Review of the Sony Bravia KDL-40X2000 LCD TV
The V and A in Bravia stand for visual and architecture, and when you see the new KDL-40X2000 you’ll understand why. Sony have blended the latest LCD technology with a simplistic, but smart design, resulting in yet another successful LCD outcome. Design |
| A TV has got to look good, especially when it is the next biggest thing in your lounge to the couch, and luckily Sony have taken complete care in this area. The 40X2000’s simplistic silver frame design is pleasantly generic enough, to be compatible in any home or office. Sony have provided the frame with a non-reflective coating, so you won’t be put off the annoying reflections that come with the sleeker black frames. A bezel is not included in the price, but if you fancy getting one, they are available in black, blue, red, brown and white. We are baffled by Sony not offering a silver one to match the TV. |
| Features |
| With such strong competition emerging in the LCD marketplace, Sony are left with no choice but to offer the best of what’s available. And the 40X2000 is the epitome of the most futuristic LCD technology around. We won’t bore you to tears with every nook and cranny the 40X2000 has tucked away, but we’ll give you a whistle-stop tour through the best bits – explaining the science as we go. Starting with the obvious, but all- important bits, the 40X2000 is HD-Ready due to its 1920x1080p signal capacity. This combined with a 7000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, means the 40X2000 is more than able to give you the greatest picture performance available. As with all things Bravia, this LCD TV can boast the Bravia Engine Ex for high performance picture quality. It claims to guarantee vivid and high contrast images whilst the complex noise reduction process enhances low contrast images until they are crisp and realistic. In conjunction with this is the Live Colour Creation, a technology completely new to Sony and unique to the Bravia range, it is said to provide a 30% wider colour than conventional LCD technology. Colour performance is also entertained by Sony’s Black Trinitron Picture Tubes, containing a special dark tint to make colours more intense and to improve contrast. Looking after the actual view of the screen, is Sony’s Smart Mode. This is an enlargement function used to prevent part of the screen being lost when a 4:3 picture is enlarged to the 16:9 format. The advanced 100Hz Digital Motion uses advanced digital signal processing to provide a sharper, smoother image too. The 40X2000’s sonic technology has by means been overlooked either. Sporting the high performance Nicam sound system with virtual Dolby Surround Pro Logic II, the 40X2000 can produce some of the best audio that will blow you away. Auto volume adjustment is a nice feature, taking care of those annoyingly loud adverts between programmes. You can take advantage of other features such as the favourite channels, and Picture-in-Picture to pause those vitally important scenes. If you’re overwhelmed by all the technology mentioned above, don’t fear as the 40X2000 extremely is easy to set-up and easy-to-use. It really is a case of taking it out of the box and plugging it in. Once this easy task is done, you will be immediately faced with an option of auto-tuning or manual tuning. The helpful and responsive menu kindly comes in 19 languages too. The digital and analogue tuner will kick in and find every channel that your entertainment system receives. When connecting the 40X2000 you’ll be happy to find two HDMI ports, S-Video, a digital audio output and a 3.5mm headphone jack. And the 40X2000’s connectivity doesn’t end there, with a PCMCIA card slot, RCA audio out, RCA AV input and RF in, it supplies more than enough to keep us happy. You can also use the 40X2000 as a monitor for your computer, by utilising the 15-pin PC input, giving you a direct connection without the need for a video graphics adapter. |
| Performance |
| We had the honour of watching the V, W and X-series in the same room right next to each other, giving us a perfect chance to compare their performance. We adjusted the settings to match on all three TVs to give them a fair trial and the results were beyond belief. The W-series in comparison to the V-series was hugely different, providing better back levels and much better colour. On the W-series, a tree at sunset was very dark and didn’t show any of the greens that the V-series could, however, in comparison to the amazing colours provided by the X-series’ performance it was a nonentity. We watched HD Planet Earth which was superb on all three series, but by far the best on the X-series. We turned over to HD BBC to watch some football, and again the differences were huge. The crisp detail of the players against the pitch was perfect and almost too life-like. We have never had the pleasure of seeing such an outstanding LCD performance like this before. Motion was handled expertly, showing no signs of blurring or smearing. The 40X2000 gave us a perfectly sharp and powerful sonic performance, with an optimum amount of bass in all the right places. |
| Overall Opinion |
In terms of LCD, the Sony KDL-40X2000 is easily by far our flavour of the month. A performance like this is hard to find, we really did stand in front of it completely dumbstruck. In our opinion, 40” is the optimum size for the average lounge, and the powerful sound will fill this type of area easily. If we had a little over £2000 to spend we would definitely consider buying the Sony Bravia KDL-40X2000 over any other models. Many thanks to the guys at the Sony Centre, Leicester. For sales information call 0116 2756015 |
| By Lisa Malyon |
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Pros + 1920x1080 resolution with 1080p signal capacity for HD + 7000:1 dynamic contrast + Bravia Engine Ex + Nicam sound system with virtual Dolby Surround Pro Logic II + Amazing picture performance + Powerful audio |
Cons |
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Picture Quality 10/10
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Sound Quality 9/10
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Connectivity 10/10
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Future Compatibility 10/10
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Ease Of Use 10/10
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Overall Rating 
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By Lisa Malyon
19/10/2006 at 4:30:56pm
19/10/2006 at 4:30:56pm
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