Hi everyone, first review in a while, I don't get much time for a Ciao at the moment, GCSEs are beginning to get scarily close, but I thought I'd roll this one out for you on the monitor/HDTV that I've been using for a while.
This Sony Braviatelevision is really nice. I thought I'd begin with that, and now move on. I'm using it right now; it is hooked up to our family computer via VGA cables, and works very nicely. It provides clear, crisp and punchy colours, with great brightness and contrast. I will now move on in more detail.
Picture Quality ===========
What can I say, this is really the most important thing in my opinion with a television, because of course, it is what they were originally for, watching moving things that weren't in your home, and of course this TV holds up to that. We unfortunately do not have an HDTV connection at the moment, so I'm afraid I cannot comment on that, (although, it is only 20" and a 720p TV), but from our standard Sky input, the video is very crisp. We get excellent ranges of colours, as I said before, very punchy, vivid if you will. Furthermore, the brightness is great, and unlike on other LCD televisions, the brightness is perfectly distributed around the television, it isn't bright in patches, and not others, which is great.
The contrast as well is noticeably well handles; you get very clear definition between objects in a program. I have to say that what I notice in particular are, programmes from the BBC, which always seem to be in a superior quality, I'm not sure why, but it really is. Of course, this TV is HD ready, meaning that it will display HD wonders for you if you so wish.
Actually, I just realised that I can comment on the HD quality, as, since I have it hooked up to our PC, I have watched a few 720p videos on the screen, and I have to say that it is amazing. Of course,
you sit quite close to a PC monitor, which makes it all the better, because the details you can catch are quite extraordinary, this is through the VGA though, and isn't really, 'HDTV'.
All in all, I guess I can say that I am very impressed with the image quality provided from this screen, both from TV inputs, and PC inputs, really great.
Sound Quality ==========
Well, this is a surprisingly interesting result, and in a good way. When we got the Bravia, we knew that we weren't going to be using it for much extreme sound, as it were, just for noises from the computer, and some normal TV watching, but when we found out how good the sound quality is, we didn't worry about turning up the volume too much!
Firstly, I should say that it has a feature called, 'Virtual Dolby Surround', of which I have always been very sceptical, as I question the ability to place 'virtual speakers' around you is a bit far fetched, but I have to say that, it works! Of course, not in every position, it works best if you are sitting in front of it as if it were a monitor, which is how we use it, and therefore it works well. What is also interesting about this feature, is how it can change the way the computer sounds. For instance, listening to some music from iTunes can actually become considerably more involved, as it were, very powerful. And of course, it is great when watching television.
The speakers only pack a 'measly' 5W, although, there are two of them, and they still pack a decent punch, and can provide great entertainment. This said, it isn't really anything compared to a Bose Lifestyle 28 system, or others with a nice meaty subwoofer, which really complete the system. Overall, I have to say that the sound is nothing short of surprising, and is really great.
Design/Looks ==========
This Bravia not only displays things nicely, but it looks great too. Although I'm not a big fan of Silver, this TV does look great, and the whole 'chin' as I like to call it, the piece below the screen is all 'grille', with the speakers behind it. Below this grille is a nice piece of black, glossy plastic that runs along the width of the screen, almost like a smile, and this contains the lights for on off etc, and also the IR receiver for the remote control.
The 'foot' of the TV is a little off, I mean, I'm not that fond of it, and it doesn't impress me like the rest of the screen's design does. I feel that Sony could have put more effort into it, and made it nicer, because it is 'too big' (in inverted commas because I don't know whether the size is necessary or not), and I feel it could have been more slim line. On top of this, it is a giant oval, which is fine with more curvy CRT monitors, (old style 'tube' screens), but with a flat LCD, I expect a rectangle or square foot, which fits the rest of the design. This is probably my only complaint with the design of the TV itself.
The remote control is nice, but once again I'll mention that I don't think it fits in with the rest of the design brilliantly. I feel that a lot of companies now just make one remote that fits vaguely with all their TVs and then ship the same one with all of them, which leaves us with boring remotes. This may sound a bit weird, but I'm a big fan of everything being designed individually, and interestingly, I don't like things being too similar. Excluding that, the remote is nice; it has soft rubber buttons, and a nice circular directional pad for moving around menus etc.
I think I've covered all the looks really, and overall, it is a pretty darn attractive TV, it looks great, and is very 'moderne-chic' and I feel will fit in well in a lot of places, which may have been the aim from Sony in the first place.
Range of Features =============
I don't feel that there is a huge amount to say here, I mean, it's a nice modern television, I guess I could run over that it has: · 2 Scart inputs, (for Regular sky, DVD players etc) · HDMI Port, (for new fangled Sky HD, PS3, other HD stuff etc) · 3.5mm Sound in/out (For plugging in your PC's sound) · Audio in (Auxiliary component (red/white)) · 'Retro' Analogue antenna input, (for regular TV) · VGA input (for your nice Computer/Mac to plug into)
Wow, actually quite a lot of stuff there! Yes, it accepts a lot of stuff, but nothing special, pretty much like any other LCD TV out there. You'll find that larger ones, 37"+ generally have more HDMI inputs, 2-4 sometimes, so I guess you could say that this can be a little lacking, although, it is quite 'old' well, that's probably wrong, but in terms of HDTV adoption, I'd say it is quite old, which would explain the lack of HDMI. (This isn't too important right now).
The features within the TV are great, the menu system within the TV is fabulous, normally you get ugly menus that appear to have been added as an after-thought, although this one is great, it is all nice and clear, and provides a LOT of options, for example: Picture Adjustment, with such things as Contrast and colour tone. Sound adjustment, with such things as Sound Effect, (Dolby or not), Treble, Bass etc. 'Features' which is basically, options for the light sensor, and Power saving options. Timer and setup, in setup you basically tune for the 'Retro' input.
So all in all, I can say that the features of this television are normal, and up to date, providing interfacing for the latest HD equipment.
Value for Money ============
You can expect to pay as little as £419 for this television, which I'd say is pretty great. The features and quality that you are getting from this TV are really nothing short of spectacular, and for that price you are not only getting the features and stuff, but also the brand name, you're getting a Sony, which apparently is important in today's world!? Anyway, I can say that the Value for Money with this TV is great.
Tech Specs ========
· 20" S-series BRAVIA LCD TV · Integrated Digital TV Tuner (also receives analogue) · High Performance 1-chip Video Processor · 3D Comb Filter · Virtual Dolby Surround Sound · BBE technology for clear and easily audible sound · HD Ready · PIP Freeze to Pause Important Scenes on the Spot · High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) · PC Input for use as a PC monitor · Compact and Slim Design · Non-Reflective coating on TV frames
General Data · Colour Light Silver · Power Consumption (Standby) (W) 1.0 · Power Consumption (W) 75.0 · Weight (Net) (kg) 5.9 · Weight Inc Stand (kg) 7.3
Conclusion ========
Best Buy? SSElecticals, here: http://www.sselectricals.com/model.php?ID=2808
It is a great television, and you are doing well if you have it. Thanks for taking the time to read my review of this product, and please rate and comment. If you are not a member of Ciao, I highly recommend it, you can make money, make friends, and much more!
Another Great review Charlie Boy. Now What are you doing in MY Lavatory. If You're not out of here in 10 seconds flat..... I'll call the warden on the other side of that door.
The reply: Yes Mr. Bridger Sir.
That was my awful take on the Eye talian Job.
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The Coolster (TM)
Amazingwoo 20.02.2007 13:54
Contained all the info I'd want to know - top stuff.
exceptional by (21%):
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