Samsung DVD-R145

Stay away from this unit, its crap. I just bought a 4k TV from you, the least you can do is give me some decent support for a DVD player! Here are some of my communications with Samsung support, which is also turning into crap:

Initial support request email dated 12/28/06:

I got this DVD player in hopes it would be good, for the price. I've since thought otherwise. I have a child, hitting pause on a DVD is normal. Having that pause turn automaticly into a 'Stop' after only 5 minutes is HORRIBLE. To put salt on the wouldm hitting play after this happens doesnt even compensate for the fact it will miss about 3-4 secs of audio and 2-3secs of video. this is REALLY disappointing. Another problem is with DivX playback. there are horrible lipsync issues if you pause/ff/rw ins the middle of ANY divx file. you have to watch from start to finish, or its just not worth it. FF and RW is very 'sputtery' as if it was a digital file on a computer, not a dvd being FF/RW.

All these things seem like software/firmware issues which can be resolved. Every time I call up support, I basicly get told 'thats the way it is.' For $200, this is NOT the way it should be. So I have a couple questions:

1) can you help me?
2) can this timeout be disabled or extended?
3) can this FF/RW sputter be addressed?
4) is this DivX problem fixable?
5) can a stop/play 'buffer' be implimented? ie. if i hit stop, and play after that, some sort of compensation, like 5-10secs BEFORE the stop mark.
6) any firmware update for dvd-r145
7) can you actually help me?

Support reply, date 1/12/07

Sorry about the trouble your running into.

I am sorry about the pause going to stop after 5 mins. this is a feature most dvd players and vcr's have. This is preset in the unit and can not be adjusted. For the quality of the divx play back you need to consult divx. since most divix files are files people coonverted from dvd's or mpegs then shared on a file sharing network the quality can not be garantied. I would sugest buying or renting dvd's instead.

Please call us to troubleshoot this issue over the phone. Please call us at 1-800-SAMSUNG and select menu option 4,1,1

My reply to support on 1/12/07:

As a customer who just purchased a $4k HLS5679w, I should expect SOME help. I went out of my way to thoroughly explain my issues, and this reply, over 2 weeks later doesnt even touch the main issues. and this 5 min "feature" isnt on every dvd player, and should be a selectable option.

Now please answer all SEVEN of my questions. I'm really disappointed with this unit, and so far with this support. I want to be helped, not handed off. You can even get me in contact with an engineer to further explain these issues if your customer support checklist doesnt cover technically minded customers who want answers

Support pissed me off so much I'm reviewing the product where I can:
Amazon
CNET

Samsung HLS-5679w Calibrated

Prior to calibration of my HLS5679w, SD content via my Tivo/HDVR2 was like watching blots of paint w/ color banding/contouring from hell. My HD sources via DirecTV HR20-700 and Samsung DVD-R145 looked relatively ok, but not what you expect from an expensive set. Naturally, I was stuck in movie mode and things looked dull and dim.

As scheduled, David Abrams from Avical arrived at my home around 5pm, and 7 hours later my set was stunning. Don't expect night and day difference, it took me 2 weeks to get used to a calibrated picture after a lifetime of crap. Dave set my color gamut to normal for SMPTE C and wide for SMPTE HD. I use Dynamic for my good HD/upscaled input sources. The color looks pure, contrast/black levels are so lifelike its almost in 3d. I use Normal mode for crappier SD inputs with a little more brightness which makes the source look acceptable. Dave set up Warm2 for B&W viewing.

Prior to Dave coming, using the DVE disk, title 12, chapter 14, the ramp showed a LOT of contouring. Post calibration, this ramp is 98% smooth, with that other 2% soft enough to not hurt too much.

Watching Fifth Element post calibration was like watching completely different movie. The colors where vivid, the flesh tones where very lifelike. The improved black levels have definitely helped. I've had to begin watching my whole DVD collection again to capture the true elements on the movies. Football games look excellent. CSI, Lost, House, 3lbs, any network tv show in HD.... look great. DiscoveryHD is actually nice to watch, even though you aren't even paying attention to the content itself.

Dave was very professional and courteous. He answered every question very well. Being a geek myself, he was able to explain details of his process while he did them, which was extremely interesting. If I had 25k for equip, patience, and time, I'd be calibrating! Dave treated my set as if it was his own baby. He's welcome to treat it well any time in the future. Money well spent. Samsung should seriously consider service credits or something to offset the blatant misconfig of these sets to "look good on the floor."

