An HDTV with less highlights, please

June 4, 2011 2:41 PM

I just need to calibrate one thing to be happy with my HDTV. If I only knew what that thing is called....

I'm happy with my HDTV except for the fact that the image looks (sometimes) unrealistically crisp. What I notice is that the highlights and reflections are stand out way more than they should and become distracting.


I have changed the backlight, brightness and contrast settings, but whole the highlights remain a little less notorious the whole image looks more dark than it should.

What is the name of the setting that I'm after? Is it even possible just to change this setting?

I'm not interested in a full calibration. For someone like me the colors look just fine, the image is ok *except* for that detail. In case it matters, my model is a Samsung LN40C630.

posted by edmz to technology (10 answers total)

Most TVs have this setting, which is usually called Sharpening or Sharpness. It's usually cranked up way too high out of the box.
posted by zsazsa at 2:49 PM on June 4, 2011

Is there a sharpness setting? That might help.

I've noticed (in stores, anyway) that some TVs look that way, "unrealistically crisp." I don't know if it's part of the way some TVs are made or designed, or if it's some kind of over-processing in the TV, or if the stores have the sharpness turned way up because they think it looks better.

If you don't have a sharpness setting, or turning it down doesn't help, there may be other processing options you can change, or you might be stuck with a TV that just does that to the image.
posted by WasabiFlux at 2:49 PM on June 4, 2011

Its Motion Interpolation

More Here
posted by bitdamaged at 2:53 PM on June 4, 2011

Specific to your TV
posted by bitdamaged at 2:54 PM on June 4, 2011

@bitdamaged:

that crunchgear article really describes what I'm seeing in my HDTV. I will play with that setting, hopefully it will improve.

thanks!
posted by edmz at 3:30 PM on June 4, 2011

Yeah if it helps, I had the same experience with my TV and you really won't even notice after a while. I totally forgot about it except every so often I'll have someone over and they'll mention it.
posted by bitdamaged at 3:39 PM on June 4, 2011

@bitdamaged:

did you manage to reduce the effect or did you just grow used to it?
posted by edmz at 3:54 PM on June 4, 2011

I just grew used to it. I noticed it, but it never really bothered me.
posted by bitdamaged at 4:05 PM on June 4, 2011

I have a very similar Samsung television. There's another setting besides sharpness that causes this. Go into the menu, and under Picture go into Advanced Settings. Look for "Edge Enhancement". Turn that off.

It seems to be OK when watching standard-definition sources, but with anything that is decently crisp to begin with, it looks dreadful with this option on, and great with it off. The effect is far too strong, like applying ridiculous amounts of unsharp masking in Photoshop (and I think that is basically what it's doing).
posted by FishBike at 6:37 PM on June 4, 2011

I wonder if it isn't a gamma issue? Try changing the settings for the dynamic contrast and whatever "Wide Color Enhancer Plus" is.
posted by gjc at 2:54 PM on June 5, 2011