LED seems to be the next big flavor of the flat panel world, and Samsung is spearheading the charge. The new 7000 series LED TV is the flagship of the LED range in the popular 40-inch size. A notch above is the 8000 series 55-inch LED TV (which costs a whopping Rs 3.5 lakhs).

The panel is Full HD, which means a resolution of 1920x1080 and a salute to the Gods of high definition. However, the performance of the LED is not vastly different from the LCD and Plasma screens you see out there. The only real difference being that the traditional LCD televisions have CCFL backlighting while the LED televisions have the LED backlighting. This TV used edge LED strips as the backlight technology. This has loads of a difference in the final picture quality; you get brighter whites, vibrant colors and darker blacks. Samsung have used the new LUXIA LED engine in the 7000 series.

The full HD display is amazing when plugged in with an HD source, but like all 1920x1080 capable flat panels, it is disappointing when having to deal with SD content, and for no real fault of its own. We used the BigTv DTH service and it was extremely disappointing to see that we still pay big bucks for poor standard definition content for our expensive flat panel full HD televisions.

The blacks are extremely dark, and there is also an option to set the black level. The color reproduction is extremely rich.

Back to the television, and the fact that the UA40B7000 is extremely slim, which means that there is a trade off in terms of the connectivity options provided. There are 4 HDMI ports, 2 USB, but only one combined component/composite input. The USB input allows you to play audio as well as certain video formats, like AVI and WMV.

The slim enclosure also means that there has to be a compromise in terms of the size of the speakers and therefore the loudness and overall quality of the sound. The bass is totally lacking, and a multi-channel home theater system is desperately needed. Though once you see how slim it actually is, my guess is that you'll be more than willing to live with this small compromise.

There is also the much advertised 'internet' feature, which allows you to put widgets on the screen, which are constantly updated with the latest in whichever widget category you have chosen.

Samsung UA40B7000 LED TV Rs 1,40,000	Performance Coolness
Pros Jaw-dropping performance Cons Only one component/composite Sold by Samsung India, www.samsung.com/in	Specs 40 inch panel, Full HD (1920X1080p), LED backlight, LUXIA LED picture engine, 4 HDMI, 2 USB (with movie playback), combined composite and component Verdict

Overall, the UA40B7000 LED TV is available in the market for around Rs 140k. This makes it more expensive than the 46-inch Series 6 LCD (reviewed in this issue itself). If you're in the market for an LED TV, it makes sense if you're going to wall mount it and get everyone to appreciate the slimness (enhanced by the ultra-slim wall mount). Buy it to generate lots of envy and if the lack of input ports does not bother you. The sleekness, performance and the beauty of the panel will definitely take your breath away.