Introduction
Until recently those after a bigscreen TV had to choose between a 42-incher and a monster sized 50-inch telly, but the recent advent of 48-inchers like the UE48H6700 bring yet another option for the living room.
With Samsung's Micro Dimming and some quad core processing inside, the UE48H6700 is top of the brand's Series 6, and it's all about achieving a high performance for a lower price than its Series 7 screens. The smart stuff, including apps and voice control, is present, too.
Selling for around £850 in the UK, the UE48H6700 is a great looking TV, with a rectangular aluminium desktop stand complete with a leaning tower column lending an industrial, though classy, look. The TV itself has a sleek-looking 9mm surround on three sides of the screen, which does create just enough of a floating effect for the money.
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On the underside of the TV is a transparent plastic rim, which nicely catches the light, though there's not much motion to get excited about; that desktop stand can't swivel even a few degrees. Does it look as good as Samsung's curved TVs? No, but it's pretty close and a fraction of the cost.
Features
There is no curve here. Instead, you get a Full HD Edge LED-backlit LCD screen with Micro Dimming. Inside is a Freeview HD tuner and a Freesat HD tuner, an active 3D system, and, perhaps most importantly of all considering this set's comprehensive suite of Smart Hub apps, a quad core processor. The system also incorporates some voice interaction, though not gesture; there's no pop-up camera on the UE48H6700.
Apps
Apps including Amazon Instant, Netflix and YouTube make up Smart Hub's streaming video apps, with an exhaustive line-up terrestrial UK TV apps including all of the big guns; BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4OD and Demand Five. There are countless others to download from the platform's app store, including BBC Sport, STV Player, Vimeo, PictureBox, Eurosport, USA Today, Tune In radio, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, Skype, AccuWeather and Wuaki.tv.
Ins and outs
In the past few years, Samsung TVs have become adept at offering all kinds of ins and outs as standard, and this example is no different. On the rear of the TV's right hand side, as seen from the viewing position, is both an indented side panel and a rear facing plate of ins and outs. The latter houses a couple of HDMI slots above a headphones jack, a wired Ethernet LAN slot and a full RGB Scart.
Next-door is a set of component video inputs (the green one of which also doubles as a composite video input), some left/right stereo phonos, and an optical digital audio output. Meanwhile, the side panel includes two more HDMI inputs, three USB sockets, an RF feed for the Freeview HD tuner alongside the two LNBs needed to fuel the Freesat HD tuner.
Hardware
Unusually for a mid-range big-screen TV like this, there is a choice of two remote controls. The first one is the normal, standard offering that will be familiar to all of us, although it is perhaps a tad smaller than the hard button remote normally supplied (it looks more like the kind of remote control you might find with a Blu-ray player).
Samsung makes up for that by providing a rounded, palm-sized remote, a slinky affair that includes standout, braille-like buttons as well as a built-in touchpad and microphone for powering the sets innovative (though ultimately disappointing) voice interaction system.
However, users of this TV will find that new remote just as handy for operating the volume and changing channels, and perhaps most useful of all for its iconic Smart Hub cube button in the centre that launches Samsung's excellent app platform.
Also available
So what's the difference between the cheaper (about £700) UE48H6400 and the UE48H6700? The answer is that the UE48H6700 adds Micro Dimming and an upgraded Clear Motion Rate 600 system, both within the superior 3D HyperReal Engine picture processing suite. It's accompanied by the 40-inch UE40H6700 and 55-inch UE55H6700. The pared-down UE48H6400, meanwhile, is available as the 32-inch UE32H6400, 40-inch UE40H6400, 55-inch UE55H6400, 65-inch UE65H6400 and whopping 75-inch UE75H6400.
Picture quality
The UE48H6700 exists almost solely to have a better image than the UE48H6400, and it achieves that at a canter.
The key additions are Micro Dimming and a better Clear Motion Rate; the former to improve contrast and black levels, and the latter designed to reduce the motion blur (something that remains endemic to all LED-backlit LCD panels).
