Sony Bravia KDL-46XBR4

October 3, 2007 12:06

4.5/5
Strengths:
Color AccuracyAfter some calibration I found the color accuracy excellent. In fact it surpassed my expectations in this department so much so that Im considering not having professional calibration done. The fact that the XBR4 didn't exhibit the fabled "green push" of the Toshibas comforted me, and the color palette on this TV was very impressive.

Sharpness/Picture DetailSonys are typically second-to-none in this department, and this TV did not disappoint. Having a friend who owned a Samsung 71 allowed comparisons to be made, and while the difference was slight, my XBR4 appeared to be sharper and more detailed. HDTV looks great, with ESPNs Monday Night Football or Discovery being great material to test detail and sharpness with. SDTV from Comcast Cable looks significantly better than it did on my XBR1, so the Bravia Engine Pro is doing a good job there, although it will never look HD Quality. Regular DVDs look very good, and watching the Band of Brothers DVD upconverted to 1080p by the PS3 looked nearly HD quality. Blu-ray movies are a great in the least and stunning at best. Watching the Blu-ray version of Bridge to Terabethia at 1080p24 looked incredible.

Black LevelsThe Sony surprised me. I'm not a typical videophile that is obsessed with having the best blacks around, but there is no denying that deeper blacks--and better contrast in general--leads to better color saturation. The Sony, while still falling short of the Samsung 81 (which has its own problems) or highest end Pioneer Plasmas, has excellent black levels. The shadow details in dimly lit scenes surpassed what I was expecting despite LCD technology's typical limits in this area. And as stated before, there was no mura or clouding that affected the picture quality on very dark scenes.

120hz Motion Enhancer and CinemotionThese are the new features which set this XBR4 apart from other Sony models. I can say that the Motion Enhancer does have a subtle smoothing effect on scrolling text like the ESPN crawl or other things of that nature. It's hard to see a noticeable effect on fast moving objects during regular viewing, but I can say that everything I've viewed on this TV has looked great in motion. Also, the Cinemotion feature has a very unique effect when coupled with Motion Enhancement. When Cinemotion is set to Auto1 and Motion Enhancement is set to High, motion blurring is almost completely eliminated and film-based content begins to look like it was shot on HD Video. This combination almost makes it appear that the people are 3-d and moving at 1.5x speed, which can seem unnatural. Also, during some scenes it can introduce artifacts, so my preference is to go with Cinemotion set to Auto2 which gives more of a film-like quality but still smooths out motion and doesnt introduce any unnecessary artifacts.

Other Strengths to NoteOne reason I prefer LCDs is their matte screens which diffuse reflections of ambient lighting. This TV, while being a bit glossier than previous generations, still does a good job of that. Also, Im impressed with the amount of calibration options this set gives you. Some users may find this intimidating, but IMO more is always better. Those who don't want all of the picture adjustment options don't have to use them, but it's nice to have them there for those that like to endlessly tweak and calibrate their picture to near-perfection. Particularly pleasing is the advanced "White Balance" menu that lets you adjust primary color settings for better color accuracy. As far as gaming is concerned, I've never had to engage the "Game Mode" of this TV. I played a lot of MLB 07, which requires timing precision while pitching, and Ive never had a problem with lag. So while I can't speak much on what Game Mode will improve, suffice it to say that since I haven't had a problem with lag so far, the TV is doing a great job.

Weaknesses:
Lack of PiP FunctionalityThis year's XBR4 line has a P&P (Picture And Picture) feature that allows you to view two sources (one digital, one analog) at once, side-by-side. So you can watch one of the HDMI feeds and either a component, composite, or RF/cable feed side-by-side. The drawback of this is that obviously you cant view two HDMI sources side-by-side, but also that you don't get a full-sized picture from either feed. You can, however, adjust the size of either picture so that it fills roughly 65-70% of the screen. The bigger you make one picture, the smaller the other one becomes.

The TV does have a PiP (Picture in Picture) feature, but it can only be used with the VGA PC connection showing full screen, and a smaller picture of the RF/Cable input. For HTPC nuts this will be very useful, but for me it will rarely come into play.

