constantly analyzes the three dimensions of picture height, picture width, and picture changes-over-time to dramatically reduce edge image artifacts while improving transition detail.
High-quality virtual surround sound can be experienced with just the speakers built into the TV. SRS TruSurround XT technology delivers an amazing, simulated 3D effect with clear dialog and powerful bass through hidden side speakers. TruSurround XT audio adds three audio enhancement technologies to produce an amazingly immersive sound experience.
- Dialog Clarity brings movie dialog into Focus during the playback of any surround-encoded material to make speech much clearer and crisper.
- TruBass creates incredible deep rich bass allowing a person to perceive significantly deeper, richer low bass tones that are far beyond the physical low frequency capabilities of the speaker itself.
- The SRS WOW feature widens the soundstage by processing standard two-channel stereo material as well as multi-channel encoded material for a dramatic improvement in the playback of any stereo audio over a two-speaker system.
Connections:
- HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) 3
- RF in 1
- Component (Y/Pb/Pr) in 2
- S-Video input 2(1 side/1 rear)
- A/V input 2(1 side/1 rear)
- PC input 1
- Headphone jack 1
What’s in the box: Samsung LNT3242H LCD TV, remote control, 2 AAA batteries, Power Cord, stand, cleaning cloth, owners manual, warranty card.
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