It’s been three years since Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer hit the big screen. Since then, fans of the director have been waiting with bated breath for his next venture, and this time he is taking it back to basics.

Nolan is taking on one of the most well-known stories of ancient history by adapting Homer’s The Odyssey, throwing a star-studded cast (Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, and Tom Holland all feature, just to name a few) into the perilous land of Troy.

But buying a ticket for Nolan’s latest release is not as straightforward as it probably should be. Depending on your local cinema, you could be choosing between IMAX 70mm, ‘standard’ IMAX, Dolby Cinema, 70mm film, 35mm or Premium Large Format.

The movie social platform Letterboxd has even released a digital punchcard to tick them off.

Let’s be honest, though, the majority of people will not be forking out the extra cash to watch the film more than once or twice in the cinema. So which of the many versions should you pony up for?

While we await the film’s release (17th July), let’s run through each of the available formats.

The aspect ratio basics

The biggest differences in the various presentations are the aspect ratios – how tall and wide the image is. This can be quite tricky to get your head around, so let’s start by trying to make sense of that.

Your TV at home has (assuming you’re not still rocking an old CRT model) a 16:9 aspect ratio, which ‘normal’ people tend to refer to as simply ‘widescreen’.

In the cinema, aspect ratios tend to use a different format. Converted to that format, your widescreen TV's aspect ratio is 1.78:1. This simply means that for every centimetre of height there is in the image, there’s 1.78cm in width. Bear that in mind as we outline the other aspect ratios below.

IMAX 70mm

The Odyssey is the first film to be shot entirely using 65mm IMAX film cameras (they’re called Keighley cameras), building on Nolan’s tradition of using the format for sections of even some of his earliest films.

Watching it in this original format means finding an IMAX 70mm cinema, where the movie will be presented in a 1.43:1 aspect ratio.

Compared with your TV screen, this will look much taller and is closer to a square than the more familiar rectangle. It’s the tallest aspect ratio on the list, which should give you a brilliant level of immersion when watching on the big screen.

In an explainer video on The Odyssey’s website, Matt Damon says: “Each film frame has 15 perforations, runs horizontally through the projector, making it the largest format available. Every frame was shot in IMAX, and when you’re in the theatre, you’ll feel the full impact of how it was shot.”

If you value cinematic authenticity, have the means to get to an IMAX 70mm cinema, and have the budget for what will be a very expensive ticket, this is the version to seek out.

You will need to travel to London or Manchester if you’re in the UK, though, as those are the only two places where you will find one of these very special cinemas. They are the BFI IMAX, the Science Museum IMAX Cinema and Vue Manchester Printworks.

IMAX

If you can’t watch the film in the 70mm format because of its price or inaccessible locations, then our second choice would be the standard IMAX presentation. As with the above format, this is only available in IMAX cinemas that combine the right screen design and use the brand’s proprietary picture and sound technology.

This changes the aspect ratio of the film to 1.90:1. That means you will get an image that's quite similar to the 16:9 ratio you're used to at home (although a touch wider), which sacrifices quite a lot of the top and bottom of the originally filmed image.

While this is a more widescreen format than the full-fat IMAX presentation, it's still a fuller image than you get from a standard cinema screen (more on that later).

Dolby Vision

You can also watch the film in Dolby Cinema, where it is presented using Dolby Vision. There are only eight Dolby Vision cinemas in the UK, so you will have to bear that in mind when considering your options.

Dolby Vision's high dynamic range generally allows for brighter highlights, deeper blacks and more visible detail at both ends of the brightness scale. On top of that, the dual-laser Dolby Vision projection system claims a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, helping it deliver much deeper blacks than conventional cinema projection.

It's unclear to what extent Christopher Nolan supervised the Dolby Vision grade, so we cannot say how close this Dolby Vision version gets to Nolan's intended presentation.

Depending on whether your local Dolby Cinema has a widescreen or flat screen, the film will be presented in either 2.39:1 or 1.85:1. The first is much wider and shorter than your TV screen, whereas the second is only a little bit wider than the common 16:9 ratio.

Dolby Cinema prioritises contrast, black level and HDR, whereas IMAX is primarily about image size and expanded aspect ratios, and you might prefer one approach over the other.

70mm film

With the 70mm film version, you will see the film in a 2.20:1 aspect ratio. This is wider but narrower than the standard 16:9 aspect ratio of your TV.

The movie’s site claims that it delivers a bright, clear image up to three times the resolution of standard digital projection formats, with rich analogue colour by projecting light through celluloid. There’s no IMAX on the cards with the version, though, which means you won’t be treated to the huge screen that the more premium format offers.

35mm film

35mm film is the most commonly used format for movies at the cinema – effectively the typical cinema experience offered by most multiplexes and independent venues. It offers an aspect ratio of 2.39:1, which, as we mentioned in the Dolby Vision section above, is wider and shorter than your TV screen.

It has four perforations with the film running vertically through the projector, and the site claims: “It projects light through the entire 35-millimetre frame to deliver clear, high-resolution images with rich analogue colour.”

Premium Large Format

Finally, you can watch The Odyssey in Premium Large Format. As with Dolby Vision, this is available in either the 1.85:1 or 2.39:1 aspect ratios – which one you get will depend on your cinema’s capabilities.

If you want to feel even more immersed, you can choose to watch the film in a 4DX or a D-Box cinema. These specialised cinemas throw a bunch of special effects at the viewer, including swaying seats, water sprays and bubbles, as well as pumping out different scents to match what is happening in the film.

This might not be everyone’s cup of tea (we can’t say we are tempted to get tossed around by a cyclops from the comfort of our seats), but some people love this unique experience.

The What Hi-Fi? recommendation

We must caveat this section by saying that we have yet to watch The Odyssey in any format, so we are purely going off the specifications and marketing materials we have for now.

That said, IMAX 70mm is clearly going to be the truest, purest version of Nolan’s vision, given the way he shot the movie.

Standard IMAX instinctively feels like the next best thing, whereas the Dolby Cinema version is more of an unknown quantity. After that, we’d be seeking out the 70mm version.

The standard 35mm version is your typical cinema experience, so that would be our backup option.

4DX isn’t really our kind of thing – at least not for a movie such as The Odyssey – but if it’s something that appeals to you, have at it!

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You know how fancy restaurants have this tendency to deconstruct classic recipes? Well, Sony’s done the same thing to the soundbar, but unlike that deconstructed lasagne, which you rather wish was just a perfectly delicious, fully constructed lasagne, the Bravia Theatre Trio is an almost flawlessly tasty treat.

Sony’s thinking behind the Theatre Trio is that as TVs get ever bigger, soundbars will struggle to create audio on a scale to match the visuals. The obvious solution is to switch to having speakers on either side of the screen, which is what the company’s done previously with the HT-A9 and Bravia Theatre Quad, but that creates its own issue: a lack of central focus, which is particularly important for dialogue.

The solution to the solution, then, is to break the soundbar down into three parts: a centre, a front left and a front right.

In a way, this is the antithesis of the soundbar, which was created, of course, to reduce all of the speakers needed for satisfying home cinema into one, slender unit. What’s next: the return of full home cinema in a box systems?

Let’s not get bogged down in the circular nature of home theatre fashion right now, though. Let’s just enjoy the Sony Bravia Theatre Trio for what it is: one of the finest lifestyle Dolby Atmos systems you can currently buy.

Price

The Sony Bravia Theatre Trio has launched at £1999 / $2000 / AU$2999, making it a very premium proposition indeed.

It’s a highly unusual proposition in today’s market, too, which makes direct comparison rather tricky. Someone considering the Bravia Theatre Trio might also have on their shortlist solo soundbars such as the KEF XIO, Sonos Arc Ultra and Bravia Theatre Bar 9; full soundbar systems such as the Samsung HW-Q990H; and bar-less set-ups such as the Bravia Theatre Quad.

It’s a good job, then, that we have all of these on hand for comparison with the Trio.

Almost inevitably, the Trio system can be expanded through the addition of wireless surround speakers and up to two wireless subwoofers. The new Rear 8, Rear 9, Sub 7, Sub 8 and Sub 9 are all compatible with the Bravia Theatre Trio, and if you buy everything together, the prices of the surrounds and sub(s) are halved.

Several legacy accessories – the SA-SW5 and SA-SW3 subwoofers, and the SA-RS5 and SA-RS3S surrounds – are also compatible with the Trio, should you already own any of those.

We’ve tested the Trio with the Rear 9 surrounds and Sub 8, as well as solo, and you can read our thoughts on the value of expanding the system in the sound quality section.

Design

The Bravia Theatre Trio is a slightly odd thing to behold, especially if you're coming from a soundbar.

The left and right speakers will look familiar to anyone who remembers Sony's HT-A9 system. They share a similar cylindrical shape and fairly substantial dimensions, though the Trio's versions are considerably more stylish, with a black fabric (rather than grey plastic) finish that helps them look modern and discreet despite their size.

They're attractive speakers, too. A metallic ring around the top of each cabinet adds a touch of class, while perforations in the top reveal the up-firing drivers responsible for the system's height effects. Build quality feels reassuringly solid throughout, too.

The centre speaker is a little more divisive.

Essentially a very narrow soundbar that sits beneath the TV, the centre isn’t unattractive exactly, but there is something slightly awkward about its proportions, particularly when it’s positioned beneath the sort of super-sized TV that the Trio is primarily designed to partner.

Thankfully, its low-profile design means it won't obstruct the screen, and Sony includes spacer feet in the box should you need it to straddle your TV’s pedestal stand.

Sony has also done an excellent job of making the Trio as installation-friendly as possible.

The rear of each speaker is flat, allowing for neat wall-mounting, and the left and right speakers require little more than suitably positioned screws. A dedicated wall bracket for the centre speaker is included in the box, too, alongside an HDMI cable and usefully long power leads.

Sony has gone out of its way to ensure that the system isn't overly fussy about speaker placement. It's still worth positioning the speakers as symmetrically as possible, but if real-world constraints mean one speaker ends up slightly higher or further away than another, the calibration system is designed to compensate.

There are compromises to the minimalist approach, though.

Like many modern soundbars, the Trio has no traditional display. Each speaker instead features a small status light that indicates power and connection information. Anyone wanting more detailed feedback will generally need to open the Bravia Connect app, which isn’t always ideal, despite the quality of the app itself.

This is a non-issue for owners of compatible Bravia TVs, at least, as the Trio’s settings and status information appear directly within the television's interface.

Sony also supplies a small but useful remote control that provides quick access to the essentials, including volume, bass level, sound modes, voice enhancement and input selection.

Features

While the Bravia Theatre Trio's three-piece design is its most obvious distinguishing feature, the real cleverness lies in how Sony attempts to make those three speakers sound cohesive, like a soundbar, yet also much bigger, like a more traditional home cinema set-up.

Officially, the Trio is a 3.0.2-channel system comprising dedicated left, centre and right speakers. The centre houses two front-firing woofers and a tweeter, while the left and right speakers each feature a front-firing woofer and tweeter, plus an up-firing driver. Together, Sony claims the three speakers deliver a total power output of 405W.

The system supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks. It’s IMAX Enhanced certified, too, but only once compatible rear speakers and a subwoofer have been added.

Key to the way the Trio handles these 3D audio formats is Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Mapping technology. Using the physical speakers as a foundation, 360SSM then creates up to 24 'phantom' speakers around the room. These virtual speakers are designed to bolster the real ones and create a larger, more immersive soundstage than would otherwise be possible.

One area in which Sony has clearly put particular effort is set-up and calibration.

Installation is handled via the excellent Bravia Connect app, which guides you through the entire process with clear, well-illustrated instructions. Despite the sophistication of the system, getting everything connected, positioned and configured is refreshingly straightforward.

As part of the set-up process, you're asked to specify the locations of the speakers relative to one another, either approximately or by entering precise measurements. You can also specify their height, allowing the system to compensate for the sort of less-than-perfect real-world placement that often comes with living-room-friendly home cinema set-ups.

The calibration itself is unusually thorough, too. As well as using microphones built into the speakers, the Trio comes supplied with a dedicated USB-C calibration microphone that you plug into your phone before measurements are taken from the listening position. The result should be a level of consistency and accuracy that's difficult to achieve with systems that rely solely on onboard microphones or a smartphone.

Despite that thoroughness, the process is remarkably quick and painless, and, once complete, Sony's Sound Field Optimisation technology adapts the system’s performance to both your room and speaker placement.

There are plenty of further adjustments available within the app should you wish to experiment. You can choose between Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Mapping processing, Dolby Speaker Virtualiser and DTS Neural:X, adjust the height of the soundfield, create a temporary listening position and access the usual assortment of voice enhancement, bass and night mode settings.

Happily, Sony's default settings are generally spot on, and most users will never feel the need to delve into the Trio’s advanced sound settings.

Connectivity is solid, too. The centre speaker houses an HDMI eARC connection for your TV, plus a dedicated HDMI input with support for 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM passthrough.

Wireless support includes Bluetooth, Apple AirPlay and Spotify Connect, while Sony's DSEE Ultimate processing can be used to upscale compressed music files.

Owners of compatible Bravia TVs get a few extra perks, including Voice Zoom 3 dialogue enhancement and, as mentioned, the ability to control many of the Trio's functions directly through the television's interface.

Sound quality

The whole point of splitting a soundbar into three separate speakers is to create a larger and more spacious soundstage, and that's exactly what Sony has achieved.

Compared with even the best conventional soundbars, the Trio sounds huge. Effects stretch much further to the left and right, dialogue remains firmly anchored to the screen, and there's a greater sense of sound being projected out into the room rather than simply originating from beneath the TV.

Blade Runner 2049 demonstrates these strengths particularly well. The sounds of the city as K walks towards his apartment spread far beyond the physical locations of the speakers, filling our large listening room with impressive width and scale. More importantly, the system doesn't just sound wider than a soundbar; it sounds taller, too.

In fact, the Trio's Dolby Atmos performance is one of its most impressive achievements. The sounds of passing vehicles, overhead announcements and environmental effects frequently extend above the listening position, creating a genuinely convincing sense of height. Given the size of our test room and the almost three-metre distance between the seating position and speakers, that's no small feat.

The system proves equally adept with the chaotic battle sequences of Civil War and the aerial action of Top Gun: Maverick, maintaining an impressively large and immersive soundfield without losing track of the finer details.

Perhaps even more impressive than the scale, though, is the cohesion. Despite the fact that you're listening to three physically separate speakers, the Trio rarely sounds like three separate speakers. Instead, it creates a single, unified wall of sound that stretches right across the front of the room.

That sense of integration is particularly important because it allows the system to retain one of the key advantages of a traditional soundbar: you never find yourself consciously thinking about which speaker is producing which effect.

Much of the credit for this appears to belong to Sony's Movie Theatre Acoustics processing. Switch it off, and the soundstage immediately shrinks, while the illusion of a single coherent soundfield begins to weaken. Leave it enabled, however, and the Trio sounds significantly larger, more immersive and more convincing.

There is a small trade-off. The processing can occasionally exaggerate echo that's already present within a soundtrack. The interviewer's voice during K's baseline test in Blade Runner 2049 is one example, while Nandez's dialogue during the early autopsy sequence gains a touch more resonance than is strictly correct.

These moments are relatively rare, though, and the benefits broadly outweigh the drawbacks. Some people might prefer the cleaner delivery when Movie Theatre Acoustics is disabled, but most will want to leave it enabled (as it is by default) for the additional scale, weight and cohesion it brings.

In some respects, the Trio highlights the limitations of conventional soundbars.

Using the excellent Sonos Arc Ultra as a reference point, Sony's system delivers substantially greater scale, bass weight and Atmos immersion. This isn't really a criticism of the Sonos, which remains one of the most capable soundbars at its price, but it does neatly demonstrate what can be achieved when you physically separate the front channels: the Trio simply fills the room more effectively.

One small issue to note regarding movie sound is that the centre speaker can buzz slightly when pushed by super-deep bass, such as that at the start of the second chapter of Blade Runner 2049. It's not something that crops up often enough to become a significant issue, but it is one of the few occasions on which the centre speaker draws attention to itself.

For music, meanwhile, the Trio offers something that most soundbars simply cannot: genuine stereo reproduction.

Switch Sound Field processing off and the centre speaker drops out, leaving dedicated left and right channels handled by dedicated left and right speakers. Give those speakers a small amount of toe-in, and the resulting stereo image is impressively focused, while still benefiting from proper separation.

My Curse by Killswitch Engage is delivered with excellent punch, dynamics and drive, while Rosalía's Divinize demonstrates the system's ability to produce serious low-frequency heft. The dense instrumentation of Karnivool's Salva remains composed and controlled, and Alone On A Hill by Silversun Pickups is rendered with convincing scale and strong stereo focus.

Sony's hi-fi heritage shines through here. The Trio sounds weighty, energetic and engaging in a way that most soundbars simply don't.

That doesn't mean it's a replacement for a properly sorted pair of powered hi-fi speakers, of course, but it comes closer than most lifestyle home cinema products.

One similarly priced alternative to the Trio that we’ve not yet mentioned is the excellent KEF XIO.

With both movies and music, the KEF sounds cleaner, crisper and more detailed than the Sony, with excellent organisation and precision. The Trio counters with greater weight, larger scale and the sort of genuine stereo separation that only physically separated speakers can provide.

Neither approach is inherently better than the other, and preferences will inevitably vary, but the comparison reinforces the fact that Sony has created something genuinely distinct rather than simply another premium soundbar.

And, while the Bravia Theatre Trio is a complete and highly capable package on its own, adding Sony's optional speakers and subwoofer takes things to another level.

Testing with the Rear 9 surrounds and Sub 8 dramatically increases immersion, creating a seamless bubble of sound that extends around the entire listening position. Atmos effects become even more precisely placed, and the busy cityscape of Blade Runner 2049 becomes extraordinarily convincing.

Just as importantly, the minor shortcomings of the standalone system largely disappear. The slight buzz from the centre speaker vanishes once deep bass duties are handed over to the subwoofer, while the occasional over-emphasis of echo through Movie Theatre Acoustics is also cured.

There remains a very slight amount of distortion from the Sub 8 itself during the deepest bass moments, and we'd be fascinated to hear whether the larger Sub 9 can eliminate this final remaining niggle. That's a discussion for another review, though.

Judged as an initial package, the Bravia Theatre Trio is a hugely impressive performer that successfully combines the scale and spaciousness of a separate-speaker home cinema system with much of the convenience and cohesion that make soundbars so appealing.

Verdict

Sony's Bravia Theatre Trio could easily have ended up feeling like an awkward compromise: neither as neat as a soundbar nor as capable as a traditional speaker system. Instead, it succeeds in taking many of the strengths of both approaches while avoiding most of their weaknesses.

It's not quite perfect – the centre speaker isn’t quite as capable as the larger speakers flanking it, there's no display, and some rivals can sound a touch cleaner and more detailed – but those shortcomings are minor in the context of what the Trio achieves overall.

Ultimately, Sony's deconstructed soundbar concept proves brilliantly effective. If you're looking for a premium lifestyle Dolby Atmos system and have the budget to stretch this far, the Bravia Theatre Trio is one of the most compelling options in years.

SCORES

• Sound 5
• Design 4
• Features 4

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There’s a war going on for your living room. The premium TV technology of choice of the last few years – OLED – is under attack from a new, stunningly bright and vibrant foe – RGB Mini LED.

Every major brand has either launched its first RGB Mini LED TVs or is about to. Hisense launched its first RGB Mini LED models last year, in fact, but those were gigantic, 100+ inch sets, so a long way from a serious proposition for most people.

Hisense is also the first brand to submit to us a proper, mainstream RGB Mini LED TV to review, though – the UR9.

RGB Mini LED TVs are pitched at different levels by different brands, but Hisense is absolutely pitching the UR9 as a rival to flagship OLEDs. The price confirms as much.

So, what better way to benchmark it than against our current favourite flagship OLED, the Sony Bravia 8 II.

That, then, is what we’ve done. Over several days, we’ve tested the Hisense UR9 and Sony Bravia 8 II side by side, feeding all of our favourite discs and streams into both simultaneously, and judging them on picture quality, sound quality, features, usability, design and price.

