Introduction
Samsung's UE32H6400 is the 32-inch member of its thoroughly good value H6400 models, part of its Series 6 line-up for 2014. This TV follows its brethren by offering a packed features list and a cracking performance for a price that's a notch above competitive - just £399.
Most 32-inch LED TVs have a features count that can be written on the back of a postage stamp, and that's understandble. Once lauded as the future of your living room, the 32-inch LED TV has long since shuffled from centrepiece to sideline, and it's now often found in bedrooms, studies and games rooms.
But the UE32H6400 isn't just any 32-incher. Incredibly it's graced by Samsung's smart TV platform, Smart Hub, which certainly isn't expected on small TVs. It's 3D-ready, too, which is something of a first for a 32-inch TV.
Although Samsung obviously knows that, by now, no-one really cares about the third dimension as there are no 3D specs in the box.
Still, it's good to have 3D there as an option since your next Blu-ray player will almost certainly be 3D-ready. There's even a choice of two remote controls, which is arguably even more surprising than the inclusion of Smart Hub. Though it's the presence of smart TV apps that makes the UE32H6400 such a standout screen.
With catch-up TV apps for all UK terrestrial TV channels included (BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4OD and Demand Five) as well as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and YouTube, the UE32H6400, which also boasts a Freeview HD tuner and four HDMI inputs, is hard to criticise on features.
Other apps include STV Player, BBC Sport, Vimeo, PictureBox, Eurosport, USA Today, Tune In radio, Skype, Twitter, Facebook, Skype, AccuWeather and Wuaki.tv.
Best of all, this is powered not only by Wi-Fi, but from a quad core processor, which should make it all a pain-free experience.
Design
Not that it's a standout screen in terms of looks; a depth of 49mm is not especially slim while the box-like bezel around all sides is 11mm wide, with a further 3mm of transparent plastic. The spider-style desktop stand won't appeal to all, though its silver styling adds some contrast to a simple, yet attractive design.
Ins and outs
While most 32-inch TVs offer just a couple of HDMI inputs and, therefore, lack flexibility, Samsung recognises that the UE32H6400 will likely be used in bedrooms that often have just as much AV gear as a living room.
A total of four HDMI inputs are supplied, two on a rear-facing panel alongside an RGB Scart alongside a set of component video inputs, an optical digital audio input, an Ethernet LAN slot (though the UE32H6400 has Wi-Fi, too), and some left/right phono inputs.
The side-panel adds those two other HDMI inputs, a stunning three USB slots, and a feed for a Freeview HD TV tuner. Forget the price-tag of this TV; that's an unbeatable haul on any TV of any price, and it adds a lot of versatility.
Hardware
Somewhat surprisingly the UE32H6400 comes with Samsung's palm-sized, touch-sensitive remote control as well as the standard version. I'm not a huge fan of this 'smart' controller, its braille-like buttons that rise from the brushed aluminium-look plastic look good, but many of the other buttons are far too small. With inconsistently sized buttons I can imagine many users quickly discarding the smart version, largely because it has a learning curve, while the regular version is, for the most part, easier to use.
Unfortunately, Samsung has seen fit to shrink the 'old' remote to the kind of size you might expect to find with a DVD or Blu-ray player. That's a shame, and means that for anyone after a remote that offers big buttons and no nonsense, a Panasonic TV still makes the most sense.
Also available
The UE32H6400 is accompanied by the 40-inch UE40H6400, 55-inch UE55H6400, 65-inch UE65H6400 and whopping 75-inch UE75H6400. The difference between the H6400 and the H6700 variants of Series 6 is that the latter possesses both micro dimming and a more powerful clear motion rate (CMR 600 versus the UE32H6400's CMR 400), which means better contrast/deeper blacks and smoother images.
Picture quality
The UE32H6400 offers great all-round images for general use. It may not be the ideal screen for playing-back that 4K movie you just made, but for anyone after a catch-all TV designed to get the most from Freeview HD channels of all qualities, DVDs, Blu-ray discs, games and stuff from USB sticks, the UE32H6400 hardly puts a foot wrong.
AV enthusiasts will love the ability to tweak almost everything (there's a full colour management system) and apply changes to specific inputs, which is unusual on such a small TV.
Since the UE32H6400 doesn't ship with any 3D glasses, I couldn't watch our test disc Gravity in 3D, but in 2D it easily shows-up the strengths of the UE32H6400. Perhaps most impressive is the uniformity of the UE32H6400's LED-backlit LCD panel, which immediately flags this up as a quality product.
Sure enough, with movie mode engaged and with Stone and Kowalsky drifting through space there's a convincing blackness, while long-shots of a rotating Earth are both bright and exceptionally well coloured. The detail is just stunning, too; who said Full HD is wasted at the 32-inch size?
Motion sequences could be more fluid, certainly, but with Motion Plus on the middle-ranking Standard setting the sequence of debris flying into the space shuttle remains highly watchable. There is some motion blur, but the small screen size means it's not ruinous.
Switch to an episode of The Big Bang Theory on E4 HD and the UE32H6400 retains its excellent, smooth and highly detailed image, while Jungle Atlantis on BBC Two in standard definition isn't the low-bitrate rubbish I had expected.
It does, however, look even better with digital clean view engaged, which can be found in the Picture Menu menus. The problem when watching standard definition isn't a lack of detail at all, but instead some noticeable picture noise during low-lit sequences.
Throughout all of this the viewing angle is as wide as we've seen; watch from the wings and the contrast and colour hardly changes.
