TechRadar Verdict
Pros
- +
Terrific value
- +
Lovely design
- +
Excellent Smart TV features
- +
Very good picture quality
Cons
- -
Sound could be better
- -
More quality control needed over some apps
- -
Minor and mostly avoidable backlight consistency issues
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While Samsung might like to shout loudest about its flagship TVs, it's actually the brand's mid to lower-range models that have most helped propel Samsung to the top of the TV sales pile. And with good reason, for over the past three or four years its mid-range 5 and 6 series models such as the UE37D5000 and the LE40C650 have consistently set new value-for-money standards, especially at the 40 to 46-inch sizes.
Cue the Samsung UE40D5520, a 40-inch LCD TV illuminated by edge-mounted LEDs and boasting a long feature list that typically seems completely out of kilter with its price tag of just £599.
Also typical for a Samsung mid-range set is its supremely elegant design. Its deep grey colour is unusual and attractive, the appearance of a little transparent trim protruding beyond the main bezel is very stylish and the glass-necked stand wouldn't look out of place on a TV costing twice as much.
The Samsung UE40D5520's aggressive pricing does stop the TV including 3D.
But your £599 gets you Samsung's latest Smart TV system and a Freeview HD tuner, neither of which you'd necessarily expect to find on such an affordable 40-inch TV from an A-list brand.
Other TVs in the Samsung D5520 series range this year are the 37-inch UE37D5520 and the 46-inch 46D5520.
Don't confuse the 5520 series with Samsung's other 5 Series models, though, because the D5000 models don't have either Smart TV functionality or HD tuners. You have been warned...
If you want to add 3D to your Samsung TV feature count, then you will need to step up to the 6 series, as represented by the D6100 and D6510 models. These models are the same, except for cosmetic differences. The D6500 also adds Skype and a web browser to its Smart TV functions, and uses 400Hz processing compared with the D6100's 200Hz.
For those of you not yet convinced by 3D's charms, though, the Samsung UE40D5520 really does look like a potentially stellar option for the buyer on a budget.
