I don’t smoke or drink or go on fancy vacations. I do have one expensive vice though. Once every 8 years or so I will purchase the latest greatest television experience. I bought a 250 lbs 55” HDTV monster in 1998 before HD content was even available. In 2013, I bought the SONY Acquos 70” 4k before any 4k content was available. In 2016, I purchased a Sony Bravia 75” TV.
It’s been 8 years and I thought it was the right time to treat myself to an upgrade.
Introducing the Sony Bravia 9 2024 85”. Boom!
It may not be clear, but I mounted it 3-4” too high. Ugh. I’m going to have to fix that. It does tilt down a bit so it’s not terrible. Also, I want to get rid of the wires in a better way.
Note: I am not an audio/video aficionado. I am a technically savvy layman. Take my review with a grain of salt.
The Good
It’s so bright! My old Sony was a candle compared to this lighthouse. Its built-in user interface system is easily as good as a chromecast. The menu and navigation is responsive with good UX. The details are sharp and it setup was pretty easy. The remote is ok, simple to use, but the middle button of the wheel is slightly hard to find when you aren’t looking directly at it.
One nice feature is that the buttons light up if it’s dark and you move the remote.
Overall, it is incredibly sharp and bright. I am watching Wimbledon tennis, and I feel like I am on the court with the players. At night, the experience is incredible. It is big and vibrant and makes me smile.
The Bad
I purchased the BraviaCam to go along with the TV hoping I could use it as a massive video conferencing station. Unfortunately, the camera does not zoom in/out so it can’t show my face, only a wide shot of the whole room. I will experiment, but that accessory may be useless.
The Ugly
There are settings like eco-mode which dim the screen entirely too much. I had thought the TV was broken. Once I turned that off, everything was great.
Bravia Quad sound system
My family has a large number of audio snobs. My oldest son is studying music production and has a particularly sensitive ear. So rather than listen to him saying “can’t you hear the sound gate???” (For the record, I don’t hear it) Instead, I just decided to go big on the sound.
The Quad system is 4 rectangular speakers with 5 drivers inside.
They are covered in a gray fabric and can be mounted on the wall or stand alone.
The Bravia app makes setup pretty easy although I had some trouble getting it to connect at first. Once it did, everything snapped into place. Because it is compatible, I am using the TV as the center channel.
So far, the sound seems really good to me, but I need to wait until my son visits to get his seal of approval. For their exorbitant price, they better!
Summary
I actually think the wall could fit another 10 inches! Every 8 years I seem to go bigger, so 2030 might go 95”! However, for the next 8 years, I am pretty happy. It’s a great viewing experience and the movies I have watched really look terrific.
Could I have been happy spending half as much? Maybe. But sometimes you just have to go big.
Whatya think?