I spent another full day calibrating and evaluating the PN64F8500 plasma panels. This afforded me the time to measure black level and ANSI contrast ratio on the larger 64-inch model so we could compare results between the different sizes. Some clarification from Samsung on the video processing of the F8500 series made me revisit the 24p tests. The Cinema Smooth feature on these Samsung’s series is the 96Hz processing scheme for 24p, which introduces so much judder that it is unusable. See the Contrast Ratio and Video Processing sections for updates on these important areas of performance. The bottom line is it does not change my overall conclusions about the F8500 series Samsung plasmas.
One of the dealers I work
with, ClassCraft Design Associates out of Middlesex, New Jersey, installed a
massive 7 x 3 video wall at American Water’s headquarters in Cherry Hill, New
Jersey using twenty-one Christie Digital FHD551-X 55-inch LCD panels. This huge
video wall measures 81.04 inches wide by 334.92 inches high.
LCD display technology, both
backlit CCFL and LED backlit LCD, suffers from serious white and black field
uniformity issues, which makes color matching quite difficult, especially with
so many panels.
Pros: Vastly improved black level and
light output capability combine to deliver a dramatic increase in Contrast
Ratio. The panel is processing RGB correctly going well below video black (16)
and well above white (235), further improving contrast ratio. Video processing
correctly handles 24p Blu-ray content at 96Hz, and also offers a Judder
Corrector feature.
Cons: The 2pt and 10pt white balance
and Custom Color Space CMS (Color Management System) calibration features seem
to interact quite a bit making professional calibration time consuming. Vertical
viewing angle is poor at close range, due to the ambient light rejecting filter
on the panel, but is not a problem at normal viewing distances.
To Buy or Not to Buy: As of this
writing, the Samsung PN60F8500 series plasma is clearly one of the best flat panels money
can buy from a picture quality and video performance perspective. Highly
Recommended!
Ahh ... C.E.S. (Consumer Electronics Show)
- That immutable bastion of ultra-hype for what's happening sometime next year
- maybe .... set in the perfect confluence of fantasy, caprice and wishful
thinking ... Las Vegas.
The 2013 CES show in Las Vegas in the flat
panel HDTV category was dominated by 4K displays starting at 50-inches and
going all the way up to 110 inch screen sizes. There was also a smattering of
OLED (more accurately AMOLED) from a couple of manufacturers. OLED sets were
shown by Panasonic, Samsung, and LG. How much of both of these display
technologies was vaporware, and how much of it will actually come to market is
anyone’s guess. My guess is some of the 4K panels will hit the market by year’s
end albeit at stratospheric prices, and the 110-inch panels will probably not
make it to market in 2013. Let’s take a look at what some of the majors had on
display.
It's that time of year again when H.T. pundits,
ivory tower consultants and I-got-nothin'-better-to-do bloggers put pen to
paper - O.K., fingers to keyboards and make all kinds of predictions, forecasts
and wild speculations based on the last "customer survey" they saw
regarding the future of Home Theatre.
I spent another full day calibrating and evaluating the PN64F8500 plasma panels. This afforded me the time to measure black level and ANSI contrast ratio on the larger 64-inch model so we could compare results between the different sizes. Some clarification from Samsung on the video processing of the F8500 series made me revisit the 24p tests. The Cinema Smooth feature on these Samsung’s series is the 96Hz processing scheme for 24p, which introduces so much judder that it is unusable. See the Contrast Ratio and Video Processing sections for updates on these important areas of performance. The bottom line is it does not change my overall conclusions about the F8500 series Samsung plasmas. 
