Subscores
With so many models in the 2012 Samsung TV range, finding your way around can be confusing. However, the ES6710 is one model that stands out from the crowd. Its spec sheet places it between the ES6300 and the ES7000, with 400 Hz motion interpolation (compared with 200 Hz for the ES6300 and 800 Hz for the ES7000), 3D compatibility, web-connected services and backlight micro-dimming—something usually only seen in the firm's high-end TVs.
This TV is available in several sizes: 32" (UE32ES6710), 40" (UE40ES6710), 46" (UE46ES6710) and 50" (UE50ES6710).
Design
Samsung's ES6710 TVs have a distinctive white lacquered finish and come with two pairs of 3D glasses.
Unlike ES7000-series models, which are considerably more expensive, ES6710 TVs don't have the built-in webcam on the upped edge of the bezel. You therefore lose the voice and motion controls we put to the test when reviewing the ES8000. However, we won't be shedding too many tears over that, as this technology still has too many blips for our liking. You'll be better off waiting for upcoming product generations.
Obviously, you get the same functions as in other ES6000 series TVs, with DLNA 1.5 and Samsung's usual host of Smart TV services. You can therefore download all kinds of apps (VOD, Google Maps, Skype, etc.). Although Samsung's Smart TV platform offers the most comprehensive package on the market right now, we have to admit that we still haven't really found much practical use for it in our day-to-day lives. The whole system just isn't as easy or intuitive to navigate as using a computer or a smartphone.
The image settings menus have been very nicely designed. A little description with each option makes the whole system simpler to use, especially for beginners.
Similarly, the built-in media player is one of the best on the market. It's compatible with loads of video container formats (AVI, DivX, MP4, MKV, Mov, MTS and M2TS) and codecs (AVC-HD, H.264, X.264, WMV, DivX and XviD). The only thing it can't handle is chapters.
The ES6710 comes with a white remote control to match the TV. The remote is slim and is comfortable to hold thanks to its rounded design and the handy finger-rest on the back. However, it's a shame to see that the keys aren't backlit, as that can be really handy for lights-off movie sessions.
2D Image Quality
Surprise, surprise—the screen panel in this TV comes straight out of Samsung's own factory. From the look of the chevron-shaped sub-pixels, this can only be a PVA-type LCD panel.
Colours in Movie mode: average Delta E = 3.3
Screen prone to reflections
In terms of image fidelity, the ES6710 gives similar results to the ES7000. Once you adjust a few settings (see "Our Settings"), it does a little better than the ES6300, mainly thanks to its more accurate colours (average Delta E of 3.1 compared with 4.2 for the ES6300).
Other results here are on par with those of the ES6300. The 2500:1 contrast ratio is good. It's not the best we've ever seen, but blacks look sufficiently deep in a room with subdued lighting. However, hardcore home cinema buffs who like watching in pitch-black conditions may not be entirely satisfied.
We measured some pretty tight viewing angles with this screen. In fact, we rate them at just 1.7/5 at an angle of 45 degrees, with dark zones lightened by up to 200% and whites darkened by just under 40%. Plasma screen TVs are still way ahead on this front.
It goes without saying that screen response times are excellent—that's one of the main strong points of PVA technology. We measured an average ghosting time of 8.5 ms, which puts the ES6710 up there with the best TVs we've reviewed to date. The input lag is low too—33 ms works out as just two frames of latency. Gamers therefore won't be at a disadvantage.
Clouding
Like the ES6300 and ES7000 we've already reviewed, there was hardly any clouding in the UE40ES6710. The only thing we noticed was a slight blotch in the lower left part of the screen after having displayed an all-black image for a few minutes in our pitch-dark test lab. This won't be visible in "normal" viewing conditions.
3D Image Quality
Like the rest of Samsung's TV range, the ES6710 uses active-shutter 3D technology. Two pairs of glasses come as standard and extra pairs can be picked up from around £15. You can therefore kit out the family without breaking the bank.
For those of you who don't want to keep a stock of spare batteries to hand, rechargeable glasses are also available. The rechargeable models are more expensive but Samsung's are still cheaper than most competitor versions.
Our 3D test cards as seen through 3D glasses (Top: Samsung UE40ES6710 / Bottom: Samsung UE40ES6300):
Audio
As with pretty much all current TVs, the speakers in the ES6710 only reproduce the frequency band for human voices correctly. Dialogue is therefore perfectly clear and comprehensible. However, quality soon drops with any sound outside of that range. Bass is totally absent and high frequencies are regularly accompanied with harmonic distortion. Plus, even though it's recommended to watch films at 85 dB for the best results, you can't push the volume past 80 dB without the audio output becoming too degraded. A home cinema speaker kit will therefore make a good investment.
Power Use
Power use is reasonably well controlled, although this isn't the most efficient TV we've tested to date. On standby it's perfect—our test equipment showed 0 W, which means that power use is under 1 W. With the TV on, power use rises to 91 W, which makes 201 W/m² for this 40" screen. The least power-hungry models use under 100 W/m². The ES6710 therefore has to make do with a score of 4/5 in this part of our review.
This TV is available in several sizes: 32" (UE32ES6710), 40" (UE40ES6710), 46" (UE46ES6710) and 50" (UE50ES6710).
Design
Samsung's ES6710 TVs have a distinctive white lacquered finish and come with two pairs of 3D glasses.
