CES 09: Sony’s new ultimate is the Bravia XBR9, but where’s the LED?
William Maher
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Jan 9, 2009 8:04 AM
While Samsung, LG, Toshiba and others pump LED TVs, Sony rolls out another big hitter – the Bravia XBR9.
Times may be tough, but at some point HD TV makers all release their so-good-it-hurts top of the line HDTV – the kind that make ordinary LCDs and plasmas bow down and accept themselves inferior.
We’re not sure we’ll be forking out cash for it, but the Sony XBR9 sets a new Bravia benchmark by which you can compare the rest.
Prices are yet to be released, and there’s no word yet on Australian availability (the XBR9 will be available in the US Spring), but the specs are impressive. This TV combines the best of Sony’s special sauce – Motionflow 240Hz for smoother picture, Bravia Engine 3, and Sony’s Wide Colour Gamut Cold Cathode Flourescent Light (WCG-CCFL) technology.
Other features include:
- Available in 52in, 46in, 40in, 32in
- Motionflow 240Hz
- Ethernet
- Bravia Engine 3
- Bravia Internet Video
- DNLA and USB for sharing music and videos across home network
- Bravia Widgets
We’ll be interested to see how 240Hz stacks up. We’ve already seen the major benefits of 100Hz vs 50Hz in our Samsung vs Panasonic review, but some people find the smoothing effect distracting while watching movies.
Where’s the LED?
Something we couldn’t find any mention of in Sony’s CES launch was LED, which is making an appearance in the 2009 lineup from Samsung and others. Along with Internet connectivity, LED is the other key technology being pushed in the 2009 TV lineups from Toshiba, Samsung and LG.
Sony is already there with LED – it has LED backlit displays in shops in the form of the Z series we’ve reviewed.
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| The KDL-46XBR9: not sure we'll fork out the cash, but it's a handy benchmark |
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| Another view showing Yahoo's Widgets which we've reported about previously |
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| Bravia's distinctive glass styling remains |