Samsung UE40ES6300 3D Full HD 1080p Smart 3D LED TV with Wi-Fi built-in and Freeview HD (New for 2012)

I bought this TV from Amazon partly because of the reviews and partly after having viewed Samsung TVs in John Lewis. Picture quality is likely to be a matter of personal taste, but it seemed to me that the Samsung models had a clarity which was missing from the rivals like Panasonic and Sony. I didn't particularly want 3D, but was told that that level of detail was only achievable with a 3D TV, and of course you didn't have to watch in 3D if you didn't want to!

Amazon wasn't the cheapest at the time of ordering, but the sheer brilliance of the service combined with the no-fuss returns policy made it an easy choice. Since the time I bought mine I notice the price has fallen markedly, though it does seem to yo-yo a bit.

Time to mount it on the wall...it has to sit in the corner and the only way it can do this is with a cantilever arm bracket, and so I purchased one at the same time as the TV. Easy I thought, it's advertised as fitting *all* 32" TVs, including of course, Samsung. However, the ES6300 has a cunningly moulded back which ensures that no bracket (apart from Samsung's own) will actually fit: the screws are all either too long or too short, or the supports simply cannot be accommodated. After four tries I found one, but only after a visit to the local hardware shop for new screws/spacers etc. Sorted.

Next the set up of the TV, and this is where Amazon really came in handy. The most useful review on this site is from Product Reviewer, who as well as providing lots of info in the review, was also extremely helpful in answering questions (cheers PR!) There are so many variables to choose from with the picture that you have to do a lot of experimenting. My first issue was with motion blur, most apparent in 3D where there was high contrast. I eventually found out how to set up the picture to counter this, but it took time. I then noticed that the picture appeared to be dropping a frame every few seconds or so. This was highly irritating and I couldn't find out the answer to this for while. The solution came with replacing the HDMI cable and making sure it was actually connected to the correct socket in the back of the TV. So, that problem is now sorted too.

So, after three weeks or so, we now have a TV with a quite stunning picture. Watching Game of Thrones - Season 1 [Blu-ray][Region Free] on the blu-ray player (Samsung BD-E6100 3D Smart Blu-ray Player with Built-in Wi-Fi (New for 2012)) is an amazing experience, and at times it feels almost as though there's only a clear pane of glass between you and the action. Films with lesser production values than Game of Thrones can however reveal distractions such as poor artificial lighting - you can almost sense the lighting and camera crew surrounding the actors - so prepare for the unexpected! The age of the film doesn't always seem to be a factor; for instance, the newly released Alien Anthology [Blu-ray] [1979] [4 Disc Set] box set is quite incredible and looks like it was made yesterday.

A possibly unexpected feature of the Samsung is the quality of the sound. I was all prepared to hook the TV up to the existing sound system we have, but actually, in our case at least, doing that would have been to downgrade the listening experience. This TV has a crisp and detailed yet full sound quality, but it's possible to refine it further using the menu, for instance in highlighting speech or music. If you've ever struggled in the past to hear the dialogue in a film, then this TV will definitely be the one for you.

Having said earlier that I wasn't really interested in 3D, i soon changed my mind once I'd seen a few movies. In a word, it's sensational. Just try Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (Blu-ray 3D + 2D Blu-ray)[Region Free]: watching this in a darkened room is a marvel, and the water sequences in particular are spectacular. Once again, the correct settings are important in order to enjoy the film at its best (these are laid out in full by other reviewers on this forum).

The fact that you can use a web browser though the Smart TV is probably only going to be of any use if you also download the Samsung Remote iPhone app; you can then use the phone (or in theory iPad, though at the time of writing this doesn't seem to be working) as a keypad. Trying to use the browser with the supplied remote control is frustratingly slow.

Of the installed apps, iPlayer is probably the most impressive, and most useful. It looks fantastic and works beautifully - once you've installed the firmware - I had a few problems here, and have to say a big thank you to Product Reviewer for finding the answer as to how to download the firmware online (please see PR's Comment section). Sadly my broadband connection isn't always equal to the task, and so we have the occasional pause, and the same goes for YouTube. The picture quality can't be faulted though.

As seems normal with these apps, access is more limited than on a computer; so for instance on LoveFilm you don't have the degree of Watch Now choice as you would have on your PC or Mac. On IPlayer it's the same, it's more restricted.

Anyway, if you set this TV up correctly then you're in for a treat. I'm not technically-minded and it's been a challenge, but as I say, I've found this forum to be very useful.