Free HD DVR from Directv

well, not 100% free, you have to agree to a 2yr commitment, but hell, when you got directv, who wants to go back anyways? Anyways, this is how you get a free HD DVR.... go to the "email us" section on the directv website, type this: "Hello, I was wondering if I could get a free HD DVR? Thank you." Two hours after I sent this, I got a call. They then scheduled the install 2 days later. I now have a 5lnb kaku dish and HR20-700, along with my other dvr's. BTW, you CAN daisey chain 6x8 switches, despite what the installer tells you. Just remember, the whole chain HAS to consist of zinwells at this time. the LAST LINK towards the receiver can be another brand, like terk. bummer zinwell's arnt externally powered. My installer insisted on using 3 switches when i only needed 2 (4 ports usable off switch 1, 8 off switch 2) now I have 16 total ports when I only really needed 9. Oh well, their loss.

tivo community thread link where I found this jewel

DLP Color Banding

So it seems these new Samsung HLS5679w sets are plagued with color banding issues. Dont bother calling samsung, they will asked "whats color banding" and say "we've never heard of any problems with this set" Many say this can be solved by a good ISF calibration.... we'll see.

Samsung HL-S5679W arrives

Its finally here!

First off, I'm in no way a professional A/V guy, but I can read up. First thing I noticed was, the remote looks like a cheap hotel remote that stands up. very odd. Second, the presets it has are, well.... don't use them. Use the following settings that Eliab so graciously provided:

Digital NR - OFF
DNIe - Off
Mode - Movie
Contrast - 40
Brightness - 45
Sharpness - 0
Color - 45
Tint - G50/R50
Color Tone - Warm2

Please visit the avs forums for more details. Patience is definately needed while tweaking.

Denon AVR-3806

So far so good with this unit. At first it was a bit daunting, but once you get the basics done, sit through the COMPLETE auto-setup (all six locations) its a great starting point. It accurately found the distance to my speakers. I have an oddly shaped room, and it was able to tell the surround speakers are not even from left to right, and adjusted accordingly. I'm still messing with it, needs more bass :)

I got this from onecall.com as well. They do price match, but I was asked not to post links, find the lower prices yourself :) The onecall.com warranty is backed by Warranty Corp of America. If your reciever doesn't require service before the plan expires, contact them within 90 days of the plan's expiration and receive a 50 percent credit towards a future purchase!

Call 1.800.340.4770, ask for Chris, tell him Isaac Kishk referred you, so the price matching is easier.

Samsung HL-S5679W being delivered!

I get a call from onecall.com on my way to dinner last night. They had my contact info from a pre-reserve I had on the unit. Apparently since they never had the unit on their site as "reserve now" they didnt get any foot traffic as I was the only one. They will price match ABT Electronics, who is price matching TVAuthority.

Onecall.com got 15 units into their warehouse yesterday, they have 14 left. Mine is shipping out today. The onecall.com warranty is backed by Warranty Corp of America. If your tv doesn't require service before the plan expires, contact them within 90 days of the plan's expiration and receive a 50 percent credit towards a future purchase!

Call 1.800.340.4770, ask for Chris, tell him Isaac Kishk referred you, so the price matching is easier.

Samsung HL-S5679W 56" LED DLP

Our Hitachi CRT has horrible burn in. We called up our warranty to get it serviced. Turns out they dont want to fix it because it would cost more than the tv. They paid out the original cost. Yey. so we took this "extra" money and combined it with the money we saved up for a new tv knowing this tv was crapping out... so we're upgrading Samsung HLS5679W! It was suppose to be out 5/22/06, so we preordered on 5/2/06. But then they pushed it back to "sometime in July", but then its "sometime in September" Finally, a press release. This tv better friggin rock, and it better drop in price for this wait damnit.

Twentieth Century Fox signs Internet Movie Deal

Ever wanted to watch a movie on your ipod? maybe some seinfeld on your palm/CE device? stream a movie to your laptop in a n airplane? here ya go!

LOS ANGELES — Movielink, a joint venture of five Hollywood studios to offer movies over the Internet, has signed a deal with Twentieth Century Fox, allowing it to offer movies from all major studios for the first time.

The deal, announced Monday, comes at a time when studios and TV networks are looking at alternative ways to distribute programs, including video on demand and portable devices, such as Apple's iPod.

While Fox has offered some of its content online at sites such as CinemaNow.com, it waited until more homes had high speed Internet access and could view downloaded movies on large screen TVs before signing a deal with Movielink.

"I think you're going to see us be a lot more aggressive in the next few months," said Peter Levinsohn, president of Worldwide Pay Television and Digital Media at Fox, a subsidiary of New York-based News Corp. "This marketplace is really going to start to grow."

Movielink and similar legitimate movie download services exist, in part, to offer an alternative to illegal piracy. But Movielink has yet to become popular, in part because films can only be viewed on a computer or watched on a TV screen using a cable.

But over the next few months, consumer electronics devices, such as the recently released XBox 360 game console, will allow users to more easily view material stored on a hard drive on a large TV screen.

Studios also are expected to experiment with other business models, including allowing viewers to purchase movies online and burn copies to DVDs.

"The end of 2005 and into 2006 is really a watershed year," said Jim Ramo, chief executive at Movielink. "I think you're beginning to see a snowball effect."

Starting Monday, Fox will make movies such as "Robots" available and will add more movies over the next few months.

But viewers won't see any of George Lucas's "Star Wars" films, which Fox distributes in theaters and home video. Fox does not own the Internet distribution rights to the films.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,176242,00.html