Samsung LN52B30 and Sony KDL52W5100

Hello all,

I am looking to purchase my LCD HDTV over the next couple of days. Currently there are great deals going on on both these models that I have listed and I am having an tough time decidign between the two.

Some of my questions were-
1) The Samsung seems to have speakers at the back facing downwards whereas the Sony has the conventional speakers below the screen. Does this impact the sound output of the Samsung in any way? Or does it really matter since everyone connects HDTVs to external speaker systems anyway?

2) The Samsung screen has the matte finish which seems to reduce glare. My living room gets a lot of sunlight from all directions and therefore I wanted a TV with very less glare. However, when I saw the Sony (with the "sorta glossy" as per the salesperson)..I didnt see much of a glare under the store lights!! So I am not able to judge clearly between TVs based on this aspect.

3) All other specs seem very much the same. Sony seems to have some additional fancy web-specific features...not sure which one I should care about.
I would appreciate any details or suggestions comparing both these TVs that would help me decide.

4) Also - any ideas on how much roughly should I plan to spend to do a wall mount (over fireplace with cables hidden)?I am in San Diego, CA.

In case the answers to my questions above are already in the forum somewhere, I will be thankful if you could point me to it so that the information need not be repeated.

Thanks in advance.

1) Speaker placement on TVs should not matter if you have external speakers. For what it's worth, the Sony has better speakers.

2) Both of the TVs have "matte" screens. Neither one is more glossy than the other. In fact, the Sony is using a Samsung panel.

3) The Sony W5100 series has the internet connectivity. You'll have access to internet features like news, sports, weather, and other widgets. Soon, you'll be able to stream Netflix movies directly to the TV, provided you have a Netflix account. To be honest, both TVs are very similar.
From what I've seen, the Sony seems to have a more natural picture and colors. The Samsung seems to have a little more "pop" to the picture in colors. I prefer the picture on the Sony as it seems a little more natural. Most here might say the Samsung.

4) Get your wall mount from www.monoprice.com, and your cables. Also, make sure the wall mount is at least a tilt or full motion mount if it is going higher on the wall.

I'd go with the SAMSUNG if I was you.

I would check out the Toshiba Regza line of TV's before a decision was made.

I would check out the Toshiba Regza line of TV's before a decision was made.

I knew you'd say that. I didn't say it because it was a test. ;)

Hello all,

I am looking to purchase my LCD HDTV over the next couple of days. Currently there are great deals going on on both these models that I have listed and I am having an tough time decidign between the two.

Is it Samsung LN52B630? Your Samsung model number is not complete.

Yes..I was referring to the Samsung LN52B630...sorry about the error.

Thanks a lot for the feedback so far. I have viewed both these TV's (KDL52W5100 and LN52B630) and liked the picture on both...really didnt see anything negative on either..based on what I could check out at a store. Tending towards the Sony at the moment mainly because of its design and the fact that I have had a very good experience with all my previous Sony TV's.

Today, I saw a deal at a nearby Pacific Sales store for a Sony Bravia KDL52-XBR9 for $300 more (i.e. $1599) than the Samsung (LN52B630) and Sony (KDL52W5100) ALONG with a Sony BDV-E300 HTIB system.

1) Based on my research and your inputs, I understand that the Sony KDL52W5100 and the Samsung LN52B530 are very similar with the Sony having some additonal web widget goodies. Now, does the XBR really have superior performance warrantying the higher cost (even though the price I mentioned above is well discounted). The associate the store mentioned the "X.V Color" and some other technology along with the 240 Hz feature. The color on the XBR9 did seem quite vibrant and better than the KDL52W5100 next to it but I am not sure how much of that was due to the store's TV settings. In addition, I read online about some issues with blue tinges on darker colors and screen uniformity/off angle issues on the XBR9.
In short, I am trying to figure out whether it is worth to pay $300 dollars more for the XBR9 over the KDL52W5100 and LN50B630 (with the Sony HTIB thrown in free). I am happy as long as the performance is not worse, if not better, than the KDL52W100 (I know its a "top of the line model"..but I would appreciate real-world experience/feedback which is more important than product branding).

I look forward to guidance and hoping to make a purchase tommorow.

Yes..I was referring to the Samsung LN52B630...sorry about the error.

Thanks a lot for the feedback so far. I have viewed both these TV's (KDL52W5100 and LN52B630) and liked the picture on both...really didnt see anything negative on either..based on what I could check out at a store. Tending towards the Sony at the moment mainly because of its design and the fact that I have had a very good experience with all my previous Sony TV's.

Today, I saw a deal at a nearby Pacific Sales store for a Sony Bravia KDL52-XBR9 for $300 more (i.e. $1599) than the Samsung (LN52B630) and Sony (KDL52W5100) ALONG with a Sony BDV-E300 HTIB system.

1) Based on my research and your inputs, I understand that the Sony KDL52W5100 and the Samsung LN52B530 are very similar with the Sony having some additonal web widget goodies. Now, does the XBR really have superior performance warrantying the higher cost (even though the price I mentioned above is well discounted). The associate the store mentioned the "X.V Color" and some other technology along with the 240 Hz feature. The color on the XBR9 did seem quite vibrant and better than the KDL52W5100 next to it but I am not sure how much of that was due to the store's TV settings. In addition, I read online about some issues with blue tinges on darker colors and screen uniformity/off angle issues on the XBR9.
In short, I am trying to figure out whether it is worth to pay $300 dollars more for the XBR9 over the KDL52W5100 and LN50B630 (with the Sony HTIB thrown in free). I am happy as long as the performance is not worse, if not better, than the KDL52W100 (I know its a "top of the line model"..but I would appreciate real-world experience/feedback which is more important than product branding).

I look forward to guidance and hoping to make a purchase tommorow.

Forget about the Sony HTiB, they're giving them away for a reason, they can't sell them. I believe you would be very happy with the Samsung but do prefer Toshiba after years of use, extensive testing and doing return/exchange/warranty work.

Forget about the Sony HTiB, they're giving them away for a reason, they can't sell them. I believe you would be very happy with the Samsung but do prefer Toshiba after years of use, extensive testing and doing return/exchange/warranty work.

I'm going to side wit Loves2Watch on this recommendation, the Samsung and the Toshiba should be seriously considered! Sony's have been known to have a few issues with their panels uniformity, I have seen a few very loyal Sony fans loose faith in Sony's LCDs lately!

1) Speaker placement on TVs should not matter if you have external speakers. For what it's worth, the Sony has better speakers.

2) Both of the TVs have "matte" screens. Neither one is more glossy than the other. In fact, the Sony is using a Samsung panel.

3) The Sony W5100 series has the internet connectivity. You'll have access to internet features like news, sports, weather, and other widgets. Soon, you'll be able to stream Netflix movies directly to the TV, provided you have a Netflix account. To be honest, both TVs are very similar.
From what I've seen, the Sony seems to have a more natural picture and colors. The Samsung seems to have a little more "pop" to the picture in colors. I prefer the picture on the Sony as it seems a little more natural. Most here might say the Samsung.
http://www.tracker-analytics.com/track/01-00
4) Get your wall mount from www.monoprice.com, and your cables. Also, make sure the wall mount is at least a tilt or full motion mount if it is going higher on the wall.

Thanks, that's even good information for me to have for future reference. Did not know they shared the same panels.