The UE48H6700 boasts excellent contrast. A mixed brightness scene from Gravity on Blu-ray that shows searing light and the inky black of space in the same frame instantly impresses, while star-fields are displayed with skill throughout the movie. There is a black level enhancer hidden in the advanced setting, though it's barely noticeable unless you're watching in total blackout conditions. It doesn't particularly improve on either black levels nor shadow detail.
As usual on Samsung TVs, the colour presets are a little wayward, with the movie mode being too warm and the standard too cool, but there are plenty of settings to play with to get the best picture.
During the review I was on the lookout for blotchy areas of light along the edges of the screen – indicative of an average LED-backlit LCD panel – but there was barely a trace visible even in a blackout. The viewing angle is perhaps a little narrower than on the UE48H6400, though there's hardly a nose-dive in contrast and colour until the TV is being watched from a pointlessly tight angle.
If the Micro Dimming appears to work really well, so does the anti-blur Clear Motion Rate 600 system. Ignore the maths involved; this is a 100Hz-rated LCD panel, and it behaves like one. It's mostly smooth, though the odd blur does creep in during quick camera pans.
The feature it sits behind is called Motion Plus, which is worth navigating to. The clear setting is terrible, with judder during Blu-ray discs unwatchable, but push it up to the standard setting (the labels make no sense!) and the action is fluid and blur-free. The smooth setting, the most powerful, is a tad hyper-real with occasional fizzing around moving objects, too.
However, while watching some hockey from the Commonwealth Games via the BBC iPlayer, I did notice the panel's architecture as a motion-less object behind the fluid image. Especially noticeable during quick camera pans across the pitch, this "chicken wire" affect is hardly a rare occurrence – I've seen it on top-end Sony TVs and virtually every other brand of LED TV going – but it does remind me that the passing of plasma has taken with it an overall far superior picture.
That said, the UE48H6700, when on top form, offers terrific images. Still images enjoy a pristine, highly detailed treatment and, overall, Samsung's 3D HyperReal Engine picture engine works a treat, upscaling SD channels from the Freeview tuner to HD adeptly, while issuing good-looking and exceptionally well saturated colours throughout a mix of both Blu-ray and far lesser quality footage.
A 3D run-through of Gravity proves the UE48H6700's core quality, with the lethal orbiting debris crashing into the space shuttle creating depth-filled sequences. Even such dramatic speed and destruction caused the UE48H6700 few problems, with virtually no crosstalk visible and only a modicum of motion blur. I'm not saying it was totally comfortable to watch, nothing is while wearing flicker-full 3D specs, but it doesn't get much more detailed, more contrasted, more colourful or more impressive (for the money) than on the UE48H6700.
Usability, sound and value
Usability
Samsung's Smart Hub platform gets few complaints from me. A five-page carousel covering live TV, apps, games, films and TV, and multimedia, it is well designed and very easy to use. However, this TV's quad core processor doesn't appear to add much speed to navigating, though loading times for apps are thankfully short, too.
There's a basic PVR feature whereby TV programmes can be recorded to a HDD attached to the UE48H6700 via USB, though it's only possible to record the channel you're watching; pausing live TV is, however, a feature worth knowing about.
There are some chinks in the armour though. The remote controls are both a tad slow to convey their commands to the TV, while the voice interaction system necessitates learning a whole new way of talking to get the UE48H6700 to do anything.
Samsung's S-Recommendation system for promoting various types of TV and on-demand content according to what you watch is an interesting attempt, but the "trending" sections and the strange provision of a information on what age groups are watching which TV programmes are baffling. Firstly, how does Samsung know the ages of other people watching Neighbours? Secondly, who cares?
The second screen app from Samsung called SmartView 2.0 is a huge disappointment. It's available for both Android and Apple devices, though when I tried to use it from an iPad Mini it completely failed to connect to the UE48H6700, despite recognising it on the same Wi-Fi network. The desktop version is available to download to PC only, which allows not only streaming from a PC, but also streaming to a PC of TV programmes recorded by the UE48H6700 to a USB stick.
