Sony BRAVIA KDL46EX720 46-Inch 1080p 3D LED HDTV, Black
Sony BRAVIA KDL46EX720 46-Inch 1080p 3D LED HDTV, Black
- 46-inch display with full 3D HD (1080p)(3D glasses sold separately) picture quality (1920 x 1080 native panel resolution)
- LED backlighting for incredible contrast, slim design, and energy efficiency
- Sony’s X-Reality Engine sharpens images for a clear, vivid, life-like picture
- Refresh rate-240 Hz
- Experience smooth motion detail and clarity with Motionflow 240 technology
Edge LED backlit BRAVIA KDL46EX720 Series LCD HDTVs are packed with state-of-the-art technology, including 3D in Full HD 1080p. Watch your favorite fast-action movies and sporting events in crystal clear detail thanks to X-Reality Engine. In addition to advanced energy saving features, this HDTV is Wi-Fi Ready which lets you instantly stream hit movies, popular TV shows and the latest music from Qriocity, Netflix, Hulu Plus, YouTube, Pandora and many more when you add the UWA-BR100 wireless adap
List Price: $ 1,599.99
Price: [wpramaprice asin="B004HYG9XW"]
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Sony Bravia KDL-32EX720,
I recently purchased the Sony Bravia EX720 from a local electronics store (and not Amazon, since I prefer to make large electronic purchases locally in the event I need to quickly return and exchange a defective item). Overall, the TV is good, but not great. Here is a quick down and dirty list of “in my opinion (IMO)” pros and cons:
Pros:
- High quality LED side-lit LCD screen
- True 1080P 3D and Hi-definition capable, but with some limitations
- Colors and contrast are vibrant, once you take the time to manually adjust the picture settings
- Built-in 3D transmitter; no need to buy the external transmitter which saves you about $35
- 3D effects are very good overall, but best results can only be attained by watching 3D Blu Ray movies
- Artifical 3D option in the 3D options works decently and provides an alternative to playing PC games in 3D without having to use the NVidia 3D Vision or 3DTV Play drivers; this allows you to maintain up to 60fps frame rates without have to revert to a 24hz (24fps) refresh rate
- No 3D ghosting evident, but you may need to make manual adjustments to the depth effect – I needed to do this
- 4 x HDMI 1.4 ports
- Internet capable right out of the box
- Swivel and 6 degree backward tilt adjustable
- Directly compatible with the Sony PS3 (shouldn’t be a surprise since it is a Sony TV)
- TV firmware can be updated, but does require internet connectivity
- Weight of TV is 25lbs – very light and easy to move or mount on wall without worry of mounting screws tearing out of the studs in the wall!
- Shortcut keys on the Remote are very convenient and will save you time from having to dig down into the sub-menus everytime just to make adjustments to certain functions
Cons:
- NOT a 240hz 3D TV; Sony.com website lists the specifications for this model as “120hz” refresh rate (AMAZON NEEDS TO FIX THE LISTED DESCRIPTION FOR THIS TV NOW!)
- Had to contact Sony customer support directly to verify which Sony 3D glasses model is compatible with the KDL-32EX720; their website did not provide this information; confirmed with the tech rep that the TDGBR100/B version is compatible with the KDL-32EX720; important to note the “B” Think of it as the “B” represents “Bravia”
- 3D viewing @ 1080P limited to only 24hz and 30hz?? 24hz = 24fps & 30hz = 30fps That’s not a problem for watching 3D Blu Ray movies (or watching converted 2D movies into 3D), but is not acceptable if you want to play computer games on this TV; part of the reason why I bought it
- Takes a few hours to manually adjust the picture just the way you want it; you will need to go into the “Advanced Settings” to change things like White Balance, Black Level correction, Edge enhancement, etc.
- Priced a bit high for not having 3D glasses included or a 240hz refresh rate; WARNING! The glasses cost $150 separately O.o
- Power cord is hard-wired into the TV; would have preferred a universal power cord solution so that it could be replaced easily should it get damaged
- Remote control is a bit clunky and large and does not provide universal remote functionality as it only allows for control of the TV; unlike other remotes that allow you to conrol several devices – a universal remote function would have been nice for me because I could have used the remote to control both the TV and my Sony PS3; not sure why Sony would not allow for this other than to make more money from their customers…no way! lol
BOTTOMLINE:
Depending on your intentions of what the primary use of this TV is/are will ultimately determine your final decision to buy it or not. If you plan to watch regular and 3D Blu Ray movies and like the convenience of the integrated internet functionality, then this TV is a good choice, albeit a bit expensive when considering you have to pay $150 more for the 3D glasses. The picture quality when watching Blu Ray movies is excellent and there are lots of options to configure the picture appearance according to your specific tastes/preferences. Think of it as adjusting the driver’s seat on a brand new car that you are thinking of buying. You really don’t know exactly the right settings until you have had it for a while, but when you do figure it out, the ride was well worth the wait.
I would NOT recommend you buy this TV if you plan to do serious 3D computer gaming on it. I highly recommend you wait for the new 27″ and larger “true” 120hz 3D monitors coming out later this year. Because of the limitations of the frame rates when using 3D mode on this TV, I’ve decided to keep my Alienware OptX AW2310 3D computer monitor so that I can get the best 3D experience while PC gaming.
To those who are a bit more serious about there hardware and do not want to compromise, I would highly recommend you wait to buy the 240hz or 480hz version of this TV (not yet…
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|Choosing between the EX and the NX,
Sony offers a variety (i.e. confusing array) of very similar TV models. I wanted a 60″ screen, but decided on the EX rather than the NX once I understood the differences. In case anyone else finds themselves similarly confused, here is my take on the two models.