This might not be a full RGB Mini LED vs OLED battle – the Hisense UR9 doesn’t represent all RGB Mini LED TVs, after all – but it is the opening skirmish in the broader TV tech war. And it's an eye-opening one at that.

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: price

The Hisense UR9’s pricing is interesting to say the least. In the UK, the 65-inch model we tested is priced at £2999, which places it in the same price category as brand-new flagship OLEDs.

In Australia, meanwhile, the UR9’s price of AU$3999 makes it slightly more affordable by local standards.

In the US, though, the pre-launch price of $3500 had dropped vastly to just $2000 by the time the TV actually hit stores.

Things are much more straightforward with the Sony Bravia 8 II, the 65-inch version of which launched at £2999 / $4000 / AU$5295, but can now be bought for £2299 / $2798 / AU$4995.

The inconsistent international pricing of the Hisense UR9 makes it a little tricky to judge this round, but seeing as we’re a primarily UK publication, and that we reviewed a UK sample, we’re going to prioritise the UK pricing and call this it in favour of the Bravia 8 II.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: design

The Sony Bravia 8 II and Hisense UR9 are both smart-looking TVs, but they take rather different approaches to design.

Sony has essentially carried over the styling of the A95L, resulting in a TV that looks purposeful, premium and monolithic. While it lacks the ultra-thin glamour of some rival OLEDs, the Bravia 8 II still feels like a flagship product, with its clean lines and understated aesthetic giving it a suitably high-end appearance.

The feet can be installed in either a low-profile position that leaves the bottom edge of the screen sitting just millimetres above your furniture, or a raised position that creates space for a soundbar. The downside is that those feet can only be positioned at the furthest extremes of the chassis, meaning you'll need furniture that's at least as wide as the TV itself.

The Hisense UR9 is a more practical proposition. At 4.5cm thick, it's chunkier than the Sony and doesn't have quite the same premium flair, but it is solidly built and neatly finished, with slim bezels and a restrained dark metallic finish.

Hisense has also made a couple of sensible usability-focused decisions. The centrally mounted pedestal stand occupies a footprint of only around 42cm, making the TV much easier to place on narrower furniture, and it too offers two height positions so that a soundbar can be accommodated beneath the screen.

The UR9's integrated Devialet sound system is more visually obvious than Sony's Acoustic Surface Audio+ setup, with perforations running down the sides of the chassis and across the top edge to house the side- and up-firing speakers. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it does contribute to the TV's more functional, engineering-led appearance.

Ultimately, neither of these TVs is likely to be bought primarily for its styling, but the Bravia 8 II's cleaner, more premium design gives it the edge. The UR9 is practical and perfectly attractive in its own right, but it lacks the sense of sophistication that Sony's flagship delivers.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: features

The biggest difference between these two TVs is, of course, their panel technologies.

The Sony Bravia 8 II uses Samsung Display's latest QD-OLED panel, paired with Sony's XR processor and a custom heatsink. Because OLED technology is self-emissive, every pixel can be controlled independently, with no need for local dimming zones.

Sony doesn't publish specific brightness figures for its TVs, but the Bravia 8 II is estimated to hit around 1900 nits in small highlights, making it one of the brightest OLED TVs currently available.

The Hisense UR9, meanwhile, uses an RGB Mini LED backlight with 980 local dimming zones. Rather than relying on a conventional white backlight shining through colour filters, it uses separate red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly. Hisense claims a peak brightness of up to 3500 nits for the 65-inch model we tested.

On paper, then, these TVs take radically different approaches to creating their images. We're not going to award points for one technology over the other here, though, because what ultimately matters is how those technologies perform in practice. We'll get to that in the picture quality section.

There are other differences in the feature sets of the two TVs worth highlighting, though.

Hardcore gamers are generally better served by the Hisense. All three of its HDMI sockets are full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports, with support for 4K/170Hz, 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM. It also features a DisplayPort connection, which remains extremely rare on TVs and could prove useful for committed PC gamers.

The Sony supports 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM, too, but still offers only two HDMI 2.1 sockets, one of which doubles as the eARC connection. That limitation remains one of our biggest frustrations with Sony's flagship TVs.

That said, we'd probably take the Sony's two HDMI 2.1 sockets and two additional standard HDMI inputs over the Hisense's three HDMI sockets and DisplayPort arrangement. The latter will be useful to a niche audience, but many buyers are more likely to benefit from having an extra ‘standard’ HDMI connection available.

HDR support favours the Hisense, though. The UR9 supports every major HDR format currently in use, including HLG, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. The Bravia 8 II supports Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG, but, as is customary for Sony TVs, HDR10+ is absent.

The Bravia 8 II fights back with Google TV, which remains one of the stronger smart TV platforms available and features excellent app support. The UR9's VIDAA operating system is fast and responsive, but there are some notable omissions.

Most significantly, while the Apple TV app is present, it lacks access to the Apple TV Store and users' purchased libraries. That's a genuine disappointment, as Apple's movie store remains the best pay-as-you-go film streaming service available, particularly for 4K HDR movies.

Sony also offers IMAX Enhanced certification, its Studio Calibrated Modes for services such as Netflix and Prime Video, and Sony Pictures Core integration.

Ultimately, neither TV completely dominates on features, but the Hisense's broader HDR support, extra HDMI 2.1 socket and more advanced gaming specification give it the edge overall.

WINNER: Hisense UR9

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: picture quality

This is, of course, the section that really matters.

The Hisense UR9 makes an immediately strong impression. Once switched into either Filmmaker Mode or IMAX Cinema, it produces a rich, vibrant and remarkably composed image that rarely behaves like a traditional backlit TV.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the UR9 is how well controlled its RGB Mini LED backlight is. Throughout our testing, blooming is kept impressively in check, black levels are consistently strong and the TV almost entirely avoids the brightness pumping, flickering and shifting backlight behaviour that often gives Mini LED technology away.

Extra-bright HDR content is a particular strength. Movies such as Pan look spectacular on the UR9, with dazzling highlights and bold colours that comfortably outgun the Bravia 8 II for outright brightness. Sunlight bursting through clouds and glinting off fantasy scenery is delivered with real punch and intensity.

The UR9 is also a very accomplished motion performer, and it combines its brightness with rich colours, excellent shadow detail and a pleasingly cinematic warmth that stops the image from ever becoming gaudy or overblown.

In isolation, it's one of the best backlit TVs we have ever tested.

Direct comparison with the Bravia 8 II reveals why OLED remains the reference technology, though – at least for now.

Despite its impressive brightness and excellent local dimming, the Hisense simply can't match the Sony's pixel-level contrast control. Counterintuitively, some of the brightest highlights against the darkest backgrounds actually appear more impactful on the Bravia 8 II than on the much brighter Hisense, because the OLED can render them without any concern about blooming.

More significantly, the Sony produces a more solid and perceptually three-dimensional image. Objects and characters stand out from their surroundings with greater depth and dynamism, while subtle gradations within shadows, clouds and highlights appear more convincing and refined.

We've observed this extra solidity from OLED many times before, but the side-by-side comparison between these two TVs demonstrates it particularly clearly. Next to the Bravia 8 II, the UR9 simply looks a little flatter and less immersive.

The Sony also has the advantage when it comes to viewing angles. While the Hisense holds up better than many LCD-based rivals, the sweet spot in which it performs at its very best is still relatively narrow. Thanks to its OLED panel, the Bravia 8 II performs consistently from almost any angle.

And while blooming is rare on the UR9, it isn't entirely absent. Difficult scenes such as the bomb-test sequence in Oppenheimer or the opening starfield of Alien: Romulus reveal imperfections that even this highly accomplished RGB Mini LED set cannot completely escape.

The Bravia 8 II, meanwhile, is simply sensational. Its combination of dazzling brightness by OLED standards, vibrant colours, exceptional shadow detail and razor-sharp definition creates an image of astonishing depth and realism.

What impresses most isn't any single strength, but how naturally all of its strengths come together. The Bravia 8 II consistently delivers a picture that feels balanced, authentic and effortlessly cinematic, whether you're watching a pristine 4K Dolby Vision disc or a much more humble SDR stream.

The Hisense UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED can get surprisingly close to flagship OLED performance, and many viewers will adore its combination of brightness, richness and stability. But when viewed side by side, the Bravia 8 II remains the more complete and convincing picture performer.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: sound quality

Both the Sony Bravia 8 II and Hisense UR9 are unusually sonically accomplished by modern TV standards.

That's important, because while we always recommend pairing a premium TV with a dedicated sound system, for many buyers that’s either impractical or unpalatable.

The Hisense UR9 certainly doesn't disappoint. Its Devialet-tuned 4.1.2-channel sound system delivers a presentation that is impressively spacious and full-bodied, with particularly convincing width and height effects.

Dolby Atmos soundtracks benefit from a strong sense of scale, while bass is deeper and more substantial than most flatscreen TVs can manage. The overall character is smooth, rich and easy to listen to over extended viewing sessions.

The UR9's audio system isn't flawless, though. Dynamics can feel a little restrained during big action sequences, and dialogue doesn't always have the clarity and expressiveness we'd ideally like.

We also found ourselves preferring the Standard sound mode over the more expansive Theatre setting. While Theatre mode undoubtedly sounds bigger, it can introduce a slightly diffuse and faintly echoey quality to voices that makes dialogue seem less natural than it should.

The Sony Bravia 8 II takes a very different approach. Rather than relying on conventional speaker placement, its Acoustic Surface Audio+ system uses actuators to vibrate the screen itself, effectively turning the display into a speaker.

The result is one of the most cohesive and convincing audio performances we've heard from a TV.

Dialogue and effects are tied directly to the action on screen in a way that traditional TV speaker systems struggle to replicate, creating a stronger sense that sound is genuinely coming from the people and objects you're watching.

Like the Hisense, the Sony also sounds surprisingly spacious, with effects extending well beyond the edges of the screen. Detail levels are excellent, too, and the Bravia 8 II combines subtle dynamic nuance with enough punch to make action scenes engaging and exciting.

Bass depth isn't as generous as it is from the Hisense, but it's impressively controlled, and the overall tonal balance is exceptionally well judged.

Ultimately, these are two of the best-sounding TVs you can currently buy. The Hisense delivers scale, warmth and impressive Atmos effects, but the Sony's superior detail, greater dynamic expression and uniquely direct delivery give it the edge.

WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Hisense UR9 vs Sony Bravia 8 II: verdict

The Hisense UR9 is a hugely important TV.

Not only is it the first mainstream RGB Mini LED TV we've fully reviewed, it's also the first serious attempt to take on flagship OLEDs with a fundamentally different display technology.

And the good news for RGB Mini LED fans is that, in some ways at least, it succeeds.

The UR9 is bright, vibrant and impressively refined. More importantly, it avoids many of the traditional pitfalls of backlit TVs, with excellent black levels, impressively restrained blooming and a consistency that often feels surprisingly OLED-like.

In several respects, it's one of the best backlit TVs we've ever tested.

But while the UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED is a genuinely exciting technology with enormous potential, it also demonstrates just how high the bar currently is at the top end of the OLED market.

Ultimately, picture quality remains the most important factor in any TV buying decision, and it's here that the Sony Bravia 8 II retains a clear advantage. The Hisense has the stronger gaming specification, broader HDR support and spectacular brightness, but the Sony's superior contrast control, greater three-dimensionality and more natural, cinematic image make it the more accomplished performer overall.

This isn't a verdict on RGB Mini LED versus OLED as technologies, and it certainly isn't the last battle in what is shaping up to be one of the most interesting periods in TV tech for years.

Instead, it’s the verdict on the very best OLED TV currently available versus the first mainstream RGB Mini LED model. And while the Hisense UR9 proves that RGB Mini LED is ready to compete with the very best, the Sony Bravia 8 II remains the TV to beat.

OVERALL WINNER: Sony Bravia 8 II

Sony has unveiled a new Bravia Theatre Trio Dolby Atmos system, promising that the premium unit will let movie fans hear films the way their directors “meant [them] to be experienced”.

The new system was unveiled today, alongside Sony’s latest Bravia 9 II and Bravia 7 II TVs. It targets the upper end of the market currently dominated by the five-star Samsung HW-Q990H soundbar system, which we reviewed recently.

As its name suggests, the Trio system comprises three speakers: a tiny central channel soundbar and two left and right channels.

Unlike most other wireless Dolby Atmos systems however, including the Q990H, the satellites are not rear-channel speakers. Instead, they are front-facing and aim to deliver a wider, clearer and generally more accurate soundstage. This, then, is more like a soundbar chopped into three parts than a traditional wireless system.

Sony is marketing the package as a top choice for people looking for an “authentic” home cinema experience.

It claims to have achieved this by designing the Trio “in close collaboration” with Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE).

“When we design sound for film, every choice is about guiding what the audience feels in a moment,” said Andrew DeCristofaro, sound designer at Sony Pictures Entertainment.

“The Bravia Theatre Trio brings that same intention into the home, letting people hear the detail, movement and balance the way we meant it to be experienced.”

The unit comes with a USB-C microphone, which Sony claims will let the Trio offer significantly more accurate room-calibration than most rivals.

Most soundbar calibration solutions, including Sonos Trueplay, use a connected smartphone’s mics. This, though, based on our experience, can produce varying results, which are heavily informed by the phone you’re using.

Under the hood, the system’s 3.0.2 Atmos configuration combines a total of nine speaker units. There are two cone woofers and a soft-dome tweeter in the central bar. Backing them up, each satellite has an upfiring Atmos height channel, soft-dome tweeter and bass-reflex unit.

Each part offers 135W of muscle, adding up to a 405W total power output for the combined package.

Despite the driver count, Sony claims that thanks to the inclusion of its 360 Spatial Sound Mapping (360SSM) tech, the Trio can generate a “24 phantom speaker” (we’re guessing that means virtual) surround sound experience.

The unit supports Dolby Atmos, DTS: X, and IMAX Enhanced formats and comes with Bluetooth and wi-fi connectivity baked in. Chromecast is not supported, but there's good news for Apple fans as AirPlay 2 is available.

For people looking to grow the system over time, Sony has confirmed the Trio is upgradable and can be expanded to include rear speakers and up to two wireless subwoofers. However, doing so will of course add to its already unashamedly premium price.

The base Sony Bravia Theatre Trio package will set you back £2000 (roughly $2700). Adding the Rear 9 satellites will then add £700 (roughly $950) to the bill.

There is a range of compatible subwoofer options: the Sub 7, Sub 8, Sub 9, SA-SW3, and SA-SW5. The top-end Sub 9 costs £900 (roughly $1215). The cheaper Sub 7 retails for £249 (roughly $335), and the Sub 8 comes in at £650 (around $875).

That makes it noticeably more expensive than the five-star Samsung Q990H, which cost £1599 ($2000) at launch. It also puts the Trio in direct competition with the Award-winning KEF XIO, which is the premium option we currently recommend in our best Dolby Atmos Soundbars guide.

We haven’t reviewed the Trio yet. But our TV and AV editor, Tom Parsons, has had an opening listen with it at Sony’s launch event in Japan. He walked away impressed, succinctly describing the experience as “awesome”.

We hope to get a review unit of the Trio in for testing soon, so watch this space. If you have any questions about the unit, drop them in the comments section below, and we’ll get you an answer as soon as possible.

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Here it is, folks: our first full review of an RGB Mini LED TV.

We have previously run extensive hands-on tests of a couple of RGB Mini LED TVs – most notably the huge Hisense 116UX – but, due to their astonishing sizes and prices, we’ve had to do the testing outside our own facilities. In our world, that’s not a full review, so those TVs haven’t received star ratings.

The 65-inch Hisense UR9 we have before us today is designed to address the size and price issues that have until now prevented more people from hopping on the RGB Mini LED bandwagon.

This set, then, is leading the mainstream RGB Mini LED charge. And, while it’s a fair way short of perfect, particularly next to a flagship OLED TV, the UR9 is an impressive TV in its own right and a tantalising glimpse at the technology’s long-term potential.

Price

Price is always a hugely important factor whenever we test a product, but it’s particularly crucial to how the Hisense UR9 will be viewed.

In the UK, the launch price of £2999 places the 65-inch UR9 in the same category as flagship OLED TVs such as the new LG G6 and last year’s Award-winning Sony Bravia 8 II.

In Australia, though, the AU$3999 price puts the Hisense UR9 up against step-down OLEDs such as the LG C6.

Most interestingly (and confusingly), while the announced launch price in the US was a super high-end $3500, when the TV actually arrived in shops, the tag was a vastly cheaper $2000, placing the UR9 in an entirely different category, below even step-down OLED models.

Essentially, then, this Hisense is a rather different proposition in each of those three regions. Seeing as we are UK-based and it’s a UK sample we’re reviewing, though, it’s the UK price that we are primarily working with here. And that means the UR9 is going to have to face off against the mighty Bravia 8 II QD-OLED.

Design

The Hisense UR9 is not one of those modern flagship TVs that disappears into your living room.

At 4.5cm thick, it’s decidedly chunky by current premium TV standards, particularly next to the impossibly slim OLED models with which it competes on price.

The rear panel is completely flat, though, which makes the UR9 fairly tidy for wall-mounting, and the overall build feels solid and substantial.

The TV’s general styling is perfectly pleasant, too, though it stops short of being genuinely luxurious. Bezels are slim enough, the dark metallic finish is smart, and the overall aesthetic is clean and restrained, but the UR9 lacks the slick elegance and premium flair of rivals such as the Sony Bravia 8 II and Samsung S99H/S95H.

Hisense has made some nice, practical decisions, though.

The centrally mounted pedestal stand has a relatively narrow footprint of around 42cm, making the UR9 easier to place on narrower furniture than many similarly sized rivals. It also offers two height positions, allowing you either to keep the screen sitting low and tidy or raise it slightly to create extra clearance for a soundbar.

Rows of tiny perforations run down both sides of the set, while larger openings line the top edge. These house the UR9’s side- and up-firing speakers, which form part of its integrated Devialet sound system.

Overall, then, the UR9 is more functional than fashionable – a practical, purposeful TV rather than a particularly glamorous one.

Features and specs

The headline feature here is, of course, the UR9’s RGB Mini LED backlight.

Unlike a conventional Mini LED TV, which uses a white backlight shining through a colour filter layer, the UR9 instead uses separate red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly. In theory, this approach allows for both greater brightness and more precise colour reproduction.

Hisense claims peak brightness of up to 3500 nits for the 65-inch model we’re testing here, alongside 980 local dimming zones and a native 170Hz panel, all driven by the company’s Hi-View AI Engine RGB processor.

Gamers are generally very well served – with one unusual caveat. Unlike most premium TVs, which have four HDMI sockets, the UR9 has just three. These are accompanied by a PC-gaming-friendly DisplayPort connection – something that remains extremely rare on TVs.

Is a DisplayPort connection more valuable than a fourth HDMI socket? We have our doubts, but to a small number of very committed PC gamers, it may be very useful.

All three of the HDMI sockets are 2.1-specified, though, with support for 4K/170Hz (and the console-friendly 4K/120Hz), VRR and ALLM. Some brands, including Sony, still offer just two HDMI 2.1 sockets on their TVs.

The UR9’s input lag is decent rather than exceptional. We measured 32.5ms at 60Hz in the standard Game mode, though enabling the Refresh Rate setting reduces that figure to a more respectable, though far from groundbreaking, 24.6ms.

The UR9 supports every significant HDR format currently in use – HLG, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision – plus the intelligent Dolby Vision IQ and HDR10+ Adaptive variants that respond to ambient room lighting conditions.

It is also IMAX Enhanced certified, and the UK version of the TV features an anti-reflective, anti-glare screen coating that proves fairly effective at combating bright-room reflections.

Audio specifications are unusually ambitious by TV standards, too. The UR9 features a Devialet-tuned 4.1.2-channel speaker system with dedicated up-firing drivers, plus support for both Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks.

In the UK and Australia, the UR9 runs Hisense’s own VIDAA smart platform, while the US version instead uses Google TV.

VIDAA still isn’t the prettiest smart system around, but it’s fast, responsive and logically laid out. App support is broadly very good, too, with all of the major streaming services and UK catch-up apps present and correctly supporting the relevant picture and sound formats.