Hope this review helps,

Brandon

- bplewis24

November 10, 2007 05:08

4.5/5
I bought both the Sony XBR5 and the Samsung 81 Series-both 46". I wanted to be sure I was getting the right T.V. for my money, quality, value, ergonomics, performace, etc. Both T.V.s are absolutely fantastic. I returned the Samsung and I'll explain why...

The XBR5 has the sharpest image I have seen on an LCD. I had spent 2 months comparing T.V.s-LCDs, Plasmas, Rear Projections, everything that had a screen that I could hook up HD cable to. I think Sony did a great job making a T.V. that was very good looking. The glass edge is a nice tough and the non-glossy screen is perfect to keep from having reflections interupt your viewing pleasures. This was the main problem I found with the Samsung 81; high gloss screen. Sony's Motion Flow outperforms any other motion stabalizer, including Samsung's Motion Plus. 120Hz technology is the future of T.V.s so people who think it is annoying or that it actually takes away from the picture should try and get used to it, it's going to be everywhere soon, like it or not. I have gotten used to it and I think it's great, you just have to watch it and learn to appreiate it, it will get better with time!

To sum up, the XBR5 is a great T.V. the best in my opinion. The Samsung 81 is a great T.V. too though, a little cheaper as well, but Sony has locked down LCD's with the XBR5. I had both...truuust me. Hope this helped!

- Lac Man

December 2, 2007 03:41
Terrible
0.5/5
Do not believe any of the 10 or 9 or 8 or even 7 rated stars that people have been posting. Wait till they find out that they bought an overpriced LCD box with the mura effect. Turn off the lights and pop in a movie with dark scenes or any program with dark scenes (try the movie starwars). You see it? look again, Cloudy background all over the screen, also known as uneven backlight. Just type Sony LCD cloud on Google and witness over 1000 complaints of the poor Sony XBR LCD panels that have been reported all over the world. Sony tries to mask this problem by automatically lowering the brightness every time the TV senses a dark overall scene. Also, look at the annoying flashlights on the bottom corner of the LCD screen. What a joke. The hell with Sony, never again!!
Cnet is a joke for giving this junk a high rating. This is the second time it does this crime, last time it gave the XBR 2 a high rating only to receive thousands of email complaints from angry customers who relied on their review and went out to buy this junk TV, Cnet was later forced to tell the truth about this defected LCD. Just check out Cnets review for the Sony KDL-40XBR2 and see for yourself what you are getting into before you buy this overpriced garbage. Here is the link: http://reviews.cnet.com/flat-panel-tvs/sony-kdl-40xbr2/4505-6482_7-31901205.html?tag=prod.txt.1

- paldiel

October 6, 2007 01:27

3.5/5
If you are a long time Sony buyer, you cant go wrong with this set. It's got a beautiful 1080p image, great blacks (though not the best) and the 120hz motion feature makes things really smoooth and lifelike. Sony has a winner here for sure.

This is, however, not the set I came home with. In the showrooom, side by side with other LCD's, I picked the one with just as good a picture, but better black levels. The Sony's screen actually looked grey next to the 71 series Samsung I wound up buying. The two sets are both top dogs in LCD's right now, but I couldn't justify the price premium for less than stellar black level performance.

My neighbor is a long time Sony buyer, and when he gets around to buying his next one, I will go to his house and watch and not be able to tell the difference from his set to mine. Side by side however, you will see black levels much darker on the Samsung.

All in all though, you wouldn't be unhappy with this set, it is a stunner for sure. LCD's have come a long way, finally!

- pelowell

October 2, 2007 09:49

4.5/5
Don't get me wrong, this is an absolutely amazing tv and worth your money. However, the "king of all lcds" has not been reviewed yet. Samsung's ln-t4671f boasts much deeper blacks, a better design, brighter screen, more vivid colors, and a smaller price tag.

Lets just wait for CNET's future reviews before crowning this tv.