The NX costs $400-500 more than the EX, but seems to have the same basic TV inside. For me, the following features weren’t worth the extra several hundred bucks:
(1) WiFi — Wireless access is noticeably slower than wired for streaming video, so I wouldn’t use that if I had it.
(2) Gorilla Glass — The NX weighs about six pounds more, mainly because of the giant sheet of “Gorilla Glass” covering the front screen. Sony calls this feature a border-less “monolithic design”, but I found it a bit silly. The TV looks border-less only when it’s turned off. The NX actually has a slightly larger border than the cheaper EX model. But perhaps Sony expects their customers to not turn their sets on, and instead simply stare at a huge border-less $2500 black monolith.
(3) Dynamic Edge — The last major difference between the two sets is something Sony calls Dynamic Edge. This is for those few picky people out there who whine that they can detect a small amount of white light bleeding in the border when viewed in a dark room at an extreme angle during a very dark scene. So Sony invented a way to automatically turn the edge LEDs on and off depending on the darkness at the edge of the image. Some purists claim the picture looks better that way, while others say it makes some images harder to see. Personally, I’d rather not have such a complex feature (i.e. failure prone) in my already very expensive TV set to remedy such a trivial issue. So I chose to skip that “feature” and keep another hundred in my wallet.
After watching this TV in my living room for a month, I’m thrilled I didn’t go for the more expensive NX model. This set has a fantastic picture and great features. I especially like how the TV turns itself on when I power on my Sony Blu-Ray player, and I don’t even have to fiddle with input settings. Every TV should do this!!
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|Review from a not-really-super-techy guy,
*UPDATE* May 19, 2011
I’ve had this TV for over a month now, and just wanted to provide an update:
Picture: CUSTOM SETTINGS! Out-of-the-box, the picture isn’t the best quality. There is some graininess, a noticeable soap opera effect and some blockiness with moving pictures. EVERY owner should calibrate the settings to their liking. Also, it’s very important to turn off the ECO sensor — your TV will be much, much brighter. I followed the custom settings on flatpanelshd.com, where the reviewer tweaked the settings for best picture output, down to advanced settings like B-Gain and R-Gain. From there I messed around with the other settings until I found a picture I’m very happy with.
Comparison: Two of my friends bought a 55-inch LG LW5600 and I’ve spent a good time watching their TVs. The LG uses passive 3D so the glasses are super cheap and comfortable — I hate to say it, but the 3D on that TV probably looks better overall. They also brag about an 8 million to 1 contrast ratio whereas the Sony EX720 is 2 million to 1. What that means is the LG has a brighter range of vivid colors. BUT after tweaking my settings, I was able to get comparable color results AND the picture on the Sony is noticeably clearer — you couldn’t get a soap opera effect on the LG if you tried. The MotionFlow 240 actually seems to make a difference as I can see wrinkles on The Most Interesting Man in the World’s face that I couldn’t see on the LG. Plus the LG had a lot of choppiness when watching sports, it might have been the cable or the TV’s 120hz processor.
Still a five-star rating for a clearer picture than the LG and enhanced picture with tweaked settings. Original review below.
*From April*
Picture: Very good. Granted I was watching a 37-inch LCD that was almost six years old, so even watching a crayon drawing on wax paper would be an upgrade. But I watched ESPN HD, Avatar HD in HBO and a bunch of other random things. There was no noticeable clouding (blobs of light on the screen) at all. I was pleasantly surprised that there really wasn’t a soap opera effect on the movies and shows I watched.
More Picture: It’s true that this isn’t a “true” 240hz TV. It’s marketed as a MotionFlow 240hz, which basically means that it’s 120hz but has some sort of technology that Sony made up to “bring the frame rate up to 240hz.” That being said, I probably wouldn’t be able to notice the difference between 120 and 240hz anyway. I do wish the picture was a little bit brighter, but it’s super easy to adjust the settings. Also, the black levels weren’t as black as I’d like. When watching a show with a lot of black screen, it still looks a little gray compared to the black frame lining the TV.
Sound: GREAT. You know how sometimes you’re watching a DVD or a TV show and the music and background noises are super loud and the voices and dialogue are super quiet, and then you have to turn up the volume to hear the dialogue, but then quickly turn it back down because some booming music scares the crap out of you? Not so with this TV. Apparently it’s got some technology that detects dialog and will automatically soften the background sound and amplify the voices. Plus, when you change the sound setting to “S-Force Front Surround,” there really is a noticeable difference in the quality, the sound does seem to echo more under this setting.
3D: Suh-weeeeet! Ok, there are definite cross-talk issues — which is a term I learned by reading a bunch of reviews. You will see double images at certain points, but EVERY TV review I read suffers from this issue because it’s a new technology. My DirecTV offered four 3D channels, one was a nature show channel that rotates shows about dinosaurs, ocean life, and space stuff. I spent four hours straight watching this channel and now know a bunch of random facts about dinosaurs, ocean life and space stuff. I invited three people over and the four of us watched this channel for hours. There were parts of the ocean documentary where schools of fish looked like they were a few feet out of the screen. And a freaking Brontosaurus totally peered into my living room — I wanted to pet him. Even on large landscape pans, the depth perception was amazing.
Remote: Effin’ BRILLIANT. I don’t know why, but instantaneous response from the remote made me pretty damn happy. I had Time Warner Cable TV before, and it would do some crap where you’d be pressing the remote buttons and nothing would happen, and then like 15 seconds later everything you pushed would happen at once. DirecTV is better but would still lag sometimes. But this TV and it’s default remote are like sweet lovers that orgasm at the same time. There is no lag time and the interface screen is ridiculously simple to use and navigate — even for not-really-super-techy-guys.
Interface and Settings: Awesome. Navigating the settings is intuitive and simple — it looks a lot…
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