Review: Samsung Smart TV UHD 55″, your first real 4K TV

Table of Contents

1. Strengths
2. Negative points
3. Design
4. Image
5. Audio
6. Usability
   1. Remote Control
   2. Operational system
7. Price and final considerations
8. Technical specifications

A Samsung recently announced its new portfolio of 4K smart TVs. focused on UHD and UHD Premium models, being the second with HDR 1000, One Connect, One Remote technologies and less wires, these TVs are below QLED TVs, with a UHD LED screen that promises to impress any consumer looking for their first 4K Smart TV.

For one month, the Techlifers tested the line input model, in the 55 inch version (MU6100GXZD). With a more affordable price than QLED, the UHD from Samsung shows that even without the Quantum Dot technology, among other functions, it has one of the best cost-benefits on the market.

Strengths

• 4K quality;
• Operating system easy to use and does not crash;
• Simple remote control.

Negative points

• Does not have One Connect or One Remote technology;
• It doesn't solve the problem with the cables;
• TV has plastic finish

Design

A Smart TV UHD from Samsung this is what we are used to seeing on a flat television, that is, flat. Its finishing is all done in black plastic. Despite the material, what is interesting about it are the minimal edges, which further enhance the 55 inches of device.

Unlike a QLED, where one of the lights is your design, this television model has no secrets: on the front, in addition to the screen and plastic edges, we have a “SAMSUNG” written on the bottom – but in a very discreet way. The sides of the TV don't have any buttons and on the back of it are the power cables, the HDMI, USB, internet and TV operator inputs.

Precisely because it is a conventional flat TV, Samsung does not solve the issue of cables in this model, with the consumer having to leave the TV as close as possible to the wall or furniture to pretend that the back of it is not crammed with wires. As the company already solves this in other lines, it is possible that soon the entry model will also receive this welcome upgrade.

O UHD remote control it's very similar to last year's SUHD, despite not having a voice command button. Later in this review, you will know more details about the TV control. It is worth remembering that it is made in black and can end up being confused with the control of the company's new Soundbars, if the user decides to also take it home. You can find out more about him here.

Image

A Smart TV UHD from Samsung, as the name implies, is “Ultra” High Definition, that is, it has a jump of four times the quality of a conventional HD TV. With resolution of 3840 2160 pixels x, television uses a painel RGB, promising greater color fidelity – what the company insists on calling “true 4K”, needling competitors who use white subpixel.

In other words, the colors produced by the TV tend to be more real as it uses the standard red, green and blue to show the picture. Thanks to HDR Premium, the TV has more brightness and contrast than a conventional 4K, bringing a better color gamut.

The function of HDR is precisely to allow the colors to be reproduced with more fidelity, minutely differentiating the tones of each blue, red and green.

Different from OLED, which is the LED with its own lighting – and which allows the “deep black” – the Samsung's UHD LEDs from Samsung do not bring this perfect definition of what is 'all black' and what is just 'very dark'.

In my use with the TV, mainly in 4K and Full HD series from Netflix, I had no problems seeing what was happening in darker scenes, which shows that the Premium HDR really makes a big difference on TV. How do I usually play games Nintendo Switch, and not darker games like those on the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, I can't say how detrimental to your gaming experience the TV can be - although with series and movies I haven't had any problems.

In case the reader has seen the QLED review and is wondering “what the heck is one image different from the other” it's simple: the QLED uses Quantum Dot technology – are crystals that bring a perfect volume of color, precisely defining what each shade of color is, despite the similarities.

4K, on ​​its own, brings much more detail to the image, eliminating the “black dots” on the screen and improving scenes. But despite 4K being superior to Full HD, this technology is a few steps below the so-called Quantum Dots. To understand the differences between the LED, OLED and QLED, just see this article here.

It is worth noting that the television has some specific modes such as “Dynamic”, “Standard”, “Cinema” and “Sports”, to bring an even more pleasant experience.

