Samsung LNR238W? (23" LCD HDTV)

[Veedems Veteran]

Yeah, that's the one. LA, LE, all the same lol. It's basically the UK edition of the LNR. Should be identical in most every way.

[Martog]

I have the 26" model of the TV (great TV btw) and I bought an HDMI to DVI cable to use DVI on my HTPC's DVI port and it just sucks, can't get it looking good at all. I hooked up a VGA cable and it looks GREAT. bangbang is right saying VGA is the best way, and I agree as I have the first hand experience with the line of TV's since mine is just a larger model.

[MadFerIt]

I have the 26" model of the TV (great TV btw) and I bought an HDMI to DVI cable to use DVI on my HTPC's DVI port and it just sucks, can't get it looking good at all. I hooked up a VGA cable and it looks GREAT. bangbang is right saying VGA is the best way, and I agree as I have the first hand experience with the line of TV's since mine is just a larger model.

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Great to know because.. Lmao I actually bought the 26" model myself. Bangbang already mentioned how bad the DVI to HDMI cable looks so I'm definetly thinking VGA would be a better choice.

May I ask? What brand of VGA cable did you use? A generic or something more higher quality? I'm having trouble finding both Monster's VGA cables and Belkin.. I really don't want to use a generic brand, especially on a 26" LCD TV.

[MadFerIt]

Also.. Since this post is more active then the one I made for the 26" I'm wondering.. Does anyone else have issues on LCD's with colour banding? I mean truthfully I havn't tweaked the picture settings (and it has a My Colour Control where you can tweak the colours to an amazing degree) so there's probally a way to make it even less noticeable.

I only really notice it so far on STD tv (which looks ugly as hell on this tv btw lol. Not a big surprise considering the quality can't even reach 480i levels on television). Digital channels though do look better, though it's still 480i so it's not a great improvement. I also notice some colour banding in xbox games, but it's dependent on the game (Halo 2 for example very rarely has any and is a very colourful game).

I also realize the xbox is a four year old console, and the video card powering it is of the Geforce 3 family. Thus the IQ it has isn't on the same level as you're PC video card or what the Xbox360 will be able to produce. And we are talking about Component cables which are supposed to be of lesser quality then HDMI/VGA right?

On that note.. Can anyone recommend some kind of "Setup DVD" or something good for tweaking the colours and picture quality on your LCD tv?? I'm a perfectionist so I love getting the best quality possible out of my TV, however I don't have the expertise to tweak simply by looking at my TV, I need assistance ^_^.

And I know I'm bitching a bit about this TV, but truthfully so far it is amazing, even though lesser resolution doesn't look too great on it (because it's nowhere close to the native resolution of the tv) the clarity and colours are pheonominal. And there is no noticeable ghosting or issues with fast moving action. I'm very happy so far, but I won't be able to see what it truly is capable until xbox360 gets here.

[Veedems Veteran]

Oh man, there's a calibration disc that most people recommend but I can't remember the name. I think it begins with an A. Anyone have a clue of what I'm talking about?

edit: I think it's the Avia Disc.

[Martog]

Brand of VGA cable? I can't honeslty tell you, just probably one that came with something or another. It works fine and the PC looks great on the monitor. So even if is some generic cable, it still looks top notch to me, and I am not going to get another brand cause mine works great. I just have an HDMI to DVI cable now I have no idea what to do with, lmao, oh well, maybe i'll chuck it up on ebay.

[stryderjzw]

Hi everyone! I'm new here.

Best Buy Canada just has the Samsung LNR238W on sale for $999 Canadian this week. I was looking into getting a new TV for Xbox360 and DVD viewing for my room.

Does anyone think this is a good price? I have heard prices are dropping on TVs... I can wait until new year, but does anyone think it'll be cheaper than this in the new year? What's the overall trend?

Just a link:

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...10061838&catid=

Also, I'm not sure about Best Buy, but if they offer me some 3 year warrenty, should I take it?

Another thing, please post some pros and cons of this model (or the 26 inch one)... I'd really appreciate hearing some more analysis on this model.

Thanks a bunch.

[Veedems Veteran]

$999 canadian is an awesome deal considering it usually retails for $999 US. As for the service plan, I would get it, especially since they just got a lot cheaper.

[MadFerIt]

Hi everyone!  I'm new here.

Best Buy Canada just has the Samsung LNR238W on sale for $999 Canadian this week.  I was looking into getting a new TV for Xbox360 and DVD viewing for my room. 

