Samsung BD-F5900 In-Use and Bench Testing
Generally speaking, I found the Samsung BD-F5900 to be a joy
to use. Discs loaded quickly (or at least as quickly as Blu-ray discs usually
load) and the menus were snappy and quick to respond. My favorite bit was how
fast the Samsung BD-F5900 went between the "Home" screen and anywhere
else (including the disc in use). Usually, with main menus, you have to wait a
few seconds for the player to switch. With the Samsung BD-F5900, the Home menu
(where you can access a number of functions including Settings, a few top apps,
and streamed content) came up almost immediately. The Smart Hub, ironically,
took longer.
My only complaint is that the disc drive is a bit noisy. While I couldn't hear it in my room from my seated position eight feet away, it was clearly audible as I stepped forward. It didn't bother or affect me but I know that others might have a different experience. If you are sitting close to your equipment rack, the Samsung BD-F5900 might not be for you.
As a dutiful reviewer, I put the Samsung BD-F5900 though the standard battery of HQV tests. Here are the results:
HQV SD Tests
Samsung BD-F5900 Benchmark total score: 100/130
Test |
Max |
Results |
Pass/Fail |
Color Bar |
10 |
10 |
Pass |
Jaggies #1 |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Jaggies #2 |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Flag |
10 |
5 |
Pass |
Detail |
10 |
10 |
Pass |
Noise |
10 |
0 |
Fail |
Motion adaptive Noise Reduction |
10 |
0 |
Fail |
Film Detail |
10 |
10 |
Pass |
Cadence 2:2 Video |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 2:2:2:4 DV Cam |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 2:3:3:2 DV Cam |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 3:2:3:2:2 Vari-speed |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 5:5 Animation |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 6:4 Animation |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 8:7 animation |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Cadence 24fps film |
5 |
5 |
Pass |
Scrolling Horizontal |
10 |
10 |
Pass |
Scrolling Rolling |
10 |
5 |
Pass |
Total |
130 |
100 |
*All tests were done with the HDMI outputs at 1080p.
HQV HD Tests
Samsung BD-F5900 Benchmark total score: 100/100
HD Tests (@ 1080p) |
Max |
Score |
Pass/Fail |
HD Noise |
25 |
25 |
Pass |
Video Resolution Loss |
20 |
20 |
Pass |
Video Reconstruction |
20 |
20 |
Pass |
Film Resolution Loss |
25 |
25 |
Pass |
Film Resolution Loss Stadium |
10 |
10 |
Pass |
Total |
100 |
100 |
Comments on HQV Benchmarks
I was pleasantly surprised as to how well the Samsung BD-F5900 performed on the HQV tests. I was particularly surprised as to the performance on the DVD Cadence tests. Noise was an issue but that is pretty typical. Both Jaggies tests were passing, but barely and I flip flopped between giving the Samsung BD-F5900 full and partial credit for those tests. The Flag test showed me that jaggies were going to be an issue but, again, it was very close to getting full credit for that one as well. In the vertical scroll test, when the letters first appeared, they'd flicker for a second before the Samsung would lock on.
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Recent Forum Posts:
sm31, post: 1094797, member: 38630If it is still under warranty I would try contacting Samsung fisrt.. Shouldn't skip that easily.
Brought back from the dead… But I feel compelled to respond to the “imperfect” disc comment.
I have been tempted to frisbee this POS down the street so many times. If atoms on the disc surface aren't aligned perfectly (much less a slight fingerprint or hairline scratch) the thing jags & skips at least once on every disc played.
In fact, other than the whopping 15 seconds I save when loading discs, I hate just about every aspect of this player… with the weird surface pressure type buttons running a close second to the disc sensitivity.
I'm shopping for a replacement for this piece of crap as soon as I finish this post.
I have been tempted to frisbee this POS down the street so many times. If atoms on the disc surface aren't aligned perfectly (much less a slight fingerprint or hairline scratch) the thing jags & skips at least once on every disc played.
In fact, other than the whopping 15 seconds I save when loading discs, I hate just about every aspect of this player… with the weird surface pressure type buttons running a close second to the disc sensitivity.
I'm shopping for a replacement for this piece of crap as soon as I finish this post.
I don't use the Samsung remote. My Harmony One is backlit. I like the large timer display because it is easy to read. I don't notice it because the unit is near the floor on the bottom shelf of the audio furniture. I have yet to use the manual control circle. It is boots twice as fast as the Panasonic and I appreciate that.
I have only two problems with it. The first is that it won't accept a wireless keyboard for use with the browser so I don't use the browser. The second is that I'm unable to download any of the apps in the Samsung app store. I'm not much of a streamer so that isn't huge for me. There is a real computer only two rooms away so I can live without the player's browser.
And best of all, it isn't brought to its knees by imperfect Netflix Blu-Ray discs. I certainly recommend it.
I would suggest to future reviewers that when possible all streaming services be listed. Although in many of the Sony BD player's case that may be a page of details.