Samsung UN55C6500 120Hz LED HDTV Review

Being branded as the largest consumer electronics allows Samsung to walk around the market with a healthy amount of swagger. However, all too many times we have seen a manufacturer reach this pinnacle and begin a slow and steady decline as they supplement quality with raw quantity. So far Samsung has successfully steered clear of this pitfall and they continue to produce some of the most highly regarded products around. Yes, there are always lemons here and there but for the most part we have been impressed with this one company’s technical prowess.

LED-based LCD TVs have been around for a good while but for some reason, there are still a fair number of growing pains associated with this technology. Panel uniformity, motion performance and colour saturation seem to be major issues that still pop up in even the highest-end sets. As a result, consumers have been naturally wary about taking the jump towards an LED HDTV. This could also be why some manufacturers have reported the possibility that 2010 could be the first year in recent memory that plasma TVs may see double digit sales growth.

In Samsung’s last outing here at Hardware Canucks, their LN55C650 garnered our praise in a number of key areas but still fell short in our books. The last LED unit we looked at was the UN55B7100 which also happened to be from Samsung and actually performed relatively well albeit with a healthy dollop of picture quality problems. Now we’re about to take a look at a current generation set: the UN55C6500.

While pricing for the UN55C6500 is currently pegged at $2800, we have actually seen it for under $2200 when on sale. Compared to its standard fluorescent-based LCD brethren, this is a hefty price indeed since even the LN55C650 retails for under $2000 on a regular basis. Can Samsung’s mid-range LED product really be worth this kind of price premium over a tried, tested and true technology?