Samsung Electronics has launched its LED-based DLP high-definition television, the HL-S5679, which promises a brighter picture along with a longer life than the standard UHP lamps used in previous models.

The standard Samsung DLP sets used a UHP lamp and a colorwheel to project light onto the tiny mirrors which proved to be bright, beautiful, and effective until the LED idea came along. Samsung showed off its LED based prototypes at trade shows this past year with a brighter, clearer picture made possible with the LED idea as well as reduction in the rainbow effect some of us have noticed with the traditional lamp/colorwheel designs.

The LEDs are set up in an array of 6 LEDs for each of the colors, red, green, and blue totaling 18 LEDs. The LEDs help the television to start up quicker and operate at a cooler temperature while staying quieter during operation. Those of us with the last generation of Samsung's DLPs have noticed the low hum of the mechanics inside the TV which we would rather not have added to our home theater experience.

The HL-S5679 has a native resolution of 1080p as many of the newer sets do now. The life of the LEDs is greatly improved over the UHP lamp at 20,000 hours of use as opposed to 4000-8000 hours. Pricing has been set at $3999 and can be seen listed at various retailers but we shouldn't expect the HL-S5679 to ship before August of this year.