100 Years of Techology

Samsung is making yet another breakthrough with its edge-lit LED-based LCD HDTVs or LED TVs, a roster topped by the pricey Samsung UN55B8000 55 inch LED HDTV. But what does an edge-lit HDTV mean? And how does it make models like the UN55B8000 a cut above the rest?

Before we try to understand the concept of edge-lit HDTVs, let us first take a look at how LED televisions work. As you probably already know, most LCD televisions use a fluorescent lamp for a backlight, which is the main reason why they cannot produce black levels as deep as Plasma televisions. However, with LED-based televisions, as the term implies, hundreds of LEDs or small bulbs are used to light up the panel. These bulbs are arranged in clusters that can be turned off individually, resulting in outstandingly deep blacks. Other advantages of LEDs include lower energy consumption, durability and longer shelf life.

Because of this, many want to buy an LED-based HDTV. And now, there’s one more reason why they should – edge-lit HDTVs. While regular LED-based HDTVs are direct-lit, meaning to say their panels are covered with LEDs, edge-lit HDTVs, like the Samsung UN55B8000, have only a few rows of LEDs covering the top and bottom of the panel. Instead of projecting the light forward, they project it to the center of the screen to a light guide plate which then focuses it forward.

One advantage of edge-lit HDTVs is that they can be made even thinner and lighter, making them not only attractive but also easier to mount on the wall just like a framed painting. Indeed, the UN55B8000 is only 1.2 inches deep at most, making it one of Samsung’s slimmest and most stylish HDTVs.

Also, while LED-based televisions are already known to consume about half the energy consumed by conventional LCD televisions, those that are edge-lit consume even less. In particular, according to tests, the UN55B8000 consumes up to 40 percent less energy than it normally would.

All these make edge-lit HDTVs a great choice in spite of their disadvantages, namely the heating of their frames, especially at the top and bottom parts, inadequate screen brightness and screen uniformity issues, which Samsung has mostly taken care of. Indeed, the UN55B8000 may have less than uniform brightness during dark scenes but you won’t notice it unless you go looking for it.

There are other reasons to buy the Samsung UN55B8000 aside from its edge-lit LCD lighting technology, like its accurate colors and excellent video processing with a refresh rate of 240Hz that prevents blurring even when the action picks up. It also has Yahoo widgets which you can put on your screen, DLNA capability that lets you access stored media files on your networked computers and a built-in content library to keep you entertained. While there aren’t much connectivity options for analog devices, the UN55B8000 still provides four HDMI inputs, a PC input and two USB ports.

So, is the Samsung UN55B8000 a good buy? This is something you shouldn’t be asking any longer after reading this. After all, you already know the reasons why it is very expensive, the same reasons that make it not just a good but a great HDTV, a true cut above the rest.