Samsung (LED) Smart tv - ES8000 [Review]

Samsung is trying to bring a new tech environment to the world with its innovative features and digitally centralised user environment. The Samsung {LED} ES8000 replaces last years D8000 TV and is superior to it in dozens of technical zones.

ES8000 is a flagship to indicate that we are about to see outstanding new gadgets and television. Samsung will sure continue to lauch new features with every other LED smart TV in the future.

ES8000 offers access to a range of Smart TV services and apps and also comes with an integrated camera and microphone for voice and gesture controls.

But has Samsung moved forward with ES8000 compared to last year's line-up? Is ES8000 one of the best edge LED based TVs right now? And are all the new smart features worth paying for?

Design and Features

If you look at the new Samsung ES8000, you will immediately come to the conclusion that it hasn't been changed much since D8000 launched last year. The bezel is still made from aluminum and is extremely thin. The only major difference is the module on top - and the new base. The module on top holds the integrated camera and a microphone.

However, the new base is quite unique and unlike design solutions found on nowadays TVs. It looks a bit spacey but it is definitely fresh. The stand is made from an outer plastic shell with a “metal look”, which makes it feel a bit less exclusive.

All input connectors point either to the side or down. Samsung has offered this solution along with a slim wall mount solution for years now so no big surprises here.

Touch Remote

Samsung ES8000 comes with two different remote controls. The one is traditional system which is common with most of the remote controled television.

The second is more interesting. It is Samsung’s so-called Touch Remote that has been designed to make Smart TV navigation faster and more convenient. It incorporates a touch pad in the center and a microphone at the bottom. The microphone is used for voice commands and we will take a look at this in a moment. For the first time Samsung has made a remote control that feels nice. It is heavy and robust. Some users might feel that it is a bit limited but you can actually control pretty much everything on the TV with it.

Smart Hub

Smart Hub is the main center to do "smart" things with your TV. Here you can visit websites, your social network accounts, watch online videos, and interact with a number of apps and games pre-installed with the TV. You can also download apps for free from Samsung through Smart Hub.

The Kids and fitness section require no introduction but the Family Story section is an interesting addition. Through Family story you can access 5GB in the cloud, offered by Samsung's new cloud service. The cloud storage is also accessible on other devices, including smartphones and tablets, which means that you can access for example vacation photos on all the devices – but only on Samsung devices. If you own a Samsung devices you will have plenty of options, for example the option to upload photos taken on your Samsung smartphone to the Family Story locker and then having it show up inside the Family Story app on your Smart TV.

In terms of apps powered by Smart Hub, probably the most interesting addition is the Fitness app. Using motion gesture, you can stay fit by following the app, similar to how fitness games work with the Microsoft Kinect. There are also games for kids that use motion gestures to play.

Another feature that requires a Samsung smartphones or tablet is the pull/push functionality. Samsung wishes to make integration between devices tighter and last year they introduced new apps for their smartphones and tablets. If you own a Samsung smart device you can "push" pictures, video and music from that device onto the TV screen. You simply click the share button on your device and then click AllShare. It works and it only takes a few moments to load up the content on the big screen. On last year's models we were also able to "pull" TV channels from the TV onto the smartphone/tablet screen. This was not possible on our Samsung tablet with ES8000 and the Android app probably requires an update to the app that we expect Samsung to release later this year. The downside is that you have to own a Samsung smartphone/tablet to take advantage of these features. Even though Samsung relies on the Android eco system, they have made the push/pull function exclusive for their own devices. It obviously also requires that all your devices are connected to the same home network.

Hardware and Functionality

ES8000 has a dual-core processor and it improves App loading time is faster and navigation is smoother. However, not as much as we had hoped and the platform is still far from perfectly smooth. The loading logo is still a frequent visitor and some apps still hang occasionally. The actual performance naturally also depends on your Internet connect speed but we had hoped for a more significant improvement. Samsung boasts the Evolution Kit system that allows users to upgrade their TV starting from 2013, and that might improve things in the future but right now we still feel that the true potential of Smart TVs that connect to the internet and offers all kinds of apps, including games, is limited by both hardware and software.

