Sony XBR-55A9G 55 Inch TV: MASTER Series BRAVIA OLED 4K Ultra HD Smart TV with HDR and Alexa Compatibility

4.0 out of 5 stars

By SW - Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2019

Not a Perfect Set, But a Truly Extraordinary Picture

We’ve had 4K TVs since the technology first went mainstream three or four years back, including a Sony XBR85X850D, which is currently our primary television. Even without a ton of 4K content—though we do have 4K blu-rays and Apple TVs—the picture quality on an Ultra HD TV is still light years ahead of regular HD sets. Add in HDR, and the picture is just really, really hard to beat. This is our first time experiencing OLED 4K and even with high expectations, my initial reaction to the picture is … Wow. The blacks are inky and the colors rich and full. Don’t think I’ve ever had a TV that needed so little out-of-the-box adjustment. Just stunning. I usually tweak and fuss with the settings on a new TV for hours initially; but this one, while infinitely adjustable, took just a couple minutes. So happy it doesn’t arrive with artifact creating settings turned on by default. The built-in “auto-switch” settings (which, unfortunately, only work on compatible inputs) that sense what you’re watching and change the picture settings to match are a game changer. Put in a 4K blu-ray and it changes your screen to Cinema Pro mode, watch Netflix and it auto-selects the best screen for that, too. Really cool and unlike a lot of default video settings actually seem to genuinely enhance the screen, even for someone like me who is pretty picky about video. The auto-brightness setting also works wonders. This set is in a bedroom and the difference between watching at daylight or in the dark just before bed is immense and the sensor does seem to work, making adjustments to keep the picture stunning in any light setting. Not that set-up was without flaw. The remote I received was either a lemon, or something else is up with the IR reception here. Even after replacing batteries with three fresh sets it would only work every third or fourth press, and usually only after taking the batteries out and shifting them around. Possible it was a short somewhere and I just had a dud, but it made the lengthy checkbox set-up process very cumbersome, as it wouldn’t even work with the remote actually touching the TV’s IR sensor. I use a universal remote to control all our home theater hardware, so once I had the initial set-up complete I could switch to that and it controls the set flawlessly (using TV’s built-in bluetooth which you have to get a pairing code for, which can’t happen until after initial set-up), but still not something you should be struggling with on a TV this pricey. My other complaint, and why I can’t rate this 5-stars, is the iteration of smart TV used here isn’t as navigable as our other Sony Android set. The apps you download don’t automatically appear on the apps line on the home screen, and you have to go to an additional menu setting or sidebar to access them. Just a clumsy process and the layout of the menu/home screen also isn’t quite as intuitive; The tweaks they’ve made are definitely not for the better. The one-button Netflix access does work totally flawlessly and is near-instant, but feels like they’ve made getting to apps that didn’t pay for consideration purposely more difficult to get to. Which, again, when you’re talking about a $3,000+ TV is fairly galling. We did have one other set-up snafu where we had sound, but no picture (menus were visible, but video didn’t display), that I messed around with for way too long before just resetting the system (hold power button on remote for 10 seconds until unit restarts with Android logo), which fixed it immediately. Other than those fairly minor gripes, both ameliorated for us by other devices (Logitech remote and Apple TV), this TV is simply stunning. Thinner than finger-width it was simple to mount on the wall and comes with plates that cover all the input areas, making it look almost as sleek from the back, as the front. (We did have to leave one plate off, because it wouldn’t fit over 3 HDMI + ethernet and antenna cables.) Attention to small details like that, and built-in cord management, make this an aesthetic, as well as functional, display device. By the way, when I say this TV is thin, I’m not kidding around. It made the three-year-old Samsung it replaced look like a clunky tube TV in comparison. Definitely a futuristic design with an emphasis on thinness. The built-in sound, if you’re using it, is solid; better than most flat screens, which is, again, impressive in a model this narrow, and the picture really is second to none, even in a house with multiple high-end TV sets. Gorgeous TV, and if you’ve got the money to spend, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By bookfan - Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2019

Television is great, Amazon service is lacking

The tv has excellent picture quality and was pretty easy to set up. However, we were disappointed in Amazon’s shipping and customer service. Counted on fast shipping, but the tv arrived outside of the stated delivery timeframe. It took 8 days despite the claim of free one day Prime shipping. It was 4 days after the tv shipped before it arrived. Plus, since delivery required a signature, and tracking indicated incorrectly that the package was “out for delivery “ I ended up waiting all day for the tv to arrive. Then, waited again the following day. The result of my chat with Amazon customer service was an offer of $5 for the error. My last big ticket purchase here.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By enricoclaudio - Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2019

2019 King of TVs!!!

If you are concerned about OLED panel lottery, avoid LG and go with Sony. Why Sony OLEDs are more expensive than LG OLEDs, well the main reason is that Sony Master Series OLEDs use Grade A OLED panels from LG Display so the chances of getting a set with poor uniformity/banding and tinting is way less than with LG OLEDs. My set has almost perfect white uniformity and 5% looks great after the first short compensation cycle. Not to mention that colors, motion and upscaling are great on this set!! If you are looking for the best 2019 OLED, get the Sony, period!!!

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Shane J. - Reviewed in the United States on August 24, 2019

Outstanding 4K OLED TV

This Sony TV utilizes the OLED Panels manufactured by LG, and incorporates Sony's outstanding image processing. The OLED panels Sony is procuring are exceptionally flat and do not have the annoying rippled reflection the LQ OLED TVs exhibit when viewed while the TV is off. Theses two facts alone make the higher price for the TV worthwhile. The image quality is first- rate. No perceptible motion blur, no noise artifacts visible, no off-axis dimming or color shift that one typically sees in LED backlit LCD TVs. The TV exhibits natural color and tone rendition with crisp details. The program material viewed may not be up to this TV's ability to display it however- older film- based program material will have it's foibles revealed- you'll redily detect which producers chose to use less expensive film or had to change emulsion types in some cameras, causing a perceptible change in the image quality, sometimes between scenes. This TV is a movie buff's TV! I love the TV. This TV uses the entire surface of the TV as a speaker- dialog is very crisp and easy to understand, which places this TV at the top of a short list of TVs to be considered for your living room or media room. The realism of this TV cannot be understated, nor can it be understood, without seeing it for yourself.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By J. Smith - Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2019

This TV is fantastic

The picture quality is stunning. The blacks are perfect as expected with an OLED screen and the brighter colors are top notch even in bright light but really shine at night. Any content with Dolby Vision is jaw dropping. The built in Android TV works fantastically with YouTube, Prime Video, HBO, Showtime, and Netflix. The Netflix calibrated mode feature combined with 4K shows featuring Dolby Vision really showcase why you're spending this much on a TV. I also bought a mid-range Sony STR-DN1080 receiver to pair with this and everything was seamlessly working right out of the box with minimal setup and 1 controller. The controller is very nice, works with all the apps and also controls my Apple TV 4K without problem. The only thing that requires another controller is my Dish receiver but I'm sure that is just because, like all cable company equipment, it's hot trash. I also bought the Sony SU-WL855 wall mount kit for this TV. It is very overpriced but I like that it lets you extend the the panel off the wall and swivel it so you can reach all the ports and connectors and then push it flat against the wall again.