There are, however, a few frustrating omissions. Most notably, the Apple TV app lacks access to the Apple TV store and users’ purchased libraries, so it can’t be used for movie purchases and rentals. That’s a real disappointment, as Apple’s pay-as-you-go store is the best around.

While far less important for a TV, it’s worth noting that music streaming support is sparse, too, with Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music and Qobuz all absent. There are no cloud gaming apps, either.

The inclusion of Freely is welcome, though, as it allows live TV channels to be streamed over the internet without an aerial connection.

Picture quality

The Hisense UR9 makes a superb first impression. In fact, perhaps the most impressive thing about it is just how rarely it behaves like a traditional backlit TV.

Before getting into that, though, some setup advice is required, because the TV’s default HDR settings do it few favours.

When first fed HDR10 content, the UR9 automatically switches into its HDR Energy Saving mode which, despite its name, is surprisingly aggressive. Colours skew cool and bluish, motion processing is overly intrusive, and the overall image looks unnatural and overcooked.

HDR Standard and HDR Dynamic are similarly best avoided, both pushing sharpness, brightness and processing much too hard.

Thankfully, Filmmaker Mode proves far more successful. It delivers the most accurate and balanced picture of the available presets, and it quickly becomes our preferred overall option.

Interestingly, though, IMAX Cinema is also unusually compelling. While its underlying settings appear almost identical to those of Filmmaker Mode, it consistently produces a noticeably brighter and punchier image without obviously compromising balance or naturalism.

As a result, we would stick with Filmmaker Mode for dark-room and purist viewing, but happily switch to IMAX Cinema during the daytime or whenever we fancy a little extra visual intensity.

Once properly configured, the UR9 is an extremely accomplished performer.

Play 1917 on 4K Blu-ray, and the opening logos immediately demonstrate just how well controlled the TV’s backlight system is. Blooming around the bright white text is minimal, black depth is strong, and colours look rich, warm and nicely cinematic.

More importantly, the local-dimming system generally goes about its business without drawing attention to itself. Throughout our testing, the UR9 almost never exhibits the flickering, brightness pumping or visibly shifting backlight behaviour that can make many Mini LED TVs distracting.

That consistency quickly emerges as the UR9’s defining strength. While many bright Mini LED TVs constantly remind you that they are dynamically manipulating a backlight behind the scenes, the Hisense instead achieves a broadly very composed, stable and natural delivery that often feels surprisingly OLED-like.

Blade Runner 2049 showcases this particularly well. Black depth is consistently strong, shadow detail is excellent and subtle blooming is tightly controlled. There’s also impressive richness and stability to colours, especially reds, which look wonderfully pure and saturated without drifting into pink or magenta tones.

Extra-bright HDR material suits the UR9 especially well, too. Pan looks spectacular here, with dazzling highlights and bold, vibrant colours that comfortably outgun the Sony Bravia 8 II for outright brightness in many scenes. Sunlight bursting through clouds and glinting off the fantasy scenery of Neverland is delivered with real punch and intensity.

Crucially, though, the UR9 generally achieves this brightness without sacrificing balance. Skin tones remain natural, and there’s a pleasing cinematic warmth to the image – and it doesn’t drift into gaudiness.

Motion handling is strong, too. The default Film setting is decent enough, but switching Motion Enhancement to Clear results in noticeably smoother pans without introducing the distracting soap-opera effect or processing artefacts that such systems often create.

The notoriously difficult Matera cemetery and chase sequence from No Time To Die is handled particularly well, with impressively little judder to the panning shots and clean rendering of drifting smoke and rapid camera movement.

Dropping down to standard-def and SDR, our Kiss Kiss Bang Bang DVD is reproduced with pleasing warmth, strong detail and impressively clean upscaling. Colours are arguably pushed a touch too hard at times, but the overall presentation remains highly enjoyable and consistently cinematic.

For all of the UR9’s strengths, though, direct comparisons with a top-tier OLED TV still reveal the limitations of even this undeniably refined RGB Mini LED model. Despite its impressive local-dimming system, the Hisense simply cannot match the pixel-level contrast control of the Sony Bravia 8 II.

Extremely bright highlights against deep black backgrounds are sometimes handled slightly conservatively, presumably to avoid blooming. Perhaps counterintuitively, those bright white logos against pitch-black backgrounds appear more intense and impactful on the Sony OLED than on the much brighter, on paper, Hisense.

More significantly, the OLED TV produces a more solid and perceptually three-dimensional image across the board. Objects and characters stand out from their surroundings with greater depth and dynamism, while subtle gradations within clouds, shadows and highlights appear more convincing and refined, creating a more rounded look.

This isn’t a new phenomenon: we have documented that extra solidity you get from OLED plenty of times previously, most notably when we used the Sony Bravia 8 OLED as a comparison in our Bravia 9 Mini LED review. But it bears repeating for those who are choosing between an OLED and a backlit TV.

Viewing angles are another clear OLED advantage. While the UR9’s picture performance doesn’t entirely fall off a cliff when you move off-axis, the sweet spot in which it performs at its very best is surprisingly narrow.

And while the UR9 usually keeps blooming impressively well controlled, especially for a backlit TV, particularly torturous scenes can still expose its limitations.

The bomb-test sequence in Oppenheimer is a great example. From the UR9, there’s a slight general greying to the image, plus some visible glow around isolated spotlights in the darkness. The opening starfield of Alien: Romulus, meanwhile, reveals that the UR9 cannot simultaneously maintain truly inky blacks and perfectly intense star highlights in the way an OLED can.

To be clear, the Hisense performs well in these scenes by LCD standards, and many owners may never notice such shortcomings during normal viewing. But they do prevent the UR9 from truly matching the effortless contrast precision and dimensionality of the best OLED TVs.

Sound quality

Developed in partnership with Devialet, the UR9’s 4.1.2-channel speaker system delivers a surprisingly expansive and full-bodied presentation by TV standards, with particularly impressive width and height effects.

The Theatre sound mode is the most immediately striking of the available presets, producing a presentation that extends well beyond the physical boundaries of the TV and creating a convincing sense of spaciousness with Dolby Atmos soundtracks.

There’s decent bass depth, too, and the UR9 maintains good composure at high volumes, avoiding the harshness and distortion that can afflict many flatscreen TVs when pushed hard.

The overall presentation is smooth and rich in character, which makes the UR9 an easy and enjoyable listen over long viewing sessions.

It isn’t perfect, though. Dynamics are a little stunted, and action scenes lack some of the punch and excitement they deserve, while dialogue could be projected with greater clarity and emotional expression.

The Theatre mode also slightly overplays its hand at times. While its extra spaciousness is undeniably appealing, it introduces a faintly diffuse and echoey quality to voices, along with a slight sense of delay that makes speech sound less natural than it should.

As a result, we find ourselves preferring the Standard sound mode for most content. It still sounds pleasantly spacious and open, but delivers dialogue with greater focus and cohesion while maintaining good weight and scale.

Ultimately, while even a modest dedicated soundbar will comfortably outperform it, the UR9’s audio system is better than that of most TVs, even at this lofty level.

Verdict

In several ways, the Hisense UR9 is one of the best backlit TVs we have ever tested.

Most of the time, you’re not even made aware that it is a backlit TV, so good are its black levels, its control of blooming and its consistent, flicker-free contrast.

While it is possible to trip up the backlight, it’s quite hard to do so, and many buyers may never see an unsightly bloom in their period of UR9 ownership.

But while this first mainstream RGB Mini LED TV is broadly mercifully free of the flaws that generally afflict backlit TVs, it still can’t match the overall picture quality of the best OLED models.

The pixel-level contrast control of OLED brings benefits in several areas. There are the notably brighter highlights on very dark backgrounds that even accomplished backlit sets, such as the UR9, are too cautious to go all guns blazing with for fear of blooming. There are the almost flawless viewing angles, too, which the UR9 is a long way from matching.

The biggest thing, though, is the generally more solid, more perceptually three-dimensional image that OLED provides. Next to the Bravia 8 II, the Hisense UR9 simply looks flatter, less dynamic and less impactful.

Ultimately, as enjoyable and technically impressive as the UR9 is, we can’t think of a good reason you would buy it over a flagship-grade OLED, and that’s the level at which Hisense is pitching it – at least in the UK.

Of course, if you are someone who has a flagship-level budget for their next TV and a general aversion to OLED, the Hisense UR9 should be right around the top of your list.

If you’re a UK buyer, it’s probably a good idea to wait and see if we get a massive US-style discount before placing an order, though.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 4
• Features 4

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If you’ve been eyeing up the Award-winning Sony Bravia 8 II for your next TV, but don’t have the budget to stretch to it, taking a look at the other models in the Sony range might feel like a good starting point.

There’s always the hope that the more affordable models have retained some of the flagship greatness at a lower price – but at the very least, that they’ve strived for the same goals when it comes to getting the best picture performance bang for your buck.

However, despite their similar naming conventions, the Bravia 5 and the Bravia 3 are not only completely different panel types to the OLED-packing Bravia 8 II, but also different from each other – so it’s important to step with caution.

While our star rating is always a great indicator of the products we recommend, when you’re comparing two models at quite different prices, it’s good to understand what the differences are between them, and what you’re getting for the extra outlay. Allow us to explain all.

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: pricing

Right now, you can pick up the 65-inch Bravia 5 that we tested for around £1299 / $1000 / AU$2695. That’s not a bad price at all for a Sony-branded Mini LED TV with local dimming, and a nice saving from the launch price of £1699 in the UK.

The Bravia 3 is considerably cheaper, and at the time of writing is available for around £849 / $650 / AU$1399. That’s pretty close to its launch price of £899 in the UK (US and Australian savings on RRP are slightly heftier), but we have known this screen size to go as low as £749 during big sales periods.

We'll tackle the question of value through the course of the review. This round is all about which option is cheapest, and that's comfortably the Bravia 3.

WINNER: Bravia 3

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: design

It’s fair to say that neither of these TVs are going to be the best choice if you're hoping to wall mount.

In our review, we noted that the Bravia 5 has a rear panel that sticks out further than its competition, which could make it feel a bit clunky and awkward for wall hanging.

When you consider that the Bravia 5 measures 5.8cm deep, and the Bravia 3 measures in at 7.2cm, we’d say that both of these sets lend themselves best to life on a TV stand.

As you might expect for the price difference, the Bravia 5’s overall aesthetic is a little elevated compared with the Bravia 3. Both have relatively slender bezels, but the Bravia 5 sports a tasteful dark grey brushed metal effect finish, whereas the Bravia 3 is unashamedly black plastic.

It feels all the more lightweight when you’re putting it together too, and at least for our taste, the feet on the Bravia 3 lack some of the sophistication of those on the 5.

We do appreciate Sony’s no-screw mechanism on both TVs though, which allows the TV to just slot onto the stand, saving fuss and making setup out of the box really straightforward.

The Bravia 3 does score points over the Bravia 5 for its two-way stand, which allows you to set the feet into either narrow or wide positions to suit your furniture or soundbar requirements.

The Bravia 5’s feet only have one position, but thankfully that is relatively narrow to allow you to place it on most stands without issue. If you have a soundbar though, you’ll just want to check that it can fit in front of the stand – the Bravia 5 does adjust to two different heights to make sure the screen isn’t blocked by adding one.

Overall, although the two-way stand on the Bravia 3 is a nice addition for soundbar owners, we much prefer the design of the Bravia 5, and think it can accommodate a soundbar in the majority of situations.

WINNER: Bravia 5

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: features

One of the biggest differentiators between the Bravia 5 and the Bravia 3 is their panel technology – the Bravia 5 is a Mini LED TV with local dimming across 240 zones, whereas the Bravia 3 is a direct-lit LED TV without any local dimming.

That’s going to have a fair impact on its picture quality capabilities, but we’ll come on to that in the next section.

Elsewhere, the processing chip that runs the show is different between the two models, too.

Given the price difference, it’s not surprising that the Bravia 5 has the more sophisticated of the two – Sony’s flagship XR processor, which also powers the Bravia 8 II.

The Bravia 3, on the other hand, uses the older, midrange 4K HDR Processor X1.

What that means in isolation is hard to quantify, given the TVs’ differing features elsewhere. The XR is clearly a more powerful processor that can draw out more by way of picture subtlety and colour accuracy, but how much that would be as noticeable on a direct-lit LED screen with no local dimming is questionable.

In other words, going for a lower-power processor in the Bravia 3 feels like the right choice for its price and capabilities.

As these are both Sony TVs, their HDR capabilities are the same – they both support HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision, and don’t support HDR10+.

However, of the two, only the Bravia 5 is IMAX Enhanced certified, and it’s also the only one that offers a range of ‘Calibrated’ picture modes to get the best picture quality from the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Sony Pictures Core.

Both have Dolby Atmos and DTS:X spatial audio support, though the Bravia 5 has a better sound system to deliver it on.

The Bravia 5 offers 40W of sound across four speakers (two full-range drivers and two tweeters), compared to the 20W across two full-range drivers on the Bravia 3.

If you’re keen to hook up a games console to your TV, the Bravia 3 wouldn’t be the best pick of the two due to its 4K/60Hz panel, with the 4K/120Hz panel on the Bravia 5 making it a much better choice.

The Bravia 5 also has VRR on two HDMI ports, as well as ALLM on all four of them, whereas the Bravia 3 only has ALLM. That makes the Bravia 5 a clear winner for gamers.

Both TVs use Google TV for their smart features, offering a good selection of streaming apps, along with the addition of YouView in the UK for the catch-up services that Google doesn’t offer.

Using Google’s interface also means that both TVs have access to features such as Google Assistant and Chromecast, as well as AirPlay 2. While we did notice a few small glitches initially in the Bravia 3’s handling of the UI, overall, both TVs work smoothly and without issue.

The Bravia 5 also has the compatibility to work with the Bravia Cam, to control the TV by gesture – something the Bravia 3 does not offer.

We don’t particularly value the extra tricks the Bravia Cam adds to the TV-watching experience, particularly considering its £199 / $200 / AU$149 price tag, but if you do, the Bravia 5 is the only set out of the two to get it.

All things considered, it’s not exactly surprising that the Bravia 5 has better features than the Bravia 3, given its higher price tag. However, it’s when you look at the wider market that the winner becomes clear.

The Bravia 5 shoots above its pay grade in many respects, including by being one of Sony’s XR Backlight Master Drive panels. That’s a premium feature found on many of its much pricier TVs that aims to boost picture quality and reduce power consumption by improving local dimming performance.

However, when you consider the Bravia 3 against other competitors at its price, its specs are disappointing. There are similarly priced TVs that use better panel technology and have local dimming and better gaming features.

For those reasons, the Bravia 5 takes the win here again.

WINNER: Bravia 5

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: picture quality

That feeling of the Bravia 5 delivering value for money only continues when it comes to picture performance.

It might be the cheapest Mini LED model in the Bravia lineup, but the picture quality doesn’t feel compromised by its more affordable ambitions – the Sony DNA runs clearly through this set.

In particular, that XR Backlight Master Drive panel does exactly what we’ve seen it do elsewhere, in that it maximises the performance of the backlight, meaning we get impressively bright and well controlled pictures for this price category, with even and consistent blacks and minimal blooming.

It means the Bravia 5 really holds its own in the contrast stakes, which ensures – when combined with its well-judged shadow detail – that both bright and dark scenes look as natural and cinematic as each other.

All this greatness only starts to become compromised in extremely complex HDR shots, or when you watch the Bravia 5 from much of an angle, when its more affordable local dimming mechanism might become more apparent. Overall though, this is a great performer at its price.

Unfortunately, the Bravia 3’s handling of contrast and shadow detail is not such good news. What strikes us most is how the entire picture has an almost grey hue, which means it lacks solidity in blacks from the get go, and makes dark scenes almost unwatchable.

The panel almost seems to glow in darker sequences, losing a lot of detail in the process, but even in scenes with lots of light, the image lacks contrast. This means Sony’s calling card of excellent three dimensionality is largely lost, which is a big hit on our overall picture enjoyment.

Thankfully, the Bravia 3 manages to look much more like a Sony TV when it comes to colour.

As long as you switch from the out-of-the-box settings to Professional mode, colour performance is pretty good, looking balanced and natural, while retaining a degree of believable richness.

The Bravia 5 has a little more flexibility on its presets, thanks to its more sophisticated processing, but ultimately also manages a great mix of punchiness, shading subtlety and balance, even retaining an impressive amount of colour saturation during darker scenes.

Both TVs manage to show off Sony’s talent for motion processing, with sweeping panning shots handled admirably by the Bravia 3. The XR processor in the Bravia 5 will arguably push motion handling that little bit further, by way of subtlety and realism, but there’s no reason for complaint with either set here.

Despite this, the overall picture quality is a clear win by the Bravia 5 – even at the set’s individual price points.

Once again, the Bravia 5 punches above what we might expect at this price, giving 4K images a sense of density, texture and clarity that we are more used to seeing in Sony’s more expensive TVs.

While some of Sony’s famous picture processing is still evident in the Bravia 3, its poor backlight control leads to a loss of contrast and shadow detail that’s hard to forgive. This is an easy win for the Bravia 5.

WINNER: Bravia 5

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: sound quality

While we all know that a soundbar or surround sound system will always make your new TV sound its best, both models do a pretty good job for built-in TV audio.

Even with the pretty modest speaker set-up in the Bravia 3, Sony manages to provide impressively clear dialogue alongside a decent sense of low-level dynamics.

Sound even has a good sense of height to it, giving more space to big effects such as explosions or planes flying overhead. Bass could be heftier, but to be honest, the Bravia 3 already outperforms what we have come to expect from a TV at this price.

The Bravia 5 is equally impressive. No elements in a mix pass the Bravia 5 by, yet the processing is also sophisticated enough to ensure no detail takes on more significance than it should.

The four drivers here create a spacious soundstage that offers a good sense of height, with both dialogue and sound effects placed accurately within it.

There’s power to the sound too, but also a level of precision that ensures sound is never distorted.

Like the Bravia 3, it’s lacking a little bass, but we would always take that over too much, and overall find the sound to be precise and immersive. We’re calling this one a draw.

WINNER: Draw

Sony Bravia 3 vs Bravia 5: verdict

From the get-go, this head-to-head might have looked like a shoo-in for the more expensive, better specified, and better reviewed Bravia 5.

But even when you consider both of these TVs’ positions within their respective markets and price categories, it’s hard for us not to recommend – if you are truly torn between the two – that you try to save up the difference and opt for the Bravia 5, or consider a different TV at the Bravia 3’s price instead.

The Sony Bravia 5 follows in the footsteps of the other five-star TVs from Sony’s most recent TV lineup, offering impressive features for its price, a formidable picture performance and a pretty decent sound performance to boot.

By comparison, the Bravia 3 is lacking the features we might expect at this level, and delivers a picture performance we find almost unrecognisable as a Sony TV.

For anyone considering these two TVs, hoping to get Sony’s famed picture processing on a bit of a budget, the clear winner is the Bravia 5. From everything we have seen so far, it’s the clear value proposition in Sony’s current TV lineup.

OVERALL WINNER: Bravia 5

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Sony has just announced the latest additions to its Bravia Theatre Bar range of Dolby Atmos soundbars (plus two new Bravia TVs). And it’s not quite what we were expecting.

Rather than replace the flagship Bravia Theatre Bar 9 or the step-down Bravia Theatre Bar 8, both of which launched almost two years ago, Sony has decided to launch more affordable models below them.

Bravia Theatre Bar 7

First up is the Bravia Theatre Bar 7, which replaces the long in the tooth, four-star rated HT-A3000.

The Bar 7 has a design very similar to that of the Bar 8 and Bar 9, with a rounded mesh front and a metallic, angular rear.

But while it’s the same height and almost the same depth as its more premium siblings, the Bar 7 is significantly narrower, at 95cm compared with the Bar 8’s 110cm and the Bar 9’s 130cm.

It’s worth noting that this means the Bar 7 is still a good deal longer than the 65cm Sonos Beam Gen 2 with which it seems destined to do battle.

As with the other Theatre Bar models, two feet are included in the Bar 7’s box. These can be used to elevate the Bar 7 just a little so that it can straddle an awkward TV pedestal stand. A wall mount is included as well.

