I'd like to begin by saying that I would definitely advise readers and potential buyers to shop around a bit prior to buying this television: I found a difference in price of as much as £300 between stockists! Also, have a good look at finance packages and plans as many - usually online retailers - offer deals such as "6 months interest free" and so on.
Moving on. I will include a summary of the seemingly most important features and specifications - these are the ones that most, if not all, of us will understand! Okay, so here goes!----------BASIC SUMMARY OF FEATURES------------------------------
- Resolution* 1920 x 1080
- Dimensions* 98.6cm (width) x 27.9cm (depth) x 68.4cm (height)
- Weight* 21.5kg
- PC Interface* VGA (HD-15)
- Technology* TFT active matrix
- Progressive Scan* Yes
- Image Aspect Ratio* 16:9
It is important to note that the height - 68.4cm - is when the stand is included.
----------SERIES------------------------------
Bravia.
Bra via - or "BRAVIA", rather - is a brand that Sony uses to market its high definition
LCD televisions,
in addition to
projection televisions and projectors, and
mobile phones in countries such as Japan. The original name was WEGA and some BRAVIA advertisements can still be found where the item in question carries the WEGA logo.
The name is actually an acronym for "Best Resolution Audio Visual Integrated Architecture".
----------PRODUCT TYPE------------------------------
This product is an
LCD television, where "LCD" is the commonly known abbreviation for "liquid crystal display". In brief, a liquid crystal is a substance that has characteristics and properties between those of a liquid and those of a solid crystal, and appliances such as digital
alarm clocks and calculators employ this feature. Why? Perhaps the main reason is because it uses little electric power.
Believe it or not, Sony were actually one of the last companies to join the LCD revolution; at one time, they only had TWO LCD lines whilst attempting to produce their own flat-panel technology. This didn't work out, leaving it up to Samsung to bring them back up-to-date!
The Bravia range is now a world-wide success and have a "little more" than two series and models! ;)
----------SIZE------------------------------
The product has a diagonal size of 40 inches - approximately 1.02 metres. It is widescreen.
----------COLOUR------------------------------
Black.
----------DIGITAL TELEVISION CERTIFICATION------------------------------
HD ready 1080p.
I will attempt to explain the concept of HD, and so forth in the best way I can :)
"HD ready" basically concerns the ability of a television receiver to display high-definition images. Although many people may think this is a new concept, HD ready has been used in Europe since early 2005; this followed the EICTA ordering the requirement for the label.
In the
United States the term refers to any display that is capable of accepting and displaying a high-definition signal at either 720p, 1080i, or 1080p.
The number "1080" represents 1,080 lines of vertical resolution (1080 horizontal scan lines), while the letter p stands for progressive scan.
Progressive is the opposite of "interlaced" (for example, 1080i); interlace is a method of improving image quality of a video signal mainly on CRT (cathode ray tube) devices without taking up extra bandwidth.
----------INPUT VIDEO FORMATS------------------------------
480p, 720p, 1080i, 576i, 576p
Even though the television is 1080p, it plays lower formats such as those noted above. The television has to play ("accept") all of these lower formats first anyway before it can do the newer 1080.
----------VIDEO & PC INTERFACES: CONNECTIONS------------------------------
Component, composite, HDMI, SCART
A single back panel houses two HDMI inputs, however, there is also a third one on the side. On the panel you can also find a set of Component video and stereo audio inputs, two SCART terminals, an aerial input, and a VGA/PC input. Each of the SCART terminals can accept RGB and Composite. Additionally, the second input can also accept S-Video.
The PC interface is VGA (HD-15) and is also found on the back panel.
----------TECHNOLOGY------------------------------
This television has a TFT active matrix.
An active matrix display is a type of flat-panel display in which the screen is refreshed more often than in conventional passive-matrix displays (the older displays using a grid of vertical and horizontal wires).
TFT is the basis for the most common type of active-matrix displays. TFT is a thin film transistor.
----------LCD BACKLIGHT TECHNOLOGY------------------------------
Wide Color Gamut-CCFL
LCD displays require a backlight as liquid crystals filter light not emit it. LCD displays are generally lit by a CCFL (Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp) which is similar to very thin domestic fluorescent bulb however, it does not emit heat.
WCG-CCFL backlight provide a wider color gamut resulting in on-screen images with more natural or "life-like" colors.
----------MY EXPERIENCE & OPINION------------------------------
This particular television is very aesthetically pleasing and easy on the eye whilst being chic and simple at the same time. The black colour is gorgeous and will suit any decor or room theme and the reflective "sheen" adds to the "expensive factor". The
silver/grey ridges and holes along the bottom give an artful difference to the deep blackness.
The KDL40V4000 is one affordable HDTV that is great for not solely watching programmes and movies but for gaming, too. My Xbox and PS3 experience using this television was excellent and definitely one to remember and recommened, alike! It really was fun playing games on this television, the main reason - I think - being the non-existent input lag.
The image is general is pleasing thanks to the excellently calibrated black level. Similarly, the colours are very nearly accurate. However, one thing to note regarding the colours is that it isn't possible to fully calibrate the display. Nevertheless, the "Warm 2" greyscale setting will be highly satisfactory to many buyers.
The remote control is very easy to use and all of the menus operate in a fast and efficient manner.
I love this as I hate slow and lagging menus, on televisions, mobile phones and computers alike.
Furthermore, all settings that you input can saved (and saved per independent input, too).
To me, there are a couple of problems which really impact my review of this product. For example, one of the biggest disappointments is the sharpening of 1920 x 1080 feeds: it seems very 'forced' and unnatural. This affects the display more than you may imagine. A second problem is the standard-definition video processing; I found that the speed of the video processing was a little slower than originally expected, too. My final point to note concerning the main problems is that there is a lack of user-accesible Greyscale controls. For instance, there is no white balance control in the user menu for greyscale calibration. Very strange for a brand such as Sony!
Sony Bravia KDL-40V4000 - great for Hi-Def users 