Usability, sound and value
Usability
Smart Hub is the best smart TV platform going. It's not just the fact that it includes almost all the apps I can think of ever wanting or needing; easy to navigate and quick, too, Smart Hub on the UE32H6400 is a joy to use.
It's based around a carousel of five separate pages, one each for On TV, Games, Apps, Films & Multimedia, all of which are colourful and quick to transition. The palm-sized smart controller has a microphone icon on it; a press and hold wakes-up the UE32H6400's microphone, though I wasn't able to consistently operate Smart Hub using voice commands.
The commands (such as "Smart Hub", "Channel 2", "Cardiff, weather", "techradar.com" and the theoretically useful "Find … Gravity") are simple enough, but it's all too easy to start asking questions that the UE32H6400 isn't equipped to either understand nor act upon, and too often there's a mistake made, or a robotic voice talks back.
It might as well have a list on the back of the remote of what you can and cannot say or, even better, a list with a button next to it so we could dispense with the microphone altogether. Voice interaction is the future, but not yet.
Though Smart Hub is silky smooth and apps can be found, loaded and used quickly enough, undemanding users not convinced that apps are required will find much to like about the UE32H6400's more basic, traditional features. TV Guide is a nicely presented, colourful grid of what's on now/next/later, complete with a live TV thumbnail – with sound – in one corner.
The UE32H6400 also has some basic pause live TV and recording features; shove a USB stick of 2GB or more and you'll be able to program recordings to watch later, though it can only record the channel you're watching. It's best used for recording something while you're out, or if you're interrupted mid-way through something.
As well as some basic time-shifting, Samsung's SmartView 2.0 app for both Android and Apple devices is now available. I managed to port live TV to my iPhone (there's a delay of about five seconds), but sending videos stored on my phone to play on the UE32H6400 resulted in an error message in Korean.
Those three USB slots on the UE32H6400 come in very useful; as well as time shifting they can be used to playback a plethora of file formats stored on a USB stick. In my test of what Samsung calls ConnectShare Movie I was able to watch MKV, AVI, MOV, MP4 and AVC HD video files via the UE32H6400's media playback software as well as MP3, WMA, OGG, FLAC, WAV, AIFF and APE music files.
Sound
Though the UE32H6400 can play all that lossless music, it completely wastes it by relying on some paltry 10W speakers that just aren't fit for music. Dialogue is clear enough, if a tad boomy, but anything with music or low frequency sound is treated shoddily. Luckily, there is an optical digital audio output on the rear. Use it wisely and route everything to a separate soundbar or home cinema system.
Value
The UE32H6400 is good value at £399. Its slinky good looks, its great-looking, fast-working Smart Hub interface, its mountain of apps and its thoroughly respectable picture quality make it one of the best cheap TVs we've seen in 2014. OK, so it gives poor audio, but there are few 32-inch LED TVs that offer anything better.
That said, the UE32H6400 isn't exactly cheap-as-chips, and that price tag arguably warrants the inclusion of at least one pair of 3D specs. As it is, anyone wanting to investigate Samsung's normally very impressive active shutter 3D shenanigans should search out a pair of two of the brand's SSG-5100GB 3D specs, which cost £15.
Verdict
Building on the mostly excellent UE40H6400, this 32-incher will take a lot of beating in the cheap TV stakes. There are cheaper sets out there than the UE32H6400, but none offer as many must-have smart TV apps, such all-round picture prowess, or a choice of two remote controls. The UE32H6400 is a one-off, and a great value one-off, too.
We liked
The UE32H6400 will mostly be purchased for its smart TV apps, and with the likes of BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4oD, Demand 5, Netflix and Amazon Instant Video all here, that's understandable.
However, there's much more to like about this 32-incher, with a plethora of ins and outs, excellent Freeview HD software and flexible media playback software for the playback of material on USB sticks and networked computers.
Most importantly, the picture quality is versatility defined; black levels, contrast, motion handling and panel uniformity are all spot-on for the money. Perhaps the highlight is the UE32H6400's treatment of standard definition TV channels and DVDs, which at this relatively small size hold-out very well indeed.
We disliked
The provision of two remote controls is great, though in practice neither is as good as the old-fashioned, longer remote they replace. The spider-style stand won't appeal to everyone, and nor is the 49mm depth especially attractive.
However, the saddest aspect is the lack of any 3D specs in the box despite this being the first-ever 32-incher from Samsung to be 3D-ready. That 3D is still-born here is no massive surprise, and nor is the weakness of the built-in stereo system.
Verdict
That a 32-incher has every UK terrestrial TV app is one thing, but when they're accompanied by Netflix and Amazon Instant AND powered by a quad core processor? Samsung, you have our attention, and anyone after a future-proof 32-incher for all-round duties has just got to test-drive the UE32H6400.
Loaded with both ins and outs and apps, the UE32H6400 boasts versatile picture quality across both standard and high definition discs and TV. The only drawbacks are the UE32H6400's lack of 3D specs and some poor speakers, neither of which should bother most buyers of what has to be one of the best value 32-inchers so far in 2014.
Also consider
It's not got as much processing power as the UE32H6400, but Panasonic's TX-32AS600 makes a great choice if you're after Freetime, which, like this Samsung, includes catch-up TV for all UK terrestrial TV channels. Toshiba's 32D3454DB has a DVD player built-in, though the real battle is between the UE32H6400 and Samsung's slightly cheaper UE32H6200. The latter has the same Smart Hub platform and 3D-readiness, but is marred by a touch of motion blur.
from www.techradar.com
