Some TVs try to do everything. This isn't one of them.
The TX-S3082WH came out right at the end of the CRT era when everyone knew flat panels were taking over.... and they kind of already had. Samsung's answer wasn't to build the best all-around CRT. It was to build a TV that made HDTV look so good you'd think twice about buying an LCD.
And honestly... they kind of pulled it off.
This thing is gorgeous. The cabinet still looks modern almost twenty years later, the tube is insanely bright, the speakers are excellent, and the true 16:9 widescreen tube means 720p and 1080i actually use the entire screen instead of wasting phosphor on black bars. Feed her a Wii U, Switch, Xbox 360, or PS3 and the picture is soft in all the right ways. The shadow mask gives colorful HD games a smooth, almost painted look that fits Nintendo especially well.
Now the bad.
Anything before the HD era is where she completely falls apart.
240p looks awful. 480i isn't much better. Even 480p somehow ends up softer than it should be. My RetroTINK 2X Pro, which works absolute magic on my Sony HS420, can't save this thing. She simply wasn't built with retro gaming in mind.
Then there's the weight. This TV is an absolute bastard to move. I've carried bigger CRTs that somehow weighed less than this thing. And every single time you move her, the geometry and convergence decide they're going to do something different just to piss you off.
That's really what this TV is.
She's not a bad CRT.
She's a bad retro CRT.
Treat her like a 2006 HDTV and she's fantastic. Treat her like an all-purpose gaming CRT and you'll spend more time fighting her than enjoying her.
If your library starts with the Wii generation, you'll probably love her.
If your library starts with the NES, keep looking. OR HAVE A BUNCH OF CRTS WITH DIFFERENT JOBS!!!!!
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Whenever specifications are used from their database, proper credit is given.
If you want deeper technical details on any CRT mentioned here, you should absolutely reference their site.