Unlike the Sonos Beam, the Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 7 features dedicated up-firing speakers, one at each end of the top panel. These are full-range Sony X-Balanced designs.

They are joined by a full-range X-Balanced driver at each end of the bar, plus two forward-facing X-Balanced woofers for the left and right channels, a full-range X-Balanced centre speaker, and two tweeters.

And that’s not all – there are four passive radiators for additional bass, too.

Sony then uses its 360 Spatial Audio technology to create an additional five phantom speakers, which are designed to generate a bubble of sound.

This is the basis for the Bar 7’s reproduction of 3D Audio, which it can handle in both the Dolby Atmos and DTS:X formats.

The compact bar is IMAX Enhanced Certified, too, though only when the optional rears and a subwoofer are connected.

Speaking of which, there are two variants of this new soundbar. You can buy the solo Bravia Theatre Bar 7 (also known as the HT-A7100), or you can buy a bundle that also includes the 100W Sub 7 subwoofer.

This bundle is known as the Bravia Theatre Bar 7 + S, or HT-AP710.

Away from movies, there is support for Apple AirPlay and Spotify Connect, but Tidal Connect appears to be absent.

The Bar 7 comes with the same remote as the Bar 8 and Bar 9. It isn’t fancy, but it is better than no remote at all.

Of course, it will be possible to control the volume using your TV’s remote control, and if your TV is a recent Sony, you’ll be able to access more or less all of the Bar 7’s settings and controls via the TV’s onscreen menus.

Want more ways to control and tweak the Bar 7? No problem: it’s also compatible with the very good Bravia Connect app.

This is also where you complete Sony’s ‘Sound Field Optimisation’ calibration, which attempts to adapt the sound to your room and seating position.

As you would expect, the Bravia Theatre Bar 7 is designed to be connected to your TV via HDMI eARC (in fact, this appears to be another new soundbar without a legacy optical input), but unlike many rivals, there is also a dedicated HDMI input, and the soundbar supports passthrough of 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM.

Bravia Theatre Bar 5

Sony has also announced a new entry-level model in the Bravia soundbar range.

The Bravia Theatre Bar 5 is a package that contains a compact three-channel soundbar and a fairly bijou wireless subwoofer to make a neat 3.1 system.

Despite the lack of up-firing drivers, the Theatre Bar 5 is able to reproduce Dolby Atmos and DTS:X signals using Sony’s Vertical Surround Engine, which has previously impressed us in models such as the Bravia Theatre System 6.

Unlike the Bar 7, the Bar 5 doesn’t feature HDMI passthrough, but it does have an optical input nestled alongside the HDMI eARC socket.

News subs and surrounds

The two new soundbars are joined by optional new subwoofers and surround speakers, and these are very much flagship models.

The new Bravia Theatre Sub 9 is a gorgeous, sci-fi-styled cube that replaces Sony’s current SW5 flagship subwoofer.

Each half of the cube (it’s not actually a perfect cube, but it looks close enough) features a 20cm aluminium driver.

These are dual opposing drivers that employ phase cancelling to deliver smooth, ultra-deep, distortion-free bass, according to Sony, which also claims a monstrous maximum power output of 600W for the Sub 9.

The Bravia Theatre Sub 8, meanwhile, is essentially half of the Sub 9. It features one of the 20cm aluminium drivers and a claimed power output of 300W.

The new subwoofers are compatible with the Bravia Theatre Bar 9, Bar 8 and Bar 7, as well as the Bravia Theatre Quad.

Thanks to a post-launch software update, you will even be able to pair two of these subs (or two Sub 7s, for that matter) with one of the bars, though the Quad system can still have just one subwoofer.

Finally, the new surround speakers.

The Bravia Theatre Rear 9 speakers replace the RS5s and sit above the existing Rear 8s.

They feature a minimalist, cylindrical design, with a metal ring around the top that matches the metal band around the rear edge of the soundbars.

Each Rear 9 features two 80mm aluminium drivers, one facing forwards and the other upwards (with a bit of a forward-tilting angle), plus a front-firing 16mm tweeter and a side-facing passive radiator.

A swivelling wall-bracket for each speaker is included in the box.

Unfortunately, Sony hasn’t yet given us launch dates or prices for any of this new audio kit, but as soon as we have that information, we will update this story.

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Marantz has announced the newest additions to its home cinema range: the AV 30 Preamplifier and AMP 30 Power Amplifier.

They are taking a page from the Award-winning Marantz Cinema 30's design, featuring an "iconic porthole" screen and stylish illumination on the side. The remote controls for each model also feature backlighting to “ensure an effortless user experience in darkened rooms".

Taking a closer look at the AV 30, the 11.4-channel preamplifier is deploying “state-of-the-art processing” and “comprehensive features”, according to the brand.

The AV processor comes with the "latest and most powerful" Analogue Devices SHARC dual-core DSP chipset, which is paired with 32-bit two-channel DACs.

Marantz claims the AV 30 will be able to decode and process "all forms of incoming audio", including Dolby Atmos, IMAX Enhanced, DTS:X and AURO-3D.

And, with 11.4 channels supported by the discrete HDAM SA-2 preamplifier stage (via either RCA or XLR), it seems promising that the AV 30 will be able to deliver an immersive audio experience.

The brand is offering an impressive seven HDMI 2.1 inputs, which can support up to 8K/60Hz or 4K/120Hz video.

On top of that, the AV 30 is powered by the HEOS platform to give you access to a range of music streaming services. That includes Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz Connect for hi-res tunes, as well as AirPlay 2 and Bluetooth.

You can fine-tune the product to your space with the help of Audyssey MultEQ XT32 advanced room optimisation, which automatically calibrates based on speaker size and distance via the included microphone.

Moving onto the AMP 30, Marantz has dubbed the entry “powerful and versatile”.

It delivers six channels of amplification, rated at 200W per channel, which Marantz claims is ideal for "multiple different system configurations".

It also provides the option of reconfiguring pairs of 200W amp channels into bridged-tied-load (BTL) outputs, with up to a maximum of three channels of 400W available if the chosen speaker system requires it. You can also choose to bi-amp up to three speakers.

Having 'just' six channels of amplification means that a single AMP 30 can't take full advantage of the AV 30's 14 channels of processing, but buyers can, of course, partner the AV 30 with the 12-channel AMP 20 or 16-channel AMP 10 if they prefer.

The AV 30 and AMP 30 will be available this month from select retailers, with each priced at £3500 / $4000 (around AU$7105).

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IFA has officially come to a close for 2025, but that hasn’t stopped us reminiscing about all the exciting new home cinema kit we laid our eyes on at the event.

One product that has particularly been on my mind since the convention is Xgimi’s Titan – a 4K model that the company claims is its “most premium living-room projector.”

That’s quite the deviation for the China-based brand, as its most recent releases such as the Xgimi MoGo 4 have focused more on the portable projector market.

The beefier Titan model boasts a claimed brightness of 5000 ISO Lumens, as well as a hefty 5,000,000: 1 dynamic contrast ratio. It supports 3D content too, which could be tempting if you are looking for an extra bit of immersion.

It is also IMAX Enhanced, which means a committee of IMAX and DTS engineers have deemed it capable of reaching their set of standards in terms of sound and picture quality. While no cast-iron guarantee that it will be a great overall projector, this is certainly an encouraging sign.

In terms of setup, the projector offers a dynamic lens shift feature that allows you to move the projected image up, down, left, or right without touching the projector.

With a rectangular box-like design, the Titan can be wall-mounted or positioned on a stand.

All of those specifications do sound pretty appealing, but how does it actually perform? I got a chance to see the Titan in action at IFA, where it was showing off its image quality with clips from various Marvel movies inside a small cinema room. Of course, we will have to wait until we get the projector into our dedicated test room to give a final verdict.

When showing footage from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever as a group of Wakandan warriors jump into the ocean, the Titan presented an undeniably cinematic image. The blues of the water are vivid and bright, so even when the doors were opened in the small cinema room, there was still a vibrant overall image on display.

In terms of motion handling, a clip from Black Widow, as a car speeds across the road, presented a judder-free performance. There was a fair bit of rainbow effect from the screen, but this could be down to the increase in eye movements from distractions around the cinema room.

The sound is more difficult to judge as it was noisy inside the room. Xgimi has kept fairly quiet about what we can expect in terms of the audio performance as well, but we will keep you updated when we know more information.

We don't know how much the Titan will cost yet, but as it is the brand's most premium projector yet, we are expecting it to have a bigger price tag than the rest of its models.

As a serious 4K home cinema projector, there’s every chance that Xgimi has models such as the Sony VPL-XW5000 in its sights. Originally launching at £5999 / $5998 / AU$9990, this multiple What Hi-Fi? Award-winner boasts impressive black levels and contrast, as well as its detailed 4K native picture.

This is tough competition for the Titan, but given Xgimi’s track record of aggressive pricing, it will hopefully undercut this model when it comes to price.

Once again, we will have to see how the Titan performs when we get the chance to review it properly, but its impressive brightness levels and cinematic picture may mean it is a worthy competitor to our current premium winner.

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Projectors galore! Xgimi launches four models to break into the premium 4K market

And here is our review of the Xgimi MoGo 4

This just in from IFA: Xgimi is launching four new home-cinema projectors which the company says are for “serious home theatre enthusiasts”. It’s quite a deviation for the China-based company, which has previously targeted only the portable projector market.

First up, Xgimi has announced the release of the Titan, dubbing it the company’s “most premium living-room projector”. The 4K projector boasts a claimed 5000 ISO Lumens of brightness, as well as a hefty 5,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio.

We don’t know too much about what specifications this projector is packing, but it could well be a competitor for our current best premium ultra-short throw model, the Hisense PX3-Pro – see our best projectors guide.

The next set of projectors to join Xgimi’s ranks comes in the form of the Horizon 20 series, consisting of the Horizon 20, Horizon 20 Pro, Horizon 20 Max models.

Offering a claimed 5700 ISO Lumens of brightness, Xgimi’s latest flagship is the Horizon 20 Max. This RGB triple laser projector delivers “immersive visuals even in daylight or high-ambient light environments” according to the brand.

Every model in the lineup supports Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and IMAX Enhanced with native Netflix support also available.

For gamers, the projectors all include low-latency gaming modes which the company claims will have only one millisecond of input lag and a 240Hz refresh rate.

We don’t have the pricing just yet, but will update this page when we have more information.

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While one corner of the music world fandom will still be coming down from the recent announcement that Taylor Swift officially has a brand new album dropping, a rather different audience (or perhaps not) will be pleased to discover that Depeche Mode's concert movie Depeche Mode: M is set to enjoy a limited-time theatrical run later this year.

The movie was initially announced earlier this year in April and was showcased during the 2025 Tribeca Festival, but now a wider release will see it screened in over 2500 cinemas across more than 60 countries.

The concert documentary charts the British group's 2023 tour of Mexico City and will hit both standard cinemas and IMAX theatres, with director Fernando Frías describing it as a "unique journey into the heart of Mexican culture's relationship with death, framed by the iconic live performances of Depeche Mode".

The upcoming film will be released through Sony Music Vision, Sony's sub-division of its Sony Music Entertainment arm, alongside Trafalgar Releasing.

According to Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan, "At its core, our new film, M, is about the deep connection between music, culture, and people – and Fernando Frías did a beautiful job telling that story through the lens of Mexican culture and our shows in Mexico City..

Depeche Mode: M will hit cinemas and IMAX theatres on October 28th, with tickets going on sale on September 17th via the band's official website.

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The Sony Bravia 8 II is one of – if not the – most exciting new TVs of the year. Not that you would know that from the name.

The TV is exciting because it’s the successor to the A95L QD-OLED, a model so good that it’s still one of the very best TVs you can currently buy, despite being nearly two years old.

But the name is weird. ‘Bravia 8 II’ suggests it’s the successor to the Bravia 8 W-OLED TV, but the Bravia 8 is continuing in the range, with the Bravia 8 II sitting above it.

Why not call the new model the ‘Bravia 9’? Because Sony’s flagship Mini LED model already takes that name. It can’t be called ‘Bravia 10’, either, as that would suggest it sits above the Bravia 9, which isn’t the case. Besides, that name is likely being saved for the company’s upcoming RGB LED TV.

What’s in a name? Well, the worry is that the name is rather confusing and possibly undersells this new Sony QD-OLED. And it would be a real shame if potential buyers were put off by it – because the Bravia 8 II, here reviewed in 55-inch form, is an extraordinarily good TV.

How much does the Bravia 8 II cost?

Sony promised that the Bravia 8 II would be ‘more affordable than the A95L’, by which it meant that the new model would launch for less than the outgoing model did.

That has turned out to be true for the UK and Australia, but unfortunately not for the US.

Here’s a full launch price comparison between the Bravia 8, Bravia 8 II and A95L:

Thankfully, discounts have come early for the US, so while the TV is still full price in the UK and Australia, it has already dropped to $2500 and $3000 in the US for the 55- and 65-inch versions respectively.

More important than how the Bravia 8 II's pricing compares with that of its fellow Sony TVs is how it compares with rivals such as the LG G5, Samsung S95F and Panasonic Z95B.

You can see the launch pricing for all four models here:

Of course, launch pricing is just the start of the story, and we always recommend waiting for discounts before making a purchase.

History suggests that the LG G5 will be the most heavily discounted model over time, closely followed by the Samsung S95F. Sony and Panasonic TVs, particularly flagship models, are usually less aggressively discounted.

That said, it feels as though we’re in a fairly unprecedented period of volatility, so there’s no guarantee that pricing history will repeat with these models.

What are the key design features of the Bravia 8 II?

The Bravia 8 II looks very similar to the A95L it replaces. One suspects that Sony decided to reuse as much of the chassis as possible to reduce costs so that it could sell the new model for less than its predecessor.

Compared with the flagship OLEDs that Sony produced before the A95L, the design is relatively conventional, but it is also quite smart and premium compared with many rivals.

Sony points to the Bravia 8 II as the slimmest TV in its lineup. At 3.4cm, though, it is the same thickness as the outgoing A95L and significantly thicker than rivals such as the Samsung S95F (1.1cm) and LG G5 (2.4cm). At least some of that comparative thickness is probably due, as with the A95L, to the actuator-based sound system and custom heatsink.

Like the A95L, the Bravia 8 II has blade-style feet that can be positioned only at the furthest extremes of the TV’s bottom edge. Sony claims that’s great for preventing reflections, but it also means the TV can’t be placed on furniture narrower than the set's width, which is 122cm (48 inches) for the 55-inch model and 145cm (64.5 inches) for the 65-inch version.

While the feet can’t be positioned closer to the centre of the chassis, they can be extended to lift the TV a few centimetres so that a soundbar can be positioned in front of the TV without obstructing the screen.

One big disappointment on the design front is that the remote control has been downgraded from the rechargeable, backlit number of the A95L, Bravia 9 and even the Bravia 8, to one that requires AAA batteries and doesn’t light up in the dark. That seems an odd decision.

What are the key features of the Bravia 8 II?

The big thing here, of course, is that the Bravia 8 II uses what Sony refers to as ‘the latest QD-OLED panel’. This, combined with Sony’s processing and custom heatsink, results in the new model apparently being able to go 25 per cent brighter than its A95L QD-OLED predecessor in terms of peak brightness, and 50 per cent brighter than the Bravia 8 W-OLED.

• Read more: W-OLED vs QD-OLED

With this increased brightness comes increased colour volume, and Sony claims to have also engineered big improvements to dark gradation (essentially very dark shading).

As you would expect, the Bravia 8 II is powered by Sony’s XR Processor which, like every rival TV processor right now, uses AI, most notably in what the brand refers to as ‘an AI scene recognition system’. This new, 2025 feature, which is exclusive to the Bravia 8 II and Bravia 5, apparently ‘detects and analyses data with flawless accuracy, then optimises the picture for ultimate realism’.

Sony has gone big in recent years on what it calls ‘Studio Calibrated Modes’. These, it says, deliver content from their respective streaming services as it was meant to be seen. So it’s no surprise to see the Netflix Adaptive Calibrated Mode, Prime Video Calibrated Mode and Sony Pictures Core Calibrated Mode all present on the Bravia 8 II.

The TV also supports Dolby Vision and Atmos, and is IMAX Enhanced certified. As with all previous Sony TVs, it does not support HDR10+, but the standard HDR10 and HLG HDR formats are, of course, on board.

Unfortunately, precious little has changed on the gaming front. Yes, the TV supports 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM, and it has a Dolby Vision Game mode. The ‘Perfect for PlayStation 5’ functionality remains, too, which means the TV will automatically dial in pretty accurate HDR settings when connected to a PlayStation 5.

The problem is that there are still just two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 sockets, and one of those doubles as the eARC port, so it will be taken up by your soundbar or other sound system, should you choose to add one. That will leave just one top-specification input for your console or gaming PC.

That’s fine if you have just one such device, but if you have more, you’re going to have to do some irritating cable swapping or accept the extras running at less than their full capabilities.

As expected, the Bravia 8 II features the Google TV platform, which is gradually gaining ground on LG’s slicker webOS.

The app selection is excellent, with no significant absentees. That includes all of the UK's catch-up services, which can be missing from some Google TV devices.

Every app delivers its content in the expected formats, too, and an initial issue we had with Netflix delivering content in 5.1 rather than Dolby Atmos has since sorted itself out.

How good is the Bravia 8 II's picture quality?

For our testing, we’ve lined the Bravia 8 II up against both its A95L predecessor and Bravia 8 sibling, feeding all sets a variety of content in 4K Dolby Vision, 4K HDR10, 1080p and standard-def.

This content includes Alien: Romulus, Sinners, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Alex Garland’s Civil War, Pan, The Fall Guys, and even an episode of Rowan Atkinson’s fairly forgotten The Thin Blue Line from 1995.

To cut to the chase, the Bravia 8 II is a significant upgrade on both models, and no flaws have been introduced. It’s all gain and no pain, and the results are glorious.

One of the Bravia 8 II’s greatest strengths is how easy it is to get looking its best. For a supremely authentic picture, simply pick Dolby Vision Dark for Dolby Vision content or Professional for everything else.

Should you want a little more pop to proceedings, either because you’re watching in a room with ambient light or simply because you enjoy an even more thrilling delivery, simply switch to Dolby Vision Bright or the Cinema mode.

We’re not saying that small tweaks won’t result in an even better picture, but the presets are so spot on, the vast majority of owners won’t deem that extra effort necessary.

We kick things off with Alien: Romulus in Dolby Vision, and the upgrades offered by the Bravia 8 II are clear and appreciable.

The first of these is predictably the noticeably brighter peak highlights, with the pin-prick stars glistening that little bit more piercingly against the foreboding blackness of deep space.

But there’s more to it than that. The Bravia 8 II’s bright colours are more vibrant than they are from the Bravia 8 and brighter than they are from the A95L, which makes the steadily illuminating orange and red buttons in the cockpit of the recovery craft all the more impressive.

Colours maintain their natural vibrancy in low-light areas, too, such as the bunk in which Cailee Spaeny’s Rain awakens for another glorious day in the employ of the Weyland Yutani corporation.

The work that Sony has done on dark gradation has really paid off as well, in that there’s far more shadow detail from the Bravia 8 II than either of the other sets.

All of the folds and wrinkles in Andy’s (David Jonsson) grey jacket are clear as he and Rain walk through the dystopian streets of the Jackson’s Star Mining Colony, whereas the finest elements are lost on the Bravia 8 and A95L.

But what’s most impressive is how all of these elements combine with Sony’s new AI processing to make the image look so much more solid and three-dimensional. There’s volume and roundedness to objects and people (Rain and Andy as they eat breakfast in front of a daylight-style window, for example), and backgrounds have depth and purpose (the street behind Rain as she talks through a window to a cold corporate shill).

These traits hold true when we switch to Sinners. The incredible, dramatic sunrise skies over the cotton fields have greater shading, depth and contrast from the Bravia 8 II, and you get the feeling you could put your hand through the TV and reach towards the horizon.

The bleached white church really pops against the azure blue skies and verdant green fields, and as the movie takes its dark turn, the improved presentation of shadow detail ensures that you never miss a gory effect or creepy facial expression.