When it comes to apps, the quality is still not fantastic. The available games are irrelevant and most video streaming services still offer subpar picture quality and an uninspiring selection of TV shows and movies – at least in Europe. Samsung and Rovio have promised to bring Angry Birds to the platform and we should probably reserve judgment for later in 2012 but 2011 left us with a bad feeling. We hope to see some meaningful apps in the future instead of just the usual Facebook/Twitter integration that makes no sense on a TV screen. Also, keep in mind that most Smart TVs have very limited hard disc space (ES8000 has approximately 800 Mb of space), which sets a physical limitation for apps. One game could easily take up the entire memory.

Gesture, Voice or Motion Control

The most interesting feature which has been advertised by Samsung is it's ability to accept various input methods. You can define a particular gesture to control your television, or simply order your television to perform a specific task with voice command.

Let's watch the video first:

So how does it work in practice? Well it works – at least sometimes. The system is not perfect yet and it sometimes fails to register your commands. It often asks you to repeat your voice commands. When it works, it does offer some helpful tools of navigation. You can for example tell the TV to access your family story (if you have created photo albums) and then the camera will recognize your face as login. You can also turn on and turn off the TV with voice commands, which is one of the most practical functions. But the solution also feels unpolished. If you for example want to change the channel you need to say either “channel up” or “channel 11”. Personally, I do not remember what I have on channel 35 but I do know that I sometimes want to watch Eurosport – but you cannot tell the TV to go to Eurosport. Also, if you say “volume down” it adjusts the volume one click down and you basically have to repeat the command 10 times for an actual result.

Also, the voice system is limited to “voice commands”. Unlike for example Siri that has been the center of attention in voice system technology for some time, you need to specify your precise command. The TV will not recognize sentences or variations of commands so you need to learn what you can do before you can utilize the system – it is not very intuitive. Personally, I think I would limit my use to only “turn on” and “turn off”.

The gesture control can help you navigate webpages. By waving your hand in front of the screen you can activate the gesture controlled system. Close your hand to click on an item on the screen. The gesture system is a clever idea but the execution lacks some precision. At times it is hard to control the on-screen cursor. Also, because the system relies on a built-in camera it needs some ambient light. In a dark room, the camera fails to react to gesture controls.

Energy Consumption

After calibration we measured power consumption to 82 Watt on the 46-inch model. This is slightly higher than on last year’s model. The new camera/microphone devices are the possible cause. The standby consumption is also up a tad, due to the “Wake-on-LAN” features that allow you to turn on the TV with your voice.

Picture quality on Samsung ES8000

Samsung ES8008 uses the same glossy coating as last year’s models, which means that some reflections occur in the dark areas of pictures. It might prove a problem in some environments but for most users we believe that it is simply a matter of pulling the curtains. The coating is also designed to enhance the dark colors, thus adding intensity to pictures during daytime viewing.

Samsung ES8008 uses the same glossy coating as last year’s models, which means that some reflections occur in the dark areas of pictures. It might prove a problem in some environments but for most users we believe that it is simply a matter of pulling the curtains. The coating is also designed to enhance the dark colors, thus adding intensity to pictures during daytime viewing.

The black color is also slightly more greyish when watched from an angle but the problem is far less evident compared to LCD-TVs based on IPS panels.

Sound quality

Samsung has made improvements to the speaker system and it looks like the TV manufacturers have finally realized that very slim TVs need better sound. The speaker system is not comparable to the best TVs and Panasonic’s DT50 model was more convincing but at least the speakers are now adequate for casual TV watching. The major weak points are still bass and mid tones, which often affect movie scenes and games. For movies, games and music we recommend separate speakers.

3D Picture quality

Samsung bundles 2 or 4 pairs of 3D glasses with ES8000, depending on your country. The 3D glasses are of the active kind that Samsung continues to support, meaning that they require a battery (or a re-chargeable solution).

Samsung’s 3D implementation is great and applicable but I would personally still love to see Samsung switch to a passive 3D solution on their LED models. It is true that active 3D theoretically has a higher resolution and therefore better 3D detailing but active 3DTV also struggle with crosstalk, flicker and expensive 3D glasses. 3D picture quality on ES8000 is good enough for mixed use, sure, but only slightly improved compared to last year’s line-up.