Samsung clouding - not Sony for a change!!

[Oldboy]

Hello everyone,

Just thought i would report that Sony aren't the only one's with the dreaded clouding problem as my LE40B650 has the problem and a replacement is on it's way today, 24hrs after getting in touch with Samsung and my retailer (Amazon). Got to say i have had brilliant customer service throughout but it doesn't hide the fact that i bought the Samsung in order to avoid the problem the Sony sets have been having (i was going to buy the Sony W5500 if it wasn't for the clouding issues) so it just goes to show that perhaps Sony are not the only one's with the problem. Perhaps i was just unlucky with my Samsung but i was surprised when Amazon said it was a problem they are aware of and that it is not product specific but a problem with the LCD technology, is that true?

Would be great if any other Samsung owners could post their experiences with this problem just to get a feel for how widespread the problem is, a comparison with the Sony issue would be great!

p.s. new tv just arrived so fingers crossed!

UPDATE - new tv has arrived and.....it's faulty!!!! No sign of the clouding this time (so far) but it has a dead pixel (always white) and therefore this one is going back too so lets hope it's 3rd time lucky, if not i will give up and get an alternative set. Not even sure i want a 3rd one now after a little more thought but no idea what would be a suitable relacement.

 

[Nick_Shepherd]

I may be wrong, but I belive they share panels...........?

 

[sonycentre]

Yes nick they do share the glass panels..............and thats where it ends.........backlight bleed is coherent of lcd tech.......unless the tv is set-up in the correct way.............led backlight will never have this problem.But that comes at a cost at the moment.I must confess that i have only seen one sony tv and that was kdl40w4000..........Lets not get me started on that one again.

 

[Oldboy]

Hello sonycentre,

Interesting to hear Samsung and Sony share panels and that you too seem to be of the opinion that the lcd tech is at fault (as seems to be the consensous of opinion) but it does beg the question why some sets suffer and others don't? I am going to my local Sony Centre today to check out the W5500 as i may go for this now if i can get one that doesn't suffer from bleed!

 

[Anonymous]

Just to sound smug - our Philips backlight is as even as the one featured in the WHF review. White pixels though. They can talk about an acceptable failure rate per million pixels, but the fact remains a white dot in the screen is a fault that few people would want to pay hundreds of pounds for - so why should we?

If LCD TVs are so likely to have faults (uneven backlights or dead pixels/stuck sub pixels) that the makers don't want to refund for, then they should get out of the game and stop making them. If I had a manufacturing business and I kept pumping out a high number of faulty products, I would have to switch to making something else I think, before the simple economics bit. I would not want to be associated with something faulty anyway. Samsung seem to be selling more TVs than anybody, but how many are the cheap models bought by the less AV-educated (at the risk of sounding superior). What I mean is, are they more tolerant of what we all aknowledge on here as deal-breakers?

Does anybody know if Samsung use different panels (S, C, A etc.) in their TVs like they do in their monitors, as this fact has shown up over the past few years and seems to make a huge difference in quality? Funny how PC mags have always been sent S panels for reviews, but Joe Public was not always as lucky. Does anybody know if this is true of tellys?

Anyway - I sincerly hope you have a TV very soon you are happy with mate. At least yours get delivered to YOUR home!

 

[Andrew Everard]

Nick_Shepherd:I may be wrong, but I belive they share panels...........?

Almost - Sony and Samsung make panels at the same factory under a joint venture, but the understanding we were given when we visited there last December is that the two companies have their own production lines.

 

[Oldboy]

Badamz:

Yes you can officially go into smug mode with my blessing! lol. Why is it so difficult to buy a reasonable tv these days that works? I have been doing some digging around and it seems most manufacturers have a tolerance level for dead pixels but i'm still of the opinion (as most people are on these forums) that is not acceptable, for my £800 i expect it to work correctly with no faults after all it is a new tv and not 2nd hand!! I wouldn't say that was being 'fussy' as its brand new but now i'm so annoyed to receive two faulty units that i'm getting a refund and looking elsewhere for an alternative set, i looked in my local Sonycentre today at the w5500 (the instore model is a different model number no idea why?) and i couldn't spot a single picture floor or bleeding probs BUT it is a Sonycentre so i would not expect a dodgy unit to be on show but none the less it shows there are units out there that don't suffer from the dreaded bleed but i'm still wary.

