Feature Requests: Ambient Mode

[SteebMo]

Hello All,

After reading every possible thread about Ambient Mode and all of it's missing capability, I wanted to submit a feature-request list for future software updates to the QLED TVs.  These items are taken from discussions on this community that are very common:

1.) Display user-uploaded photos in FULL SCREEN and/or allow adjustment of the matte size.  - The (huge) photo frames/mattes in "Mono 4k" and "Mono Matte" take up way more screen area than the photo inside of them.  Users want to be able to SEE the photos that they upload to their big, fancy TV's just like the "Artwork" mode that's bundled to the TV.

2.) Use any photo as a "Background" image.  - For many, the automatic Background feature doesn't properly estimate what is really there.  Uploading an actual photo of the wall (without the TV blocking the center) would help more users get the effect that this features is advertised to do.

3.) Access to the Art Store, like The Frame TVs.  - This gets requested a LOT and I think it's a missed opportunity for Samsung.  People are willing to PAY Samsung for access to art pieces (and also to support the creators), but this feature is blocked?  Why not let users decide that they want a more feature-rich TV than The Frame model AND access to similar features for buying/displaying artwork?

4.) Gallery / Slideshow from a USB stick.  - Again, I think that The Frame TV offers this.  Ambient Mode will already do a slideshow of images from a Samsung Cloud account... why not just read the photos from a USB drive plugged into the TV?  For those of us that are photographers, this can be much easier to manage (especially because I think it's basically impossible to upload photos from a laptop directly to a Samsung Cloud account).

5.) Disable sounds in Ambient Mode.  - Users are complaining that certain ambient modes that play sounds will interrupt music being played on a connected BT/Sonos speaker/Sound Bar to play the TV sounds instead.

To be honest, Ambient Mode is one of the reasons that I chose this TV over Sony and LG OLEDs.  However, after experiencing how basic the functionality really is (to the point where we may never even use it), I'm considering returning the TV and switching brands.

Does anyone else have a request to add to the list?  I really hope that Samsung will hear us and consider some of these items.

[Thestargaze]

I’m not happy about this. My understanding you could put up your own pictures there, without that large ugly templates around it .. or at least buy art/pictures in an art library to use in ambiance mode. I wish there was an image of the starry sky or space, and similar beautiful pictures but the closest thing is an image of the northern light... and it gets boring after a while wiith that same image. Very disappointed.. please update this feature with an software update. Most of those templates are ugly .. specially the user editable ones. Could definitely be better, it's very rough  ... sorry for complaining.. 

[tvliet]

Concur to all the points made especially the full screen photo mode. Great post.

[FutureFan]

Totally agree with SteebMo! There is no way those options should be missing from Ambient Mode.
Do the right thing Samsung!

[krbuck]

I had the older 55" Frame tv and loved it - it of course *had* the ambient feature. When we moved to a new home we got the "new updated" 2019 almost automatically because we had such a great experience with the previous model.

Well, we feel let down; the ambient mode was why we purchased the TV and now it is just a regular tv with a very expensive subscription service we'll never buy.

I hope Samsung does the right thing here.

[BrianDuffy]

It's on their website that you can, yet nobody is able to. This is false advertising something  should be done about this. Ambient mode is absolutely useless without these changes.

Also pro tip workaround -

If you have an xbox one you can play Spotify and use YouTube to put ambient videos (fireplaces etc..) at the same time

[krbuck]

I "updated" to the 2019 version in our new home. Art mode is available, ambient mode was removed.

[D700]

I bought mine in October...what model did you get exactly? Is Art mode fully featured? Does it give you choice of mattes, no matte, upload your own?

[krbuck]

I am in the U.S. if that makes a difference.

My Frame model:

QN65LS03RAFXZA

[D700]

Ah, I see. As far as I know, all the Frame Models have ART mode, so are a different animal. Those of us here complaining about ambient mode typically have have non-Frame models. Ambient mode advertisements suggest capabilities which are only available in ART mode. 

I would argue that Samsung is blowing it here, they should just make ART mode standard on all the screens that have the Low Power image display capability, rather than limiting it to the "Frame Line". Its just a way to justify higher prices for some boutique products. Arguably very nice products with a much nicer bezel...but the image display is basically a glorified screensaver mode and that is definitely not new technology.

It would be more powerful as an option across their line. 

[SteebMo]

This is the major distinction yes, and it's creating a lot of confusion with the consumers over what features are available and how they are different.  Even their own customer service departments are confused about the difference... I had people on the phone AND in online chat support tell me that "ambient mode IS art mode" and that I should have access to the art store and subscriptions and yadda yadda.... I knew all of that was untrue, so I basically had to give up on getting answers out of Samsung's own customer support people.

Samsung has just announced that the 3rd generation Frame TVs will be an "improved" panel.... which I assume means the Q70 panel now instead of the Q60 edge-lit one (this is the reason I chose my Q70 over the current Frame model).

I think it's pretty telling that Samsung has 1.) kept completely quiet about all of these complaints and 2.) released a new Frame model TV with the "exclusive" features of Art mode. 

From their business point of view, their confusing marketing is working.... they get to sell the Frame models at a big premium.... and they know by our complaints that people are also buying other models of TV because they think Ambient Mode is more capable than it is.  We still keep the TV, but just quit using Ambient mode.... Samsung still made a sale and they don't have to do any more development to improve Ambient Mode.