Samsung LE46C750

After two months of careful investigation, it seems that the Samsung C750 isn't affected by the panel switching which has hit a lot of the manufacturer's 2010/11 range.  We were still careful to check by going through the hidden menu, which confirmed that our TV had a Samsung 46A2UF0C panel.  Decoded, that tells us we have the following spec: 46: 46''; A: Samsung; 2: 200 Hz; U: Ultra Clear; F: Full HD 1920 x 1080 pixels); 0: first generation panel and C: CCFL backlighting.

Samsung's C750 family has been one of the most hotly-anticipated TV ranges recently.  It's compatible with 3D and has a whole range of features and hardware options for a very reasonable price.  In particular, it has a Motion Plus 200 Hz filter and 2D-to-3D conversion.  It's compatible with DLNA networks, Internet@TV and can access HD video straight from an external storage peripheral.

Build Quality and Design

The first thing we noticed when we unpacked it was that, unlike its mid-range TVs, Samsung has chosen a glossy finish for its Full HD panel, which is susceptible to picking up reflections.  On the other hand, it's the same size as all the other models.  The backlighting is handled by fluorescent tubes, which it why it measures 8 cm from front to back.

Samsung hasn't scrimped on the inputs and outputs and the C750 can easily compete with its LED-backlit cousins: it gets four HDMI 1.4 ports, two SCARTs, and one each of VGA, component and composite video.

There's an Ethernet port to access files stored on a DLNA-compatible home network, and you can also use two USB ports to connect external peripherals.  During our tests, the media player could handle drives formatted using both NTFS and FAT32, opening up the possibility of playing files larger than 4 GB, something that most of the C750's competitors can't do.  Most of our HD AVC video (x264) encapsulated as MKV files worked without a problem, but M2TS and MTS aren't supported.  Subtitles are very well handled as long as they're separate from the video file.  If you put them in the container file, though, you won't be able to get them on screen.



After trying Samsung's first two 3D TVs, the C7000 and C8000, we were used to a very attractive remote control.  For the C750, though, the manufacturer has gone for a more standard design.  It still has backlit buttons, which makes it easier to use with the lights turned off.

The onscreen menus and animated icons look modern, but the system still adopts Samsung's traditional logic. They could occasionally do with being more responsive, but they're generally pretty satisfactory.

Connecting a computer via the HDMI port went without a hitch, with no cropping or distortion of the desktop.  On the other hand, we measured an average input lag of 74 ms, which will put off anybody who wants to game over a network.  For everybody else, there's no need to worry.


Update (06/10/2010): To correct this problem, which mainly affects gamers, one of our readers pointed out an unusual workaround.  All you need to do is add 'PC' or 'DVI/PC' to the name of the video source you're using.  For instance, if you're using a HDMI port, rename the video source from 'HDMI1/DVI: ---' to 'HDMI1/DVI: PC'.  As if by magic, the input lag falls to an average of 46 ms, the equivalent of just 2.5 frames, which is perfectly acceptable for gaming.

3D Glasses

Pair of Samsung 3D Glasses (Adult)	Pair of Samsung 3D Glasses (Child)
Find the best price	Find the best price

To enjoy seeing in 3D, every viewer needs their own pair of glasses compatible with this TV, and, unfortunately, they're not included in the purchase price of the C750.  Still, it's only fair to point out that Samsung produces versions for adults and children with rechargeable batteries for under £75

2D-to-3D Conversion

There aren't an awful lot of sources of 3D content right now, so in the meantime, some manufacturers, including Samsung, have been working on automatic 2D-to-3D conversion systems that allow you enjoy ordinary TV, DVDs and standard Blu-ray discs in three dimensions.

However, the results produced by this technique are very different to what you can expect from a Blu-ray 3D disc.  The impression that you're seeing in three dimensions is less pronounced, and in some scenes, it's clear that the algorithm struggles to work out which objects should be where.  Seeing some things much further away than they should be, or vice versa, quickly becomes tiring for your eyes.