Either way i won't be buying from the Sonycentre as they are so ludicrously over priced! They want £999.99 for the W5500 and will give me £100 off in their trade in scheme bringing the price to £899.99 but on the net you can get the unit with the 5year guarantee they were harping on about in store for £734! Now i know you have to factor in the costs of a retail unit but even so that is a hell of a difference in price...plus the store advertising online also has several retail shops throughout the country so that argument holds no water...so why such high pricing?

 

[sonycentre]

Hi oldboy,Sonycentres are franchises,and as such are not owned by sony.Yes internet prices do vary.But we pride ourselves of product knowlege and after-sales service.we Currently sell ours for £799.99 with trade in and give a 5 year warrenty.store prices can also differ.Internet sites can take large hits,and go on turnover of boxes,And are sources from other parts of the world,we get our stock from sony uk direct.Also websites send stock from gurnsey.so no import tax to pay.Also prices are very upand down at the moment so fixed prices will not change untill jan 2010.

 

[Oldboy]

Sonycentre,

Thanks for the reply, i was just wondering how the pricing works with the Sonycentres then as there seems to be a big gap between your store and mine in the pricing of the w5500 tv. A £100 difference between what is essentially the same store is quite a discrepency when it is exactly the same tv....if thats the case then i will ring around ALL sonycentres within travelling distance and try to match your stores £799 price and see what happens as after all if i save £100 it is definately worth the hassle, no?

 

[Anonymous]

I must admit that the last time I looked in the local Sony Centre (Sheffield - Meadowhall) the prices (with the TV trade-in and 5 year warranty) seemed pretty good, whereas my previous experience of them was that they were way more expensive.

The only way I could beat them online was to settle for the 3 year warranty only (the Sony one) whereas the S.C. had 5 years. I will not buy a TV without a good warranty, though it can be the case in certain well known department stores who say their 5 warranty is free that compared with online prices it may cost you £500 on some models and nothing on others! Some TVs just get discounted online a lot more than others (looking at the price they give in a WHF review shows this too).

You can only ask a shop to do you a deal - that's how my other half bought our 9664 from Richer, by getting them to match a department store on warranty and beating them on price (as they advertise). Bless her (and Richer).

 

[Oldboy]

So i phoned round all local sonycentres and could NOT match the £799 that our sonycentre forum member was quoting!! I wonder if it is down to location? I think i will wait until i get my refund and then take cash to a few stores and see if i can get a deal as you suggested after all they can only say no and watch a customer with cash walk away....which is their loss. Kudos to your other half for getting a deal!!

It's a good point you make with the warranty though and i have already found a huge difference in retailers who offer waranties, some are 3yr free and others you have to pay extra despite Sony doing a promotion with a free 3yr warranty on all sets (5yr in sonycentres) which strikes me as a bit odd. Perhaps it's just down to what retailers are involved with the warranty promotion, much like the current trade in promotion?

 

[Anonymous]

HEY THERE,Just bought a sony 46w5500 on 23-10-09,was manufactured in august.I can happily report little or no backlight clouding issues!I dont know wether it was pre-prod. or early that fell victim,but mine is fine no matter which way its set up,concerning backlight problems....JJ-DUBLIN!

 

[matthewpiano]

Oldboy:
Sonycentre,

Thanks for the reply, i was just wondering how the pricing works with the Sonycentres then as there seems to be a big gap between your store and mine in the pricing of the w5500 tv. A £100 difference between what is essentially the same store is quite a discrepency when it is exactly the same tv....if thats the case then i will ring around ALL sonycentres within travelling distance and try to match your stores £799 price and see what happens as after all if i save £100 it is definately worth the hassle, no?

Just to clarify here. Sony Centres are run by independent retailers. Some retailers own several Sony Centres and others only own as few as 1 or 2. As the manufacturer cannot fix prices, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever why pricing between Sony Centres run by different companies should be any more consistent than it is between the likes of Comet and Currys.

To be honest, £799 seems a little low for a 40W in a Sony Centre.