Here’s a tip for your HDTV. Most sets are shipped with a setting turned on by default that drives video professionals crazy. We’ve had people ask us over the past couple of years about their TV, and that it just looks “weird”, like a low-budget soap opera.

The weirdness occurs when there is movement on the screen, especially for content that was shot at 24 frames per second (as 99.9% of all films are). The purpose of the setting is to “smooth out” film motion. Most people don’t like it, but they don’t know why. Some people can’t tell a difference or don’t care.

My brother, God bless him, is one of those. We were at his house when he had recently purchased a brand new Samsung 50” HDTV. Top of the line set, but this setting was turned on. During a commercial break I said, “can I please see the remote and check something?” I found the setting and turned it off. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for at the time but I do now, and you can use the information here to find out what the setting is called on your HDTV.

Below are some brand names and the name of the setting to turn off. Send us a note and let us know if you like it better or not.

Hitachi – Reel120
Insignia – DCM Plus, for Digital Clear Motion 120 Hz, or Insignia Motion 120Hz
LG – TruMotion 120 Hz, 240 Hz, 480 Hz
Mitsubishi – Smooth 120 Hz
Panasonic – Intelligent Frame Creation (IFC) 24p Smooth Film (24p material only)
Philips – HD Digital Natural Motion, Perfect Motion Rate
Samsung – Auto Motion Plus or Clear Motion Rate
Sharp – Fine Motion Enhanced, AquoMotion, or AquoMotion Pro
Sony – MotionFlow
Toshiba – ClearScan
Vizio – SmoothMotion
Sceptre – MEMC (Motion Estimation/Motion Compensation)

If your brand isn’t listed, contact us and we’ll try to get the information for you.