3D Quality and Problems

Fortunately, things are much more impressive with a Blu-ray 3D disc.  To test the C750, Samsung lent us its BD-C6900 Blu-ray 3D player, and a 3D version of Monsters vs. Aliens. Things really leap out of the screen and you get a real sense of depth of field.  As with all 3D TVs, though, there are a few problems.  We often spotted the frame for the left eye being visible to the right and vice versa, which is partly caused by a lack of responsiveness from the LCD panel.

The results below show what you see through the 3D glasses: Samsung on top, Panasonic underneath:

To really see this problem, we used the test-card above in side-by-side mode.  The frame is actually divided in two, with the left-hand side visible to the left eye, and right-hand side visible to the right eye.  If you click on the photo above, you can compare the results we've found on the six 3D TVs we've tested so far.  The interference of the right-hand side of the frame and the left and vice versa is more noticeable on Samsung's TVs than on the Sony Bravia KDL-HX803.  That said, Panasonic is still the best in this regard.

Another problem affects 3D LCD TVs in particular: anybody watching through 3D glasses has to face the screen directly.  In Samsung's case, the picture you see becomes progressively darker until it's invisible at a 90° angle from the centre line.  That means you can't enjoy a film lying down on the sofa.

Finally, one final recurring criticism is that 3D glasses reduce the perceived brightness of the display.  Once again, the results are exactly the same as with Samsung's other 3D TVs.  Our tests showed that brightness fell by around 60%, however bright the backlighting.  On the other hand, you can turn the C750 up to 420 cd/m², which leaves 3D films with white of 130 cd/m².

Responsiveness: 10.5 ms

We recently started using a new test for responsiveness in our lab.  We now time how long it takes for the previous frame to disappear completely from view, and use foregrounds and backgrounds of several different colours.  The longer it takes, the more subject the screen will be to ghosting, which will leave fast-moving objects looking blurry.

The C750 had an average response time of 10.5 ms, compared to 15 ms on the C630.  Remember that the lower this reading, the better.  This TV takes 4 ms to completely remove an object from a frame on a light background, but 17 ms on a dark background.  Or to put that another way, some objects will appear in two places at once for 4 ms and 17 ms respectively.

Image Quality: Factory Settings

The picture produced by the C750 with its default settings is attractive.  Most viewers will be happy enough with 'Standard' mode.  Unlike lots of its competitors, the results aren't too unnatural.  We still found the colours a still too saturated, with a blue tinge across the grey gradient and an imbalance in the distribution of luminance.



Image Quality: Cinema Mode

To improve the quality, we suggest you make the switch to 'Cinema' mode.  The various filters which produce an artificial result are deactivated, but we did come across a problem that's more common on TVs with LED backlighting: the backlighting remains dynamic even when you turn it off in the menu.  Luckily, the gamma doesn't suffer as a result.  We only noticed a difference in brightness moving between two test cards, falling from 214 to 129 cd/m² moving from 35% to 1% white.


By default, the backlighting in 'Cinema' mode is too bright for our liking.  To get it to a more workable level of around 200 cd/m², you just need to set the backlighting to 9.  That produces a reasonable contrast ratio of 1249:1, even if some TVs do a lot better.

Colours are reproduced naturally, and our equipment revealed an average deltaE of 2.1, which is a great result.  Remember that deltaE is the average discrepancy between the colour requested by the source and the one actually shown on screen.  In general, when this value falls below 3.0, any remaining discrepancies are invisible to the naked eye.

The Motion Plus 200 Hz filter does a good job of restricting jerkiness in films, but we suggest you don't turn it up above 'Standard' as the next level leaves artefacts around fast-moving objects.

Upscaling of SD content is good, while the display of native HD content is quite simply perfect; watching a Blu-ray movie is a real treat.

Sound Quality

The C750 produces better than average sound for a TV.  However, the speakers point towards the floor, meaning you lose detail in the treble.  You can still enjoy a film without wanting to tear your ears off, but we'd still recommend you replace them with a Home Cinema speaker system or a sound bar.

Energy Consumption

The C750's consumption falls to an absolute minimum of 0.1 W after a few minutes on standby.  If it's calibrated at 200 cd/m², this 46'' version uses 132 W.