Samsung PN59D7000

Pros: Easy setup, dark as night blacks, excellent picture quality, good input selection, quite passable audio.

Cons: Text entry methods change. Sometimes it's an on-screen keyboard, other times it's very frustrating telephone-style entry.

Summary: This TV is replacing an older unit. It's amazingly nice, really. The depths of the blacks is astoundingly nice, the colors are vibrant, and there are enough knobs to tune the picture to suit even the pickiest TV watcher.

Initial installation took about 15 minutes. Unbox, put on stand, plug in HDMI components and power, turn on. After setting up networking, it downloaded a software update, applied it, and rebooted the TV (who knew we'd be talking about rebooting our televisions?) at which point everything came up and everything "just worked".

Samsung's SmartTV "app store" is gimmicky and I can't see ever using it beyond the one free application worth using: Netflix. The Netflix client UI is very similar if not identical to the one on my Boxee Box. Wireless network setup on the set was painless, and it works great. The iPhone remote control application rarely ever works, but when it does it's somewhat useful - though since the input is via HDMI and not direct cable, changing channels is a bit useless. Makes for a good way to remotely shut it off, I suppose, though once you turn it off via the iPhone app...there's no way to turn it back on!

Most surprisingly is the quality of the built-in speakers. Complimenting integrated speakers probably gets me a spot on most audiophile's hit-list, but seriously - as I wait for the rest of the system to arrive, the sound provided by the television is quite adequate and fills the room. Deep bass and high fidelity they are not, but they're far from what you'd generally expect with built-ins.

I am not seeing any brightness pops, and will definitely keep an eye out for peeling. This particular unit was a recent manufacture, so perhaps the two most common issues discussed here in various reviews have been addressed. For best deal of the Samsung PN59D7000, I suggest you have to check before you decide at: Dealscheck.info/samsung-pn59d7000/

I would absolutely buy this TV again.