I swear by Samsung products. This is my current TV :
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...mp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002HDZNSC
(i got it got 2000$ last year, what can i say, my diplomacy check crit)
As far as Philips, as long as YOU know, you're getting an inferior product. Now it's up to you to gauge if it's worth the few hundred dollars difference. Personally, I'd wait a few weeks for superbowl week, the big screen deal-o-rama goes full throttle.
As far as what you pointed out (always check the worse reviews, the ones who don't vote dumbly and blindly for 1 or 5. If people vote a 3, it usually means there's an issue and they have something important to say) the Philips TV has no optical audio out, so scratch ever putting a home theater in. This can be an issue one day. The contrast ratio is quite low for today's standards and looking at the specs, it's like you're buying a 3 to 4 year old screen. The sensor for the remote is also very sensitive and you may need to point directly to the sensor. Overall, it's a good price but can you afford 200-300 dollars more? If so, get the Samsung.
The Samsung is pretty sweet though you'll only have one component output. (just like mine) So if your stuff isn't on HDMI such as the Wii or the XBox you may have an issue. I went around this problem and got a sweet component switchbox from Monoprice. You may also need to look into disabling the auto dimming issue on this particular model you posted.
IMO? Samsung.