Does anyone think this is a good price?  I have heard prices are dropping on TVs...  I can wait until new year, but does anyone think it'll be cheaper than this in the new year?  What's the overall trend?

Just a link:

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...10061838&catid=

Also, I'm not sure about Best Buy, but if they offer me some 3 year warrenty, should I take it?

Another thing, please post some pros and cons of this model  (or the 26 inch one)...  I'd really appreciate hearing some more analysis on this model.

Thanks a bunch.

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That's not the 238W. It's the 237. I have no idea what the differences between the 7 series and the 8 series are but it's obviously a lesser model.

So far the lowest price for the 238W I've found is approx. $1100 from East Hamilton Radio. They also sell the 26" (which is what I bought from them) for around $1400.

[stryderjzw]

That's not the 238W.  It's the 237.  I have no idea what the differences between the 7 series and the 8 series are but it's obviously a lesser model. 

Yikes, you're right. Is there any major differences between 237 and 238W? I checked samsung's site and can't really tell any differences....

[MadFerIt]

Yikes, you're right.? Is there any major differences between 237 and 238W?? I checked samsung's site and can't really tell any differences....

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Lol I have no idea! But honestly if you're close enough to East Hamilton Radio i'd just go for the 238W. It'll cost you $100 more but still.. Protects you incase there's some major difference between the two (chances are there isn't.. It's probally just an older revision of the same bloody tv lol).

Edit: I found some differences, the most being in the types of connections available:

237W:

HDMI Interface 1

Component 2(Y/Pb/Pr) in 2(480i/480p/720p/1080i)

S-Video in 1

Composite Video Inputs 2

PC input D-Sub15 pin

PC Audio in 1

238W:

Antenna in 1

HDMI in 1

Component (Y/Pb/Pr) in 2(480i/480p/720p/1080i)

S-Video in 1

A/V (RCA) in 1

PC input D-sub15 pin (VGA-WXGA)

PC Audio in Yes

Headphone out Yes

Anynet RS232 1

Seems a bit odd though.. This would mean the 237W has no tuner in it lol. Makes it a bit hard to watch tv. It also seems there's a model even above the 8W series, seems there's a 9D.. Biggest difference is 8ms timing and an ATSC tuner (HDTV tuner, though that's useless for me.. Way cable works here requires a box since the hdtv "channels" are completly digital and seperate from the analog).

Edited November 20, 2005 by MadFerIt2006

[Veedems Veteran]

I believe the 27 lacks a tuner, as stated above. You only need a tuner if you're using an off air antenna anyway.

[MadFerIt]

I believe the 27 lacks a tuner, as stated above. You only need a tuner if you're using an off air antenna anyway.

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I have a question, something that might prove how much a newbie I really am lol.

I use digital cable, now the signal is pretty poor but I connect it using Coxial (SP?) to the TV. It also has composite connectors though, would that make it better quality? (it doesn't include the cables but when it comes to composite cheap and expensive cable doesn't matter too much).

Obviously the signal is coxial anyway, but maybe I'm losing out in some of the "digital box" benefits by connecting it to my tv via coxial. Maybe digital channels would look better while analog will not via composite?

I really need to switch to satellite lol, because honestly cable here is a joke.. The quality is so bloody awful not to mention if you want to get HDTV you need to buy an extremely overpriced $799 HDTV DVR (120gig drive.. I really don't think that is worth $799).

It's humourous, here in Canada we managed to get cable internet faster at much higher speeds/better prices (we still do actually).. Yet for HDTV we are getting horrid prices and poor hardware.

[stryderjzw]

Thanks for helping out! Hope I'm not "hijacking" the thread...

Today I went to Best Buy and was going to buy the LNR237, but my first time buying a new TV is really hard.

There's all these brands that I haven't heard of and their image quality looks good. It's the same price, but has bigger screens.

Such as:

(Astar) http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...498&catid=23243

(Mag) http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...080&catid=23243

I read the LNR237 is pretty good, but what should I do in store to not be persuaded about these other ones... Or should I just run in and out with the Samsung one? lol

Thanks a lot!

[MadFerIt]

Thanks for helping out!  Hope I'm not "hijacking" the thread...

Today I went to Best Buy and was going to buy the LNR237, but my first time buying a new TV is really hard.

There's all these brands that I haven't heard of and their image quality looks good.  It's the same price, but has bigger screens.

Such as:

(Astar) http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...498&catid=23243

(Mag) http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.a...080&catid=23243

I read the LNR237 is pretty good, but what should I do in store to not be persuaded about these other ones...  Or should I just run in and out with the Samsung one?  lol

Thanks a lot!

