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00:00If a TV and a monitor somehow had a baby, I'm not quite sure the logistics of that, but I think this would be it
00:07Hey guys, I'm Tom a tech chap
00:09And this is the new Samsung M7
00:11Samsung sent this over for me to have a bit of a play with they are also very kindly sponsoring this video
00:16But as you guys know always my opinions on my own
00:19But I want to give you my thoughts on this and also just basically walk you through
00:23What is this smart TV or be it without the tuner and a traditional 4k 32-inch desktop monitor?
00:31And it goes a step further because unlike a regular TV or monitor
00:35We also get built-in office 365
00:37You can remote access your work computer
00:40If you've got a recent Samsung phone, you can use decks to have more of a desktop UI for your phone
00:45Then there's wireless dual display which allows you to use the smart monitor as a second screen for your MacBook or your Windows laptop
00:53Completely wirelessly and it also supports screen mirroring via AirPlay 2 on your iPhone or by tapping your phone against the screen
01:00And all this is without needing a PC or a laptop attached
01:04And I think maybe the biggest surprise is that this costs just 400 pounds or $400 which is
01:11Suspiciously cheap given all the features you get for it. I mean as I say, it's a 32-inch 4k
01:18HDR 10 certified
01:19Display, I'm gonna call it a display because monitor doesn't really do it justice and there's also even cheaper 1080p
01:2527 inch and 32 models of this the m5
01:28Although I haven't tested those but I think 1080p at 32 inches would be a bit of a stretch
01:32So for me, I think this 4k 32 inch m7 model is the way to go
01:37So this smart monitors kind of come at a good time because I think most of us have been stuck working from home for such
01:43A long time now
01:44But I think space in our homes and our well home offices has to be more flexible to maintain a healthy work-life balance
01:51And if you're stuck in front of a monitor all day, which I think most of us are
01:55Why shouldn't that be more flexible for both work and play?
01:59Now I must admit I was and still I'm a little bit skeptical about just how often I would actually need these features
02:05I mean, I think the vast majority of us would probably already have a laptop or a PC hooked up to our display
02:11Anyway, and from that you can access well the internet and get all the streaming services and all the productivity features that way
02:17and also pretty much any recent monitor can be made smart just by adding a streaming stick like a Roku or Amazon fire or
02:24Chromecast and those also have streamlined TV style interfaces with all the smart apps you could eat
02:30But I suppose the point here is convenience and then it's all neatly
02:33Integrated into the screen without the cost or the fuss of setting up a separate streaming device
02:38And for most people who just need a nice big screen for a home office, that's good for working and for streaming
02:44I think this could be a great choice
02:47Now I get to all this smart streaming stuff in just a second
02:50But I want to focus on what I think is the more interesting aspect of this and that's the kind of work
02:54Productivity features and a standout has to be the built-in office 365 support
02:59Which allows you to access and work on documents from the cloud without a PC or laptop
03:04So there's obvious remote working advantages to this although not quite sure how often you wouldn't be without your PC or laptop
03:10But if you are using the m7 by itself for working then trust me, you'll need a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard
03:16You've never experienced pain until you've tried Excel with a TV remote
03:21But then again, we're all getting used to the idea of working remotely
03:25Sorry, it also gets Samsung's wireless deck support
03:29Which lets you use your Samsung phone to power a PC style desktop UI with compatible apps for a more office like experience
03:36Again, though a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard is a must but you can use your phone as a giant touchpad
03:41And then there's screen mirroring via AirPlay 2 on iPhone
03:45Which is really easy to set up or if you're an Android you can use a tap view feature
03:48Which requires Samsung's smart things app to be installed
03:51But you just simply tap your phone on the edge of the screen to set it up
03:55Although sometimes I had to give it more of a whack to activate and actually the on-screen prompt even suggests a case if you're worried
04:01About damaging your phone, which doesn't seem ideal
04:05Wireless dual display basically lets you use the smart monitor as a second screen for your MacBook or your Windows 10 laptop
04:11Connecting via AirPlay 2 or Bluetooth respectively in both cases connection is really simple
04:17I didn't have any dropouts even when I took my laptop into the next room and not having to plug in a display cable is
04:23Obviously more convenient and allows you to sit further away
04:26Compared to a normal wired connection though
04:28The image was nowhere near as sharp and there was a little bit of lag as well
04:32Though this isn't particularly noticeable outside of say gaming. So while this wireless display is pretty nifty
04:39I think I'd stick to wired when you can and
04:42Then there's remote access which lets you log into your work PC or Mac from home and provided that machine is also set up for access
04:49it's a pretty cool idea if you're working remotely without your laptop or PC with you and you can even remote access a PC in
04:55Another room if you want to as for the smart TV side of things while you've got pretty much every smart app you can imagine
05:02Amazon Netflix
05:04Disney YouTube
05:05We've even got iPlayer night TV here
05:07Which obviously is for the UK and as I say, this is basically just been lifted off their most recent Samsung TVs as well
05:14So it's incredibly intuitive to use and obviously you can use this from a lot further away than having to
05:19Physically use the on-screen display with most monitors
05:22So if you've got this at the other end of the room or maybe you're a college student with this in your bedroom
05:27You can use this as your smart TV
