Thoughts on the Samsung LN40A550

I am looking to purchase a new LCD HD TV for playing PS3, watching tv and have it hooked up to my HTPC for movies etc. I have never owned a nice HD tv set before and don't want to go crazy. I want something around the $1000 range, something that will display the PS3 and movies from HTPC and HD television just fine. I'm sure I will be amazed by any HD tv as i have never actually owned one before but the Samsung LN40A550 looks very appealing to me and looks like it has a lot of great reviews and is just in my price range.

What does the [H] think about this tv? http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-LN40A550-40-Inch-1080p-HDTV/dp/B001418W2C/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

I was going to go for this Sammy too, but the thing that turned me off was Samsung's "Game Mode" doesn't allow you to configure color settings or anything for the set. I went for the Sony XBR6; its about $800 so its $200 cheaper than your range. That Samsung, from what I read over at AVS, has more saturated colors where the Sony is more natural; but you can of course tweak them *except Game Mode on Sammy's. So far I've loved my 32'' Sony, but to be honest its been hard on my eyes lol. Been sittin too close to it, so I'm going for a monitor and giving it to my parents. Its a great tv. One more thing though, it doesnt have a headphone jack. To me thats a bummer since I game at night a lot; my solution was a set of speakers. Colors are natural and the tv's speakers are pretty damn good. Overall its a great tv for PS3 and watching movies, Blu Ray or regular DVD's.

I have a slightly older, slightly inferior featureset having TV. I have the Samsung LN40A500; I have fewer HDMI ports, and a slightly lower actual contrast ratio. I love it and use it as my main monitor.

I only have one HDMI cable running to the TV and everything else goes through a Marantz SR4002 Receiver. DVD playback is handled via a Marantz DV4001, and currently BluRay discs are handled by a borrowed Panasonic unit, but will soon be a Marantz BD7003 for that. Basically all the video comes from excellent sources, and no processing is done by the TV other than displaying a feed.

Picture quality is good, no uneven spots, no dead pixels, backlight bleed or anything odd. No complaints about this 1080p set. I'd recommend it to others in this class. Color isn't as customizable as I'd like though.

Like any TV, the built in speakers are there to get you by until you hook up something worth listening to. I don't think I have a headphone jack, but my receiver handles all the audio anyway. Don't really concern yourself with the audio quality of a TV, as all are far from audiophile territory.

I owned one, returned it because it was a 6 bit panel and much darker on the top than bottom. Getting an a750 instead hopefully it is better.

I got one last August for my apartment. For $1100 shipped I'm happy with it. Not the best TV or picture available, but it fit my budget, and now it's even cheaper. I don't own any game consoles beyond the PSX, but many reviews claimed great picture when using one.

The one drawback is that the remote has to be pointed directly at the sensor. It's very picky. In addition, the TV is kind of sluggish to turn on and off. Not too big of a deal though.

I owned one, but upgraded to the A650 a week later. Its definitely a decent set, not the best, but it gets the job done. It is also 10 times better than any Westinghouse (which I have also owned and returned).

You might try buying the LN40 "B" 550 instead. The "B" models are slightly updated versions of the "A" models, with higher contrast etc.

thanks for the input guys, I think i will go with it. I'm sure it will be awesome as it will be my first HD tv anyways.