Unlike ES7000-series models, which are considerably more expensive, ES6710 TVs don't have the built-in webcam on the upped edge of the bezel. You therefore lose the voice and motion controls we put to the test when reviewing the ES8000. However, we won't be shedding too many tears over that, as this technology still has too many blips for our liking. You'll be better off waiting for upcoming product generations.
Obviously, you get the same functions as in other ES6000 series TVs, with DLNA 1.5 and Samsung's usual host of Smart TV services. You can therefore download all kinds of apps (VOD, Google Maps, Skype, etc.). Although Samsung's Smart TV platform offers the most comprehensive package on the market right now, we have to admit that we still haven't really found much practical use for it in our day-to-day lives. The whole system just isn't as easy or intuitive to navigate as using a computer or a smartphone.
Similarly, the built-in media player is one of the best on the market. It's compatible with loads of video container formats (AVI, DivX, MP4, MKV, Mov, MTS and M2TS) and codecs (AVC-HD, H.264, X.264, WMV, DivX and XviD). The only thing it can't handle is chapters.
The ES6710 comes with a white remote control to match the TV. The remote is slim and is comfortable to hold thanks to its rounded design and the handy finger-rest on the back. However, it's a shame to see that the keys aren't backlit, as that can be really handy for lights-off movie sessions.
2D Image Quality
Surprise, surprise—the screen panel in this TV comes straight out of Samsung's own factory. From the look of the chevron-shaped sub-pixels, this can only be a PVA-type LCD panel.
Colours in Movie mode: average Delta E = 3.3
Screen prone to reflections
In terms of image fidelity, the ES6710 gives similar results to the ES7000. Once you adjust a few settings (see "Our Settings"), it does a little better than the ES6300, mainly thanks to its more accurate colours (average Delta E of 3.1 compared with 4.2 for the ES6300).
Measured contrast ratio: 2500:1
Other results here are on par with those of the ES6300. The 2500:1 contrast ratio is good. It's not the best we've ever seen, but blacks look sufficiently deep in a room with subdued lighting. However, hardcore home cinema buffs who like watching in pitch-black conditions may not be entirely satisfied.
We measured some pretty tight viewing angles with this screen. In fact, we rate them at just 1.7/5 at an angle of 45 degrees, with dark zones lightened by up to 200% and whites darkened by just under 40%. Plasma screen TVs are still way ahead on this front.
| Responsiveness | ||
 |
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Light Background |
Black Background |
Average |
This graph shows the ghosting time, measured in ms, which measures the time it takes this TV takes to entirely remove the previous frame. The shorter the time, the more fluid moving images will appear.
It goes without saying that screen response times are excellent—that's one of the main strong points of PVA technology. We measured an average ghosting time of 8.5 ms, which puts the ES6710 up there with the best TVs we've reviewed to date. The input lag is low too—33 ms works out as just two frames of latency. Gamers therefore won't be at a disadvantage.
Clouding
Like the ES6300 and ES7000 we've already reviewed, there was hardly any clouding in the UE40ES6710. The only thing we noticed was a slight blotch in the lower left part of the screen after having displayed an all-black image for a few minutes in our pitch-dark test lab. This won't be visible in "normal" viewing conditions.
3D Image Quality
Like the rest of Samsung's TV range, the ES6710 uses active-shutter 3D technology. Two pairs of glasses come as standard and extra pairs can be picked up from around £15. You can therefore kit out the family without breaking the bank.
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For those of you who don't want to keep a stock of spare batteries to hand, rechargeable glasses are also available. The rechargeable models are more expensive but Samsung's are still cheaper than most competitor versions.
Our 3D test cards as seen through 3D glasses (Top: Samsung UE40ES6710 / Bottom: Samsung UE40ES6300):
With a perfect result, we shouldn't see any trace of the 'R' frame on the left or of the 'L' frame on the right.
3D picture quality has nothing to envy of plasma screens. There's practically no crosstalk at all. If you want to nit-pick, then the image can be seen to double-up a little in a few rare cases when a dark object is seen on a light background (or vice versa), but no TV handles this 100% perfectly. Plus, you don't really get scenes like that in most movies.
Audio
As with pretty much all current TVs, the speakers in the ES6710 only reproduce the frequency band for human voices correctly. Dialogue is therefore perfectly clear and comprehensible. However, quality soon drops with any sound outside of that range. Bass is totally absent and high frequencies are regularly accompanied with harmonic distortion. Plus, even though it's recommended to watch films at 85 dB for the best results, you can't push the volume past 80 dB without the audio output becoming too degraded. A home cinema speaker kit will therefore make a good investment.
Power Use
Power use is reasonably well controlled, although this isn't the most efficient TV we've tested to date. On standby it's perfect—our test equipment showed 0 W, which means that power use is under 1 W. With the TV on, power use rises to 91 W, which makes 201 W/m² for this 40" screen. The least power-hungry models use under 100 W/m². The ES6710 therefore has to make do with a score of 4/5 in this part of our review.
Pros
- Accurate colours: average Delta E = 3.3
- High contrast: 2500:1
- Good 3D picture quality
- Effective motion interpolation
- Hardly any clouding on the model we tested
- Media player supports loads of video file formats
Cons
- Glossy screen prone to reflections
- Tight viewing angles
Conclusion
The Samsung ES6710 has all the advantages of the ES6300 while also correcting its major fault. It therefore displays accurate onscreen colours, as well as offering near-perfect 3D viewing and high contrast. Picky home movie buffs who like to watch films in pitch-darkness may still prefer the ES7000 for its deeper blacks.
OUR SCORE
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