>i watch an embarrassingly huge amount of tv and work from
>home so the tv is always on. it's a pretty important fixture
>in my life lol.
>
>i've done some research and am narrowing down to this one:
>
>http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-55-class-54-5-8-diag--led-1080p-smart-hdtv-black/4323009.p?id=1219097781355&skuId=4323009&st=4323009&cp=1&lp=1
>
>it's on sale for boxing day for 899CDN - but electronics are
>generally priced higher here. take off a hunnid or so for US
>context.
>
>a few questions:
>
>- anyone have this or something similar? thoughts?
>- do y'all see anything wrong with it? is it overpriced?

it seems ok. difficult to tell without actually looking at the set in person

the best thing you can do is figure out your price range, pick a few tvs in that range, then google "*model number of tv* reviews" and peruse those reviews to form an opinion

MOST IMPORTANTLY: go to a brick-and-mortar store and actually look at the tv. see if it has dithering problems (pixelation on solid colors). see how it handles motion. is it blurry? crisp? are the colors blown out? are they too muted? how are the black levels? how are the white levels? if you can find a specialty audio/video store to view it in, go there instead of best buy, as best buy generally cranks up all the image settings in order to make it stand out among all the other sets

all of this is painstaking work but ultimately worth it for a big and likely permanent purchase such as a 55" tv. you don't want to get stuck with something that lacks key features or has a poor image because you didn't do enough research

>- it would be my first smartv and have heard that the built-in
>apps are quite slow/useless. is that true? for those who have
>a smart tv, do you find you're still using external streaming
>boxes like the roku?

i haven't had good experiences with smart tv's but that was a few years ago. it's possible that the tech has improved. it's probably better to get a roku or something similar. i'd equate built-in streaming tech to factory car stereos; it's functional but you're likely to get something much better by purchasing an after-market device

>any other thoughts/comparables welcomed!!

tv prices are generally lowest at the beginning of the year. it may be better to wait until mid-january or so for a better deal. also you can save a lot of money by getting an open-box item. i saved a lot of money (~$300) on a nearly brand new TV by going through amazon warehouse. the tv was (and still is) fine. it was discounted because it had some minor cosmetic damage on the back