by Back at CES, most of the major TV manufacturers such as LG and Samsung announced their upcoming high-end TVs. But one big company was missing: Sony. Now it’s finally ready to show off its latest flagship kits, and after getting the chance to see them in person, I can say it was worth the wait.
Sony’s 2023 line of Bravia XR TVs are all powered by the company’s Cognitive Processor XR. That means they share the same underlying technology and processing, including support for things like Sony’s XR Clear Image technology, which enables adaptive noise reduction, automatic HDR tone mapping and more.
For 2023, Sony is trying to take as much of the guesswork out of setup as possible by making the TVs look great out of the box in standard video or cinema mode. This means that you do not need to fuss with various settings or need to have the TV professionally calibrated. Granted calibration is still the way to go if you want to get the very best image quality, but for people who don’t have a colorimeter at home or don’t want to pay someone else to do it – which I think is pretty much everyone – this is a welcome upgrade .
Sony has also made some design tweaks, including new tweeters built into the frame of select models. Although you can’t really see them, they help deliver richer, more expansive sound, especially when paired with one of the company’s high-end soundbars with center sync sound. Sony is also introducing an updated stand for most of its new sets, offering a bit more flexibility when trying to fit external speakers and soundbars.
Sam Rutherford/Engadget
Finally, Sony has also added new Gaming and Eco dashboards, making it easier to find and adjust various settings. For gaming, you have options like VRR, motion blur reduction, and more. And for FPS fanatics, there’s even a setting to add a permanent crosshair to the center of the screen, complete with different crosshair selections. Alternatively, the Eco Dashboard includes a simple walkthrough to help you choose power-saving settings, including a happy little tree that grows when you do things like reduce brightness or enable shorter idle off times.
While Sony hasn’t released exact pricing yet, the X90L is likely to be the most affordable of the bunch, as it’s positioned as the entry-level option in the Bravia XR family. It’s the replacement for last year’s X90K, and features a full-array LED panel with improved Clear Image upscaling and significantly reduced blooming. And while Sony doesn’t disclose the exact number of dimming zones, the company says the X90L has up to 60 percent more dimming zones while being up to 30 percent brighter than before.
Sam Rutherford
This model also gets a new aluminum frame instead of the plastic on the X90K, and with the addition of a massive new 98-inch model, the X90L is the largest TV in Sony’s 2023 Bravia XR range.
When it comes to OLEDs, we have the A80L and A95L. Not only do both models have improved contrast, when viewed side-by-side with rivals like the LG C2, I noticed that Sony’s OLEDs definitely did a better job of preserving detail in shadows. The A95L was particularly impressive thanks to its QD-OLED panel and cognitive processor, with Sony claiming its brightness is now twice that of last year’s model. This is great because the brightness of OLED TVs has for a long time lagged behind the brightness of more traditional LED devices. But now Sony says the A95L is brighter than basically all but the most advanced LED rivals. And as someone who loves the super vibrant colors you get from OLED displays, the A95L might be my favorite of the entire line.
Sam Rutherford/Engadget
Speaking of high-end, Sony’s X93L and X95L are the company’s two super premium flagship options. Both sets have Mini LED screens with the main difference being that the X93L does not come with Sony’s XR Clear Image technology. Meanwhile, the X95L offers equivalent peak brightness with 30 percent more local dimming zones. The downside is that the X95L is only available as an 85-inch model, so if you need something smaller, go with the X93L.
That said, when I compared the X93L and X95L to one of Sony’s super-expensive reference monitors in a room with typical lighting, both did a good job of preserving detail while delivering extremely accurate colors. In certain scenes, Sony’s TVs almost made rivals like Samsung’s QN90B look washed out. Granted, things like film grain were a little more noticeable on the X93L because it doesn’t have Clear Image technology, but for movie lovers who really care about watching movies that look as close as possible to what the director intended, these sets are the ones to get.
Sam Rutherford/Engadget
After seeing the new TVs, regardless of which type of panel you prefer, all of Sony’s upcoming Bravia XR sets look amazing. You get far more local dimming zones on the X90L line, while the twice the brightness of the A95L is absolutely fantastic. And with Sony adding larger screen options to pretty much all of its models, finding the right size screen for your room should be even easier.
All products recommended by Engadget have been selected by our editors, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you purchase something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. All prices are correct at the time of publication.
