Reasons to Buy the Samsung PN58B860
Lately, Samsung has been making a buzz with its slim edge-lit LED HDTVs, trying to beat Sony in the LED game. That doesn’t mean it has stopped making great Plasma HDTVs, though. The Samsung PN58B860, one of its flagship models, is proof of that.
Design. LCD sets are currently considered more stylish pieces but the Samsung PN58B860 begs to differ with a striking design of its own, a design which can be summed up in one word - thin. Indeed, it is ultra-thin, measuring only 1.2 inches thick at most and its glossy black bezel which has no Touch of Color and few interruptions is slim, too. The same goes for its transparent outer edge which has just the right luster. Its stand is transparent for the most part but sturdy, while able to swivel both ways for convenient viewing.
Picture Quality. Picture quality is one of the strengths of Plasma sets, which is why it is not surprising the PN58B860 delivers amazing images across its screen, images made sharp and realistic with inky blacks combined with highly accurate, saturated colors thanks to its advanced Wide Color Enhancer. Reflections in bright environments are at a minimum, too.
Processing. Refresh rate is not so much an important feature when considering a Plasma model since Plasmas don’t have any problem with blurring or motion resolution. If you’re curious, though, you’ll be glad to know the PN58B860 is equipped with a 100Hz MotionPlus dejudder processor and a 600Hz subfield drive.
Interactive Suite. As a flagship model, the PN58B860 is quite expensive and to help justify its price, it is packed with a lot of interactive features. These include Yahoo widgets for news headlines, weather reports and stock market updates, as well as those for Yahoo videos, sports scores and select online games. There are also widgets for Twitter and Flickr, and access to free videos on YouTube, although access to Amazon Video on Demand would have been even better. The PN58B860 is also DLNA compliant which means you can access media files like movie clips, songs and pictures on your networked computers, plus it comes with the built-in content library found in many Samsung HDTV models.
Picture Tweaks. If the initial picture quality is not good enough to meet your standards, go ahead and head to the on-screen menu, which is still the easiest to navigate because of its neat lay-out and helpful explanatory text. You will find four adjustable picture modes to choose from, all independent per input, five color temperature presets and four aspect ratio selections among others.
Energy Consumption. Plasma TVs are not exactly a good choice if you’re planning to go green but the Samsung PN58B860 is relatively energy efficient. While it may still consume more than LCD sets, particularly LED-based ones, it comes with an Eco Mode and three power saving modes that help lower your electric bill.
Connectivity. The Samsung PN58B860 offers great connectivity, too, highlighted by no less than four HDMI inputs arranged neatly on the rear panel, a component video input and a VGA-style PC input. Like other models, the component video can be converted into composite if you prefer. Even so, however, the options for analog connections are still limited. For convenient media sharing from portable devices, two USB ports are provided.