It wasn’t mentioned during the Samsung CES presser, but older TVs will be upgradeable, as Samsung confirms to us that the Evolution Kits will make an appearance in 2015.
Remember Samsung’s “Evolution Kit” concept, the idea that promised to make TVs sold from 2012 still just as modern as their newer siblings being brought into this world? If you don’t, the idea was basically a hardware patch that you could stick on the back of TVs bought from Samsung’s Series 7, Series 8, and Series 9 televisions, a patch that would essentially include some new hardware and upgrade some of the software to make your old TV work a little like the new TVs being released.
You wouldn’t get a new panel from the gadget, but it could speed up the processing hardware while also delivering a new software experience, making that slightly older TV still feel new, a bit like giving your car a new radio and some of that fresh new car smell we all like so much.
Samsung has included the technology in some of its TVs since 2012, with compatible Full HD TVs supporting Samsung’s “Evolution Kit”, while Ultra HD TVs had their own model called the “One Connect Evolution Kit”, and essentially, if your TV supported the gadget, you could give it a minor update.
But while Samsung talked up the technology back when we were at CES in 2013, even showing the boxes off to the world, we haven’t heard much mentioned about the tech since then, only spotting the 2014 Evolution Kit at a stand during the Samsung Forum in Indonesia. We’re sure it was sold, but we didn’t see much about it.
So this year, we weren’t surprised when the Samsung CES 2015 keynote didn’t have anything to say about the Evolution Kit.
Fortunately, we’ve checked with Samsung, and it has said that it will offer both the Evolution Kit and One Connect Evolution Kit in Australia in 2015.
We haven’t seen one yet, and we’re curious to see if Samsung will run Tizen on the Evolution Kit, as that’s the operating system Samsung is going for in its 2015 range of Smart TVs.
We’re also trying to find out which TVs this will be compatible with, specifically to see if this will cut off the now three year old 2012-era TVs.
Still, it’s at least positive news for owners of the older TVs, especially if they were curious to see if Samsung would keep its Evolution Kit upgrade idea around.
Samsung tell me that the SEK-3000 evolution kit is just at discussion stage, and as yet there may or may not be a 2015 Evolution kit for the 2013/14 F8000. I suspect they will let us down, having promised kits up to at least 2016. At the time one the most expensive TVs out there, and this is how we are thanked for our loyalty.
Hi,
I agree and if this is the case (and this was the biggest reason I brought the TV) Im thinking we need to say what Fair Trading says about this, perhaps if we can get more people on it, we will have grounds for a class action suit
I’m with you guys. I bought a UA75F8000 which at the time was selling for near $8000. The ONLY reason I was prepared to pay say a monstrous price was the “promise” of yearly Evolution kits. Samsung have manifestly failed to deliver on their promises and I for one am mighty pissed. If we get to the end of 2015 and their is no further Evo kit, I WILL seek legal advice!
BRAVO! I couldn’t agree more. In fact, I smell a class-action suit coming on!!!
Any Luck?
Referring SEK-3000 is a big international scandal that Samsung did not offer yet even in begging 2016. It is time to go as group to legal advice and layer institution. Thousand people worldwide boughs the very expensive TV in reason to be support each year for 4 next years from 2012.
In fact, I contacted Samsung today (October 17) and they advised me that SEK-3000 will be available in two weeks time “definitely”. Meaning early November 2016. It will be compatible with Samsung TV UA60F8000AMXXY
I too want to know what to do with this expensive device that stopped receiving evo kits after 2.
Is this something you could take the TV back for a refund, as it’s not what the sales guy said when i purchased the TV, and I wouldn’t have purchased it otherwise?
Do you know if the install issues with the SEK-3000XY have been addressed let alone resolved by Samsung yet? I have a new SEK-3000XY unit which will not install on my PS64E8000, instead claims to be updating the unit online before rebooting the TV and beginning the process all over again.. i.e. looping. Samsung techs have been onsite twice AND replaced the main board in my TV as well as the brand new Evo Kit with no change or success and Samsung’s Aus Head Office Tech Support going ‘cold and quiet’, not returning calls, closing the Support Incident and having insincere offers made to replace the TV and/or refund TV cost via SMS and email via their Samsung VOC department… TOTALLY unprofessional, unacceptable and contravening most if not all Fair Trading practices and Consumer Protection Laws!
ANY guidance or assistance in prompting this reluctant Goliath out of denial would be greatly appreciated by many of us “valued and gullible customers”.