Samsung HL-S4666W 46-Inch DLP HDTV
Excellent value
I purchased this unit based upon the following criteria:    1. Strong recommendation from a videophile / movie buff friend who owns a prior-year 50\\" version of this set.  Same 720p resolution.  This model has a superior 5-color 14K RPM color wheel and is classified as a \\"6th generation\\" unit.    2. Image continuity: little or no pixelation compared to LCD, plasma, or projection LCD sets.  While initially I thought the image looked \\"fuzzy\\" compared to these technologies, I soon realized that it was far less \\"fuzzy\\" than it was consistent.  \\"Sharp\\" is a relative term and too sharp is not a pleasurable viewing experience.  After all, if maximum sharpness were desirable, why not set it so (to \\"100\\") by default in the video settings?    3. Motion: this unit deals with fast motion (such as that in action films and sports) better than other technologies.    4. American technology: the DLP engine is a product of an American firm, Texas Instruments.  While the maker, Samsung, is Korean, at least some small element of the set is American intellectual property.    5. Specific size: wanted to fit a 45\\" width and get the most screen in that space.  This unit allows just about an inch on either side.    6. A high performance:price ratio.  DLP sets in general deliver a lot of TV for less money than other technologies.    7. Ease and cost of repair.  Here's a contrarian view on the much misunderstood \\"you have to replace the lamp periodically\\" issue.  I *like* the fact that the lamp is user-serviceable and not prohibitively expensive.  Say it's $300 in 3 years when I need to replace it.  Then it cost me $100 / year to operate the set, in addition to electricity and lost productivity.  ;-)  But I wager this is MUCH less expensive than either 1, replacing your complete plasma-based set when it has faded in intensity over time (even if in 10 years) or 2, having someone come out to your house to replace the burned-out backlight in your LCD set.    7. Technology that is standardized andwon't evaporate in a couple years.  I love technology, but don't live on the bleeding edge.  I generally stand about 2 steps back from the edge and buy when I'm confident a technology will be around long enough to enjoy it.  Though this unit is \\"only\\" a 720p unit, it effectively downscales 1080i to the 720p resolution - and looks great doing it.  To appreciate 1080, you really need a *large* TV, probably larger than this 46\\" screen.    Impressions of the video quality:    Initially, my wife and I were surprisingly underwhelmed with the image.  Knowing how hard it was to convince her initially to get this TV, I bit my tongue.  But as I investigated, I soon found why the image was not so great:    1. Using a component hookup from the DVD player, I had the player set to 480i (rather than progressive output).  Changing it to progressive looked a lot nicer.    2. I had to play with the video settings a bit to get the best picture for watching a movie.  The standard \\"Dynamic\\" out of the box setting is too dark and contrast-y for pleasurable movie viewing.  Changing it to \\"Movie\\" or even \\"Standard\\" looked much better.  Remember - too much contrast is not a good thing when watching TV.  Unlike computer monitors, wherein you want to see each pixel as sharply as possible, pleasurable TV viewing is about consistency and flow, scene to scene.    3. The HDMI output from my DVD player produced a noticeably grainy image on the Samsung.  It actually looked worse than the component inputs.  This was, I found, for the same reasons as above.  I had to doctor the image a little to get it to be less sharp.  Remember, when you are viewing 480p upscaled to 720p, there will be some conversion issues.  You want to minimize these.    4. In general, I still find that allowing the set to take the component video and upscale it internally looks a bit more natural than going full-digital from the DVD player through the HDMI.  It's close, but noticeable.  Still, I really like the idea of a totaldigital link all the way through, so I may just keep tweaking.  And I need to add that if you don't have external audio amplification, then really, one cable does it all for you: DVD to TV.  However, make sure you turn \\"Digital Out\\" on in the audio setup portion of the menus.  Get there by choosing \\"custom\\".  I wondered for quite some time why I wasn't getting audio through the HDMI.    5. TV tuning and HD programming: part of why we were so underwhelmed with the image initially was because we were watching regular analog cable TV, with all its inherent video faults.  On a digital 46\\" set, these will only be magnified.  The Samsung has an engine which is supposed to process and refine these images - which it does - but nothing compares to HD.  On the 3rd night we had the unit, I made a makeshift antenna and connected it to the AIR antenna jack.  What I found frankly mesmerized me.  The HD images on a couple of the local stations, NBC and FOX, were astoundingly good.  Clearly, this TV was made for HD.  Until you view a program in at least 720p (the native resolution of this set) and widescreen (16:9 ratio), you will not appreciate this TV properly.  Last night I watched about 10 minutes of an NFL game on the NBC affiliate and though I couldn't tell you the names of the teams, I watched nonetheless.  That's the real lure (and danger) of HD programming: it is so spectacular, you forget what you're watching!  ;-)    I can't say whether we'll opt for digital cable, as I'm not convinced the added expense is going to deliver enough content.  I'm looking at DirectTV HD packages as well.    Additional features and comments:    1. The USB \\"Wiselink\\" input is nice.  I used it to look at some JPEG images the other night.  But other than during a party or other gathering at the house, I doubt I'll use this feature much.  Let's face it, this is a TV and it's for watching moving images.  I haven't used the mp3 playing abilities either, mostly for the same reason.  If they could have eliminated this feature and saved me $50, I'd have been plenty happy.    2. The menus are pretty snazzy and effective.  The transparent feaure, wherein you can see the underlying image while changing image attributes is nice.  So is the DNIe split-screen processed / virgin feature.    3. The remote is decent, though it could use backlighting of the buttons.  Just noticed last night that its lower surface is curved in such a way as to sit flat on the armrest of a large sofa.    4. The \\"game mode\\" option (for attaching your X-box, et al.) sets the picture to a predetermined optimum group of settings.  It's basically a hotkey to modify several settings you could do manually.  It's a nice feature if you play video games.    5. Computer video input.  Haven't tried this yet.  Not sure what I'd use it for, save for possibly playing mpeg4 / DivX encoded content that I can't play elsewhere than the computer.    All in all, this is a fabulous set for the price.