Review: Sony Bravia KDL-55NX813 (KDL55NX813)

Sony has bolstered its line of 3D ready TVs just in time for Christmas with another handsome Monolithic Design.

The KDL-55NX813 55-inch set joins the stylish NX range at the premium end and, as such, comes loaded with built-in Wi-Fi, a Freeview HD tuner, LED backlighting and online goodies galore.

It's 3D ready, too, but you'll have to fork out again for the transmitter and glasses. It sounds like Sony playing Scrooge, but the (sound) reasoning is that not everyone wants to pay for 3D.

Without the plastic transmitter perched on top, this set certainly looks like a slick, high-end proposition. It's not as thin as Samsung and LG's flagship models, but is significantly slimmer than other bulky Bravias, while the Monolithic Design, characterised by the flush-fitting glass screen, still looks stylish. This latest model has a narrower bezel, too, so more of that black expanse translates into picture.

A smart glass pedestal stand is included in the box, but you've probably also seen the NX TVs advertised with a long aluminium plinth. The TV slots into this and reclines at an angle of 6° to suit fashionably low-slung TV tables, which is what gives this range its classic look. A new version with a powered 2.1 speaker system built in has just been released, and given the disappointing sound of the puny TV speakers, it's a logical upgrade.

So instead of 3D glasses and fancy stands, the hefty price buys you a latest generation full HD LCD panel with dynamic edge-mounted LED backlight. Unlike the 'full array' LED illumination of Sony's flagship HX903, the LEDs are deployed at the sides, but, crucially, still enable local dimming, thanks to what Sony calls dynamic backlighting. The good news is that it works and the picture quality here is in the top bracket as a result.

The NX prefix indicates Sony's lifestyle-oriented 'network' models, which means Wi-Fi is built in. Joining your home network is very easy and it gives you the keys to Sony's ever-growing list of web apps. Nearly all of the big-ticket TVs have web access these days, but Sony is leading the way with genuinely useful content like BBC's iPlayer, Lovefilm clips in HD and its latest pay-per-view venture, Qriocity.

All too often TV widgets are frustratingly slow to open and disappointing when they do, but things have changed. One thing that's different with Bravia Internet Video, as the suite of online content is called, is the way the on-screen menu enables you to see which apps are available without having to load new menu pages each time. YouTube opens quite quickly and although the compressed picture quality looks horrible on a 1080p panel of this scale, it means you'll never be stuck for something to watch.

Given the premium price tag, it's surprising and a little disappointing to find that full HD 3D isn't built in. Instead, you'll need to buy an IR emitter to perch on top of the TV, thus ruining the sleek looks. The idea is that only those people interested in 3D then need to shell out for the extra kit, while regular 2D viewers are reassured with the option to upgrade at any point. The good news is that even this somewhat cobbled together arrangement works just as well as Sony's built-in option and creates an image that's more convincing than many of the other brands.

The other key feature is the Freeview HD tuner, bringing four free-to-air hi-def channels including BBC One HD and Channel 4 HD straight to your screen in crisp 1080i resolution.

Then there is a long list of added features that you may or may not use. The USB Media Player gives you speedy access to digital media stored on an external hard drive, while DLNA compliance means you can also stream wirelessly from a PC. PhotoMap is a new trick that displays your photos on a map, using their embedded GPS data (if they have any) to place them.

The screen itself features a less reflective surface than usual, which is said to minimise glare and improve perceived contrast. Sony calls this an OptiContrast Panel and it is noticeably less mirrored than other sets lower down the model range, and the contrast is indeed impressive.

Sony's new OptiContrast panel has a clear surface layer that reduces reflectivity and also helps this achieve its claimed contrast ratio of 33,000:1. The screen is noticeably less glossy than previous Sony sets so there are less distracting reflections of yourself sitting on the sofa. The main advantage though is the improvement in contrast that goes with that.

The black levels are deep and solid and the whites are particularly bright with the help of the LED backlight. The contrast level in between is strong enough to ensure detail remains visible even during the dark scenes. Using Coraline on 3D Blu-ray in 2D mode to begin with provides a good test of this as most of the film is set at night. While some TVs struggle to resolve the black figures against a black background, the image here is almost always distinct.

Switch into 3D mode and it's a slightly different story. There's a significant drop in brightness when viewing though the 3D glasses, which makes it trickier to decipher the very dark scenes. Having said that, the brightness hit occurs in all 3D TVs due to the flicker of the glasses and it's actually less pronounced here.

The other advantage this set has in terms of 3D playback is a rapid frequency response that prevents the dreaded crosstalk from ruining the effect. This is when echoes of the left and right images linger and overlap slightly to create a shadow and shatter the image. There are traces of crosstalk here, but that's all.