Punchy animated movie Into The Spider-Verse absolutely pops from the Bravia 8 II, particularly in Dolby Vision Bright. The bright sun over Brooklyn sizzles, original Spidey’s red suit is super-vivid, and the dimension-melding action at the start of the film crackles with colour.

Civil War, meanwhile, is such a crisp and vibrant movie (somewhat ironic given the gritty subject matter), and it too looks utterly glorious in HDR10 from the Bravia 8 II.

The flawless colour reproduction brings out the red of the near-sunburnt skin of Wagner Moura’s Joel as he awakens with a hangover in the bright sunlight, and while Kirsten Dunst’s Lee looks a little too pale and shadowy from the Bravia 8 and A95L respectively, the Bravia 8 II reveals the small amount of colour left in her cheeks and the full anguish on her face.

Unsurprisingly, the bright tracer fire and explosions during the battle for Washington, D.C. leap from the screen, providing stunning contrast against the dimly lit streets.

As you would probably imagine, given that it’s mastered to a super-bright 4000 nits, Pan goes even further in illustrating the advantages of the Bravia 8 II over both the Bravia 8 and A95L.

Of course, even the new model can get nowhere near the 4000 nits of the source material, but the combination of greater brightness headroom and some exceptional tone mapping results in significantly more piercing highlights with precise detail and shading.

Once again, though, it’s the way that all of the Bravia 8 II’s individually small upgrades combine to make the image seem so much more solid and lifelike that is so impressive.

Right at the other end of the quality spectrum is our standard-def stream of The Thin Blue Line, and it’s certainly true that 576p material such as this benefits less from the Bravia 8 II’s upgrades than 4K HDR does, but the quality of the upscaling is still mightily impressive.

The image created by the Bravia 8 II is undeniably cleaner and smoother than the other sets can manage, but there’s also impressive sharpness and detail. It wouldn’t be too hard to convince someone that what they were watching was HD rather than SD. We do feel the need to switch from Professional to Cinema here, though, as the former looks a little too dark.

Overall, the key to the Bravia 8 II’s success is balance. The colours are so vibrant, highlights so bright and edges so sharp, but nothing feels exaggerated or incorrect, which means you never feel as though you’re getting anything other than the very best versions of your movies and TV shows.

How good is the Bravia 8 II's sound system?

The Bravia 8 II has the same Acoustic Surface Audio+ setup as the A95L. Said setup consists of two actuators and two subwoofers (the Bravia 8 features two lesser actuators and one sub) and, in the A95L, represents one of the best built-in TV sound systems currently available.

Sure enough, the Bravia 8 II sounds just as good.

The actuators vibrate the screen itself in order to make sound. This ties the audio and video spatially in a way that rival solutions can’t match. But, as with the A95L, the Bravia 8 II manages to combine this directness with very impressive (by TV standards) spaciousness, with effects stretching far beyond the edges of the screen in all directions.

There’s excellent detail, too, and enough dynamic nuance to convey the emotion in an actor’s performance. Bigger dynamic shifts are also handled well, with chapter two of Blade Runner 2049 building steadily where rival sets sound flat.

As with the A95L, the Bravia 8 II isn’t the last word in bass depth, but it’s weightier than many rivals and, more importantly, is very controlled in the low frequencies, with only the faintest hint of fuzz creeping into the uniquely deep notes of the soundtrack.

Tonal balance is very good overall, in fact, with the impressive lower midrange ensuring that there’s warmth and fullness to voices.

In short, the Bravia 8 II sounds very similar to the A95L, which means it’s one of the best-sounding TVs you can buy. We still believe that a picture as good as this demands to be partnered by a dedicated sound system, but this is one of those rare TVs that won’t instantly be improved through the addition of a cheap soundbar.

Think along the lines of the Sonos Arc Ultra as a starting point for appropriate sound quality.

Verdict: is the Sony Bravia 8 II worth buying?

The Sony Bravia 8 II is a truly exceptional TV. Its combination of sizzling brightness, vibrant colours through all degrees of light, terrific shadow detail and razor-like sharpness combine to produce an image with regularly astonishing dynamism, depth and realism.

In fact, it’s so good that it makes the awesome A95L look a bit flat in comparison.

We haven’t yet had the chance to run the Bravia 8 II side-by-side with the LG G5, but our previous experience with the G5 tells us that it will win for sheer brightness and spectacle, but that the Bravia 8 II should be more considered and consistent. We already know for a fact that the Sony sounds significantly better, too.

We will be doing that full comparison as part of our Awards judging process, and we’re predicting a tense battle. Until then, we can’t proclaim the Bravia 8 II to be the very best TV available right now – but it’s undeniably already one of the best.

SCORES:

• Picture 5
• Sound 5
• Features 4

MORE:

Also consider the LG G5, Samsung S95F and Panasonic Z95B

How about a different Sony model? Check out our Bravia 8 review and Bravia 9 review

These are the overall best OLED TVs you can buy right now

Marantz has unveiled its latest preamplifier and power amplifier duo, and they feature a medley of features derived from the Award-winning Cinema 30 AVR, as well as the company's flagship AV 10 series.

The AV 20 AV Preamplifier and AMP 20 Power Amplifier sport classy designs similar to the Cinema 30, with the stylish "porthole" screen and tasteful side illumination returning; two aspects we thoroughly approved of in our full review. Marantz's premium aluminium remote is also included, with backlit buttons ideal for operating these new amps in dark home cinema rooms.

While these amps certainly pass the style check, it's how they sound that's truly important. Starting with the AV 20 preamplifier, Marantz has outfitted this AV processor with the "latest and most powerful" Analogue Devices SHARC dual-core DSP chipset, which has been coupled with 32-bit two-channel DACs complete with dedicated jitter reduction.

It claims that this powerful digital platform will be able to "precisely decode" and "accurately process" a wide range of cinematic audio formats, including Dolby Atmos, DTS:X Pro and IMAX Enhanced. And, with 13.4 channels supported by the discrete HDAM SA-3 preamplifier stage (via either RCA or XLR), the AV 20 should have no trouble delivering a full immersive surround sound experience.

Connectivity seems strong in usual Marantz (and its sister company Denon, for that matter) fashion, with seven HDMI 2.1 inputs capable of supporting up to 8K/60Hz or 4K/120Hz signals. While Marantz hasn't explicitly confirmed which HDR formats the AV 20 will support, we'd be surprised if it wasn't the same HDR10, HLG, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision suite found on the five-star Cinema 30. The AV 20 also sports three HDMI outputs, two of which are labelled as supporting 4K signals.

Wireless connectivity appears equally strong, too. Spotify Connect, Apple AirPlay 2, Tidal Connect, and the newly announced Qobuz Connect are all supported, alongside Bluetooth and Marantz's HEOS multiroom streaming platform.

There is also a robust suite of room correction technologies on board, including Audyssey MultEQ XT32 advanced room optimisation via the included microphone.

This will automatically measure speaker sizes, levels, distances and more via a simple setup process; in our experience, it has worked a treat on various Marantz and Denon AVRs. This is supported by an on-screen display, which should make setup even more of a breeze.

Furthermore, optional Dirac configurations are available, with Dirac Live Room Correction plus Dirac Live Bass Control for "fully optimised low-frequency integration" on up to four independent subwoofers.

Dirac Live Active Room Treatment (ART) is also supported, which will reportedly deliver the "most cohesive and tonally consistent listening experience" of any available room optimisation system. It's worth noting that this feature won't be supported at launch, but will be added with a firmware update down the line.

Moving onto the AMP 20, Marantz is positioning this as a powerful and versatile power amplifier. It delivers 12 channels of amplification, rated at 200W with two channels driven, which Marantz points out is enough to "drive multiple different speaker configurations and speaker layouts with ease".

If their speaker system requires more power, users can reconfigure the 12 channels into up to six 400W bridged-tied-load (BTL) outputs. Alternatively, if preferred, users can bi-amp up to six speakers.

The Marantz AV 20 and AMP 20 will be available starting today from selected retailers, and are both priced at £4750 / $6000. Therefore, the full system should cost £9500 / $12,000, though Marantz notes that these components are available to mix and match with other preamplifiers and power amplifiers in its range.

MORE:

Check out our picks for the best AV receivers

As well as our Marantz Cinema 30 review

And our JBL Synthesis SDR-38 review

Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film, The Odyssey, will be the first feature film shot entirely with IMAX film cameras.

That’s according to IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond at the Cannes film festival, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Of course, using IMAX cameras is nothing new for Nolan. He has shot his movies in IMAX ever since using the technology in The Dark Knight back in 2008, and has since popularised its mainstream use.

With his latest, the director will be using new IMAX film cameras for the entirety of the shoot in 1.43:1 instead of being limited by the big and loud previous models.

Gelfond says the newly developed 70mm film stock cameras are 30 per cent quieter and allow Nolan to watch rushes (the unedited footage shot during one day’s production) more easily.

But what does this mean for when we can watch it at home? We don’t exactly know how this will affect the presentation of its disc and streaming releases, but we have some guesses.

When it hits our smaller screens, of course, this will be a different beast compared to the IMAX cinemas Nolan filmed specifically for.

That means they will be left with two options. They can crop the top and bottom of the image to fit the screen, but the image will be cut off to an extent. The other choice is to leave it uncropped, but then the screen will include black bars vertically on either side.

So, no matter how good your home cinema set-up is, it will never look quite as the director intended it.

We might be seeing more movies using these new cameras, too. Although the new kit is reserved for Nolan, it will be available to rent for other filmmakers once shooting is complete on The Odyssey.

The retelling of the Greek epic will star a whole host of household names including Matt Damon, Zendaya and Robert Pattinson. It is set to be released in July 2026.

MORE:

These are the best Dolby Atmos scenes to test your home cinema setup

And check out the best surround sound systems

Here are the best OLED TVs right now

If you’re one of the growing sea of people looking to take the ultra-short-throw projector (UST) plunge, a unit from Hisense may well be on your shopping list; and for good reason.

The Chinese tech giant’s recent offerings have impressed our testers enough over the past year or so to earn positive reviews and cement its lead in the space..

And, having tested the Hisense PX3, we are pleased to report that this trend, for the most part, continues – though there are some caveats, including its slightly odd positioning in Hisense’s current “Laser Cinema” line.

Price

The company’s “Laser Cinema” category of UST projectors, where you'll find the PX3, sits above its cheaper “Laser TV” options.

This means it targets the upper echelons of UST projectors as a category and has a price tag to match, currently retailing for £2499 in the UK. At the time of publishing, the unit was not on sale in the US or Australia.

In isolation, that’s pretty reasonable, with rivals we’ve tested including the Epson EH-LS650 retailing for around £2199. But oddly, it costs the same as its Award-winning sibling, the Hisense PX3 Pro.

The lack of differentiation is odd, but there is partial reasoning for this, specifically that the base PX3 is, for the most part, identical to its Pro-series sibling.

The bigger spanner in the works is the existence of the Hisense PL2, which costs less, retailing for £1999 / $2499 and has fairly competitive specifications with the PX3.

Build

The PX3 and PX3 Pro projectors look identical. To the extent that we had to check the serial numbers on our review units several times before swapping them in and out during testing.

Both have utilitarian designs with angular grey metallic finishes and a slightly aggressive-looking metal front grille. This houses the units’ identical inbuilt 50-watts per channel Harmon Kardon speakers.

The PX3 is also atypically long and shallow, measuring the same 12 x 55 x 30cm as the Pro. This is intentional and means the unit has a very short 0:22:1 throw ratio that lets it sit incredibly close to a wall and throw up an 80-150-inch image.

The short throw distance should make setting the PX3 up relatively simple and let it sit neatly on smaller cabinets and tighter spaces than many rivals, which tend to need a bit more space.

But in the real world we find its set-up is still a little finicky. Like nearly all the ultra short throw projectors we test, the PX3 doesn’t feature physical lens control. Instead, it tries to initially force you to rely on keystone and digital picture correction.

The fiddly process asks you to set the unit up by taking a photo of a projected test pattern and then uploading it to Hisense’s website.

The process is not seamless and even after numerous attempts we still found ourselves having to fiddle with the adjustable feet and make manual adjustments to get it just right.

Be warned, this process is far easier if you have a partner in crime who can help tell you how it looks at a decent distance while you play with the feet and general positioning.

The other common compromise you get is that the unit doesn’t come bundled with a screen, which you really do need if you want the best results – trust us, no matter how good a projector is, you’ll never get truly brilliant results running directly onto reflective, painted walls.

The remote is identical to Hisense’s other standard UST and home cinema projector models. This means it’s a long chunky beast with a solar panel light sensor built in that’s designed to prolong battery life.

The design is fine, but once again lacks a full backlight, which is a minor but common issue we experience with most home cinema hardware.

Features

If you’re wondering what differentiates the PX3 from the Pro, after thorough testing, hours of going through its specifications sheets, instructions manual and having a conversation with Hisense, we can confirm there are three things.

First, the PX3 doesn’t have IMAX Enhanced or DTS support like its Pro sibling. This will be an annoyance for Disney+ subscribers, where you can stream content mastered to that standard.

Thanks to the unit's support for the more common HDR10, Dolby Vision and HLG formats, it's not a deal breaker, however.

The inclusion of HDR10+ will also benefit Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Apple TV+ and, in the future, Disney+ subscribers. This is a tweaked variant of HDR10 that offers frame-by-frame brightness and colour correction for HDR images.

Second, it offers 200 ANSI lumens less brightness than the Pro. Specifically, 2800 lumens to the Pro’s 3000.

Outside of this, it features the same 3000:1 contrast ratio, 110 per cent coverage of the BT.2020 color space and quoted 25,000-plus hours of light source life.

The firm’s Trichroma RGB laser light tech also returns, which uses separate red, green and blue lasers to project images, in a bid to offer a wider and more accurate gamut of colours.

These are top-end specifications. As a frame of reference, the Hisense PL2 Laser TV sitting below the PX3 line offers 2700 lumens of brightness. The older PL1, which we still recommend as it has been heavily discounted and still performs excellently, has an even lower 2100 ANSI lumens peak brightness.

The only other difference is that the PX3 has an inbuilt TV tuner to complement its VIDAA operating system. This means you can tune it and use it to play normal terrestrial TV as well as stream via its inbuilt apps.

VIDAA itself remains a good, albeit slightly clunky OS. Though its interface is a little less optimised than Google TV and the like, app support is solid.

All the usual suspects, including Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+ are present and stream correctly. In the UK, there’s also a decent selection of UK catch-up apps and local services, including BBC iPlayer and Now.

Outside of this, the PX3 Pro offers identical specifications to the Pro model – which is no bad thing.

The UST is being pitched at gamers with rare ‘made for Xbox Series consoles' certification. What this means is that, unlike many USTs, the unit’s two HDMI 2.1 inputs can handle games at 4K/120Hz.

These are complemented by an HDMI 2.0 output with eARC, plus a USB-A and 3.5mm audio output and ethernet – though its Wi-Fi 6 connectivity means you shouldn’t need the final input to stream.

Picture

The PX3 delivers a very similar picture to the PX3 Pro when we run the two head-to-head. Interestingly, we find slightly different settings from those available with its sibling get the most out of it, thanks to some performance-related software updates to VIDAA.

Powering up our Top Gun: Maverick 4K Blu-ray, the PX3’s standard setting’s motion handling is way too aggressive, and the picture verges on suffering from the dreaded soap opera effect. The contrast is a little too heavy-handed, too, and swathes of detail as Maverick exits a dark caravan come out as completely black.

Playing with the settings, the Filmmaker mode offers the best starting point, but still requires some finessing. With all motion and noise reduction off, movements look a little too jagged and the colours have an overt yellowish tone.

Using the projector’s “dark detail” setting you can undeniably see more of the picture, but black tones become inconsistent and become a constant distraction as they flip up and down from scene-to-scene.

Eventually we settle on Filmmaker mode with dynamic tone mapping on, the colour profile set to Warm 2 and the projector’s motion and noise reduction settings on low to get the best results.

Switching to our Dune: Part 2 4K Blu-ray, the PX3 delivers an admirable performance. Skin tones have a pleasing warmth and the rolling desert dunes look three-dimensional, with every shadow and sparkling grain of sand holding a distinct place. Explosions have an aggressive peak that makes the action-packed scene come alive and immerse you in the action unfolding on screen.

This is even more noticeably watching Barbie, where the intentionally cartoony, overbaked colour palette has a vibrancy and pop you won’t find on cheaper USTs, the Hisense PL2 included. The PX3 does a decent job, never pushing too hard and looking overbaked, as happens on the Xgimi Aura 2.

Moving to our tried and tested Blade Runner 2049 test disc, the projector offers a solid performance, for the most part. The upgraded Trichroma RGB laser light source gives colours a pleasing pop you don’t get on most USTs.

The red gloves of Sapper Morton’s hazmat suit in particular hold a captivating vibrancy as he works his farm.

Skin tones as he enters the dark farmhouse retain a sense of warmth and three dimensionality, with his cheeks retaining their intended red tinge. In most instances, the PX3 does a stellar job showcasing peaks, with there being a pleasing range of tones and colours from the darkest and lightest parts of the picture.

This gives the picture a wonderfully three-dimensional feeling. Objects and characters hold a distinct place in the picture, adding a sense of depth and realism that cheaper USTs can’t match.

But there are some issues. The projector struggles to rapidly shift between bright and dark segments. On a couple of occasions, the entire picture shifts from the UST’s standard deep blacks to a slightly grey tone, causing unnecessary distraction in the process.

This is annoying as the issue doesn’t repeat on the cheaper Hisense PL2 which, while more subdued, offers a more consistent picture.

This is a general trend that makes the PX3 and PX3 Pro both a harder sell in today’s market, given the difference in price and smaller performance gap.

The PX3’s motion handling suffers from some issues, too. When turned completely off, the movements of Morton and K during a heated exchange in Blade Runner 2049 feel too jagged and unnatural. But when we switch to Low or Filmmaker, things go too far the other way and the throws and punches are oversmoothed. We’d like a middle ground between the two.

SDR upscaling is also average at best. The PX3 struggles with the opening scene of True Grit, a famously difficult SDR test disc due to the film’s intentionally grainy spaghetti western nature, with the black level occasionally jumping and artefacts creeping into the falling snow.

Thankfully, the issue only occurs in difficult scenes. The projector does an admirable job streaming the original Total Recall on Netflix, offering a fun picture that deals surprisingly well with the film’s old-school physical effects and red, dusty environments.

Sound

The PX3’s built-in sound system is identical to the Pro model’s, outside of its lack of DTS support. Its performance is similarly middling as a result.

Voices and background noise in the opening scene of Blade Runner 2049 are clear, but slightly thin. The bass-heavy second scene pushes the system to its limit, and distortion creeps in and the low end overpowers the mid and higher parts of the frequency range.

Switching from Standard to Theatre mode, things marginally improve. During a difficult scene in which K converses with a hologram moving around his apartment, there’s more of a sense of separation between the different parts of the audio. But the directionality lacks finesse.

This becomes even more apparent watching Top Gun: Maverick. There’s a definite sense of direction, and even some height, to the audio, but it doesn’t quite match the movements of the planes, making the experience feel disjointed.

There’s a slight acidity to some engine noise that is just unpleasant enough to make you wince during certain segments as well.

The end result is a system that is just about fine for casual TV streaming, but nowhere near controlled and powerful enough for serious film viewing. If you want the best results, you will want to budget for a separate sound system, if you don’t already have one.

Verdict

The PX3 is an odd UST that in most ways is identical to the PX3 Pro we reviewed and gave five-stars to last year. And if we’d reviewed it at the same time as its Pro sibling, it would have been an easier recommendation despite its lack of IMAX Enhanced and DTS support.

Colour volume and vibrancy are solid by UST standards, and outside of quirks with its motion handling and light control, it can deliver dazzling results playing films.