05:30Well everything really from a distance from the comfort of your own sofa or bed
05:35So aside from not actually having a TV tuner built-in, although I'm not quite sure how often you need that anymore
05:40Everyone's using smart apps. This is a pretty good 32 inch 4k TV as well
05:45Plus you can use the mic button on the remote to use voice commands
05:49Another advantage of this is the sound quality, which I'd say is in line with regular TVs of this size
05:54It is lacking in bass and some richness a little bit, but it's still better than pretty much any other monitor for the money
06:01So far so good then, but I do have a couple of little niggling issues with it
06:06and I think one of the areas Samsung has compromised on with this perhaps in order to get that lower price is
06:12Unfortunately, the screen quality itself. The colors on this VA panel aren't particularly vivid
06:17Brightness peaks are just 250 nits which is below average even for a basic monitor and it's frankly rubbish considering it supports HDR 10
06:24And as I say color accuracy is pretty good as well
06:27And it's frankly rubbish considering it supports HDR 10 and as I say color accuracy is only mediocre
06:34So it's not really the best choice for graphics professionals or video or photo editors who really need a high-quality
06:40IPS screen for the best results, but I think a lot of that is kind of missing the point
06:45This is a big high resolution 4k
06:49Affordable TV slash monitor, which I think is gonna be great for most people. Yes
06:53We're not getting professional levels of color and also the viewing angles aren't the best but it's not bad and for a 32-inch 4k
07:00Display for $400. Yeah, I think this is actually incredible value for money
07:05Also 32 inches is fast becoming my favorite monitor size
07:09Maybe outside of ultrawides especially if they have thin bezels like this
07:13So they don't take up a ton of room on your desk and they also offer a lot of screen real estate
07:17So you can have multiple apps open side-by-side
07:19One caveat of Samsung's do-it-all
07:22Marketing claims for this monitor. I think is when it comes to high refresh gaming because unfortunately, this is limited to 60 Hertz
07:29There's no high refresh rate here, which is a bit of a shame
07:32But I think again, we have to take into consideration that price
07:36maybe it would have been nice if there was a
07:38600 pound option with slightly better colors and a high refresh rate
07:42I would really like to have seen this because I think this
07:44Well concept is a really good idea and I kind of wish there was a higher level as well
07:49For people that can afford it
07:50But yeah, sadly we are stuck at 60 which again is absolutely fine for the vast majority of people
07:55But if you're a enthusiast gamer, then maybe look elsewhere
07:59As for connectivity around the back we get two HDMI 2.0 and also on this 4k m7 model
08:05We get a USB C port which also supports DisplayPort 1.4a if you plug in a compatible laptop or PC
08:12And this also allows the monitor to act as a USB hub
08:15It's a bit of a shame though that we're not getting any Thunderbolt 3 support with this
08:19Which would also mean that you could charge your laptop out of the same power cable
08:23That's what powering the monitor and also where you can have high-resolution daisy-chaining
08:27There's a few advantages to Thunderbolt 3, but it does up the price if you look for even 27 or 32 inch 4k
08:34Thunderbolt 3 monitors, then you're looking at least six or seven hundred pounds again
08:38This is four hundred and thirty two inches plus you've got all these smart features
08:43Also the stand for the smart monitor is another area
08:46I think they've chosen to save some money because while it's stable enough not to fall over
08:50There's very little flexibility to it
08:52It only tilts a little bit and it can't rotate or be used in portrait mode plus as a fair bit of screen wobble
08:59So with all that said is it actually worth buying this Samsung smart monitor this m7 model?
09:05Well, I think for the average user
09:07Yeah, I mean if you don't care that much about tip-top professional color accuracy
09:11And you can get over the slightly iffy viewing angles if you want a big 4k resolution display
09:17Which can act as a monitor and also a TV and a little bit more with all the smart apps like office and wireless decks
09:24Then I think for the price this is actually an incredible bit of kit
09:27So the next question then is if you are thinking about using this for its smart TV features
09:32Why not just buy a TV?
09:33Well, you could do and I've made some videos about that recently
09:36But then no TV really comes with a USB C port which also supports display port 1.4
09:42So in terms of the connectivity and also the response times and the modes this supports
09:46It works much better as a monitor than a lot of TVs, especially at this price range
09:51This is a nice combination of small for a TV
09:55But big for a monitor that kind of nice crossover of 32 inches while having that 4k resolution a good range of connectivity
10:03Reasonable image quality and so I think for the average user
10:05This is kind of like the best of both worlds
10:07Of course for similar money, you could go with say a quad HD
10:11So 1440p IPS monitor which trades this resolution for better colors brightness and HDR performance
10:18And then maybe just plug in a separate streaming stick for the smart interface or of course just leave your laptop connected
10:24There's always that option. So I think a lot of people maybe myself included are thinking that's really cool
10:30But I'm not sure why I would need it
10:32But if you do need it, if you're watching this thinking that's perfect for my setup
10:36Then well, I'll leave a link in the description and I would highly recommend it
10:40But what do you reckon?
10:41Could you see a place for this in your setup?
10:43And also would you use any of those smart productivity features like the built-in office 365 and wireless decks?
10:49Let me know in the comments below
10:51Thank you so much for watching guys
10:52If you want to see more from me, then don't forget to hit that subscribe button below again
10:56A big thank you to Samsung for sending this over and also sponsoring this video and I will see you next time right here on
11:02the Tech Jam