doink Posted December 28, 2003 Posted December 28, 2003 Im in the market for a reasonable priced <2.5K 76cm WS TV. I saw the Samsung WS32A108P at Dick Smiths for $1998 with stand. It seems to have all the features. I plan to get a HD STB with the TV and also connect it to my DVD player. Can anyone give me any feedback on this model TV? Is it any good? Pros/Cons? Is this a competitive price? Is Samsung a reasonably respected name in electronics/TV's now? Can anyone give me other suggestions on current models that I should be looking at in this price range... Thanks in advance...
blairy Posted December 28, 2003 Posted December 28, 2003 This link details the features of the Samsung 32a108p Features and this one the specs 32a108p Specs Don't know this model at all, however all the Samsungs I've seen on display have always looked OK. Samsung are a reasonably well known name in (all things) electronic. Value for money this is quite good for a 76cm HD TV. Only other TV in this price range, for HD, would be the Palsonic (Harvey Norman, Domayne) for <$2K. Everything else seems to be around the $3K mark and upwards. Make sure it has enough inputs and the right type for your needs. Also get the retailer to display dvd and HDTV connected the way you intend to and make sure you're happy with what you see. good luck blairy
willybelate Posted December 31, 2003 Posted December 31, 2003 Hi, I brought a Samsung WS32Z6HR from the Good Guys for $1950 in Aug2003. I have found the picture quality to be very good. It seems to have more than enough input types (I have a Samsung VCR /DVD connected with a standard STB connected to the DVD which is probably the incorrect way to set it up for best viewing but it works well. One day, when I have some spare time I will get around to looking at the connections and try to optimise this). I felt that on a value for money rating, this purchase was the best around at the time. I know a new model was coming (I checked these forums for the information) I like the skin tonings and the general quality of the display. The remote is quite large and took my kids some getting used to. My wife and I still struggle. I personnaly do not like the palsonic as a previous purchase failed.
niko1503559570 Posted January 3, 2004 Posted January 3, 2004 Quote Hi, I brought a Samsung WS32Z6HR from the Good Guys for $1950 in Aug2003. Quote I personnaly do not like the palsonic as a previous purchase failed. Hi willybelate Do you mean the Palsonic 76WSHD ? or just palsonic products ? Coz if you got your Samsung WS32Z6 in Aug2003 that means that you tried the Palsonic 76WSHD before that date,when was still $4000....?
arcane Posted January 3, 2004 Posted January 3, 2004 I just purchased one of these televisions, but I'm unsure whether or not the television is actually High Definition..? Yes it accepts a 1080i signal (although wont do a 768p), but does it simply convert it down to 576 lines? I don't have any HD sources at the moment (I returned my DGTEC 2000A after I realised how poor it was), but I've had a look at the screen itself, and the dot-pitch doesn't appear to be any finer than that of a standard definition set. Whilst the manual doesn't actually state whether it's standard or high definition (just 1080i compatible), under the section regarding the connection of the set to the computer, they state that this must be done with a 640x480 resolution! This implies there are only 480 lines of resolution! Have I been jibbed? Cheers, - Tim
blairy Posted January 3, 2004 Posted January 3, 2004 HD on the dgtec is only available via component or XGA outputs. The box must also be set to HD1 or HD2. Many sets have XGA inputs that are not compatible with HD. Panasonic is one brand that comes to mind. blairy
arcane Posted January 3, 2004 Posted January 3, 2004 Hmm... thanks for the info. Still a little confused, though. By the way, the DGTEC wasn't returned due to a lack of HD display, it was due to the fact that I do not receive a digital signal in my area, and that I realised that, when the time comes, I'd prefer to purchase a higher-spec box. I don't have any HD gear to test the HD side of the TV as of yet, but I connected a DVD player (Sony DVP-NS300) to the TV using the component connections. Now the DVD player has Y/Cb/Cr (Standard def) outputs and the TV had Y/Pb/Pr (High def) inputs, which might be the reason for the problem I'm experienced - which is defined as follows: When watching a DVD (the test film was The Matrix: Reloaded), the colour information appears to be "lacking information". For those familiar with computers, I'd best explain this as setting the colour depth down to 16-bit (or even lower!). When looking at people's faces, for example, one can see the skin tones as being quite blocky, as opposed to nice smooth gradients - any thoughts why? Also, I'm still unsure whether or not the TV is HD...? - Tim
fitze1957 Posted January 4, 2004 Posted January 4, 2004 [/color][/font][/b] Hello Sammy Folks Whats the difference betwen the WS32A10 and theWS32A108P Did they get rid of the cheap white plastic surround that had the TV BANNED from our house by "She Who Must Be Obeyed". Cheers Fitze
