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Of late we have been reviewing quite a few 32-inch and above LCD's, while the smaller ones await their turn. But today we'll look at Samsung's 22" LCD TV (LA22A480) from their 4 series line up that's designed for the bedroom. They have around two models in the 22-inch range, out of which I was looking forward to the LA22A450 C1, which has a much higher native resolution and is a little cheaper.
Some of the striking features of this TV are the built-in FM radio, dual 15W speakers and a stylish design. This seems perfect for a bedroom or even the kitchen (why not, eh?) and Samsung lists it under that very same category, so it's not me talking crazy here. Let's see what more this little thing has to offer
Build and Design
The design is a typical Samsung with a full gloss bezel and a matt screen. There is a red tinge across the bottom of the logo, while the menu buttons reside on the extreme right. The build is solid as usual without any creaking parts.
The buttons are touch sensitive (a little too sensitive actually) and respond instantly with just a light touch.
There are no side ports and all the connectors are at the rear. There are two Component-in jacks, a single Composite jack, VGA-in along with audio-in for the PC and HDMI. Right above is the FM antenna jack, which is provided in the bundle. There's no S-Video but it's ok since you have two component inputs.
Features
The display has a matt finish with a native resolution of 1366x768. Samsung doesn't really give out too much information regarding the type of panel used, so we can't say for sure. The contrast ratio goes all the way up to 10000:1 (Dynamic).
The remote is very comfortable to use with large spacing between each button. The usual shortcuts are present to switch between color modes, source, etc.
Performance
HQV Benchmark
We used the HQV benchmark DVD on a LG DV388H DVD player through HDMI for the best possible picture quality. The rest is up to the TV. In a series of tests we test for jaggies, picture detail, noise reduction and flickering in Telecine video.
After running HQV twice, we arrived at a final score of 41 out of 80, that's around 50% efficiency, which is just average.
The good thing was that the DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) feature works very well to reduce noise in the video. There are three settings; low, med, high. Even though the noise doesn't completely go away, it is reduced by a great deal. One major drawback though is the presence of motion trails that's very prominent. This means the panel does not have a very good response time, which could be the reason for not being mentioned on the site.
Subjective Tests
Here we play a series of HD movies both animated and action to test how the TV reproduces dark scenes, fast action sequences, colors and the level of ghosting.
We connected our HTPC to the Samsung via HDMI and fired up a couple of HD movies. Once set to the native resolution, the desktop was sharp and text was easily readable. We first played movies with dark scenes like the The Dark Knight to test the dynamic contrast ratio, which does a good job of enhancing the colors giving you deeper blacks.
The motion trials really spoil the show as it creeps in everywhere, especially in dark scenes where it's most visible. So it's safe to say this is not meant for gaming. Switching to something more colorful, we tried the HD version of The Simpsons Movie and it looked really good. The colors really pop out especially with dynamic contrast switched on, which is best for daytime viewing.
Sound and other features
The two 15W speakers produce really loud sound but quality is strictly average. The highs are really crisp and dialog can be heard clearly. However, when it comes to action sequences and explosions, it falls short. The SRS effect helps a bit to improve the sound but its average at best. There's also slight backlight bleeding at the top and bottom portion of the panel that is only visible when watching a movie.
Pricing
A 22-inch TV should ideally cost less than 20K and this Samsung LA22A480 is priced right on the borderline with a street price of Rs. 20,000. Samsung's other model, the LA22A450 C1, which has the same connectivity options but features a higher resolution of 1680x1050 can easily double up as a PC monitor, plus it's cheaper. LG has a very similar offering at the same price which we haven't reviewed yet.
Verdict
If you plan on using the Samsung LA22A480 strictly for TV viewing then you could consider it, as it has a good pair of speakers as well as FM radio, so you don't need a stereo in your room. Movies look good thanks to the deep black levels and vibrant colors. Motion trailing issues are present though, which is easily visible in all fast-paced scenes.
On the other hand if you're thinking about connecting your PC for some gaming then skip this as the other model (Samsung LA22A450 C1) or even the LG 22LG30R offers the same connectivity but at a higher resolution, which is best suited for a monitor.
Test unit sourced from Samsung India Electronics Pvt Ltd.
Specifications
