Samsung UE40B7000 review

At just over an inch in depth, the UE40B7000 is one of the thinnest HDTVs I've ever clapped eyes on. Most flat panel televisions are fairly skinny to start with, but Samsung has succeeded in making this 40in LED eye-poppingly, supermodel thin.

But don't for a second think that the company has stripped out the features and compromised on performance in order to achieve this pancake-like profile; the UE40B7000 comes with all the gubbins you'd expect from a top of the range LCD.

Behind the 1920 x 1080 resolution glass is a range of image enhancement technologies, including 100Hz scanning for smoother motion, and a full suite of digital media and networking features, including web-connected Yahoo! Widgets and DLNA compatibility for photo, music and video streaming. Which doesn't sound like a bad little lot for £1,250.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, of course, but I think most buyers will regard this TV as one of the best-looking sets around. Its thinness, of course, is a heck of a draw, especially if you plan on wall-mounting it, but there are plenty of other ways it appeals.

The gloss-black crystal finish (with a hint of red) is one of them – and how about that transparent column on the tabletop stand? Even the secondary remote (yes, Samsung gives you two different remote controls with this TV) looks cute, resembling, as it does, a small polished pebble (albeit a pebble with a power button on top).

LED on the side

The television's thinness comes from the fact that it uses edge-mounted LED lamps rather than a full back array of CCFL tubes mounted behind the screen. It's therefore similar to Sony's equally skinny KDL-40ZX1.

This arrangement offers lower power consumption (fewer lamps means less of a current suck) and a thinner profile than standard LCD TVs, but doesn't allow for the localised dimming seen on other LED screens like Philips' LED-backlit 42PFL9803H.

With this Samsung you get a reasonably uniform brightness across the screen, as it's not able to shut off the backlight in certain areas, thereby emphasising blacks.

DARK TIMES: The black levels on Samsung's UE40B7000 show how close LCD has come plasma's contrast levels

That's not to say the black levels on this TV are disappointing. Calibrate the screen using a standard test disc, and position yourself square on and you'll see almost plasma-like levels of deep, rich blacks, nicely complemented by bright whites and vibrant colours.

Samsung doesn't quote a specific contrast ratio (which is fine by me as manufacturers' contrast ratio claims rarely equate to real world performance), but simply calls this TV's performance 'Mega Contrast'. And in fairness, this isn't hyperbole – our tech labs recorded a contrast ratio of 308,562:1, which is, well, mega.

But do be aware that black levels drop off markedly if you're sitting to the side (or above or below) the screen. Off axis viewing angles are not great.

I also noticed a touch of unevenness in backlight brightness at times, with more light bleeding through in certain areas. This was only really evident on solid black screens with dynamic contrast switched off, however, so I imagine few viewers will find it a major problem.

Motion is smoothed out very effectively by the 100Hz processing, which can be adjusted by the user and switched off completely if necessary. Why would you want to do that? Well, there is the odd instance of an artefact around a moving object now and then, and some might find this an unwelcome distraction when watching movies.