I am not going to mention the picture or sound quality. I'm not going to talk about the apps. All these have been fully covered by other reviewers and I fully endorse how great these qualities are. I wish to talk about 'add ons' to the Samsung Smart TV which, unlike me, may negate you buying unnecessary equipment as this TV does it all.

The Samsung SMART TV opens up so much access to entertainment that I decided to discontinue my Sky TV subscription. I appreciate this is purely subjective but I don't miss it one bit. The other good thing (for me) is that as a result of the Sky package I had, the TV virtually pays for itself in about one year as a result of the savings I have made from cancelling my Sky subscription.

I decided I wanted to use Freesat with the TV in lieu of Sky(I of course had the dish fitted by SKY). I therefore bought a Freesat module. This was a mistake because all I had to do with this TV is connect the Sky dish lead directly into the TV and re-tune the TV to the Eurosat satellite. I advise you to be careful here because another satellite option (Astra) is offered up on the menu. Although you are able to tune to the Astra satellite, the TV guide is a bit of a mess. For example, you get four or five Channels tuned into Channel 4 TV. Also, there is no BBC1 HD or BBC HD channel on the Astra satellite (at least I couldn't find it). Once I tuned into the Eurosat satellite, everything was as it should be and the TV menu guide is exactly the same as the TV guide produced by the Freesat module.

Having disconnected the Sky box, I had no means of recording television programmes. Fortunately, The Samsung Smart TV allows you to connect an external HDD drive and use that to record programmes. I just happened to have an old 500Gb external hard drive handy and therefore fitted that to the TV. It works like a charm. To record a programme, you do exactly as you would do with the Sky box; go to the TV menu and click on the programme you want to record. You will then get the option either to record the programme or schedule it for viewing. If you select record, and the programme is one of a series, you will then be given the option to record the whole series or just the one episode. The TV will carry out the recording whilst in Standby mode. An one hour long HD programme uses about 38Gb of memory on the hard drive. Playback quality is superb.

The only disadvantage with the external hard drive compered to the Sky box is that you can only record one programme at a time and the TV will switch to the programme that is being recorded; in other words, you can't watch one programme and record another at the same time. However, most TV channels will re-broadcast the same episode later in the week and late at night. That is where I select to make the recordings; while I'm tucked up in bed asleep.

There is of course various iplayers you can connect to through the apps on the TV. I don't make recordings from channels that have this facility. Frustratingly, the one that is not available to Samsung is 4oD and therefore Channel 4 where I make most of my recordings (OK I'm a Homeland Fan).

As for movies, I subscribe to LoveFilm and for £4.99 a month (at the moment) I have access to 'Watch now' movies, a lot of which are in HD. Also, Lovefilm has a lot of old TV series for instant viewing; 24, Lost, and the like.

Why did I say experiment? Well, the hard copy instructions that is supplied with the TV is very basic. You therefore have to rely on the 'electronic' guide found in the menu of the TV. This can be a bit cumbersome trying to find a solution to what you want to do with the TV.

The only advice I can give is before you buy a peripheral (if that is the right word) for this TV, have a look on the back to see if there is a socket that will fit something you already have (satellite connection). Enjoy the TV, I do.

I wanted a new TV for almost a year and suffice to say, like all of us, I did my research. So much so that I gave the assistants in Curry's a run for their money.

The research is over-whelming and it's not until you take a step back that you realise you actually don't need half the stuff these super dooper TV's can do. But there are a few things that were important to me. These were:

- How the TV looks when switched off
- How it handles action (I watch a lot of action movies and football)
- Quality of picture in SD as well as HD (Standard Def / High Def)
- Connection points

Now, with this TV it obviously comes with 3D and Smart TV, which I could give or take. But what I discovered was, if you want a great non-3D picture then the 3D TVs are the best quality.

I have not used the 3D, when I do I'll update the review.

SMART TV - Coming from a 7 year old TV, I was initially impressed. It was a novelty. However how much I'll use it I don't know. Set up was instant. The built in Wifi instantly found my server and connected. It has Netflix, Love Film and BBC i-player already loaded. There are two things that let the Smart TV down. The FACEBOOK app does not seem to allow me to connect. I get an information screen to say I need to log in through my settings but I'm unable to locate where to do it. If anyone knows the answer to this, I'd be most grateful. The other thing that lets this down is the navigation on the internet. Just don't bother! Even if you download the i-phone app that allows you to control your TV through your phone and use a qwarty board, you still have to arrow a curser around the screen. So if a Smart TV is what you're really going for, look for a different brand as I imagine this layout with the curser will be the same on all Samsungs.

