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Help with Samsung LCD TV

Brianstorm91

Brianstorm91

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 30, 2007
1,365
0
Cambridge, UK
I'm looking to buy a new Samsung LCD TV to connect to both a Macbook Pro and a PS3. Something around 23" is preferable because I'm on a budget as well as a limit to the space I have. In an ideal world I would purchase an ACD also but I just don't have that kind of money.

I've been comparing a few and would like any help you can offer in making a choice. I'd prefer for it to be HD ready, as I can't afford the full 1080p HD price.

These screens have caught my eye:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LE2...3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1193257696&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LE2...3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1193257696&sr=1-4

But I'm having a problem trying to work out why one TV is £100 cheaper, has anybody hooked both a laptop and a console up to a TV, does it work well?

Any advice on this topic would be greatly appreciated!

Note: I couldn't really find a great topic to put this under, sorry if I missed the correct one!

:apple:
 
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The first one :

Product Features
HD Ready, 23inch widescreen format
1366 x 768 screen resolution
Built in Freeview Tuner (iDTV)
4000:1 dynamic contrast
450 cd/m2 brightness
HD Ready
2HDMI
4000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio
MoviePlus
Wide Colour Enhancer
Game Mode
iDTV
16:9 Aspect Ratio
1366x768 Resolution
Technical Details

Contrast Ratio (X:1): 4000
DVB-S: No
DVB-T: Yes
DVD Player / Recorder: No
DVI Interface: No
Electronic Program Guide (EPG): No
Energy Savings Trust Feature: Yes
HD Tuner: No
HD ready: Yes
HDMI Interface: Yes
Horizontal Resolution in Pixel: 1366
Loudspeakers: Yes
Memory Stick: No
Number of Scart Interfaces: 2
PCMCIA Interface: No
Reflection Angle: 160
Response Time in ms: 8
Screen Format: 16:9
Screen Size in Inches: 23
Screen Size in cm: 58
Secure Digital Card: No
Type of Monitor: LCD
USB: No
Vertical Resolution in Pixel: 768
YUV Interface: Yes

----------------

The second one :

Product Features
Contrast Ratio (X:1): 2000
Frequency: 50 Hertz
HD ready: Yes
HDMI Interface: Yes
Horizontal Resolution in Pixel: 1366
Loudspeakers: Yes
Number of Scart Interfaces: 2
Reflection Angle: 170
Screen Format: 16:9
Screen Size in Inches: 23
Screen Size in cm: 58
Type of Monitor: LCD
Vertical Resolution in Pixel: 768
Technical Details

Picture
Screen Size: 23
HD Ready?: Yes
Panel Type (colour gamut in NTSC): PVA
Colour Gamut: EBU 100%
Resolution: 1366x768
Brightness: 500cd/sq. m
Dynamic Contrast: 2000:1
Response Time: 8ms
Viewing Angle (degrees): 170°/170°
Backlight: CCFL
 
Thanks, I can read but I'm not able to really compare them too well. I know very little about TVs.
Which would you say is the better choice?
 
I'm assuming the second set of specs is the cheaper one here...I would absolutely go with the first one. All other things equal, you always want a higher contrast ratio.

Also, just from the specs that got posted, it looks like the second one only has one HDMI port. Bad choice there...HDMI is what pretty much everything is going to now. It allows you to get all your audio and video through one single cable (in other words, no jungle of wires on the back).

One thing to check on those TV's is whether or not their HDMI ports will accept a PC input. My Samsung does not, so thats my only complaint on them. You should be able to find that information on Samsung's support pages.

As far as the 1080P support...don't sweat it. You really can't see a difference between 720P and 1080P below 37". And if you can, you're spending way too much time critiquing your screen and not enough enjoying it ;)
 
jayhawk11 said:
It looks like the second one only has one HDMI port. Bad choice there...HDMI is what pretty much everything is going to now. It allows you to get all your audio and video through one single cable (in other words, no jungle of wires on the back).
Click to expand...

