This year Sony had a major announcement lined up for CES. Your electric car already has a design, name, and even a release date. However, during this event, which was held in Las Vegas (United States) at the beginning of last January, he did not give us a single clue. about televisions that it will place in stores during 2023. And we miss it because some of its competitors, such as Samsung, LG, Panasonic or TCL, did show us some of their TVs.
Given the circumstances, we were sure that this Japanese company would present its new televisions during the first quarter of the year, and the time has come. We have had the opportunity to participate in a presentation in which Sony has shown its new televisions at its London headquarters to a few European media. And there are news. Important news. Of one thing we can be sure: the television market in 2023 will be more competitive than ever.
Features of Sony’s QD-OLED, OLED and LCD LED TVs for 2023
A95l
a80l
x95l
x90l
x85l
panel
QD-OLED 4K UHD de 10 bits, 120 Hz y 16:9
OLED 4K UHD de 10 bits, 120 Hz y 16:9
LCD LED 4K UHD de 10 bits, 120 Hz y 16:9
LCD LED 4K UHD de 10 bits, 120 Hz y 16:9
LCD LED 4K UHD de 10 bits, 120 Hz y 16:9
resolution
3,840 x 2,160 dots
3,840 x 2,160 dots
3,840 x 2,160 dots
3,840 x 2,160 dots
3,840 x 2,160 dots
sizes
55, 65 and 77 inches
55, 65, 77 and 83 inches
65, 75 and 85 inches
55, 65, 75, 85 and 98 inches
55, 65 and 75 inches
backlight
self emissive panel
self emissive panel
Mini LED
Full Array LED
Full Array LED
image processor
XR Cognitive Processor
XR Cognitive Processor
XR Cognitive Processor
XR Cognitive Processor
Procesador X1 4K HDR
hdr
Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10 y HLG
Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10 y HLG
Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10 y HLG
Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10 y HLG
Dolby Vision IQ, HDR10 y HLG
operating system
Google TV
Google TV
Google TV
Google TV
Google TV
sound
Acoustic Surface Audio+
2.2 canales
Ambient Optimization
360 Spatial Sound Personalizer
Acoustic Surface Audio+
3.2 canales
Ambient Optimization
360 Spatial Sound Personalizer
Acoustic Multi-Audio+
2.2 canales
Ambient Optimization
360 Spatial Sound Personalizer
Acoustic Multi-Audio
2 canales
Ambient Optimization
360 Spatial Sound Personalizer
X-Balanced Speaker
2 canales
Ambient Optimization
connectivity
2 x HDMI 2.1 y 2 x HDMI 2.0b
2 x HDMI 2.1 y 2 x HDMI 2.0b
2 x HDMI 2.1 y 2 x HDMI 2.0b
2 x HDMI 2.1 y 2 x HDMI 2.0b
2 x HDMI 2.1 y 2 x HDMI 2.0b
gaming benefits
VRR
Dolby Vision Gaming
VRR
Dolby Vision Gaming
VRR
Dolby Vision Gaming
VRR
Dolby Vision Gaming
VRR
Dolby Vision Gaming
other benefits
Remote control with direct access to Crunchyroll
Eco operating mode
Remote control with direct access to Crunchyroll
Eco operating mode
Remote control with direct access to Crunchyroll
Eco operating mode
Remote control with direct access to Crunchyroll
Eco operating mode
Remote control with direct access to Crunchyroll
Eco operating mode
The QD-OLED A95L model reigns at the top of the Sony catalog for 2023
We start with the main dish. The most advanced television that this brand placed in stores last year, the A95K Master Series, surprised us with its exceptional overall image quality. In fact, it’s the only one we’ve rated a 10 for image quality so far. The A95L will be Sony’s flagship model in 2023, and, like its predecessor, incorporates a QD-OLED panel manufactured by Samsung. However, this brand has introduced improvements in it that are worth not overlooking.
Those responsible for Sony have not confirmed the characteristics of the organic matrix that this television offers us, but I am reasonably sure that it is one of the new second-generation QD-OLED panels presented by Samsung during the last edition of CES. And I think so for two compelling reasons: the A95L’s maximum brightness delivery capability is, according to Sony, far superior to its predecessor, and its color rendering ability has also been noticeably improved. These are precisely the qualities of the second generation QD-OLED matrices.
The XR processor is responsible for optimizing contrast, fine-tuning colorimetry, minimizing high-frequency noise, and recovering maximum detail.
However, the panel is only one of the ingredients of the recipe that this television proposes to us. Another fundamental component is its image processor, an XR chip with cognitive processing (it sounds bombastic, but that’s what Sony calls it) that, according to this brand, has been refined for obtain the most of it to the organic matrix of the A95L. This processor is responsible for optimizing contrast, fine-tuning colorimetry, minimizing high-frequency noise, and recovering the maximum possible detail in highlights and shadow regions, but its skills do not end here.
