Samsung PN50A760

Formats (10.0)
The Samsung PN50A760 is a full 1080p HDTV, able to support content with 1080 lines progressively displayed from top to bottom. This is the highest quality of HD content available, but you're only going to get it from Blu-ray discs. The vast majority of the content you'll be putting on your television will come in 480i/p standard definition or 720p and 1080i high definition. Thankfully the Samsung PN50A760 is also able to play back this content, albeit with some small issues we discuss in the Blacks & Whites section.

In addition to supporting a wide array of formats the Samsung PN50A760 also supports the 3:2 pulldown process that provides a more film-like feel for content as well as the ability to play back true 24p content, which doesn't require a conversion to look like film. It also supports a wider color gamut, known as xvYCC color, which is being used by some modern content but is still not widespread.

Photo Playback (3.5)
The Samsung PN50A760 supports playback of photos from either a USB source plugged into the USB port on the side of the HDTV or over the network via ethernet cable. In either case the interface will look the same, using Samsung's Wiselink system. Photos appear in a strip that can be sorted in a variety of fashions. Only Jpeg photos are supported, but you can play back a slideshow of the photos, albeit with only limited controls. There re also a couple of editing options like rotate and delete. Music & Video Playback (7.0)
As with photos you can play back video and music from either a USB drive or a network source over ethernet using Wiselink. The interface for both looks very similar to that for photos, with a strip of content that appears and can be sorted using a variety of methods. The music playback mode supports album artwork in some cases, although we noticed that artwork that appeared when looking at multiple items dissapeared when playing back a single item. Only Mp3 music files are supported.

Video playback is limited to Mpeg-4, although we were pleased to see H264 encoded content supported as this provides a higher quality video. The interface is once again a simple sortable strip of items. Videos play back in full screen when selected.

Streaming Playback (5.5)
As mentioned above the Samsung PN50A760 can play back streaming media content from a server source over your local network. This can be accomplished by using the HDTV's built-in ethernet port or an optional Wireless adaptor. You will also need to download client software from Samsung's website (Windows only) that you install on other computers in the network to share folders. Although we appreciate the capabilities we also have to say that the limitations on file types supported and the rather involved process of getting the system up is nowhere near as easy as some alternate solutions like an Apple TV.

In addition to local network streaming you can also access internet content via the ethernet port on the computer using Samsung's Infolink service. Unfortunately this offers access to a rather limited array of online sources, it most certainly does not turn your television into a web browser. Still, something is better than nothing and we're glad to see manufacturers trying to integrate better with online content.

DVR (0.0)
The Samsung PN50A760 does not have built-in DVR capabilities.