- prncedb26

November 24, 2007 12:04

3.5/5
When watching a movie and the credits appear over black, the tv drops down in "black level" in two steps, then will slightly fade on when a brighter picture appears. I will use the blu-ray disc of Close Encounters as an example. The disc starts with the customary film logos, then all up front credits are over black, the tv suddenly goes into it's own black level mode and gets dark. The first "shot" is the film is the bright white dessert, which instead of flashing on, fades on because of the tv processing. Another example is when there is a starfield in a film, the TV will get darker causing the next scene to "fade on". This happens no matter what setting, I have tried and Sony tech has no idea what I am talking about. I tested the unit at Best Buy and it did the same thing, anytime there is a "black" screen, the tv dims down in two steps. This is a very distracting thing when watching movies. For the price, this shouldn't happen. Check your sets and watch this happen as at this point it has been reported by other sources, magazines. Any chance Sony will release a patch to fix this?

- otneeboy

November 6, 2007 07:15

4.0/5
PROS
What can I say, but this is one heck of an LCD flat screen TV. Sony has again done its best on the top of the line equipment. I truly love the TV. It took some time going back and forth between stores haggling, fast talking and brow beating but in the end I got the TV New in and un-opened box for less than $2600. I had also compared this set with the Samsung LN-T4671F and found them extremely close in over all features and abilities however Samsungs price was $150 more (and I didnt like the glossy screen finish.).

CONS
After installation of, playing with and finally reading the manual I personally see a few improvements that could be made. As C-NET stated:

Expensive; benefits of 120Hz blur-reduction hard to discern; smooth motion seems unnatural for film-based material and introduces some artifacts; main menu system kludgy to operate; many picture adjustments seem unnecessary and/or harmful.

The menu system while easy to use is some what a pain. Using the remote to make selections between inputs (if not set up correctly) causes other changes to setting that you had previously changed. This is not a TV for the standard neophyte to configure and play with. (They will never figure out all the nuances of the set) I also think that the manual could be written better. You can spend a lot of time bouncing back and forth trying to cover all the options. The last thing I think they could have done better with was the PC input to the set. Most high end video cards support DVI connections, Sony should have put both DVI and VGA on the set.

- alordzot

November 10, 2007 01:13

5.0/5
I would recommend this TV over any plasma any day. I owned an expensive plasma and wasn't happy with it. I did my lengthy research and concluded the Sony KDL-46XBR4 was the best TV hands down. I returned the plasma and now have the best TV in the world hanging on my familyroom wall!!!!!

- tmelland777

October 22, 2007 05:49

4.5/5
This is a truly outstanding TV! I spent many months looking at various sets, and bought an LG set previously, and a Toshiba REGZA, both of which I ended up returning. I finally came to the conclusion that at 46' (perfect size for my viewing area), there is no better tv (at the time of writing this). Xbox 360 looks better than it did on the 47' REGZA and the 46' LD - I had no problems running it at 1920 x 1080 (1080p). I hooked my PC up via VGA and ran it at 1920 x 1080 (1080p) and had no problems, but had a bit of interference, so I hooked it up via HDMI and got a razor-sharp image with no interference whatsoever. This is THE SET TO GET for PC-gamers and Xbox 360 owners! Note: I couldn't run my PC at 1080p on the Toshiba REGZA via VGA connection.
Watching movies with the HD add-on for the 360 is a great experience! I've never seen movies look as good. Blacks are jet-black, colours are vivid and articulated perfectly, and the picture is clear and bright. This is perhaps where the Bravia performs best! I was blown away by King Kong in HD, and Transformers.
The ONLY thing holding me back from giving this set a 10 rating is the price, and the inclusion of speakers. ANY serious buyer (and who's not going to be at this price) will use their own speakers. I'd rather have no speakers and save a few bucks.

- warren_chow

October 26, 2007 06:13

5.0/5
I disagree with David Katzmaier's assessment of the KDL-46XBR in regard to the abundant number of adjustments and that it's not as good as a plasma. The Sony KDL-40/46/52XBR adjustment set is great for getting the optimum color accuracy, especially white balance which many HDTV lack including their own KDL-32XBR. Once the color temp and white balance is set up properly (I used the GetGray DVD) it like looking through a window to the outside. It renders the colors very natural. The KDL-46XBR is in my opinion better than the best plasma in regards to color accuracy. Plasmas still have that unnatural looking green, that show greens that look like Kermit the frog. The Pioneer in that respect is no exception.

- Slotkar