Another of its functions is to monitor the panel so that the delivery of light in each region is ideal for each frame. We have not yet been able to test it calmly, but we have seen it in action and its overall image quality is superb. In the table that we published a little above, we have collected the specifications that we currently know, and there is something that we cannot ignore: like its predecessors, this television only gives us two HDMI 2.1 inputs. The other two implement the 2.0b standard. It’s a shame. especially if we keep in mind that it is a premium model that will certainly not be cheap. It will be available in 55, 65 and 77 inches.
Sony A95L.
Below the A95L in Sony’s 2023 portfolio we have the A80L, an OLED panel TV manufactured by LG. This brand has not released all the details about this matrix, but I suspect that it is a 3rd generation ‘evo’ panel, and not one of the new META matrixes with microlenses. Still, on paper its specifications are very interesting. We have also seen this television in action, and although its global image quality a priori is not as impressive as that of the A95L, it performs at a very good level.
Like the A95L, the A80L implements Acoustic Surface Audio+ sound reproduction technology.
The processing of the images and the monitoring of the panel is in charge of the same XR processor incorporated in the flagship model. It also has two HDMI 2.1 inputs, and, again like the A95L, it implements Acoustic Surface Audio+ sound reproduction technology. In fact, on paper, the sound performance of the A95L and the A80L are very similar, although there is a difference between the two that is worth noting: the latter offers 3.2 channels, while the top model has 2.2 channels. The A80L is available in 55, 65, 77 and 83 inches.
Sony A80L.
The XR processor optimizes the mini LED backlight of the X95L model
Although televisions with QD-OLED and OLED panels reign at the top of its portfolio, Sony maintains its commitment to LCD panels. In fact, the X95L is their most advanced proposal with one of these matrices and mini LED backlighting. This brand has not confirmed how many local dimming zones this television incorporates, but during its presentation it assured that it has more than its most sophisticated LCD model from last year. Backlight management falls to an XR image processor, and according to Sony, this X95L minimizes the blooming more effectively than its predecessors. It will be interesting to check when we have the opportunity to analyze it in depth.
On the other hand, its maximum brightness delivery capacity is higher than what the X95K model proposed to us last year, again according to what Sony promises us. A note that it is good for us to keep in mind before moving forward: all the televisions that we are talking about in this article can process Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG content, but not HDR10 +. This has been Sony’s bet for the last few years, and nothing has changed. Finally, this television implements Acoustic Multi-Audio+ sound reproduction technology and has 2.2 channels. The X95L is available in 65, 75, and 85 inches.
Sony X95L.
The second LCD TV in Sony’s ranking by 2023 is the X90L model. It has a lot in common with the X95L, although its backlight isn’t mini LED; It is of the Full Array Local Dimming type, so it is somewhat less ambitious. Even so, Sony has promised us that this TV has more local dimming zones and higher brightness delivery capability than its previous FALD models. In addition, it also ensures that have a blooming less accused. Lastly, it implements two sound reproduction channels and is available in a very wide range of sizes: 55, 65, 75, 85 and 98 inches.
Sony X90L.
To conclude, the X85L model is, in a way, a slightly simplified version of the X90L. It also incorporates a FALD-type backlight system, although it is not managed by an XR chip, as in the X90L; this effort is taken up by an X1 4K HDR processor, which is slightly less advanced. Its sound is also somewhat less ambitious (it does not offer us the 360 Spatial Sound Personalizer surround audio technology), and it is available in 55, 65 and 75 inches.
A very curious note before concluding this section: the remote control of all the televisions that we have reviewed incorporates a direct access button to Crunchyroll, a content platform via streaming specialized in anime which was purchased by Sony Pictures in December 2020.
Sony X85L.
Sony debuts a gaming menu and Dolby Vision Gaming mode
This brand has just paid off an outstanding debt it had with the players. And it is that all the televisions that we have talked about incorporate a specific menu for games, something that some of its competitors have already been offering us for several years, such as Samsung or LG. From this menu we can enable adaptive synchronization through VRR technology, activate motion blur reduction, act on the level of detail in shadow regions or manipulate the size of the screen, among other options.
Sony TVs for 2023 support Dolby Vision mode for games, although PS5 does not implement it (at least not yet)
The “manipulate screen size” thing simply means that now Sony is going to allow us to reduce the area of the panel in which the images of the games are reproduced if, for whatever reason, we prefer that they do not occupy the entire screen. screen. We can use this, for example, to play while playing a YouTube video. To conclude this article we have another good news for gamers: Sony televisions for 2023 support Dolby Vision mode for games. The funny thing is that at the moment PS5 is not compatible with this technology, but we can take advantage of it by connecting an Xbox Series X or S to these televisions, which are.