There's also a perceived drop in resolution when you don the glasses, too. The alternating left and right images leave you seeing a slightly softer version of the image even though each eye is actually seeing a 1080p image. Again, it's a feature of frame sequential 3D, and this set is no more prone to it than any other.

In fact, what you see here is a fairly convincing 3D image that stretches well back behind the screen, while objects in the foreground loom plausibly into the room. The bold colours, crisp detail and speedy processing all conspire to paint a particularly lifelike 3D picture.

This set can also convert 2D into 3D with the push of a button - if you really want to. This mode adds some ,impression of depth, but it's not very realistic and of course, introduces all the negative aspects of 3D, like the drop in brightness and sharpness, so really it's a sure way to ruin a good film.

Switching from Blu-ray to the TV's own Freeview HD tuner is a refreshing surprise. LCD panels of this size are usually very unforgiving of compressed standard-def material, but Sony's Bravia Engine 3 processing is clearly doing a decent job of tidying up the image in terms of clarity, contrast and colour fidelity.

What you won't see here is any dreadful artificial sharpening of the image. All too often, TV manufacturers use video processing to attempt to make images appear smoother and less grainy and end up with glitchy and artificial results. Motionflow 200Hz Pro is the latest version of Sony's frame creation processor that uses backlight blinking to deliver four times the number of frames as a 50Hz set and a stable, non-jerky image. This it manages to do without creating a halo around fast moving objects. The important point is that you don't notice it and the picture always looks natural.

Sound

It's impossible for flat TVs of this screen size to achieve sound of a similar scale. Speakers this small simply don't have the volume, especially when they're tucked away like Sony's 'invisible' speakers. Apparently, they're positioned for optimum elevation and powered by Sony's digital S-Master amplifiers, but they still lack sufficient projection to match the TV.

The sound is clear enough, but it lacks any bass warmth, so it sounds thin and stretched when you turn it up.

This is where Sony's optional SU-B550S soundbar stand comes in. The long aluminium plinth that gives the Monolithic Design TVs their characteristic 6° lean has just been redesigned to incorporate 2.1 powered speakers with a combined output of 40W, so it's the ideal partner for this set if you have the extra £349 to spare.

Value

The NX813 is almost in the top tier of Sony's extensive TV range, with only the HX903 being more expensive. The Sony brand name still commands a premium too, so at £3,000, this TV isn't exactly cheap.

Thanks to keen competition, though, you do get a lot for your money. This is a stylish set with a smart glass stand for starters and it crams a lot into its narrow frame. Luxuries like Wi-Fi are built in, and the dynamic edge LED backlighting add to the cost.

Given the price, however, it still seems off-putting that the 3D transmitter isn't built into the set as with the HX903, or at least bundled with the TV. Because of this, 3D fans will be able to find better value for money over at Samsung and Panasonic.

Ease of use

Sony's Bravia TVs tend to score highly in the ease-of-use stakes, thanks to the brilliant Xross Media Bar (XMB) menu system that has moved from the PS3 to just about every Sony product with an onscreen interface. With the two axis offering up all of your options without insisting you scroll through menu pages, you can access all of the features in no time. Even the channel names for the analogue and digital tuners now appear on the XMB.

There's also a very clear eight-day electronic programme guide (EPG), which makes planning your viewing especially easy on this larger-than-life screen.

As for the remote control, Sony has simply decided to supersize one of its regular handsets. The current concave remote with the addition power button on the flip side is very intuitive and could only be improved by perhaps making it a bit more ergonomic. Scaling it up to this size doesn't seem to bring any important new buttons, but it does mean you're less likely to lose track of it.

In addition to the eight preset picture modes, you can tweak the brightness, colour temperature etc yourself. Other brands offer more in the way of test patterns and other calibration tools to help you fine tune the picture, but ease of use, rather than flexibility, is the name of the game here.

Sony's latest premium TV comes with a hefty price tag, but it justifies that with integrated Wi-Fi and a host of online functions. The handsome slick Monolithic Design inspires confidence, and you're all ready for 3D too, even though the transmitter and glasses aren't included.

More importantly, the image quality in both 3D and old-fashioned 2D is excellent. Deep blacks, bold colours and powerful video processing combine for a highly appealing picture.

We liked

Thoroughly convincing in 3D and highly appealing in 2D, the picture quality is the main attraction, although the styling is spot-on, too.

We disliked

Not incorporating the 3D transmitter means ruining the minimal design and yet more expense.

Final verdict

This handsome set is a strong addition to Sony's lineup. The slimmer frame and narrower bezel are an improvement on the Monolithic Design, while the OptiContrast screen seems to improve the contrast and black level performance.

Overall, the picture quality is very strong in 2D mode, which translates to a very plausible 3D output too. It's a shame the 3D transmitter isn't built into the set, but the reality is, you probably won't be watching much 3D content on it anyway.