HOW THE TV LOOKS - Really consider the size you need! I brought a 40 inch and I have a fairly large living room, however it just seems too big. I wish I had now gone for the 37 inches as it tends to dominate the room. Also I really am not a fan of the stand. I knew what stand it came with but it wasn't until it was in my house that I realised I didn't like it, but these are merely personal preferences. What I do like about the stand it that it allows the TV to swivel, so when I'm in my open planned kitchen / living room, I can turn the TV to I can still see it. The TV is very thin for it's price bracket, so wall mounting should be fine. I have not mounted the TV though. The only problem I think you may have is where the HDMI and power cables are in the back of the TV, they will jut out about an inch before bending downwards. Something worth looking at in the store when you consider wall mounting. The TV has a thing bezel edge. Without measuring, i'd say half an inch. There are TV's with much thinner edging but again, for the price, its a great looking TV. One last thing to note on this point is there are no control buttons on the TV so if you lose the remote you're screwed. Good job I have downloaded the control app on the phone. Also it doesn't have an off switch, only standby. But as LED uses such little electricity I am not too worried. 4 Star.

REMOTE CONTROL APP ON I-PHONE - This works great and is easy to use. There are two main purposes for downloading this free app onto your phone. 1) if you mis-place your control or its on the other sofa then you can just use your phone instead of getting up (great for those hang over Sundays if you can't be bothered to shift from the coach.) Also, if you need to enter any text through the SmartTV, then using a curser around the on screen keypad is just a time consuming nightmare, so you will want to use the qwarty board on the phone.

SOUND - I had pretty much convinced myself I would need a sound bar. Hearing reviews on most thin TV's, the sound quality is very poor and tinny. Not with this one and this is where it really comes in to save you money. You DO NOT need a sound bar with this TV. I can not get over how good the sound is, not tinny at all and very loud. I am a bit of cinema buff and may still invest in surround sound at a later point but it is not essential. 5 star for a thin TV.

PICTURE QUALITY - HD wow, just wow. There are four main picture options - Dynamic (brightest), Standard, Natural and Movie. You can also adjust every element of the picture from backlighting to colours etc. Standard def is good too, obviously it doesn't rival HD but it is great. What I would say is you need to adjust the picture depending what you're watching. So for example, Finding Nemo in HD - just switch it to Dynamic. If you're watching an old SD movie from the 80's you will want the movie option and a bit of tweaking. If you're prepared to change the picture each time then it's great. 4 stars for this (would have 5 if it automatically adjusted to a perfect setting for each programme.)

ACTION - What made me go for this TV was the 200hz motion rate. Something worth noting here... most films are filmed on a standard 50hz motion rate. The extra hz on these LED tv's comes from them inserting extra frames to keep up with the actions to make it seamless. This really is down to preference. On a HD cartoon movie for example the motion rate switched on is great, but for a standard def movie I found it rater annoying, it just didn't seem real, so when I turned it off it actually looked more like the action sequences you see on a plasma. It's great to have the option. How the TV handled action was very important to me, and I am really pleased with it. Nothing will rival a plasma where action is concerned, however you will find that most plasmas in the £600 or less bracket are not full HD, only HD ready. They also start at a size of 42 inches, which was just too big for me. 4 stars for action.

CONNECTIONS - You can see from the item description the number of connection points. 3 HDMI cable are generous and what is great is it has a scart socket. A lot of Samsungs don't and you need an adaptor that many of my friends have had difficulty fitting into the back of their TV. So with a scart socket included I'd give this 4 stars. (What would have made it 5 was two starts and 4 HDMI cables.)

PROBLEMS - I have experienced problems with clouding. It comes and goes. I am in touch with the company I purchased this off to get them to come out and look at it. After a bit more internet searching I have found that this tends to be a problem with a lot of LED screens and it is pot luck if your screen does it or not. I have also read reviews where Samsung have admitted there were some TV's that were a manufacturing fault. Now when the clouding starts it is bad but if you turn the backlighting off the TV it helps to reduce it. It usually starts the longer the TV has been on, and you notice it on black / dark scenes. I just don't know if its worth the hassle to return the TV or not. I got an amazing deal on it because I ordered it from a company that doesn't deliver so its a real faff to return. If I just thought it was a fault with this set I would but it seems to be a frequent problem that I am seeing in a lot of peoples reviews. If this concerns you then just avoid an LED.

It's early days with this set. So as I discover new things I'll update.

Over-all FANTATSTIC value for money. Looks great, sounds great. Let downs - clouding and internet on the Smart TV.
If you're concerned about clouding, order off Amazon as they have a fantastic returns policy. I wish I'd paid a little bit more and got it from them now.