Sony 60″ KDL-W850B 1080p 120Hz 3D LED HDTV Review

Sony’s KDL-W850B is one of two models in the company’s W850B Series. This product line is part of Sony’s premium tier of 1080p televisions and is actually their second-best model falling just below the W950B Series.

Even though 4K Ultra HDTVs are the latest rave in the television market these days, 1080p models continue to remain very popular with consumers, in particular, those who are not ready to make the jump to 4K.

If you’re concerned you may be missing out on the “best there is” picture quality by not moving up the resolution ladder to 4K, don’t fret. Because the fact is, the best 1080p models on the market can easily rival many of the 4K displays out there, which is primarily dependent on the content you are viewing and your seating distance from the screen.

The W850B is capable of delivering this level of picture quality and is the focus of this review.

Design/Features

Probably the most obvious design feature of this set is its “iconic wedge” design. This gives the set a profile that’s narrower at the top (0.9″) and wider at the bottom (3.8″). This should help in giving the set more stability. It also allows more room for Sony’s larger and better-performing Long Duct speaker system.

The W850B’s screen has a non-reflective matte anti-glare coating for reduced glare in brightly lit rooms. The display is framed by a thin black bezel which gives it more of a portrait look than that of a TV screen. The TV’s stand features adjustable feet which can be moved inward to allow for placing the TV on a smaller cabinet. Nice touch Sony.

The 850B is an edge-lit backlight design display that produces a bright picture image which is ideal for brightly lit rooms. Sony’s X-Reality Pro engine enhances color, clarity and detail for maximized picture performance.

This TV delivers plenty of entertainment via its smart TV platform. The Sony Entertainment Network (SEC) gives you dozens of entertainment options including Video Unlimited which features the latest movie and TV releases. Music Unlimited is a music streaming service that offers a catalog of millions of songs.

And of course, you get your usual assortment of apps including Netflix, Amazon Instant, YouTube, Vudu, Hulu Plus, Pandora and many more, all available through the sets Wi-Fi connection to your home’s network.

The Social View feature allows you to watch live programming with other viewers via an optional camera mounted atop the TV, you can then see and interact with family and friends in a different location.

If 3D viewing is your thing. This set gives you this option along with two pairs of active 3D glasses.

The Motionflow XR480 feature is good at eliminating motion artifacts during live sporting events; however, during other types of programming, this processing can add the dreaded soap opera effect, (when film source programming looks like video). I suggest you turn this function off if it appears to affect the picture quality or proves your own disliking.

Remote Control

The included remote is nicely designed with an easy-to-use button layout. It provides many direct access buttons for on-the-fly connectivity to sources such as Netflix and Sony’s own SEN apps, Social View – which loads the social networking app mentioned above, Discover for searching the web and TV content by category, and Football for activating the TV’s sports picture mode. The remote is not backlit.

Sony also offers an optional touch-pad clicker remote for use with this set. See here.

Connection Ports

• 4 HDMI inputs – one supports MHL (mobile high-definition link)
• 1 Component input
• 1 Composite input – shared with component
• 2 USB 2.0 inputs
• 2 Analog audio inputs
• 1 Analog audio out
• 1 Digital optical out
• 1 RF input for antenna/cable
• 1 Ethernet
• 1 Subwoofer output

Performance

The W850B delivers very good picture quality producing a sharp, detailed and bright image. The colors were accurate and well saturated. Image depth was good for a 1080p display.

Black level reproduction is a strong point with this TV. Blacks were deep with good shadow detail.

While viewing an outdoor jungle scene from the movie Avatar, the W850B delivered a very satisfying image. The color balance was excellent with no over or under-saturation of colors. Image depth in this scene was very good allowing me to see fine detail deep into the onscreen image. Dark areas in this scene were a deep black and contrasted well with the surrounding brighter areas of this image.

During this same scene, which had a fair amount of onscreen action, I saw no motion blur or image judder.

Screen uniformity appeared to be good on the particular set I used for evaluation. On a black screen image overlaid with white text, I could not detect any clouding or light bleed.

Side angle viewing was a bit disappointing on this display. As I moved off-axis to either side of the TV and beginning at about a 25-degree angle, the picture began to dim and lose contrast and color saturation. This is a common anomaly with most LED TVs. However, I have seen better performance in this area from other premium-class LED displays.

Conclusion

Sony’s W850B is a very good choice if you’re looking for a premium class 1080p LED TV. It delivers very good overall performance and is loaded with features all at an excellent price. Its off-angle viewing performance is a bit below typical LED standards in my opinion but is not problematic enough to be a deal-breaker, especially if you won’t be viewing this display at extreme angles.

With that said, the W850B’s positive attributes certainly outweigh any flaws it may have. And with a current asking price of under $1,200.00 for a premium LED TV, you are getting plenty of bang for your buck.

See the video presentation below for more info regarding the KDL-W850B.

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