Samsung PN64F8500AF Pro Reviews

The Samsung PNF8500 series is a top-shelf plasma HDTV line that delivers outstanding color quality, solid 2D and 3D imagery, and very dark blacks. You'll shell out some big bucks for this model though, and you may want to pick up a universal remote while you're at it.

Until we’ve thoroughly tested the Panasonic VT60, we can’t declare any winners in the battle for this year’s best TV, but we can say that Samsung’s F8500 is going to give the Panny a serious run for its money. Though the F8500 is a little rich on novelty features for our taste (we could do without voice commands and gesture control entirely) it’s Smart Hub TV interface is one of the best platforms available. And, if you’re willing to endure the learning curve, its ability to control cable and satellite boxes and integrate its content guide into a more pleasant interface can be a nice bonus. But if we brush all that stuff aside, what we’re left with is a TV that is stunning to behold, on or off. While videophiles will understandably want to dicker over measurement minutiae in an effort to objectively declare a winner of the ultimate TV prize, the fact is that anyone who chooses to buy the F8500 is going to come out a winner. It is one of those TVs that you don’t want to miss out on purchasing now, or you’ll be regretting it for years as you read five years from now about how it was a landmark product for Samsung and how sad it is that plasma isn’t around anymore. It’s just that good.

Samsung's best-performing TV ever, the PNF8500 series pushes the plasma picture quality envelope, especially in bright rooms.