If you’re looking for a 55-inch LED-based HDTV, the Samsung UN55B7000 and UN55B8000 are two of the top offerings from Samsung. Both deliver breathtaking images at much less the energy consumed by other models. The UN55B8000 is more expensive, though, which makes one wonder if the UN55B7000 is just as good.

Let’s take a look at the key differences of both models. For one, you can be able to tell them apart by just a glance, since the UN55B7000 has a distinct amber border on its panel, while the only touch of color on the UN55B8000 is its blue power indicator, which can even be turned off. Both are among Samsung’s thinnest HDTVs, measuring a maximum of 1.2 inches deep, although the UN55B7000 is a few inches taller. Both also come with matching swivelling stands – charcoal grey for the UN55B8000 and red for the UN55B7000.

Their clickers are different, too, with the one that comes with the UN55B7000 being more user-friendly, with backlit buttons that are easy to press and differentiate instead of the less-than-responsive scroll wheel. Its design has been slightly modified, too, so that it remains stable on flat surfaces, although it won’t work unless pointed to the screen – something the UN55B8000’s clicker, with its RF capability, can do. Both have secondary remotes for power, channel and volume controls.

As for picture quality, both offer crisp images with vivid, generally accurate colors, although the UN55B8000 offers deeper black levels and brighter whites with a contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1 as opposed to 3,000,000:1. The Wide Color Enhancer of the UN55B8000 is also more advanced, allowing it to stretch each pixel to its three-dimensional limit.

The last major difference is that of the refresh rate. In particular, the UN55B8000 prides itself on its high refresh rate – 240Hz – which is two times better than the UN55B7000. Still, both effectively prevent blurring even with the dejudder processing turned off – a mechanism scarce on Sony HDTVs.

With these, you should be able to tell the Samsung UN55B7000 and the UN55B8000 apart, and better decide which one you should get. After all, they are alike in all the rest, like their interactive features, for example. Both carry the same Yahoo widgets that make it easy to access the latest news, weather and stock market updates, and both are also enhanced with DLNA capability that makes it possible to access videos, photos and music files stored on networked computers.

Both also score well in energy efficiency. In fact, it would not be wrong to say they are the most energy efficient HDTVs around. After all, they are LCD televisions, which consume less energy than other HDTV types, and they are LED-lit at that. In addition, they employ Samsung’s edge-lit technology, which uses less LEDs that cuts down energy consumption even more. For good connectivity, four HDMI inputs, a PC input and two USB slots top the list of inputs and outputs provided.

Clearly, the Samsung UN55B7000 is not as good as the more expensive UN55B8000, especially in terms of the images produced, but it certainly comes pretty close and with a few hundred bucks less, is definitely worth considering over the UN55B8000. No matter which you get, though, you’re sure to get an excellent viewing experience you won’t regret.

Edward McKellen is an HDTV expert who writes television reviews for HDTVreviewlab.com. To read more about the Samsung UN55B7000 HDTV review or check out the latest Panasonic HDTV reviews visit HDTVreviewlab.com