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UK Samsung TVs bricked after firmware update (updated)
Remember the days when you could unbox your new TV, turn it on, and just watch it? Clearly that time is long in the rearview, thanks to everything needing to be "smart" and requiring loads of updates right out of the box these days. In the UK, customers have inundated The Guardian with word that their new displays, some bought as recently as a week ago, have been bricked by a firmware update.
Samsung TVs now play YouTube videos in HDR
If you have a recent Samsung TV and want more high dynamic range content without having to buy a game console, you're in luck. Samsung's 2016 quantum dot and 4K TVs are getting support for HDR YouTube videos thanks to an updated YouTube app rolling out to sets worldwide starting in December. You now only have to visit a special HDR section in the software to find a library of extra-vivid videos -- no subscription services or dedicated media devices required. There's still going to be a relatively limited selection of clips given how new HDR is for YouTube as a whole, but it's an important step for making the color-rich technology available to a wider audience... and, of course, it's a good excuse to show off your new TV.
Samsung guarantees its latest SUHD TVs won't suffer burn-in
If the constant fear of screen burn-in was keeping you from making a big television purchase, then Samsung's new guarantee might make you reconsider. The electronics giant announced today that it is providing a lifetime guarantee against the dreaded screen burn-in for all of its 2016 SUHD Quantum Dot TVs. Should your brand-new, ultra high-def, HDR+ set suffer burn-in (from "normal consumer use," of course) Samsung will replace it for free.
Samsung HDR update improves the color in its high-end TVs
Samsung is rolling out a firmware update for its 2016 lineup of quantum dot SUHD TVs that adds an "HDR+" setting, giving them more and brighter colors, deeper blacks and improved contrast. It significantly enhances HDR content from providers like Netflix, Amazon and YouTube, and will also improve regular, standard dynamic range video. The result is punchier images and highly granular control for experts, according to Samsung.
Samsung's SUHD TVs amp up the colors and picture quality
Samsung hasn't gone all-in on OLED TVs like LG did this year, but it still has models that can make your wallet light in a hurry. The company just launched its latest top-shelf SUHD lineup that includes nearly every imaginable feature for those willing to pay. The main selling point is still the picture quality. While its LED quantum dot screens are arguably inferior to OLED, they're getting pretty darn close and cost less. Samsung said all of its 2016 models will get 10-bit, HDR displays with 1,000 nits of contrast between light and dark images. It's also using new tech it calls Ultra Black that "absorbs natural light the same way [as] a moth's eye" does, providing deeper blacks with less glare.
Samsung jumps into Ultra HD Blu-ray, as Fox provides the movies
Today Samsung is the first company to announce an Ultra HD Blu-ray player, taking the lead in 4K and HDR video. Following up on its big Ultra HD push at CES and the movie-streaming/download tech that has arrived in the months since, Samsung is ready to push super-high-resolution movies (four times the resolution of Blu-ray, and 64 times as many colors) on discs too. There's not much detail available on its new player, although we expect it will cost less than the $1,000 price its first Blu-ray player commanded nearly a decade ago and it should launch early next year. Joining the tech company on its IFA 2015 stage are Fox execs, with President Mike Dunn proclaiming the studio is committed to releasing its slate of upcoming movies in Ultra HD with HDR day-and-date with the Blu-ray and Digital HD releases. That includes Fantastic Four, Maze Runner, Kingsman: The Secret Service and more.
1TB My Passport Cinema drive puts 4K Ultra HD movies in your pocket
New super high-res televisions are already here, but with Ultra HD Blu-ray still yet to debut, the best available way to get 4K video on that screen is with streaming and, now, downloading. Western Digital has a Vidity hard drive ready that is ready for storing Hollywood's movies in the highest quality available, and playing them back on compatible screens. Right now the list of compatible devices is limited to Samsung's UHD TVs (2014 or 2015) with the M-Go app, and Fox is the first studio out of the gate with compatible movies. WD's $90 1TB, USB 3.0-connected My Passport Cinema drive meets the spec, is being packed in free with new Samsung TVs, and comes preloaded with The Maze Runner, Exodus: Gods and Kings, X-Men: Days of the Future Past, The Wolverine, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, The Fault in Our Stars, Let's Be Cops and The Other Woman -- two of them are free off the bat.
Amazon Prime's first wave of HDR videos is here
Determined to watch streaming video with the maximum color range possible? You now have your chance. As promised, Amazon Prime Instant Video is now offering high dynamic range (HDR) videos to American customers. Watch the first season of Mozart in the Jungle on the right TV (currently, that means one of Samsung's SUHD models) and you should see more vivid colors as well as a greater level of detail in highlights and shadows. The move is as much about bragging rights as anything else -- Amazon is beating Netflix to the punch, and HDR doesn't automatically make everything better. It also won't help much if you're in the UK or have the 'wrong' TV. All the same, this is a big step forward for internet video quality.
Samsung's latest flagship 4K TV starts at $6,500
Samsung's latest and greatest ultra-HD television will cost you big bucks -- but it's also got a healthy selection of affordable options among its latest round of 4K TV sets. The JS9500 SUHD TV (the "S" denotes its premium UHD range), effectively the Korean electronics giants' crown jewel for 2015, will start at $6,500 when it lands later this month. It sports a curved screen with nanocrystal technology (something that appears in all of its SUHD sets), a full array local dimming backlight (which helps with contrast and black levels) and the company's "PurColor" technology, which delivers more vivid colors. You'll be able to snag the JS9500 in 65-inch and 88-inch sizes -- though the company isn't saying just how much the larger version will cost. Most likely, that'll be upwards of $10,000, as that's the price for the 77-inch JS9100 SUHD TV.
Samsung's high-end TVs use nanocrystals for better color, efficiency
Samsung doesn't think your plain old UHD TV will cut it anymore. You know, like the models it debuted last year. Now what's the newest in new? SUHD, with the outfit saying it reserves the "S" designation for its top-tier models we're about to describe. The displays run Tizen and range from 48 inches to 88 inches in size, coming in three different model lines: JS9500, JS9000 and JS8500. Nanocrystal semiconductors are a portion of what sets these apart, with the tech apparently allowing for more accurate colors. The panels offer double the color adjustment points so your calibrator (or perhaps you) can dial the screen in to utmost accuracy and get a better idea of what the filmmaker intended, too.
![If its CES press conference is any indication, Samsung is playing it safe in 2015. As you might expect, 4K is the phrase on just about every executive’s lips. [Image: Ethan Miller/Getty Images]](https://s.yimg.com/cv/apiv2/engadget/streamItem_default.png)
