There’s no two ways about it. The average size of TVs is going up. Big screens are getting cheaper and better too, and if you can fit a bigger TV into your life, we’ll wager you won’t regret it. Bigger TVs unlock more fun for gaming, for sound and for picture too.
You’ll struggle to find flagship TV performance at anything less than 48in these days, with the typical best 4K sets at 55in and beyond. If you want the tip-top TVs, that’s the minimum size you’ll need, but we’d encourage you to go even bigger if you can.
Superscreen TVs – 75in and larger – offer a few things that their littler brothers don’t and, now with more bigguns spread throughout the manufacturers’ ranges than ever before, there’s a superscreen TV price to suit almost everyone.
Sony is one of the major players when it comes to superscreens and Currys is the place to shop for one of the biggest choice around. There are 15 different Sony superscreen TVs available at Currys right now, including some exclusive models. Which one has got your name on it?
Just in case the people you share your home with need a little more convincing, these are the superscreen TV benefits to point out.
Superscreen picture
Bigger is usually better when it comes to screen size. Big picture viewing is simply more immersive. Think of the cinema compared to your front room and you’ll know what we mean. Smaller screens often make for sharper images but big ones are more involving. Watch a moving shot from a helicopter flying over the mountains and you can almost feel your stomach drop as you come down the other side. There’s a sense of depth and believability to big screen viewing that simply can’t be matched.
If you want that added sharpness too, then just add more pixels. There might not be much genuine 8K content out there but the latest Sony 8K TV can upscale 4K material in quite spectacular fashion. Although we’ve not had it in for review as yet, we’ve big hopes for the Sony Z9J 8K Master Series TVs which are available in 75in and 85in sizes (£5999 and £7699 at Currys, respectively). They come fitted with Sony’s top-of-the-line Cognitive XR picture processor which uses a ‘cognitive intelligence’ system that aims to add a more human perspective for an enhanced AV performance.
Don’t let the price tag put you off, though. Sony’s cognitive processing is still available in more affordable superscreen TVs further down the range across OLED and LED panels. The 75in Sony X94J (£2299) and Sony X90J (£2299) are the more budget end of that particular equation with the 75in Sony X95J (£3299) the top 4K LED TV series of Sonys for the year.
The last of these is worth particular attention. Its screen is fitted with Sony’s X-Wide Angle and X-Anti Reflection technologies which come in particularly useful when there’s a big audience – as, indeed, you’re likely to have when using a superscreen TV.
The first of these boosts off-axis viewing to ensure that colours remain bold and the picture not washed out when you’re not looking at the screen straight on. After all, not everyone gets to sit front and centre. X-Anti Reflection works to minimse any mirroring of ambient lighting on the screen which might otherwise ruin the darker scenes of films. You’ll find both of these on the Z9J Master Series 8K TVs too.
To really wow your audience, you can up any of those Full Array LEDs above – including the X95J and Z9J – to an even more impressive 85in size or, for something really special, how about a superscreen Sony OLED TV?
We reviewed the A90J and A80J OLEDs in their 55in sizes and awarded both five stars. While the same ratings don’t always follow between different panel sizes, we’d be looking for great things from the 83in A90J (£6499), the 77in A80J (£3699) and the 77in A84J (£3699) too.
Superscreen sound
If you’ve read many What Hi-Fi? TV reviews, then you’ll know that sound is something that Sony does particularly well. Take that to the superscreen size and there’s a chance that sound could get even better.
Going big ensures that you get the maximum number of speakers for your chosen TV range and that means a better chance of a room-filling audio experience. Should you choose a superscreen Sony with a Cognitive XR processor, then you’ll also get the benefits of XR Surround with 3D Surround upscaling. This takes a 2ch or 5.1ch audio signal and creates a virtual 5.1.2ch experience with the aim of enveloping the viewer in sound in all dimensions.
Sony’s superscreen Full Array LEDs feature the company’s Acoustic Multi Audio technology with speakers built into the TV frame which aim to position the sound into your space with greater accuracy and simulate audio that comes from the centre of the screen.
The X90J and X94J have four, with two full range X-balanced speakers and two sound positioning frame tweeters. Upgrading to the X95J, flagship 4K LCD model, adds a fifth speaker in the form of a dedicated subwoofer or head to mighty 8K Master Series for a theoretically very impressive 10 speaker system with 2 x mid-range X-balanced speakers, 4 x sound positioning frame tweeters and 4 x subwoofers!
If you decide to go OLED, and we’d certainly recommend it, then you’ll get the benefits of Sony’s Acoustic Surface Audio+ sound from picture technology.
Actuators behind the TV vibrate the panel itself to create the higher frequency sounds while left and right subwoofers provide the welly down below. It’s some of the clearest and best TV sound we’ve heard in the 55in and 65in versions of the A90J. The 83in model gets two extra subs and that should add even more punch and impact to that already excellent sonic presentation.
Superscreen gaming
Gaming with friends is great but sharing the screen with them while you do it can be a little irritating. Go splitscreen on a superscreen TV, though, and you won’t begrudge anyone some of that 75in+ real estate. There’ll be no need to sit up close with your nose to the screen. Sit back, relax and play with plenty of space for both players, whether you’re working together in co-op adventure or in a PVP fight to the death!
Take the action back to one player mode and your gamescape will be positively panoramic. Just imaging walking those virtual worlds in 85in scale and at 4K 120fps resolution, with ALLM and VRR added as a future software update.
Sony’s other great content offering, which also happens to be unique to BRAVIA XR TVs (X90J and above), is the high bitrate BRAVIA CORE streaming service. It offers access to the largest library of IMAX Enhanced films anywhere, at up to and beyond 4K Blu-ray quality – perfect for big screen viewing.
For all your other superscreen content needs, there are the over 5000 apps available on Google TV, Sony’s choice of operating system and interface for its 2021 TVs.
Now that you’re convinced to go Sony superscreen, head down to Currys to see for yourself or simply go online now and take the plunge. Look out for great deals on superscreen Sony TVs on Currys’ social channels and keep an eye on all superscreen Sony news on the company’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram feeds, as well as here at What Hi-Fi? too.
