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If you haven’t adjusted the settings on your new Samsung TV, it's likely not performing at its highest potential in terms of picture quality and viewing experience. Now is the time to rectify that.
Over the years, many TV manufacturers have noted that the overwhelming majority of users don’t bother to explore even the most basic settings after purchasing a TV. Often, people set it up straight out of the box and leave it at that.
We understand the excitement of diving into a new gadget, but a few simple adjustments can drastically enhance your viewing experience. By taking just a few minutes to modify some settings, you can significantly improve the picture quality and overall usability of your television.
Here are seven crucial adjustments to consider for your Samsung TV to ensure you enjoy the best picture quality tailored to your preferences.
Disable these default settings
Most modern TVs come with an Eco mode enabled right out of the box. While being environmentally conscious is commendable, limiting your TV's brightness and contrast is not the best approach. Imagine buying a high-speed sports car but capping it to just 40 miles per hour!
To disable this setting, use the Settings button on your remote, navigate to All Settings, go to General & Privacy, select Power and Energy Saving, and switch Energy Saving Solution to Off.
While you’re at it, turn off Brightness Optimization. Many televisions are equipped with sensors that adjust brightness based on the room's light levels. However, this feature can be unreliable. By deactivating it, you take control of the brightness and color temperature, especially in well-lit rooms.
Adjust for optimal brightness
Now that you’ve taken control of these important settings, it’s time to choose a picture mode. Open an app like YouTube, press the Settings button on your remote, and find Picture Mode. Modes like Cinema, Movie, or Filmmaker are excellent choices, while Standard is suitable if you prefer a cooler color temperature. Avoid Dynamic Mode, as it often results in an overly bright and harsh picture.
Next, determine your preferred brightness level. Some viewers enjoy a brighter display during the day, while others might find a more subdued brightness preferable at night. If you want to accommodate both, consider setting different brightness levels in multiple picture modes for switching based on the time of day.
Keep in mind that you’ll be viewing both SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) and HDR (High Dynamic Range) content, so adjusting brightness for both formats is necessary on your Samsung TV.
For SDR content, adjust the brightness via the Settings quick menu. Go to Picture Setup, look for Brightness, and set it to your preference. You can also access All Settings, then Picture, and finally Expert settings for more options.
For HDR adjustments, play some HDR content—this could be a YouTube video featuring high-quality visuals, like those created by Eugene Belsky. Press the Settings button on your remote, head to Picture Setup, and adjust the brightness just like you did for SDR.
Another way to boost your TV’s brightness is through Local Dimming. Access this setting by pressing the Settings button on your remote, selecting All Settings, then Picture, followed by Expert Settings, and scroll to Local Dimming. Adjust this by experimenting with Low, Standard, or High settings. Choosing Low will yield less brightness but reduces blooming around bright objects on dark backgrounds. A Standard or High setting increases brightness—ideal for daytime watching. For vibrant highlights, keep this setting set to High.
Enhance motion and control
Motion smoothing can be a divisive feature: some viewers appreciate it, while others believe it makes everything look artificial, leading to the so-called “soap opera effect.”
To adjust motion smoothing on your Samsung TV, go back into Expert Settings, navigate to Picture, and find Picture Clarity Settings. Here, you can either completely turn it off or fine-tune the effect by lowering both Blur Reduction and Judder Reduction settings. Feel free to test this out—you might find it beneficial for sports but prefer no smoothing for cinematic films. It ultimately depends on your viewing style.
Additionally, there are features to make using your Samsung TV more convenient.
During the initial setup, you’re prompted to connect other devices, which allows your remote to control basic functions of those devices. If you skipped that step or want to connect a new device, you can adjust the HDMI CEC (Consumer Electronics Control) settings. On Samsung TVs, this is referred to as Anynet+ (HDMI-CEC).
To access it, press the Settings button on your remote, navigate to Connection, and then External Device Manager to toggle it on or off. When enabled, you can control your soundbar’s volume and navigate your gaming console’s main menu directly with the TV remote.
In summary, purchasing a new TV guarantees a good picture, but with some exploration in the settings, it can be even better. It’s definitely worth taking the time to uncover just how vibrant your TV’s visuals can be. Even if your television is older and you’ve never adjusted any settings, now is the perfect time to investigate ways to enhance your viewing experience with a few simple tweaks.
If you own a different brand of TV and wish to make similar adjustments, many modern TVs offer comparable features to Samsung, albeit with different labels. If you're interested in configurations for LG, Sony, Hisense, TCL, or Panasonic, we have details available for those models as well.
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