For HDR input, the HD39HDR automatically switches to (and only allows) its
one HDR picture mode, which is well worth using. In my tests, the HDR
versions of movies on disc delivered more-vibrant color and showed more
shadow detail than the same movies in 1080p SDR format.
ASSESSING THE BRIGHTNESS
Using the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE)
recommendations, 4,000 lumens is bright enough for a 160-inch, 1.0-gain
screen in moderately bright ambient light. The four modes with the best
picture quality—Cinema, sRGB, HDR Sim, and Game—are nowhere near as
bright, though.
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screen. For informal tests in a family room with lots of windows, even the sRGB
mode was bright enough to light up an 80-inch, 1.0-gain screen both with lights
on at night and late in the day with the sun low in the sky. HDR Sim mode
provided a more watchable picture with bright sunlight outside.
As for 3D functionality, like most of its competition, the HD39HDR works with
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mode that needs calibration before it becomes available). It also provides an
unusually bright image for 3D, compared to its 2D modes. I saw no crosstalk in
my tests and only minor 3D-related motion artifacts by today’s standards.