Audio

In terms of audio, the Smart TV UHD from Samsung it is very good. She uses technology Dolby Digital Plus, which brings clearer and more defined sounds to the environment, in addition to having a stereo speaker.

With a 20W power, you don't need to turn up the TV volume much to watch a series, movie or listen to music.

During some of my experiences, I felt that the voices in some series became a little more muffled, or the sound volume was inconsistent. To improve the situation, I chose between “Standard”, “Optimized” or “Amplified” audio. Despite the few issues with the sound, it's important to note that it may not always be 100%.

As it is an entry-level television, it is normal that we do not have the use of Dolby's Atmos technology (top of the line) or something more specific for audiophiles. In this case, we recommend a Home Theater or Soundbar for a better experience.

Even so, in general, the user will not suffer from very low sound, variations in the audio during the reproduction of content or something like that - even because we are talking about a 4K TV, and not from an input HD TV.

Usability

Usability is one of the main points of the TV, but at the time of the final note, you will see the division of this section into “Remote Control” and “Software”. Because Samsung has shown a promising path with the One Remote and the Tizen operating system, both themes are worth dwelling on.

Remote Control

Starting with the control, it is important to note that although the device is very similar to One Remote, it does not have the built-in “magic” of One Connect along with One Remote. In fact, its similarity lies in its ease of use, but it will be necessary to take the control of each device connected to the TV to the sofa – at least for safety.

Remember that the remote control the battery works, it is black, made of plastic and has a slight upward curve, which makes its grip quite interesting. Since Samsung shows that less is more, this is what you'll need to know to use it (this is the bottom-up control):

• Volume button and channel button next to it (increase up, decrease down and if you click on it, the audio is muted; the channel, the same);
• Home button to access the main interface of the system;
• Left back button;
• Play/Pause button on the right
• Circle forward/backward, up/down and “ok” in the middle;
• SAP key button on the right (by tapping it, the consumer has access to the red, green, yellow and blue options of the control for cable TV subtitles, etc.)
• Number button on the left (by tapping it, the consumer has access to the numbers to change the cable TV channel
• TV on/off button.

The big problem with the remote control is in the lack of voice command. In applications like YouTube and Netflix, it would make the user's life much easier, which in this case is a frustrating delay in finding a letter by letter to form a word – or worse, a sentence.

Thanks to the “Smart View” app for smartphones, it is possible to control the TV from there, which ends up fixing the typing problem.

Operational system

A Samsung utiliza o Tizen as the operating system Smart TV UHD. Unlike Android TV or WebOS, the South Korean company's OS is very simple to use, as well as intuitive and beautiful. In a month of use, it did not crash or show delays.

As it should be, Smart TV shows it can be as intuitive as a smartphone, thanks to the combination of the remote control with an uncomplicated operating system. When connecting the peripherals to the television, it is possible to manually register what each cable represents – a way of imitating One Connect. With fewer options, unfortunately, the consumer is likely to have to use a little luck to figure out which is the Apple TV and which is the Xbox.

In general, the person who chooses the TV will be able to use it without problems, whether it is a child, an adult or grandma. Big points for Samsung.

Price and final considerations

The model UN55MU6100GXZD, or Samsung Smart TV UHD 55 ″ for the intimates, it has the suggested price of R$ 5.399,00. The 40-inch version has a suggested price of R$3.299,00, two thousand reais less. In relation to other 4K TVs on the market, this one from Samsung is one of the best value for money, as long as it is not purchased at the company's official store.

At Americanas, the 55-inch TV can be found for R$3.599,00, which is a price for its size.

In summary, if the reader is choosing to exchange the 10-year-old TV in the house for a new one and wants to invest in 4K, this is the time. With a good price and excellent technologies, this could be the UHD you've been waiting to call your own. Or who knows, if you want to make an extra investment, Premium UHD can be even nicer for the most demanding user.

Technical specifications