Caution: Known HDMI issue

Caution: Known HDMI issue, July 23, 2008
By J. R. Wechezak "Joe" (Allentown, PA) - See all my reviews


I purchased the Samsung LN40A550 40" 1080p LCD HDTV on July 14, 2008. It's my 4th big screen HDTV purchase but my first 1080p box. Agree with other reviews in that sony xbr9 has an absolute beautiful picture at a very good price. There are many features I love about this TV, but here's the problem....

I purchased a Samsung 1080P8 upconverting DVD player with an HDMI (version 1.3) cable. When i watch a DVD LCD HDTV, i get a 'searching for signal' message that appears on the screen for about 5 seconds. This happens once every minute or two! I went into full troubleshooting mode by replacing the cable, the DVD player, and everything else i could think of. I tried the DVD player and HDMI cable with my other HDTV sets and sony xbr9 worked great. After calling Samsung technical support and getting to their level 2 support in New Jersey, they acknowledged there is a problem with the HDMI connection with the TV but they do not have a firmware fix for sony xbr9 yet. They suggested i wait for the firmware LCD HDTV fix (release date unknown), or return the TV and try another one. I opted to exchange the TV for the same model. I received sony xbr9 today and (unfortunately) sony xbr9 has the same problem. I will now return the TV to Amazon, get a refund, and purchase a different model.

Bottom line, if you don't use or need the HDMI connection, you should be fine with this set. However, if you plan to use HDMI I'd look to a different model until this is fixed.

Update on July 28 - After further troubleshooting, the HDMI problem is with the combination of using a Samsung LN40A550 40" 1080p LCD HDTV with the Samsung 1080P8 upconverting DVD player. Together, they do not work. Separately, LCD HDTV the upconverting DVD player works perfectly with other TVs, and the Samsung LN40A550 works fine with another upconverting DVD. I purchased the same brand so i would eliminate this exact problem! Who would think that Samsung has not tested their own product compatibility before they go out the door? Exremely poor quality LCD HDTV control - my guess is they have a problem with their 'anynet' software feature, but sony xbr9 still blanks-out with 'anynet' turned off. Purchase the Sony upconverting DVD player with this TV and you'll be OK. However, now I personally don't trust Samsung.