Samsung PN51E8000 3D Smart Plasma HDTV Review

Software & Internet

The PN51E8000's menus (Picture, Sound, Network, etc.) haven't been changed from previous Samsung TVs this year, and that's fine by us. They're an azure-colored stack of information that line up along the left-hand side of the TV's screen, allowing for real-time viewing of changes to things like aspect ratio or picture sharpness. Long story short, we like these menus. It's nothing innovative, but we don't think the E8000 would benefit from new menus.

The real show-stealer here is the Smart Hub, Samsung's headquarters for all of their internet content. The Smart Hub, a huge feature of Samsung's 2012 TV line-up, is packed full of streaming TV and movies, free 3D content, and a solid web browser, as well as some useful (or at least entertaining) widgets like Fitness and Family Story. The Smart Touch remote makes navigating the Smart Hub and the web browser a much easier task, and the selections offered by Netflix and Hulu Plus are just as easy to access as your personal media in the AllShare menu.