With three USB slots and the ability to stream files to and fro across a home network, the UE48H6700 has to be considered one of the most adept TVs around with digital media files. Video codec support includes MKV, AVI, MOV, MP4 and AVC HD video files while music stretches to the lossless likes of OGG, FLAC, WAV, AIFF and APE files in addition to the regular MP3 and WMA support. However, the software that supports music is relatively uninspiring, and that goes double for the TVs speakers; if you want to use the UE48H6700 music machine, you definitely need to output its audio to a separate sound system.
Sound
While the UE48H6700 is an upgrade over the UE48H6400 in terms of images, it's stuck with the same mediocre sound system as its cheaper TVs. I'm talking a complete lack, even a removal, of bass from music, though the resulting bias towards dialogue will suit those mainly watching news, drama and documentaries.
That's not a bad thing, and Clear Voice helps amplify dialogue nicely, but movies and concerts lose a lot of the impact created by the great images. The UE48H6700 is all about upgrading the picture quality to watch Blu-ray, so that lack of any audio power is a great shame.
I opted for the music preset in the onscreen menus, which is the best compromise between clarity and fullness, but the optical digital audio output is all you really need to know about.
Value
Is a superior image worth paying an extra £200 for? I would argue that it absolutely is, especially considering the nagging flaws that continue to dog mid-range LED TVs.
The UE48H6700 has cured the problem with motion blur and created enough contrast to make AV fans pine for plasma that little bit less, though for anyone just after a big screen TV for basic TV duties in a living room, the step-down UE48H6400 contains almost exactly the same day-to-day features, such as Smart Hub and even voice interaction. Whether the UE48H6700 is worth the money depends on how much you prioritise picture quality, though arguably some of that extra fee should have gone in to providing some decent speakers.
Verdict
Is the UE48H6700 enough of a step-up package? A slight upgrade on the UE48H6400, the 48-inch UE48H6700 is all about a boosted picture quality, and it meets that brief. But is that enough?
We liked
Micro Dimming works wonders, and helps create contrast-heavy and beautifully coloured 2D and 3D images that are packed with detail. Motion Plus helps bring some fluidity, while all kinds of footage are nicely upscaled to fit the enormous screen. Smart Hub is as impressive as ever, and digital file playback is exhaustive. The provision of both Freeview HD and Freesat HD tuners is welcome, too.
We disliked
It might have a big role to play in helping to create the awesome images, but in terms of usability that quad core processor proves a little disappointing. It's hardly a slog to navigate the Smart Hub pages and the TV Guide pages, but it's no faster than on Samsung's dual core processor-laden TVs. The standard remote control is too small, and at times slightly unresponsive, while the lack of a swivel stand might concern some. Both the speakers and the Smart View 2.0 app proved very poor, once again, while Samsung's latest attempt at voice interaction also fails to impress.
Final verdict
The 2D and 3D high def images impress on the 48-inch UE48H6700. It's a slight upgrade on the UE48H6400 and the bigger price is all about the picture.
The provision of both Freeview HD and Freesat HD tuners is good value, and so is the new concept for a remote control, though the standard remote provided is both small and, at times, unreliable. Confusingly, the massive-sounding quad core processor inside doesn't appear to speed-up navigation of the nevertheless excellent user interface.
The speakers are poor and sadly subtract from the fireworks going off on this versatile, sparkling LED-backlit panel. The overall good value performance is hugely helped by the best smart TV platform in the business, Smart Hub, which includes every catch-up TV app for terrestrial UK broadcasters as well as Amazon Instant and Netflix. A good value step-up set that will appeal most of all to those after some exacting picture quality, such as film fans, but you'll need a separate sound system.
Also consider
Other 48-inchers on the market include Samsung's step-down UE48H6400, though this telly will also do battle with the Sony KDL-50W829, a sensational high-definition picture performer with a highly competitive price tag.
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