Juzzie Posted January 4, 2004 Posted January 4, 2004 I've purchased this television with the stand for $2000 from JB HIFI a couple of weeks ago and am happy with it, except for a few problems i am having with the set top box. I am using the DGTECH DH-2000A and purchased the Acoustic Research Performance series RCA for the YPBPR port of the set top box, to plug into the "Component 1" connection at the back of the TV. I am able to watch all stations with the set top box on the HD2 (576) setting, but when i switch it to HD1 for the 1080i setting, i get various lines of contrast displayed particularly on the HDTV channels. (Digital also has these but not to the same extent). The blue and red colours displayed on screen seem very bright, however the other colours seem normal. i tried using the cord that came with the box however this did not fix the problem. I have tried adjusting the contrast and brightness down on the custom settings to no avail. i've tried a full channel rescan through the set top box, and the tv, also to no avail. i have tried unplugging absolutely everything in the room, and moving the mobile phone out as well to still have this problem! So from here i rang the DGTECH customer support line to only receive the worst service in my life being advised to "not have the video hooked up as this causes inteference" I even advised the person that i had tried hooking just the tv and set top box, but still had the lines all over the screen. I was then told to double check that i had each cord hooked up correctly. (which i do). I am getting the "Green signal strenth" on the set top box for all of the channels to indicate that my signal strength is fine. I then got fed up and took the box back to the store, after recently having no success in picking up SBS for the last 2 weeks, and findthing that from out of nowhere, the channel select screen would pop up, causing me to turn it off so that i could watch tv. I briefly demonstrated how SBS did not work (along with the HD1 setting), and asked for a replacement box. i was given one to try, took it home, and found the exact same problem with the HD1 setting, but found that SBS was working perfect. The very next day, i go to switch on the tv, and SBS is again frequently freezing each half second, with dots and distorted sound all over the place. Is anyone else having problems with SBS for the last week or so? I am unable to change the tv setting out of "progressive" when the tv is on the HDTV "COMP1" channel, however i am able to change it to "digital" or "natural" when i am just viewing normal tv without the set top box. I live in a built up area of Sunnybank near Brisbane City so i'm certainly not in a remote area. Does someone here have this same setup and able to help out? this is driving me crazy!
arcane Posted January 8, 2004 Posted January 8, 2004 Well I just got off the phone to Samsung, and I must say that I'm pretty disappointed. Whilst the set DOES have a high definition tube (or, at least, finer pitch), its input is severly limited, only accepting: 480i/p, 576i and 1080i This means that you can't connect any of the new progressive scan (576p) DVD players up to this set. I'm going to take this set back, as for my purposes it's pretty much a flop. Normal FTA television signals must be scaled up to "fit" onto the higher resolution tube, and look quite poor (when compared to a normal set). The same goes for any other SD input, which covers the rest of the hardware I own. Once digital TV stabilises, and I purchase a HD set-top box, the picture will improve, but only for watching television. Watching DVDs will still be an unenjoyable experience. Thumbs down for this one - the tube's nice, the set has a nice finish (IMHO), and the menus are well laid out etc, but the lack of input formats detracts from it's usefulness. - Tim
aeon1503559541 Posted January 8, 2004 Posted January 8, 2004 arcane said: This means that you can't connect any of the new progressive scan (576p) DVD players up to this set. Damn eh, well that just ruled this television out from my choices.
sigur Posted January 12, 2004 Posted January 12, 2004 Sorry if this is a stupid question, but would the samsung still be good with a NTSC progressive only DVD player (Pioneer 655A) and a HD set top box? Apart from the ugly white plastic it seems like a good buy.
arcane Posted January 13, 2004 Posted January 13, 2004 sigur said: Sorry if this is a stupid question, but would the samsung still be good with a NTSC progressive only DVD player (Pioneer 655A) and a HD set top box? Apart from the ugly white plastic it seems like a good buy. Yes, it would support that (NTSC progressive is 480p, iirc), and you could run HD in 576i (SD) or 1080i (HD). However, I'd strongly recommend going to a place where you can have the setup tested first. From what I saw, the Samsung's upscaling routine isn't too good at all, and 480p will probably look quite poor (I'd think).
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