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Well the most noticeable "lack" in the other two is the contrast ratio. Both aren't quite up to par with the Samsung tv. Now I think 3000:1 is an over-exaggeration for the Samsung, but it's definetly 1000+.

And neither sounds like a high-quality brandname to be honest.. I mean when it comes to televisions brand-name usually does mean a lot.

[stryderjzw]

Another quick question... :}

I heard about Samsung DNIe thing, is that good or bad? any reviews on that?

[MadFerIt]

Another quick question... :} 

I heard about Samsung DNIe thing, is that good or bad?  any reviews on that?

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It's supposed to improve image quality. You can't turn it off/on though.

There's a DNIE demo you can turn off/on (1/2 the screen is dnie and the other isn't).. Things look more a bit more washed out/too bright (in a bad way) with dnie off.

Honestly I can't tell you to what degree the difference is, I havn't had a chance to use anything on this TV that truly uses it's power (meaning something HD lol).

SDTV looks like crap, and Xbox is at 480p for most games so it doesn't look too great (Amped 2 is at 720p, granted internally it's much lower res, but it does look much better then 480p). I'll be getting an xbox360 on Tuesday (hopefully) and I'll post the results here.

[Veedems Veteran]

The DNIe is what gives you the 3000:1 contrast. The hardware itself is only capable of 1000:1.

As for Mag and Astar, they are nothing but cheap crap sets. You get what you pay for.

[Veedems Veteran]

I have a question, something that might prove how much a newbie I really am lol.

I use digital cable, now the signal is pretty poor but I connect it using Coxial (SP?) to the TV.  It also has composite connectors though, would that make it better quality? (it doesn't include the cables but when it comes to composite cheap and expensive cable doesn't matter too much).

Obviously the signal is coxial anyway, but maybe I'm losing out in some of the "digital box" benefits by connecting it to my tv via coxial.  Maybe digital channels would look better while analog will not via composite? 

I really need to switch to satellite lol, because honestly cable here is a joke.. The quality is so bloody awful not to mention if you want to get HDTV you need to buy an extremely overpriced $799 HDTV DVR (120gig drive.. I really don't think that is worth $799). 

It's humourous, here in Canada we managed to get cable internet faster at much higher speeds/better prices (we still do actually).. Yet for HDTV we are getting horrid prices and poor hardware.

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Wow you have to pay for your cable boxes? Here in the US, we simply rent the boxes from our cable provider at a cost of about $4 a month. Anyway, it would look better on composite.

[MadFerIt]

Wow you have to pay for your cable boxes? Here in the US, we simply rent the boxes from our cable provider at a cost of about $4 a month. Anyway, it would look better on composite.

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Actually we don't "have" to buy the cable box, but typically the one that costs approx "4-10 dollars" is a huge pile of crap.

The HDTV one, with DVR is $25/month. I don't know about you but I'm not paying that much every bloody month for a box, it doesn't even include the HD channels! (I don't know about the U.S., but you have to pay for HDTV channels here! I mean the HD versions of the channels you already get).

Oh and if you decide to rent the box, you have to be with them for a minimum of 12 months.. So thats $300/year for the box alone.

[stryderjzw]

Woohoo! :cool: I got the LNR237 for $899 canadian from Best Buy... Now that I have my tv... what should I do? This is my first tv.... I'm not sure if there's calibration stuff I have to do....

[1WayJonny]

Oh ok. Well actually monster is the official thirdparty cable provider this time around, and you can already order off the net the cables (they say nov.22nd release).

And you might be right about the DVI thing.. But the official site says it has HDMI, Component, Composite, S-video, DVI..

Glad to know it's worth the money though.

DVI is HDMI with enhacnments (if thats what you want to call it) its backwards compatible as long as you get the monster cable or other brands...

Ohhh it says it has PC Input D-sub 15 pin (VGA~WXGA)

That would be a normal VGA correct?

What would be better, DVI > HDMI convertor or using Analog VGA?

*EDIT* lol posted this at the same time as you. So I'm guessing that means you think VGA would work better. Alrighty :). Have any idea how good the quality is?

For the love of god don ever use the VGA or DVI/HDMI *now coughing up blood*

[MadFerIt]

DVI is HDMI with enhacnments (if thats what you want to call it) its backwards compatible as long as you get the monster cable or other brands...

For the love of god don ever use the VGA or DVI/HDMI *now coughing up blood*

Lol that was a while ago, like I said in that PM I'm using the VGA for Xbox360 :p. Looks phenominal.