Firstly, this a really beautiful, sleek and sophisticated looking TV. It is wafer thin, (less than 3cm from front to back), and the picture quality is excellent.
The front facing white edge is fairly small, and it has a curved clear acrylic strip around the perimeter that catches light and colours behind the TV. It looks really nice.
It is easy to set up and use, and the electronic manual is stored on the TV and accessed from the controller. A brilliant idea, (no chance of loosing the manual), though the manual covers a wide range of TV's and sometimes it's not easy to understand what applies to the TV in question.
A TV stand comes with it; nothing special but goes well with the TV. We plan on wall mounting it so the stand will be surplus to requirements. Wouldn't it make sense for Samsung (and others) to sell TV's without the stand allowing those that want a stand to buy it separately. The cost would come down and there would be less wastage!
However, this TV has an inherent problem which needs to be recorded so that buyers are aware of this before the make their purchase.
I researched this TV before purchase, but as it was released around early spring 2011, there are not many reviews around yet.
I set up the TV on the day of arrival and used it all day without problems. The next morning I switched the TV on and had problems.
The TV switched itself off every 3 mins (this was timed and checked about 8 times).
I switched TV off at the wall socket for 2 mins, switched it back on again and the problem continued.
I then switched the TV off at the wall socket for 30 mins; this time problem went away and TV was OK.
Now, we might not be able to watch specific programmes (eg a film), if the TV keeps switching off every 3 minutes, and we have to turn it off for 30 mins in the *hope* that the fault goes away! This could be a real nuisance if it happens frequently. At the moment we have not had the TV long enough to ascertain how often this is going to happen.
Contacted Samsung Customer Service. They were helpful and honest, and admitted that this was a known problem, and if I were to replace the TV, it is possible that the replacement might have the same problem.
Samsung said they were working on the problem and hoped that a fix (presumably firmware?) would be made available to fix the fault.
They could not tell me how long this might take. They took down all my details and contact information and said they would be in touch.
Normally, I would have returned the TV for a refund, but we like the TV a lot and would like to keep it assuming Samsung release a fix for this issue, and *quickly*.
For the time being, we will keep the TV, albeit it has an inherent fault.
For the records, I Emailed Amazon, and advised them of the issue and that if Samsung do not come up with a fix in an acceptable time period, or, if the problem becomes untenable to us, then they should be aware that I shall be contacting them and asking them to arrange a collection and a refund for this TV.
It's a real shame that Samsung did not carry out sufficient testing to identify and rectify this problem before releasing it.
As for Amazon, they are always my preferred online retailer, (subject to their price for the goods in question). Their support is second to none. Delivery is fast (even for their free delivery option), replacements/refunds are straightforward with a minimum of inconvenience. Without doubt, the best online retailer there is.