I recently reviewed the new Samsung Frame TV (LS03D) for NXT Magazine thanks to Samsung Singapore for arranging the loan unit sent to my apartment and installed. I enjoyed so much that I started doing research with intention to upgrade my 15-year-old TV. Eventually I decided not to go ahead.
The review unit was mounted on a tripod stand and placed in the middle of my living room, obviously I could not have removed my current wall-mount TV. At only 2.5 inch thick, the Frame TV truly felt like a piece of digital art frame. The bezels can snap-on other colour and designs to make the TV really look like a framed art piece. A separate One Connect Box contains all the connectivity options (LAN, 4 HDMI ports, optical port, 2x USB-A) and keeps the setup clean, allowing me to plug my external hard drive without dangling behind the TV.
The one feature that I thoroughly enjoy is its matte display, eliminating any harsh reflection and allows the family to watch programmes without the irritating reflection from the window. Powered by Samsung’s Tizen operating system, many streaming apps like Netflix, Disney+, Spotify were pre-installed. I was able to add more local streaming apps like CNA and mewatch easily. It also supports multiple connectivity options from your PC, MultiView from your mobile, or control your IoT devices through the built-in SmartThings hub. The TV can also be remotely controlled via the SmartThings mobile app, and if I needed to enter text and numbers, I could do it from the mobile phone and the text will instantly appear on screen.
While the display panel is not the latest Samsung technology, the Quantum Processor 4K still offers excellent contrast, vibrancy, 100% colour volume. Honestly, it is good enough for me. I like that the colours do not look over saturated, the brightness level is adequate while not excessively bright. With a 4K display, the disadvantage is that when watching lower resolution content, they do not look as sharp. And if the internet connection is poor, the video might be downsampled to even lower resolution.
With the Frame TV in my living room, I ended up spending a lot more time watching streaming content from YouTube and other sites. The huge screen really delivers so much details that are easy for me to see them. I plugged my HDD of test sample videos in newer video formats like HEVC (H.265) and multi-channel audio, and the TV replays them promptly without problems.
Supporting Dolby Atmos means the owner can enjoy surround audio experience from music streaming sites like Tidal and Apple Music. The Q-Symphony technology allows wireless pairing with support soundbars and the new Samsung Music Frame, which I will share in a separate post.
With a retail price of S$3,799, the Samsung Frame is beyond my budget, so I shopped around for something similar, at least in overall features like SmartThings integration, Smart TV functions. I was quite prepared to cut a few corners if I only have a small budget. But one incident made me decide to end my search: wifey prefers to watch content in our bedroom with the LUMOS projector. She had never expressed much interest or awe with the Frame TV. So I figured if the family wasn’t that keen to spend a lot of time in front of the TV (which is fine, by the way), then there is no point upgrading to a better TV.
In this day and age, a television is not just to watch free-to-air channels. It is more like a computer with display, with streaming apps that let you watch video content over the Internet or on your local storage, control IoT devices, connect to other devices like computer and smartphones to cast display. In the case of The Frame, it also work as an art piece.
Ironically, my family spends far more time in front of the computer monitor screens than on the TV, so it probably makes more sense investing in great monitors. Speaking of which, Samsung also has a line of “Smart Monitors” that are basically computer monitors with Smart TV functions.