Sony KDL-55HX800

Sony is the leading name in the industry of many electronic products today. It is of no surprise that the company would want to have a stake in the new 3D HDTV market too. The Sony KDL55HX800 is a sleek looking 55-inch LED HDTV that is recently launched under the BRAVIA line.

Latest Update: The Sony KDL-55HX800 is now on sale at Amazon.com

Sony KDL-HX800

Features

The Sony KDL55HX800 boasts a full HD 1080p screen that is capable of playing content to the full maximum resolution of 1920×1080. Its thickness of almost 3 inches would mean that putting the TV on a stand would be much more ideal than hanging it on the wall. Motion blur is eliminated through the utilization of the Motionflow PRO 240Hz refresh rate technology. There are 6 HD inputs consisting of 4 HDMI and 2 other components. Other vital connections include 1 USB port, 1 Ethernet port, 3 analog audio inputs and 1 digital audio output. It is disappointing though that it lacks a memory card slot. Since the KDL55HX800 is DLNA certified, it is able to play a variety of common media formats such as JPEG, MP3, AVCHD, MPEG 1 and MP4.

The KDL55HX800 is capable of displaying 3D contents. However, 3D viewing accessories such as the 3D active glasses and 3D sync transmitters would have to be bought separately. It is possible to simulate 3D effects on standard 2D videos in the KDL55HX800. Although it can be regarded as an unnecessary gimmick, it is certainly a useful feature given the limited amount of native 3D content in the market. The depth of the 3D images on the screen can also be adjusted.

If you enjoy staying up late at night, the Ambient Sensor feature ensures that the picture quality of the TV is at its optimum best in low light conditions. This is done by regulating the picture color based on the amount of room lighting that is present. Another highlight of the KDL55HX800 in enhancing the movie watching experience is through the 24pTrue Cinema feature. Normal televisions are not able to reproduce the same original quality of videos from the cinemas. Sony takes movie-watching at home to the next level by replicating the cinema technology onto the KDL55HX800.

One of the main features that are much sought after in HDTVs today is internet connectivity. The KDL55HX800 fulfils your web serving needs and it has a Wi-Fi Adapter reader feature. You can connect to the internet via the Ethernet port or through a USB Wi-Fi adapter. It must be noted that the USB Wi-Fi adapter has to be specifically from Sony as regular adapters will not work. Once you get connected, you can stream a huge variety of media content from the BRAVIA Internet Video application which includes Netflix and Youtube. It is recommended that you have a fast broadband connection of at least 2.5 Mbps (10 Mbps for HD content) to ensure uninterrupted video streaming.

As part of the Sony product line-up, the KDL55HX800 is equipped with BRAVIA sync. It allows the Sony TV to communicate with other Sony products when they are connected to the HDMI channel.

Performance

The Sony KDL55HX800 instantly gives off a feel-good sensation with its vibrant and crispy pictures. The colors are exceptionally accurate and it looks especially stunning when Blu-Ray HD content is played on it. The Motionflow PRO 240Hz lives up to its name by delivering seamless and fluid football action or fast-moving martial arts movies. While watching the KDL55HX800, you will also notice that the pictures seem to be more “life-like”. This is largely attributed to the BRAVIA Engine 3 which processes the video to optimise contrast and reduce noise. Not only that, it has a consistent backlighting and does not suffer issues of flashlighting or clouding that seems to plague other manufacturers.

The 3D effects came out well and Sony is beginning to show that it has the capability to be the leading competitor to Samsung in this new 3D arena. You will be impressed to know that even the most hardcore skeptic of 3D technology in LCD TV will be bowled over by the brilliant 3D pictures produced by the KDL55HX800. Sony’s 3D glasses are comfortable to be worn for long periods of time and they do not strain the eyes. Most importantly, they fit in nicely with your personal spectacles if you wear them. Ghosting is not noticeable at all when viewing native 3D videos in the KDL55HX800 as compared to the other brands such as Samsung or LG.

If you are an avid gamer, you will find that the KDL55HX800 brings out the best graphics from your Playstation 3. With its 3D capabilities, it has no problems projecting images from next generation 3D games like Gran Turismo 5 and Motorstorm 3D Drift. There is no worry of the screen being burn-in from hours of playing as the KDL55HX800U can handle intensive displays over prolonged periods.

The sound quality in the KDL55HX800 is sufficient enough to listen to the news but is not one which you would go for if you desire high-end home theater audio. The in-built speakers are smaller than what one would expect in LED TVs. There is also simply not enough of bass to accompany the speakers. As such, it is recommended that you have a separate surround sound system attached to the TV for the best audio results.

The menu system in the TV has the same structure as Playstation 3 and it is easy to navigate through the different options and settings. You will quickly get acquainted with it especially if you are a regular Sony product user. Top marks for Sony for the user-friendly navigation.

Conclusion

Sony certainly did not disappoint with the superb performance of the KDL55HX800. While many other LED TVs had problems with the backlighting, this model seems to be doing fine without much issue. The amazing full HD display on the screen would draw the admiration of anyone who is watching it. The quality of the 3D capabilities is one of the best in the market. If you want a safe and guaranteed quality product from a reputable company, the Sony KDL55HX800 is definitely the one you should be getting.

Average User Rating:

More user reviews:

• “I’ve had this set for about a month now and absolutely loving it.. If you are in the market for a new HDTV, you should try this set out at your local SonyStyle or B&M electronics store as a future proofed set even in the presence of so many 3D skeptics. If you like gaming, you will be pleased to see HD gaming has been taken to the next level. Just play Motor Storm 3D and you will believe. 2D is amazing, and 3D is stunning! I didn’t notice ghosting when viewing native 3D content as compared to the Samsung/LG sets (where ghosting was extremely obvious). Although this is an LCD set, the 3D clarity were similar to the Panasonic plasma sets I also tried. I ended up going with this set because the glasses felt better designed.” -Totoro (Rural City)

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• “Picture – Stunning. The out of the box settings were very near what we saw in the store. The set is smart enough to make adjustments for content type, signal type, ambient light, bright scenes dark scenes etc… Once adjusted the picture and contrast level on this set are just amazing. True 1080 content is just breath taking. You can see every detail down to the texture of the fabrics and pours in the skin, for everything that is in focus. Anything not in focus in the shot gets a bit of a grainy if you don’t tune the sharpness WAY down. Once you do the picture is simple great. The COLORS are beautiful, on our set the green gain needed to be adjusted down quite a bit to look natural and balance with the red and blue but again once done it was just magnificent. Very vibrant when it was supposed to be.” – Classax (USA)

• “The picture on this unit is quite literally stunning when used with a Blu-Ray, HD (i.e. from iTunes) or even a good-quality DVD or cable/satellite source. The LED lighting gives the picture a wonderful clarity and “pop” that you don’t see on every model of flatscreen TV. Frankly, I had never seen anything like it. The impressiveness of the picture quality on this set is hard to overstate. We have only used the 3D capability a few times, as there are as yet very few movies available in 3D format. However, the 3D quality of this TV is amazing, and when more choices do become available we will likely very much enjoy it. Overall, this TV leaves pretty much nothing to be desired. The picture is fantastic. The unit is gorgeous and will compliment any living room decor. Highly recommended without reservation.” – R.J. Buffington (CA, USA)

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