But in 2025, the existence of the cheaper Hisense PL2, which narrows the gap between the PX and PL series like never before, makes it a harder sell. As a result, it is a fantastic UST projector for gamers and a good, though not perfect, option for movie fans.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 3
• Features 5

MORE:

Read our review of the Hisense PL2

Also consider the Xgimi Aura 2

Read our Hisense PX3 Pro review

Best projectors: budget, 4K and ultra-short-throw

Sony's new 2025 TVs were announced in April. While the brand chose to keep the Bravia 9 Mini LED TV as its flagship set, it introduced the Bravia 8 II QD-OLED TV to sit below it.

We've now reviewed the new TV, and bestowed upon it a coveted five-star rating.

But how does it compare to the Mini LED range-topper? Join us as we explain the differences between the two TVs and help you decide which is right for you.

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: price

While the Bravia 9 officially sits at the top of Sony's current TV range, and is therefore nominally priced above the Bravia 8 II, its longer time on sale means it's actually currently the more affordable of the two TVs when buying a 65-inch model (the only size in which both TVs are available).

So, the 65-inch Bravia 9 is currently priced at £2599 / $2800 (this size isn't available in Australia), while the 65-inch Bravia 8 II is £2999 / $3300 / AU$5295.

The Bravia 8 II is also available in a 55-inch size, which is currently available for £2499 / $2600 / AU$4195.

The Bravia 9 doesn't come in a 55-inch variant, but there is a 75-inch version, which will currently set you back £2999 / $3198 / AU$5799, and an 85-inch model, which is currently priced £3799 / $4500 / AU$6799.

As ever, these prices will change, and we would expect the new set's price to drop over time, though Sony TVs aren't usually discounted as heavily as those from LG and Samsung.

You'll see the latest and greatest deals on both TVs sprinkled throughout this page, but based on the prices of the 65-inch models at the time of writing, this round has to go to the Bravia 9.

** Winner: Sony Bravia 9 **

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: design

The Bravia 8 II replaces the A95L, and it looks very similar to it.

That's no bad thing – it's a smart, premium-looking chassis that's the slimmest in Sony's current line-up (and 1.4cm slimmer than the Bravia 9).

It has similar blade-like feet to the Bravia 9, but they can only be positioned at the furthest extremes of the TV's bottom edge. That means the Bravia 8 II can't be placed on furniture narrower than the set's width – 122cm for the 55-inch model and 145cm for the 65-inch version.

The Bravia 9's feet can be positioned towards the centre of the TV to help it fit on a smaller cabinet. This makes it much more versatile in terms of positioning.

Both TVs' feet can be extended to raise the TV up and accommodate a soundbar.

** Winner: Sony Bravia 9 **

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: features

The main difference between these TVs is the panel technology they use. The Bravia 8 II uses a QD-OLED panel, while the Bravia 9 has a Mini LED display.

Sony claims the Bravia 8 II's screen can go 25 per cent brighter than its A95L QD-OLED predecessor in terms of peak brightness, and 50 per cent brighter than the Bravia 8.

This should also mean an increase in colour volume. Sony claims it has improved its dark shading too – read the next section to see if we agree.

The Bravia 9's Mini LED backlighting system has some impressive claims of its own. Its cutting-edge drivers allow for more granular control of the backlight compared with other Mini LED TVs. This makes it better able to combine very bright and very dark elements in one image.

Sony says the Bravia 9 has three times as many dimming zones as the outgoing X95L, and is 50 per cent brighter. And all while being 30 per cent more power efficient.

Both sets use Sony's XR processor, but the Bravia 8 II has a new AI scene recognition system. This optimises the picture to what's on screen for greater realism.

Both TVs have calibrated modes for Prime Video, Netflix and the Sony Pictures Core streaming services. These aim to deliver the respective content as the director intended.

Both support the same formats of HDR (Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG, but not HDR10+), plus IMAX Enhanced. And both have just two HDMI 2.1 sockets, meaning gamers with more than one modern console and a soundbar/surround system will probably have to do some socket switching to get the best performance.

But otherwise, gamers are well served by both TVs, with 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM on board.

The Bravia 9 has a 70W 2.2.2-channel speaker system, while the Bravia 8 II has the same 60W 2.2-channel set-up as the A95L. The latter features actuators that vibrate the screen – that's not possible on a backlit display, so the Bravia 9's speakers are situated around the edge of the screen instead.

The Bravia 9 not only has 10W more total power than the Bravia 8 II, it also has two up-firing tweeters built into the top edge to deliver Dolby Atmos height effects. Which could make for a more immersive sound.

** Winner: Sony Bravia 9 **

• What is QD-OLED? Everything you need to know
• Mini LED: all the details on OLED's rival

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: picture

The Bravia 8 II has one big advantage over the Bravia 9: it's much less fussy.

That's thanks to some expertly tuned presets. Just choose either Dolby Vision Dark (for Dolby Vision content) or Professional (for everything else), and you're pretty much guaranteed a fantastically authentic picture.

Dolby Vision Bright / Cinema mode will provide a bit more 'pop' (handy for bright days), or you can tweak the settings yourself, but the vast majority of viewers will be more than happy with the presets.

The Bravia 9, by contrast, requires a fair bit of time in the menus if you want it looking its best. But as we'll see, the results are worth it.

In terms of picture quality, the Bravia 8 II is a big upgrade on the A95L that it replaces. Its peak highlights are appreciably brighter, and colours are brighter overall. Colours don't lose their vibrancy in low light either, and there's buckets of shadow detail to enjoy.

Sony's AI processing makes the image much more solid, with more depth, and objects gaining a volume and roundedness that its predecessor lacked.

Watching Sinners, "The incredible, dramatic sunrise skies over the cotton fields have greater shading, depth and contrast from the Bravia 8 II, and you get the feeling you could put your hand through the TV and reach towards the horizon," we wrote in our review.

Animated movies pose the TV no problems, as evinced by watching Into The Spider-Verse. "The bright sun over Brooklyn sizzles, original Spidey’s red suit is super-vivid, and the dimension-melding action at the start of the film crackles with colour," we noted.

The Bravia 9 earned four stars in our review. As we said, the fussing is worth it.

Watching Pan, "the highlights seen as the ship descends through space and glides into a dreamlike floating ocean are exceptional, with rich, impactful orange hues and noticeable detail in the very centre of the sun – something that we do not see in the deliveries of the LG G4 or Bravia 8," we wrote in our review.

Its contrast abilities add a real sense of depth to proceedings, with sharp outlines provoking a three-dimensional effect. Blacks might not be quite at OLED levels – inevitable on a backlit set – but they're still very impressive.

Colours are well balanced, and while skin tones could use a little extra warmth, particularly in low-light areas, they are still generally natural. Motion handling is superb, too.

Although the Bravia 9 is capable of going brighter than any current OLED, thanks to its advanced Mini LED backlight, in a comparative test, we found it to be not quite as cinematic as the Bravia 8 II's little brother, the original Bravia 8. The latter is just more detailed, sharper and cleaner. Skin tones are richer, and neon signs more vibrant.

Considering the Bravia 8 II is a real step on from that model, there's no doubt that it delivers the more authentic, consistent and crisp viewing experience.

** Winner: Sony Bravia 8 II **

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: sound

The Bravia 8 II has the same sound system as the A95L, and puts in the same bravura performance.

It sounds direct but spacious, with an excellent level of detail. "Bigger dynamic shifts are also handled well, with chapter two of Blade Runner 2049 building steadily where rival sets sound flat," we wrote in our review.

It's not the last word in bass depth, but it's weightier than most rivals, and remains composed. It also has an impressive tonal balance, lending voices a satisfying warmth and fullness.

And the Bravia 9? Typically for a Sony, it sounds very good indeed, especially thanks to the new up-firing drivers, which really add a sense of height. They make the sound feel more spacious, too.

The sound has great directionality, and the TV projects very well into the room. We like the Voice Zoom 3 feature too, which enhances the dialogue to make it clearer without compromising the other audio effects.

Again, it is a little bass-light and lacking in punch. But the upside is that it stays within its limits, and so doesn't distort.

** Winner: Sony Bravia 9 **

Sony Bravia 8 II vs Bravia 9: verdict

So which of these super-premium Sony TVs should you buy?

The Bravia 9 is brighter, more versatile in terms of positioning and has up-firing speakers for a more convincing Dolby Atmos effect.

But the Bravia 8 II's picture is superior. Perfect blacks and pixel-level contrast control, plus even more advanced processing, result in an image with more pop, depth and consistency. It works better right out of the box, too.

So, both TVs are great, but assuming you're not after a TV bigger than 65 inches (or one for a super-bright room such as a conservatory), it's the Bravia 8 II we recommend.

MORE:

Read our Sony Bravia 8 II review

And our Sony Bravia 9 review

Sony 2025 TV lineup: everything you need to know

The best Sony TVs you can buy

If you ask me, the Sony A95L is still one of the very best TVs you can currently buy – even though it's been on sale for well over a year.

The combination of a QD-OLED panel with Sony's legendary processing and one of the most capable in-built TV sound systems around makes the A95L an all-rounder of rare talent.

Needless to say, then, I leapt at the chance to check out its successor, the Bravia 8 II, in person in Tokyo ahead of its 28th April US launch and June launch in the UK.

Is it everything I hoped it would be? Mostly yes, but also not entirely. Ahead of our full review, here are all of the things (so far) that I like about the Bravia 8 II, and the few things I'm not so keen on.

The good stuff

It can go much brighter and reproduce more colours than the A95L

The biggest improvement for the Bravia 8 II is that it features 'the latest QD-OLED' panel from Samsung Display.

The capabilities of this new panel vary somewhat depending on who you ask and, of course, the specific TV in which it's used, but Sony says the Bravia 8 II will be able to hit a peak brightness level 25 per cent greater than that of the A95L.

It will also be 50 per cent brighter than the Bravia 8, which features a W-OLED panel and will continue in Sony's 2025 TV lineup.

But alongside brighter highlights, this new panel also brings with it greater colour volume.

Sure enough, in the demos I saw, the Bravia 8 II was clearly brighter than the A95L, Samsung S95D and LG G4 – but it also had more detailed highlights and more vibrant colours, particularly in the brightest parts of the picture.

Picture processing has been improved, too

The panel is only one ingredient in the picture quality recipe, and one of the reasons that so many people are drawn to Sony TVs over their Samsung and LG rivals is the Japanese brand's much-lauded picture processing.

One thing that Sony has paid particular attention to with the Bravia 8 II is its low-light performance – essentially, how it handles black depth and shadow detail.

This was demonstrated to me using a clip from Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, and the Bravia 8 II did a much better job than the S95D and G4 of revealing the details in the murky scene and maintaining natural colours.

Was the Bravia 8 II digging up details that the director intended to be hidden? The Sony BVM-3110 mastering monitor that was supplied for reference suggested not. In fact, even the Bravia 8 II was less revealing than the monitor.

Sony has also beefed up the AI chops of its XR processor, and the Bravia 8 II (and Bravia 5) will benefit from a new 'AI scene recognition system' that, according to Sony, "detects and analyses data with flawless accuracy, then optimises the picture for ultimate realism".

As good as Sony's processing generally is, terms such as 'flawless accuracy' and 'ultimate realism' seem a bit overly ambitious. Instead, I'm expecting a bit of an upgrade to the A95L's depth enhancement feature, which gently increases the three-dimensionality of an image without making it seem enhanced.

Useful tweaks to how the Professional and Cinema modes work

Sony has never boarded the Filmmaker Mode train, arguing that its Professional mode does a similar thing, and this year, that and Cinema mode are getting some useful tweaks.

The Professional preset is now designed to look more like the brand's BVM mastering monitor than ever before, with little to no active processing or enhancement.

In a dark room, the Cinema preset will look very similar to Professional, but the ambient light sensor will be switched on by default.

This means that when you turn the room lights on, the Bravia 8 II will compensate both in terms of colours and brightness so that you still get a perceptually accurate picture.

If done correctly (this wasn't demonstrated to me in Tokyo), this should work very similarly to how LG's current OLEDs do when you put them in Filmmaker Mode and enable their ambient light sensor.

In other words, for many people, it could be the only picture setting they ever need.

Unchanged audio system should still sound very good

The A95L is pretty much the only TV that I feel I could live with from an audio point of view. That isn't to say that it's not fairly easily beaten by a soundbar – but it's much more capable than the insipid sound systems of almost all of its rivals.

So, it's broadly good news (I'll get to the negative aspect shortly) that the Bravia 8 II sports the same sound system as the A95L.

That sound system features two actuators that vibrate the whole screen with two subwoofers to add weight and depth. The step-down Bravia 8, in comparison, has just one woofer, and its two actuators are smaller and less capable.

The key benefit of the actuator approach is that the sound literally comes from the screen, so the audio and visuals are tied together in a way that other TVs can't match.

But what's most impressive about the A95L is how this focus and directness combine with spaciousness and a sense of three-dimensionality to deliver a fairly impressive (by TV standards) Dolby Atmos delivery.

If the Bravia 8 II merely sounds as good as the A95L, it will still almost certainly be the best-sounding TV in its class – though the Panasonic Z95B might give it a run for its money.

More affordable than the A95L in the UK

Sony promised that the Bravia 8 II would be more affordable than the A95L was when it launched, but I had imagined we would be looking at a drop of something in the region of 10 per cent.

Well, the prices have now been announced, and in the UK (we'll get to the US prices later) the 55-inch Bravia 8 II is 17 per cent cheaper than the equivalent A95L was at launch, and the 65-inch model is 19 per cent cheaper than its equivalent.

That will make the Bravia 8 II much more competitive with its rivals than the A95L was. We don't yet have UK pricing for the Samsung S95F, but the LG G5 is, at launch, £100 cheaper than the Bravia 8 II at 55 inches, but £300 more expensive at 65 inches.

Here's a full comparison of the UK launch prices of the Sony Bravia 8, Bravia 8 II, A95l and the LG G5:

The feet can be extended to accommodate a soundbar

While the Bravia 8 II's feet aren't perfect (more on which below), they can be positioned either flush with the bottom of the TV or extended to create a space for a soundbar.

Because there is also a big distance between the feet, there's plenty of space for said soundbar and no awkward plate to get in the way.

The exclusive Sony Pictures Core app is still a great value-added treat

While not a new thing for the Bravia 8 II, the Sony Pictures Core app remains a compelling selling point for Sony's TVs.

For those not already in the know, Sony Pictures Core (formerly known as Bravia Core) is a streaming service that is exclusive to Sony TVs.

What's special about it is that it streams movies in much higher quality than rival services. We're talking about bitrates of up to 80Mbps, whereas Apple TV maxes out at around 40Mbps and Netflix and Prime Video are down at around 25Mbps.

The result is cleaner, crisper picture quality, particularly with the IMAX Enhanced content that is available.

Buyers of the Bravia 8 II will get 10 tokens that can be spent on premium movies, plus 24 months of streaming from the general catalogue.

The bad stuff

Much more expensive than the A95L (and the LG G5 and Samsung S95F) in the US

While the UK is getting the Bravia 8 II for much less than the launch price of the A95L, it's the opposite story in the US, where Sony appears to be factoring in the costs and potential costs of tariffs.

The 55-inch Bravia 8 II is a whopping 25 per cent more expensive than the A95L was at launch, while the 65-inch version is 14 per cent more expensive.

Inevitably, that means it's much more expensive than the launch prices of the LG G5 and Samsung S95F. Here's the full comparison:

Still only two HDMI 2.1 sockets

It seems almost unbelievable – and yet so wearily predictable – that Sony's flagship TV in 2025 still has just two HDMI 2.1 sockets.

LG has been producing models with four such ports since way back in 2019, for heaven's sake.

We know the reasoning, of course: while LG and Samsung produce their own HDMI boards, most other brands, including Sony, have been relying on MediaTek for their HDMI boards.

MediaTek does now produce an HDMI chipset with four HDMI 2.1 ports (the Pentonic 800), but that is in other ways a downgrade on the Pentonic 1000 found in many flagship TVs, including the A95L, Bravia 8 and Bravia 9, and it seems that Sony is reluctant to compromise in order to get those extra sockets.

Still, if feels as though Sony, in particular, should have found a way around this issue by now.

Of course, for many, two HDMI 2.1 sockets are plenty, but as someone with an Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5 and gaming PC, it's not enough for me.

No option to add a subwoofer

This is a bit of a niche one, and certainly isn't something that other TVs offer, but I really feel that Sony should have made it possible to connect one of its wireless subwoofers to the Bravia 8 II.

As great as the A95L sounds by TV standards, it's relatively lacking in terms of bass weight and depth. The addition of a subwoofer, though, would make it a real force to be reckoned with – and could in fact sound better than most soundbars.

Sony already produces three wireless subwoofers, and I imagine it wouldn't be too tricky to make them compatible directly with a TV.

I imagine Sony is simply too interested in selling soundbars such as the Bravia Theatre Bar 9 and systems such as the Bravia Quad to want to give people a less expensive alternative sonic route to go down.

I just think that's a bit of a shame.

There's no 77-inch model

As you may have spotted from the pricing graphs above, there is no 77-inch version of the Bravia 8 II. In fact, the 77-inch version of the A95L will continue in the Sony range instead.

This seems like an odd decision. We know that 77 inches is an increasingly popular screen size, and we know there's a 77-inch version of the latest QD-OLED panel, as it's being used in the 77-inch Samsung S95F.

It feels as though a lot of people will essentially be forced to go with that Samsung, the LG G5 or the Panasonic Z95B if they want a flagship 77-inch TV with the latest and greatest screen technology.

The feet are too far apart for a lot of furniture

As mentioned, the Bravia 8 II's feet can be extended to make room for a soundbar, which is great, but they can only be positioned at the very extremes of the set's bottom edge.

That means that the TV won't stand atop furniture any narrower than the TV's overall width, which is 122cm (48 inches) for the 55-inch model and 145cm (57 inches) for the 65-inch version. That's going to be a problem for some buyers.

Of course, it is possible to simply buy an inexpensive third-party stand that connects to the TV's VESA mounting points, but no one really wants the additional cost and hassle involved in that when they've just spent thousands on their fancy new TV.

The Bravia 7 is the second most high-end Mini LED TV in Sony’s current (and ever-expanding) TV range.

As such, it inevitably loses some of the eye-catching headline specifications of the flagship Bravia 9.

For instance, it has fewer local dimming zones, isn’t as bright and it has a less powerful sound system.

It’s also, though, substantially cheaper than the Bravia 9 – and, as we’ll see, it retains enough of Sony’s Mini LED picture quality mastery to make it arguably the best value option yet from the brand’s current range.

Price

The 55-inch Bravia 7 was £1899 / $1900 / AU$2935 at launch, but it is now available for significantly less – just £1299 / $1300 / AU$2495.

That still puts it in mid-range TV territory – maybe slightly towards the top end of mid-range territory, given the sort of aggressive pricing the likes of TCL and Hisense are applying to their mid-range and even high-end models these days.

It backs this status up with plenty of on-paper promise, including a Mini LED backlight with local dimming and an uncompromised version of Sony’s dependable XR processor.

Design

The Bravia 7 unsurprisingly isn’t as opulently well built as the Bravia 9. It still retains plenty of the combination of subtle elegance and flexibility that seems to be built into Sony’s TV design DNA at the moment, though.

For starters, the screen and its frame are both designed to finish on the same flush level, which always instantly creates a premium impression. The frame is trim, too, and while the rear panel sticks out a little further than today’s TV trendsetters, it could still make for an effective wall-mounting option.

If you’re going to place your Bravia 7 on a piece of furniture, there’s more good news.

For starters, its feet slot into place without the need for any screws. Also, the feet can be placed in no less than four different configurations: out wide under the bottom corners with the screen either sitting flush down on them or raised up an inch or three, or closer together towards the middle of the screen, again either with the screen sitting low on the feet or raised slightly.

The option to place the feet close together means you can put the 55-inch Bravia 7 on a piece of furniture much narrower than the TV, while the option to raise the screen gives you room to put a soundbar underneath.

The Bravia 7 ships with a tidy-looking smart remote control boasting a tactile, stripped-back button count, but which still finds room for a selection of direct app access buttons and a mic button to activate its Google Assistant voice control features.

The handset is apparently made from approximately 80 per cent recycled plastic, too, and it’s finished in an easy-to-clean polyurethane coating.

Features

Even though there are two TV series sitting above it in Sony’s current range, the Bravia 7 still boasts a Sony XR Backlight Master Drive panel that combines a Mini LED lighting system with local dimming that operates, in the case of the 55-inch model we're testing, across more than 300 separate zones.

This combination promises tight control over where the TV delivers its available light – especially considering how effective Sony’s backlight control systems have tended to be over the years. Even with TVs that have far fewer dimming zones than the Bravia 7 at their disposal.

The Bravia 7 also boasts a Quantum Dot colour system, driven by Sony’s Triluminos technology. This is part of the latest version of Sony’s XR processor, which extends its tendrils into just about every aspect of picture quality – including delivering automatic HDR conversion of SDR with some of its picture presets, and subtly adjusting multiple picture facets to make the resulting images more closely resemble the three-dimensional way our eyes perceive the real world.

Its relative affordability doesn’t stop the Bravia 7 from adopting Sony’s policy of pursuing the picture endorsements of multiple third-party AV industry big guns.

So there are ‘calibrated’ modes for Netflix, Prime Video and Sony’s own high quality (up to 80Mbps streams) Sony Pictures Core streaming service. These are designed to automatically adopt picture settings that get as close as possible to the different studios’ preferred video mastering conditions.

The Bravia 7 is also certified by IMAX as being up to the job of doing justice to the special, ultra-clean IMAX Enhanced mastering system – as well as allowing you to take advantage of the IMAX Enhanced titles provided on Disney+ and the aforementioned Sony Pictures Core.

There’s plenty of Dolby cooperation, too, in the form of Dolby Atmos sound and support for the Dolby Vision dynamic HDR format. Dolby Vision appears alongside the more basic HDR10 and HLG systems, but as ever with Sony TVs, there’s no support for HDR10+.

The Dolby Atmos (and DTS:X) sound is delivered courtesy of a multi-channel audio system that also features a 5.1.2-channel ‘upmixing’ system to embellish stereo or 5.1-channel soundtracks.

There’s also the option to have the TV’s speakers join forces with various Sony soundbars, home theatre speaker packages and personal listening systems to take advantage of Sony’s 360 Spatial Sound Mapping technology, which creates a hemisphere of virtual speakers all around your seating position.

Connections on the Bravia 7 include four HDMIs, two of which can handle the 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM gaming features deliverable by the Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5 and some PC graphics cards.

There’s support for a low-latency Dolby Vision game mode, too, as well as a special game-specific onscreen menu system, and compatibility with the Perfect For PlayStation 5 feature, where the console can automatically recognise the TV and output some pretty accurate HDR settings accordingly. You can even stream PlayStation games to the TV via the PS Remote Play app.

It’s a pity that only two of the HDMIs can handle all these gaming features, but this limitation is slightly easier to accept on the Bravia 7 than it is on Sony’s flagship TV ranges. Still, similarly priced LG and Samsung TVs have four top-spec HDMI sockets.

Smart features are provided by Google TV. This brings with it the usual extreme plethora of video streaming, gaming and information apps, bolstered in the UK by the YouView platform, which adds the catch-up services for the UK terrestrial broadcasters that Google TV does not typically cover.

Google TV also brings with it both compatibility with Google Chromecast for streaming from your smart devices, and the Google Assistant voice recognition and control system. There’s compatibility with Apple AirPlay 2, too, and if you’re not a fan of Google Assistant you can use either Alexa or, if you own an Apple Home device, Apple’s Siri voice recognition system.

One last unusual feature of the Bravia 7 is the Bravia Cam. This optional extra attaches magnetically behind the screen’s top edge, providing a camera that introduces the ability to control the TV via gesture; a Proximity Alert to warn children not to get too close; a facility to reduce brightness if the camera detects nobody is present in the room; video conferencing; and even the ability to detect where you are in relation to the TV and adjust the brightness, contrast, sound balance and volume accordingly.

Picture

The Bravia 7’s picture quality is clearly built on the same DNA as Sony’s spectacular flagship Bravia 9, delivering more of that TV’s in some ways groundbreaking picture quality than you’ve any right to expect.

At the heart of the Bravia 7’s picture charms is its outstanding backlight control. At the bright end of the spectrum, Sony’s TV delivers exceptionally bright and intense HDR whites and colours that blaze off the screen with more intensity than they do on many much more expensive flagship TVs.

Just as impressively, though, the Bravia 7 also delivers startlingly deep, dark, convincing, and at times quite OLED-like blacks.

Even better, the Bravia 7 doesn’t deliver these light extremes in isolation – as in, it doesn’t only deliver convincing blacks with exclusively dark shots, or only deliver outstanding brightness with exclusively bright shots. Rather, its backlight controls are so astute and powerful that they’re able to retain most of the brightness punch for bright highlights and most of the black level depth and uniformity for dark areas even with shots that contain a mix of dark and light content.

As well as producing a level of contrast that’s exceptionally rare if not unique to find on a mid-range TV, the Bravia 7’s ability to maintain so much brightness and black depth with the sort of mixed brightness images that make up the vast majority of what we watch means that it delivers a fantastic level of consistency across bright and dark scenes.

And wherever you’ve got consistency, you’ve got a more immersive experience, where nothing the TV does throws you out of what you’re watching.

The Bravia 7’s consistency whether it’s showing mostly bright or mostly dark images extends, too, to its ability to bring out pretty much every detail in even the darkest picture corners. The only exception to this is with the Movie preset, but even here the ‘black crush’ effect is pretty minor. Not enough, at any rate, to make dark scenes look hollow or flat.

Maybe the biggest sign of just how clever and effective the Bravia 7’s backlighting is, though, comes from how well it manages to keep a lid on blooming around stand-out bright objects.

In particular, the black bars above and below wide aspect ratio films remain almost completely free of either general greyness or areas of blooming, even if a bright object appears right alongside them – a really useful feat of backlight isolation engineering that precious few rivals these days even seem to attempt.

The extent and intensity of clouding around bright objects, even when they appear against nearly black backgrounds, is also startlingly limited for such a bright mid-range TV.

In fact, the only time the backlight engine struggles enough to become noticeable in a negative way is in the appearance of slight general clouding and occasional slight blue colour shift with shots that contain a particularly complex mixture of scattered extreme light and extreme dark elements.

As well as being rare, though, even during these moments the Bravia 7’s backlight ‘flaws’, such as they are, are much less likely to distract than the sort of heavy dimming of bright objects or really pronounced halos of extraneous light that many other locally dimmed LCD TVs exhibit.

The combination of high brightness and strong contrast also joins forces with Sony’s excellent XR Triluminos Pro system to deliver a sumptuously wide, vibrant, but also natural-looking and refined colour range. Sony’s TV even manages to retain full saturations in very dark picture areas, as well as, like the Bravia 9, bringing out subtle light differences in very bright areas that elude most if not all other TVs in its class.

The Bravia 7’s superb level of light and colour control for a mid-range TV unlocks an exceptional sense of sharpness and detail with native 4K pictures, too. This is delivered without any sign of the sort of exaggerated grain or ‘glowing’ object edge issues associated with heavy-handed sharpness processing, too, and remains largely unsullied by either motion blur or judder if you set the TV’s XR Motion Clarity feature to one of its relatively low-powered modes.

The Bravia 7 also upscales HD sources to its 4K resolution brilliantly, offering palpable detail and insight without introducing colour shifts or obvious unwanted digital processing side effects.

Gamers will be pleased to hear that all the attributes that make the Bravia 7 such an excellent video performer also make it a fantastically fun and immersive gaming display. The TV’s input lag of 17.9ms in Game mode is a touch higher than we’ve seen with some other Sony TVs, but not enough to affect anyone but the most hardcore competitive gamers.

It’s tough to find anything negative to say about the Bravia 7’s pictures for its money, really.

Aside from the relatively minor cloudiness and colour shifting with rare shots containing a broad mix of light and dark extremes, all we can come up with is that backlight blooming becomes more noticeable if you have to watch the TV from much of an angle.

Otherwise, it’s all good. Really good.

Sound

The Bravia 7 features one of Sony’s so-called Acoustic Multi-Audio sound systems, which in this case means 40W of power pumped into a four-speaker system comprising two full-range bass reflex drivers and two tweeters for, according to Sony, cleaner, more accurately placed detail sounds.

While not quite as potent as its pictures, the resulting sound – especially if you remember to run the provided audio auto-calibration system – is very good for a TV in this price category.

It manages to create, for instance, a soundstage that projects nicely away from the TV’s physical chassis, and then populates the large, room-filling sense of space it creates with plenty of clean and well-positioned details. Enough to do at least some justice to the three-dimensional sound fields created by Dolby Atmos and DTS:X mixes.

Dialogue emerges from the heart of the Bravia 7’s soundstage with conviction and clarity, and while occasionally the sound can feel too polite and trebly with the most explosive action movie moments, lacking a little bass heft, none of the speakers collapse into distortion under pressure.

Verdict

Much more of the groundbreaking backlight technology Sony developed for its flagship Bravia 9 range seems to have filtered down to the Bravia 7 than we would have expected for its money.

In fact, while not feeling quite as explosive and ‘next-gen’ as the Bravia 9, the Bravia 7’s images are actually a little more consistent, resulting in as good a mid-range LCD TV as we’re likely to see this year.

SCORES

• Picture 5
• Sound 4
• Features 4

MORE:

Read our review of the LG OLED55C4

Also consider the Samsung QE55QN95D

Read our Philips 55OLED809 review

Best TVs: flagship OLEDs and affordable flatscreens tried and tested

Following up on a projector that we deemed “capable of surpassing the typical 'real' cinema experience” is no mean feat. Sony’s latest premium home cinema projector picks up where the serial Award-winning VPL-XW7000ES leaves off, so we’ll let you imagine the size of the shoes it needs to fill.

In fact, the entire range of current Sony XW projectors, including the new step-up Bravia Projector 9, has earned very favourable reviews, so the heat is on for Sony to continue its winning streak.

That brings us to the projector we’re looking at today. The VPL-XW61000ES, or Bravia Projector 8 to its friends, attempts to blend the picture pedigree of its predecessor with a handful of new features and enhancements derived from its Bravia TV cousins. So has Sony delivered another showstopping home cinema projector?

Price

The Bravia Projector 8 carries a sizeable price tag of £15,999 / $15,999 / AU$21,999, putting it squarely in the premium sector of the market. It’s a direct competitor to the excellent JVC DLA-NZ800 (£15,999 / $16,000 / AU$24,999) which is priced very similarly in the UK and US, though there is a greater price disparity for prospective buyers Down Under.

What’s most interesting about the price of the Bravia 8 is how it compares to that of the model it's replacing. The VPL-XW7000ES launched at £14,999 / $27,999 / AU$25,499 – that means the price has increased in the UK by £1000 for this new generation; however, US and Australian prices have dropped dramatically. It’s worth noting that the XW7000ES remains an Award winner and is still available at many retailers at a discounted price of around £12,000 in the UK specifically.

The Bravia Projector 8 sits in the middle of Sony’s current premium projector offerings, with the Award-winning VPL-XW5000ES remaining in the lineup for £5999 / $5998 / AU$9990 (discounted to £4400 at the time of writing), while the five-star Bravia Projector 9 is positioned above at a wallet-trembling £27,599 / $31,999 (around AU$55,000).

Build

If you’re familiar with the design of the VPL-XW7000ES, then the Bravia Projector 9 should give you a sense of deja vu. That’s because it uses the same chassis, with its symmetrical tapered design that meets at a central apex along the top side of the casework. It’s completely plastic – albeit with a high-quality feeling finish throughout – and it comes in either black or white.

Considering it shares the same shell as its predecessor, it should come as no surprise that the measurements (21 x 46 x 52cm) haven't changed. It's the same weight, too, at 14kg. That makes it more compact and lighter than its rivals; for instance, the JVC DLA-NZ800 is heftier, at 23 x 50 x 51cm and 23kg.

Another aspect that the Bravia 8 shares with its predecessor is the remote. Sony bundles its usual handset that can be found on previous generation models and the step-up Bravia 9 – it’s functional, features shortcut buttons to access crucial settings such as lens adjustments and picture modes, and (most importantly) includes a backlight for operating the projector in dark environments such as home cinema rooms.

Features

While not much has changed on the outside, the Bravia 8 features a long list of under-the-hood upgrades that should appease serious home cinema enthusiasts. It retains Sony’s SXRD, the company's term for Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCoS) projection technology. This uses the reflective technology of DLP projectors but swaps a colour wheel for crystals to block light in the same way an LCD projector works. The Bravia 8 features three of these SXRD chips alongside a laser light system with a claimed output of 2700 lumens; curiously that’s lower than the claimed 3200 lumens of the XW7000ES.

The biggest upgrade found within the Bravia Projector 8 is the new processor, which is a modified version of the Bravia XR processor found in the Award-winning Bravia 8 OLED TV and four-star Bravia 9 Mini LED TV. The XR Processor for Projector brings a raft of features from those TVs, including XR Dynamic Tone Mapping, XR Deep Black, XR Triluminos Pro, XR Clear Image and Motionflow.

The function that each feature provides is fairly self-explanatory, with the Triluminos Pro expanding colour volume. The most prominent of the bunch is the upgraded XR Deep Black feature, which affords the projector enhanced accuracy of the laser output, allowing for much more precise dimming, resulting in deeper and more convincing blacks.

Sony is also leveraging a trio of picture processing features that come as standard with its XR Processing: image cross-analysis, depth mapping and focal point recognition. These systems work in tandem to enhance the realism of the image, improve image depth and draw your eye to the pivotal part of the picture.

Overall, there are 10 picture modes (Cinema, Film 1, Film 2, Reference, TV, Photo, Game, Bright Cinema, Bright TV, User, and IMAX Enhanced), with customisable presets that can be easily accessed and adjusted in the settings menu. There is also a Picture Position Memory function that will store up to five lens settings so that you can quickly switch aspect ratios depending on your chosen input. It’s worth noting that while the Sony supports HDR in the HDR10 and HLG standards, unlike its JVC counterpart, it doesn’t support HDR10+.

The Bravia 8 gets an upgrade to HDMI 2.1 for both of its HDMI sockets; and while that might sound stingy, we must remember that you’ll almost certainly be hooking this projector up to an AV receiver with HDMIs to spare on account of there being no built-in speakers. Both HDMI 2.1 sockets support 4K/120Hz signals with Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM), which will appease PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and gaming PC owners who want to game on the big screen. Sony also claims an input lag of 12ms with 4K/120Hz sources.

While the boost in gaming performance is appreciated, it comes at the expense of 3D functionality. If a lack of 3D support is a dealbreaker for you, then the Bravia 8 won’t suffice, but we imagine that, for many, the improved gaming functionality will be preferable.

Arguably the best feature of the Bravia 8 is the motorised lens adjustment system. It makes set-up a smooth and frustration-free experience. Sony has also implemented a corner correction keystone feature this year, which can be a useful asset in a pinch.

Picture

We described the outgoing XW-VPL7000ES’s picture performance as “nothing short of mesmerising” – high praise indeed. We’ve already stated that the Bravia 8 has big shoes to fill, but here is where it really needs to prove its worth. We’ve hooked our reference Oppo UDP 203 4K Blu-ray player up to this projector and selected a few of our favourite 4K discs including Oppenheimer, Interstellar, The Batman and Blade Runner 2049 to see if it can live up to its Award-winning predecessor’s lauded picture performance.

Much like the VPL-XW7000ES, we lean towards the reference picture mode thanks to its authentic and balanced characteristics, as it strives for the “as the director intended” experience. For a slightly flashier show that adds a touch of punch to the brightness and colours, you can opt for Cinema Mode 2, as it adds some flair without verging into over-enthusiastic.

Firing up Oppenheimer, we’re immediately struck by how crisp and detailed the picture appears. Sony’s penchant for delivering effective three-dimensional-looking images is clearly on show, with a panning shot of a watchtower in the New Mexico desert looking particularly striking. This is due to Sony’s expert handling of contrast, a strength found across its projector range as well as many of its TVs.

The Bravia Projector 8 also delivers excellent black levels by projector standards. The night sky of Gotham City in The Batman appears deep and imposing, with rich and deep blacks that refrain from straying into the murky grey we see on most projectors. Furthermore, as Batman steps out of the shadows to lay the smackdown on a gaggle of goons, the exceptional light control afforded by this projector ensures that the titular hero’s costume doesn’t merge into the shadows that surround him.

Shots of the grimy, crime-riddled streets of Gotham look rich and atmospheric, especially in the sequences illuminated by the humming neon lights and flashing billboards. This is yet another testament to Sony’s light control, as it handles dark sections and highlights with equal prowess.

Detail levels are also a standout, though this should come as no surprise for a native 4K projector of this stature. Fibres on Robert J Oppenheimer’s suit and complex control panels of the Endurance’s cockpit from Interstellar are presented with remarkable fidelity. It is only bested by the rival JVC DLA-NZ800 with its 8K E-shift mode, which is capable of digging even deeper to offer crisp details at a more granular level. That being said, the Sony is decidedly no slouch and offers a picture packed with detail across environmental, clothing and skin textures.

Colour rendition is superb. Skin tones are balanced and well-judged, resulting in a lively yet not overcooked presentation across a range of pigments. They’re exceptionally balanced and realistic, too, while also having the necessary punch to draw the eye. Speaking of which, the eye at the beginning of Blade Runner 2049 features a stunning array of blues and greens, with a rich presentation that blends the colours in a smooth gradient.

Sticking with Blade Runner to conclude our 4K testing, we observe how this projector handles motion. It’s overall a solid experience, with the futuristic hovering police car zipping through the sky with only a hint of juddering, and the panning shot of Sapper Morton's protein farm highlights a bit more; though it must be said that many TVs and projectors fall victim to this camera movement. Overall, the Sony is more than acceptable when it comes to motion and those who wish to smooth things out (at the expense of some naturalism) can rely on Sony’s Motionflow system – though we recommend sticking to the lowest setting.

Rounding things out with some SDR and standard definition content, we watch True Grit on Blu-ray and DVD. The Bravia 8 does an admirable job of upscaling the Blu-ray version to retain a decent amount of detail, and it doesn’t succumb to overwhelming amounts of noise, while colours thankfully don’t suffer too much either. But, while we have no qualms about watching HD content on this projector, Standard definition is a step too far, as the picture appears blocky and the falling snow in the opening shot of the film appears grainy and distracting. We won’t chalk this up as an issue as we’d be rather surprised if you’re investing in a projector that costs this much and don’t plan on also investing in a quality 4K source.

Verdict

Sony delivers yet another blockbuster projector worthy of your home cinema. It isn’t cheap, but if you pit it against its bigger five-star sibling, the price seems more palatable. If you want a crisp picture with rich colours and supreme contrast, then the Bravia Projector 8 is a great pick. But note that the equally impressive (and Award-winning) JVC DLA-NZ800 is also within reach.

SCORES

• Picture 5
• Build 5
• Features 5

MORE:

Read our review of the JVC DLA-NZ800

Also consider the Sony VPL-XW7000ES

Read our Sony Bravia Projector 9 review

Best projectors: budget, 4K and ultra-short-throw

The Hisense PX3-Pro is the latest ultra short throw projector (UST) from tech giant Hisense. It is a big deal for a couple of reasons. First, because it’s a follow-on to the five-star Award-winning Hisense PL1. Second, because it is one of the only projectors we’ve tested this year to carry ‘designed for Xbox Series’ certification, which aims to make it great for gamers as well as movie fans.

If the overt focus on gaming has you concerned that it won’t be good for watching films, don’t be. During testing, we found the PX3-Pro is a big upgrade on Hisense’s previous UST offerings and fantastic for watching movies as well as blasting demons in Doom.

Price

The Hisense PX3-Pro is a new product that currently costs £2499 / $3499 / AU$4499. That places it in the middle of the UST projector market.

It’s more expensive than its What Hi-Fi? Award-winning PL1 sibling, which carried a £1999 / $2500 / AU$2995 price at launch, but more affordable than the soon-to-be-replaced Samsung The Premiere LSP9T. The latter retails for £3999 / $3500 / AU$8999 and is the only premium UST projector to which we've recently given five stars.

This makes the PX3-Pro an interesting option, as we’re yet to find a UST projector we 100 per cent recommend this year that sits in the same price bracket. The rival Epson EH-LS650 proved to be a good but not great option, scoring four stars when we tested it.

Build

Gaming products usually come with garish designs with things like tribal patterns and RGB lighting. Thankfully, this isn’t the case on the PX3-Pro, which has a suitably minimalist, mature design. 

The distinctly angular unit comes with a grey metallic finish that feels robust and feels hefty enough that it won’t easily move once placed on a flat surface – even if you have pets that like to “move” items when you’re away.

The only obvious design features are a metal grille on its front that covers its inbuilt  50-watt front-firing Harman Kardon speakers, which are Dolby Atmos and IMAX Enhanced DTS ready, and side vents. The latter help to control airflow from the projector’s fan cooling system.

The 55 x 30 x 12.2cm dimensions mean it is a little longer and shallower than some cheaper USTs, but the low height means it will neatly fit on most TV stands, cabinets and bookshelves. This is important for a UST, which is designed to not draw attention until it's turned on. 

The reason it is longer but thinner than many of its siblings is that the PX3 has a 0:22:1 throw ratio, which lets it create a larger image, even when sitting very close to a wall. Its predecessor had a 0.25:1 throw ratio by comparison. The adjustable feet also make it relatively easy to adjust its level and picture positioning, which is good as there’s no physical lens control – a common problem we’d like fixed on USTs.

Set-up is fairly simple by UST standards, but not completely seamless. The projector relies on keystone and digital picture correction. In theory, you can set it up automatically by taking a photo of a test pattern displayed on the screen/wall on your phone and uploading it to a Hisense website, which then adjusts the picture settings for you. 

However, after three attempts we find the image is still slightly skewiff using this process, and we end up making manual adjustments to get the best results. This involves a good five minutes of fandangling, even with two sets of eyes and hands.

The PX3-Pro is also part of Hisense’s Laser Cinema, rather than Laser TV, line, which means it doesn’t come with a screen bundled. You’ll need to invest in one if you want the best results possible.

The remote is decent, featuring the same solar panel (which uses light to top up the battery) as the Hisense U8N Mini LED TV we reviewed earlier this year. It also has shortcut keys to all the common services. The only minor downside is that it’s not backlit, which for a projector that needs to be used in the dark for decent results, is a bit of an annoyance.

Features

Hisense may be marketing the PX3-Pro mainly to gamers, but it has done a lot of work to improve its basic picture and audio quality compared with the PL1 and its direct predecessor, the PX2-Pro.

At a base level, these include the ability to display a native contrast of 3000:1, an improved 3000 ANSI lumens max brightness and the ability to display a quoted 110 per cent of the BT.2020 colour space favoured by movie creators. The projector is quoted as offering 25,000-plus hours of light source life, which is in line with the PL1 and equates to roughly three years of continuous watching.

What does all of that mean? The layman’s version is that the projector has been designed to show a wider, more accurate range of colours, offer much higher peak brightness levels and significantly deeper, more detailed blacks than its siblings. For reference, the PL1 has a 2000:1 contrast ratio and 2100 ANSI lumens peak brightness. 

Other firsts for Hisense include IMAX Enhanced support. This will be a welcome addition for subscribers to Disney Plus, which now carries IMAX Enhanced content. HDR10+ will also be of benefit to people who mainly watch movies on Amazon Prime Video. This is a take on basic HDR10 that adds frame-by-frame brightness and colour correction for HDR images. HDR support is rounded out with HDR10, Dolby Vision and HLG.

Gaming support is also excellent for a projector, which is to be expected given Hisense’s focus on selling the PX3-Pro as ‘made for Xbox Series consoles'. Around the back, you’ll find two HDMI 2.1 inputs and an HDMI 2.0 output with eARC, plus a USB A and 3.5mm audio output. There’s also an ethernet for cabled internet connections, though its onboard chip supports Wi-Fi 6E if you can’t place it near your router or mesh satellite.

Unlike many UST projectors, the big selling point here is that the HDMI 2.1 inputs can run games in 4K/120Hz. So if you connect an Xbox Series X/S or PS5, the consoles can run at full speed. Interestingly, there’s also the ability to play games in 1080p/240Hz, which isn’t a feature we’ve seen on a UST before. This will only appeal to PC gamers with very powerful graphics cards that can run games that fast, however.

An auto low latency mode (ALLM) is another useful feature, as it automatically puts the projector into its fast-response game mode when an appropriate signal is detected, avoiding the issue of sluggish-feeling games.

The inclusion of eARC also makes it quick and easy to connect it to an external Dolby Atmos sound system – which requires the input to run.

Our UK/European review unit runs Hisense’s Vidaa OS. But if you buy the PX3-Pro in the US, it will come with Google TV. Both come with support for all the common apps you’d expect, including Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+. The Vidaa version we tested also has a decent selection of UK catch up apps and local services, including BBC iPlayer and Now.

Picture

Out of the box, the PX3-Pro offers competent but not best in class picture quality. Running our tried and tested Dune Part 2 4K Blu-Ray, the standard mode’s motion handling feels a little too heavy handed, and the contrast is slightly too high, resulting in a loss of detail in both dark and light areas. 

Switching to Filmmaker Mode, the picture goes too far the other way, with motion looking natural, but the picture feeling too subdued and slightly flat – blacks are slightly grey and peak brightness areas of the sweeping desert don’t gleam the way they should.

We get the best results returning to the PX3’s HDR Standard setting, with the Adaptive Contrast level set to Medium, Dynamic Tone Mapping on, all motion smoothing settings completely off and the Colour Profile set to Warm 2. The last of those is particularly valuable, as it makes skin tones look more natural, giving the cheeks of the desert-dwelling Fremen more warmth and a more authentic sandblasted feel than the default Warm 1 setting provides.

Moving to Blade Runner 2049, the PX3-Pro continues to impress. As Ryan Gosling’s character enters the dust-filled protein farm, there’s oodles of detail in the wind-swept barren landscape. The projector offers realistic but vibrant colours, with the reds of Sapper Morton’s suit popping from the otherwise grey shot, without looking overcooked.

Light control for a UST is also a cut above many rivals, with the picture looking wonderfully three-dimensional. Highlights around the steaming kettle resulting from stray light emanating from a dirty window offer true depth, making for an authentic, immersive viewing experience. Morton’s movements as he throws K around the room feel violent, and have incredible heft, with no hint of oversmoothing. The only minor issue is that with all motion handling switched off, some particularly fast movements feel slightly jagged. However, the moment we adjust the motion handling to its lowest setting, an artificiality is added to the movements. Ideally, we’d like a happy medium between the two.

To our surprise, the PX3-Pro also performs better than expected in an area in which projectors (particularly recent USTs) tend to struggle – dark detail. Watching an incredibly dark scene from The Batman, there is a little black crush, as the PX3’s contrast has been cranked to make blacks appear deeper. And yes, they still appear as dark grey, rather than the perfect black you’ll find on even an entry-level OLED. But there’s significantly more detail than you get from many competing USTs, including the Hisense PL1. Details in Batman’s armour lost on the PL1 and Xgimi Aura 2 remain visible as he menacingly walks out of the shadows.

This remains the case when we switch to Oppenheimer. Every stitch in the characters' wool suits and ties remain visible, even in the darkest sections of the black and white scenes. This is something no other UST we’ve reviewed this year has managed.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Hisense’s unusually high brightness quickly becomes apparent when playing our reference Pan test disc, which is mastered to an atypically high 4000 nits. As the flying pirate ship sails into the sunset, the PX3-Pro delivers decent peaks in the brightest parts of the picture, with the sunset offering a wonderful hue full of warmth. Our only minor quibble is that we wish the sunset held slightly more detail, with a lot of the sun displaying as pure white.

Testing the Dolby Vision performance with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story reveals a wonderful bloom and immersive peaks, with stars and the halos around planets truly sparkling as the spaceship shoots across the screen. 

The only serious weakness we experience occurs as we move on to our upscaling test, which initially involves playing a 1080p Blu-ray of True Grit. This is a famously difficult movie due to its intentional grainy, spaghetti-western quality. Here, the PX3-Pro immediately struggles. As the credits roll, a disappointing issue occurs where the picture’s black level rapidly shifts to grey, before returning to its normal level as the next part of the white intro text appears. It seems that the projector’s contrast system isn’t sure whether it should be boosting the white highlights or responding to the black background.

During the next scene, the PX3-Pro delivers more detail than the PL1, revealing picture elements that the cheaper projector misses, such as the trees and the shadow of a rocking chair. But there’s still a lot of black crush, with entire sections of the picture appearing as dark grey and the stitched texture of the character's clothes appearing flatter than we’d like. The grain also takes on a slightly artificial quality, feeling either over pronounced or noisy as the scene continues.

Moving to Netflix and Schitts’ Creek in SDR, the issue with the black level moving from dark to light sections doesn’t repeat and the image is watchable, with characters’ skin tones looking realistic. But dark segments of the picture still look flattened. The pattern of the father’s suit comes across as a flat blue.

Sound

Out of the box, we find the Hisense’s inbuilt, Atmos-ready speaker system is fine for casual viewing, but still not on a par with the sound of a good soundbar, let alone a speaker package. 

Playing our standard Blade Runner 2049 test scene, which includes a booming bass section that drives anything but the most accomplished speakers to distortion, the Hisense's speakers struggle. Distortion creeps in and the audio sounds forced. Moving to a dialogue-heavy debrief section, the audio sounds flat and not suitably immersive.

Thankfully, switching to the theatre sound profile things improve markedly. The sound as K converses with a hologram in his apartment is immediately wider and there’s a better separation between their dialogue and background noise.

Switching to a car chase in The Batman, the speaker system does manage to give at least some sense of direction, with the rumbling engine of the Batmobile jumping from left to right, remaining roughly in line with the on screen movements. However, given its central location on the chassis, the speakers don’t manage to deliver any sense of height and fail to project forward enough for our liking.

The audio also constantly feels strained. The Batmobile’s engine rumble lacks finesse and is prone to distortion. Dialogue during heated scenes as Batman growls threats at gangsters has an acidic, hissed quality that can at times break immersion. The thumps as his punches connect have a damp quality missing the impact they need to do the fight scene justice. This issue makes the sound particularly problematic, as the sibilance and thin nature of the audio constantly distracts rather than immerses.

To be fair to Hisense, poor audio is a common problem we experience with USTs and projectors in general, so this shouldn’t put you off the PX3-Pro. It just means we would recommend investing in a separate sound system if you want a truly immersive home cinema experience.

Verdict

The Hisense PX3-Pro is a great UST projector for movie fans and gamers. Though the projector’s audio is undeniably mediocre, even by UST standards, its picture quality more than makes up for this. The PX3-Pro’s handling of dark scenes is particularly excellent by UST standards, and in general its picture is a marked improvement on any other projector in its class we’ve tested.

If you’re short on space, own an Xbox and love watching movies then the Hisense PX3-Pro is well worth considering. The only downside is that it doesn’t do a great job with SDR discs, which will be an issue for people with large Blu-ray collections.

Review published: October 2024. Review updated: November 2024.

SCORES

• Picture 5
• Sound 3
• Features 5

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Best projectors: Full HD, 4K, and short-throw

With so many different home cinema technologies now available from so many different brands at so many different price points, everyone’s looking for a sign that might help them pick the wheat from the chaff when trying to figure out which TV, soundbar or AV receiver to buy – especially signs from respected third-party organisations that effectively say ‘we endorse the quality of this product’.

IMAX Enhanced is, in part, one of these signs. If a TV, soundbar, speaker or AV receiver says it’s IMAX Enhanced, then that means it has been deemed capable of reaching a set of standards designed by a certification committee of IMAX and DTS engineers for various aspects of sound and picture quality. This means in turn that it’s deemed capable of doing justice to the IMAX Enhanced ‘format’. 

For yes, IMAX Enhanced isn’t just a quality assurance certification program. In fact, when it was first announced in September 2018, arguably the biggest deal about it for home cinema fans was that it also delivered a proprietary approach to mastering movies designed to offer improved picture and sound quality. 

What is IMAX Enhanced?

On the picture quality front, IMAX Enhanced titles are mastered using IMAX’s own post-production process. A process that IMAX describes (as you’d expect) as both ‘cutting edge’ and able to bring a level of consistency to IMAX Enhanced titles that still doesn’t exist across the home video authoring world at large.

IMAX claims that films mastered for the home in its Enhanced format will enjoy more vibrant colours, greater contrast and more clarity, as well as exhibiting less noise and, potentially controversially, less grain. 

Before grain fans start frothing at the mouth, though, IMAX stresses that filmmakers will always have the last say on the final look of any IMAX Enhanced title.

Another fan-favourite feature of IMAX Enhanced masters is that they preserve the IMAX cinematic aspect ratio. So where titles (including many Marvel films) contain sections shot using IMAX cameras for their theatrical runs in IMAX cinemas, the transfer will switch into that taller picture format for those sections, before returning to the the wider aspect ratio used elsewhere. These taller sections of the film often enjoy superior clarity and detail, too, due to them being filmed using the larger IMAX format.

It’s not just picture quality that’s designed to benefit from the IMAX Enhanced mastering process. IMAX Enhanced masters also use a special ‘signature’ version of the DTS:X sound format. It’s not clear exactly how an IMAX Enhanced DTS:X track differs from a regular DTS:X track, but IMAX states that it’s about preserving the full dynamic range of the original movie mix.

Where can you find IMAX Enhanced content?

The way IMAX Enhanced titles are delivered is complicated. Its ‘purest’, fullest implementation can be found on 4K Blu-ray discs, which carry both the ultimate versions of IMAX Enhanced picture quality and the DTS:X audio tracks with their extra ‘special sauce’. After a promising start, though, IMAX Enhanced 4K Blu-rays have completely dried up over the past couple of years, leaving streaming services as by far the biggest provider of IMAX Enhanced content. 

While streamed IMAX Enhanced films will have been created using the same mastering process and will offer the format’s shifting aspect ratio feature where IMAX cameras were used during filming, bear in mind that the exact picture quality you experience will depend to some extent on factors such as your broadband speed and the compression techniques and streaming infrastructure/bandwidths of the service delivering the IMAX Enhanced content. 

Streamed services don’t always provide the special DTS:X soundtracks associated with the full IMAX Enhanced monty either. In fact, it wasn’t until May 2024 that Disney+ finally provided DTS mixes alongside the IMAX Enhanced Marvel movies it had been carrying since 2021. 

Other English-language streaming services to offer IMAX Enhanced support are  Sony Pictures Core and Rakuten TV.

The amount of content available in IMAX Enhanced remains fairly limited, in truth, considering the system is six years old now. This is especially true when it comes to 4K Blu-rays, despite Sony, Paramount, and Walt Disney/Marvel Studios all signing up to support the IMAX Enhanced format. So far as we’re aware, the only IMAX Enhanced 4K Blu-ray titles released are The Angry Birds Movie 2, Bad Boys For Life, A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood, A Beautiful Planet, Charlie’s Angels (2019), Journey To The South Pacific, Jumanji: The Next Level, Space Station, Turtle Odyssey and Zombieland: Double Tap. These titles were all released between 2019 and 2020, with no other IMAX Enhanced 4K Blu-rays appearing since.

Note that there are plenty of other 4K (and, actually HD) Blu-rays out there that feature aspect ratio switching between regular 35mm and large format film sequences. But that does not mean that they can be considered true IMAX Enhanced releases.

Which streaming services support IMAX Enhanced?

Fortunately, while IMAX Enhanced physical media releases have dried up, the format has found an ongoing home in the streaming world. Marvel is the most prolific supporter, initially on the old US FandangoNow service but now on Disney+. There are 18 Marvel titles available in IMAX Enhanced on Disney+: Thor: Love And Thunder, Doctor Strange, Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness, Eternals, Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings, Black Widow, Black Panther, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Avengers: Endgame, Captain Marvel, The Marvels, Ant-Man And The Wasp, Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania, Avengers: Infinity War, Thor: Ragnarok, Guardians Of The Galaxy Volumes 1, 2 & 3, Captain America: Civil War and Iron Man. 

These films all feature IMAX Enhanced mastering and aspect ratios that switch to the 1.90:1 IMAX ratio for sections of the films shot using IMAX cameras. Plus, since May 15 2024, many (though not quite all) of Disney+’s IMAX Enhanced Marvel titles are also available with DTS:X IMAX Enhanced soundtracks. 

Both IMAX Enhanced and ‘regular’ versions of these Marvel titles are available on the Disney+ servers, so make sure that you choose the IMAX Enhanced version if that’s the one you’re keen to watch. The header screen will say 'IMAX Enhanced' among its technical details if it’s the correct version.

The only non-Marvel IMAX Enhanced titles on Disney+ are Queen Rock Montreal and Lightyear – the latter of which appears without a DTS:X soundtrack option. Keep an eye out for more new Marvel and Pixar movies to get the IMAX treatment on Disney+ following their theatrical cinema runs.

The single biggest repository of IMAX Enhanced titles is the Sony Pictures Core streaming service exclusive to Sony TVs. We counted 157 titles in total, split between more recent titles that you have to use Sony TV purchase credits or cash to buy, and older catalogue titles included within the two- or one-year subscription you get free depending on the value of the Sony TV you’ve bought. IMAX Enhanced titles in the catalogue section stretch back as far in time as 1969’s Easy Rider.

Sony Pictures Core pushes the format aggressively too; there’s an IMAX Enhanced option within the main filtering options down the left side of the home screen, and even a demo video of what IMAX Enhanced is all about. The IMAX confirmation for a particular title also appears right near the start of the long list of technical specs the service provides for its films. 

So far as we can tell, every single IMAX-mastered title on Sony Pictures Core is featured with the ‘signature’ DTS soundtrack associated with the full IMAX Enhanced experience. Though having watched a few, by no means all of Sony Pictures Core’s IMAX Enhanced titles feature switching aspect ratios. 

Rakuten currently carries 61 IMAX Enhanced titles on its European service. We won’t list these in full here as you can find them all simply by searching Rakuten’s library for ‘IMAX Enhanced’. Essentially, though, they’re all Sony Pictures films, most of which were released between 2015 and 2022. 

Note that while Rakuten’s TV app lets you search for its IMAX Enhanced titles, there’s nothing on the TV app’s provided technical info on any film to confirm that they are IMAX Enhanced titles. You can only tell when you start watching them – or, strangely, if you search for IMAX Enhanced titles using Rakuten’s smartphone app, which does actually include IMAX Enhanced confirmation in the information on each title.

Which products are IMAX Enhanced certified?

The last bit of the IMAX Enhanced story we need to cover in more detail is the hardware. Starting with the fact that support for IMAX Enhanced is currently restricted to TVs, speakers, soundbars and AV receivers/processors; there’s currently no support, for instance, on any external video streaming boxes or sticks. It’s also the case that far from every TV, speaker, soundbar or AVR brand has obtained (or sought) IMAX Enhanced certification.

We’ll cover which ones have in a moment, but it’s important to clear up right away that even TVs and audio products that don’t have IMAX Enhanced certification can still actually get some benefit from IMAX Enhanced titles. So non-IMAX Enhanced TVs will still be able to enjoy the shifting aspect ratios of IMAX Enhanced titles, as well as the ultra-clean, colourful masters. It’s just that owners of those TVs can’t be sure they’re unlocking the full quality of those masters because the TV hasn’t been certified by IMAX itself. 

TVs that aren’t IMAX Certified also won’t include the IMAX Enhanced picture preset that many IMAX Certified TVs now get. This preset is calibrated in line with the image values used when creating IMAX Enhanced masters, for more accurate playback.

Non-IMAX Enhanced TVs will still be able to get Dolby Atmos sound with many IMAX Enhanced titles, but not the DTS:X mixes now added to most of Disney+’s IMAX Enhanced titles. In fact, at the time of writing, the only TVs offering the full DTS:X-backed IMAX Enhanced experience from Disney+ are the Sony A95L TV from 2023, Sony’s 2024 TVs, the US Hisense U7K and U8K 2023 models, the US Hisense U7N and U8N for 2024 (North America), and TCL's 2024 TVs, plus select Philips, