Comparison table for Samsung UHD, Smart, LED and Plasma TVs

Samsung produces quite a lot of flat panel TV models, which can be categorized as the 4000, 5000, 6000, 7000, 8000, and 9000 series.

Normally, the higher the number, the more features, the better in visual and audio quality, and the higher in price too.

It is still quite difficult to compare among them, without putting them together in a same table for side-by-side comparison.

Well, I found the table below (click it to enlarge) in a booklet published by Samsung called 2014 TV Collection. Perhaps the 2015 edition will be available later in the year.

This table does not provide the full set of feature comparison, but better than none.

For normal consumer, we would probably look into whether the TV model has the following or not:

• 3D movie support
• Resolution (HD = 1280x720, full HD 1080p = 1920x1080, 4k UHD = 3840x2160)
• Screen panel (normal or Ultra Clear)
• Number of built-in HDMI ports
• Number of USB ports
• Built-in wireless LAN support
• Multi-link screen (screen can split into 2: one side is the TV, another side is web browsing or app. Some models can split into 4.)
• Sound output (standard = 2x10W, enhanced = 2x10W + woofer)
• Dynamic dimming technology
• Flat panel or curved panel
• Instant on (need very short time to turn on)
• Soccer mode
• Voice control
• Built-in camera and motion control
• Smart Evolution / future ready (can be upgraded by attaching an Evolution Kit)

I think the 7000 series is a good balance between features and price.

How to check if a merchant in Malaysia is eligible to collect GST from you

A merchant in Malaysia can only collect the goods and services tax (GST) from its customers after it has registered with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department as GST taxpayer and obtained a unique GST ID.

The merchant need to print out its company name, company full address, and GST ID on its tax invoice with serial number to its customers. The tax invoice could be a full tax invoice with customer's name and address, or a simplified tax invoice without the customer's name and address (i.e. cash sales).

If the merchant did not registered with the Royal Malaysian Customs Department as GST taxpayer, or does not issue tax invoice (either full or simplified) in valid format to its customers, it is not eligible to collect GST from the customers.

We can check for the registration detail of a GST ID in the website https://gst.customs.gov.my/TAP/_/ to ensure that the GST ID is valid and the registered merchant name belongs to the right supplier which we purchased the goods/services from.

You need to click on the "Lookup GST Status" link after you reached the screen as below:

Beside checking using GST ID, we can also check for the GST registration detail by using the merchant's business registration number or company name.

You need to click on one of the 3 radio buttons to select checking by which criteria.

Then, key in the search item and hit Enter. The result will be shown below.

I found that there are a lot of rooms of improvement for this online GST registration checking system, including:

• This website is not mobile friendly. It lacks a mobile user interface when accessed by handphone or tablet.
• We cannot access to the lookup screen directly, and must go through the main page and click the "Lookup GST Status" link. The system should have a direct link to reduce one step of using it.
• Suggest to have a mobile app beside this website. The mobile app should have OCR function for us to scan for the GST ID / company name / company registration number from the tax invoice using the phone's camera, so that we don't need to manually key-in the information to perform the search.

Check for Malaysia goods/services price reasonability with MyKira GST app

Just before Malaysia implement Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 1 April 2015, the Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-Operatives and Consumerism Malaysia (a.k.a. Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi Dan Kepenggunaan, KPDNKK) has released an Android app called MyKira GST which enable us to check for the price reasonability of over 10,000 products and services in Malaysia.

The price is checked from the online database of KPDNKK and based on the location (parliament area) of selling.

To do the checking, you need to provide the name of the product/service, which has autocomplete search while key-in.

Then, specify the weight/size/packaging information, which is also having autocomplete search during key-in.

After that, key-in the price you see, and optionally its price before GST (old price) if you remember.

Then provide the information of the shop (premise) and area (parliament). There is a map showing your current location, which can help you in identifying the area you are in.

After that, tap on the submit button to do the checking. It will show you whether the price is within reasonable range, or too expensive (out of range) accordingly.

If the price is found to be out of range, you can tap on the e-Aduan button and immediately file a complaint to KPDNKK.

You can click here to download and install the MyKira GST app from Google Play Store to your Android phone or tablet.