Thanks jayhawk, would I be able to connect a MBP to the TV via HDMI, should the TV accept it?
I'm guessing it's one of those £15 adaptors on the Apple Store?
 
Brianstorm91 said:
Thanks jayhawk, would I be able to connect a MBP to the TV via HDMI, should the TV accept it?
I'm guessing it's one of those £15 adaptors on the Apple Store?
Click to expand...


Depends on whether or not the TV accepts a PC input through HDMI. If it does, great . You don't even need an adapter. You would need a DVI to HDMI cable. That would go from the DVI out on your Macbook Pro to the HDMI port on the Samsung. Check out www.monoprice.com They usually have the cheapest cables in my experience...don't know about overseas though, so just google that cable

If the TV does NOT support a PC input through HDMI then you're going to have to get a DVI to VGA adapter (check around in your MacBook Pro packaging, mine came with one). Then plug the adapter into your DVI out port on the MacBook Pro, plug a VGA cable into the other end of the adapter and the other end of the VGA cable into the TV's PC input.


UPDATE: I just checked Samsung's website for you.....it looks like that particular model supports PC inputs over HDMI. So go with the DVI to HDMI cable. You'll get a much better picture
 
Thanks mate, once I've hooked that up to my laptop and PS3 I'll be one very happy (allbeit very poor) man :D

So, just checking - this would be the cable to buy?
 
Precisely. Good choice on the TV's, by the way. I worked for Best Buy for a few years up until May, and Samsungs were the most reliable sets we carried. Enjoy!
 
jayhawk11 said:
Precisely. Good choice on the TV's, by the way. I worked for Best Buy for a few years up until May, and Samsungs were the most reliable sets we carried. Enjoy!
Click to expand...

I agreed but my father in law has a 40" failed one day before the warranty expired. call for support and the tech said need to replace the whole panel. However, samsung didn't have that in stock. so they said they will upgrade it to another 40". and still waiting!!!

by the way, Samsung got my father in law to pay $2xx for extend warranty
 
Thanks, you've been a lot of help - although it's now got me thinking about the blackbook.. I like the coordination thing going, Blackbook, black TV and black PS3.
Hmm.
Or black anodised aluminium Macbook Pro :D

Oh, and Samsung also sponsor my beloved Chelsea FC ;)
 
I have the 23" samsung but in white, I currently use it for my HDTV, connected to my Macbook, and my Xbox 360. The picture quality in HD for Xbox 360 and my cable provider is amazing but the text on it while using my macbook is bad and hurts your eyes, but thats probably because I have it on overscale right now.
 
Brianstorm91 said:
I'm looking to buy a new Samsung LCD TV to connect to both a Macbook Pro and a PS3. Something around 23" is preferable because I'm on a budget as well as a limit to the space I have. In an ideal world I would purchase an ACD also but I just don't have that kind of money.

I've been comparing a few and would like any help you can offer in making a choice. I'd prefer for it to be HD ready, as I can't afford the full 1080p HD price.

These screens have caught my eye:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LE2...3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1193257696&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-LE2...3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1193257696&sr=1-4

But I'm having a problem trying to work out why one TV is £100 cheaper, has anybody hooked both a laptop and a console up to a TV, does it work well?

Any advice on this topic would be greatly appreciated!

Note: I couldn't really find a great topic to put this under, sorry if I missed the correct one!

:apple:
Click to expand...


Not the best options..but hey just buy..they are cheap..:)
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
what about sound?

So the DVI to HDMI from my macbook pro to my 50 inch samsung DLP LED HDTV is going to be amazing!!! but umm, no sound is transferred through the cables right?

so does that mean if i go from playing on my xbox 360 to playing a game on the computer, ill have to change the sound cords?

if anyone has a suggestion that would make it easy to switch, or that i dont have to switch cables at all, that would be awesome. I may even be completely wrong about no sound through the cable... thanks guys
 
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