Samsung 40MU6400 (MU6400) UHD HDR LED LCD TV – review

Picture quality

Picture analysis and calibration performed using SpectraCal Calman 2016 Ultimate for Business software, SpectraCal C6 colorimeter and VideoForge and Murideo SIX-G pattern generators.

New year brings new TVs, but no change in how the televisions are factory set – the Standard mode is greeting us with all the imperfections that we have mentioned ever since we started reviewing TVs. Fortunately, there is a Movie preset that is much closer to reference values, so close that most of the users can consider it factory-calibrated.

The calibration control this year is a 20-point white balance, allowing Samsung to finally align itself with LG’s televisions in this regard. Unfortunately, Samsung did not fix the often buggy control, so after several attempts, we calibrated TV only through two-point controls.

Gamut accurately tracks the Rec.709 color space so that the Auto function here is doing an excellent job. For those who want it, there is a manual option for primary and secondary colors.

We do not like the fact that MU6400 suffers from so-called global dimming in all presets (except in PC mode), which we managed to defeat by displaying full-screen patterns or by having a small menu up on the screen.

When HDR signal is detected, the TV activates new presets which are called the same as for SDR – Dynamic, Standard, Natural and Movie. Movie preset in again the most precise, however, the image is under-exposed so it is necessary to “breathe life” into it through the Contrast Enhancer control.

After calibration, the HDR image is the best that can be achieved with regard to limited potential in terms of dynamics and peak luminance.

More comments and tips on how to set up this TV can be found in the video below:

You can get my settings after calibration by visiting my Payhip store >>

Panel quality and backlight features

* – grades 1-4, 1 = bad, 2 = average, 3 = good, 4 = excellent

Signal processing

* – grades 1-4, 1 = bad, 2 = average, 3 = good, 4 = excellent

Picture quality – overall

* – ocjene od 1-4, više je bolje, 1 = loše, 2 = osrednje, 3 = dobro, 4 = izvrsno

The picture we saw on the last year’s KU6000 series in terms of standard and high definition, as well as the standard and wide dynamic range (HDR), the new 40MU6402 displays in exactly the same quality without any variation that we can point out. The same panel, the same image processor, the same characteristics of the image before calibration and the same peak luminance to display the HDR and wide range of colors.

Honestly, we did not expect miracles for the two reasons – the first is that Samsung on the global launch of the “QLED” line was not talking about imaging improvements (new processor, new algorithms …), which was then confirmed by the first tests online (Rtings review Q7F model), including our quick test for the Q7C model (in Croatian).

All this does not mean that the MU6402 is a bad TV – on the contrary, it is a television that will surely satisfy most users, no matter what the content they will be viewing. For years, Samsung is implementing image processors that recognize each type of interlaced signal and show it without the “comb effect”, the shake or the moire effect. In addition, image scaling is solid – not the best on the market – but to watch our TV program in 720x576i the image resolution will be good. A big plus is a nearly calibrated Movie Template, with which you can be sure to look at colors and shades as they should be.

It is mentioned in the overview above, but still, we need to mention this once again – viewing angles are limited and if you want the best picture, you need to sit directly in front of the screen. If there are more seating areas and you want a better picture from the corner, then you will be better of with a TV with IPS panel (with LG offering the most of such).

The 40MU6402, just like its predecessors in the 6000 series, has no local dimming, but this is not a big minus given the high native contrast, as well as the fact that Samsung has no sophisticated dimming on its edge-LED models (as compared to Sony’s XD9305 or this year’s XE9305 model). While watching movies in darkened environment, the contrast was good, making titles such as The Dark Knight or Interstellar a solid experience (considering the price category).

The built-in panel works at 60 Hz and does not offer the ability to reduce the blur in the picture. There is only the Clear Motion LED option that will do more harm than good as we noted above. Interestingly, last year’s KU6072 model had better LED Clear Motion with better motion resolution without such duplication as on the tested model (we believe it’s a bug in the software and will be solved through the upcoming upgrades). For those who want a soap effect film, there is Judder Reduction control that works as before – makes the picture smooth, but introduces artifacts and variations in the playback speed.

HDR performance, just like last year, is limited by the peak luminance the screen can display, as well as the absence of any LED backlight control. Looking at Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Planet Earth II, what we first saw was a greater sharpness of the picture and a clearer shades compared to classic Blu-ray, but without truly dynamic and colorful picture higher end TVs can display. If HDR is not your priority, the 40MU6402 will do the job, but not at the level of more expensive models.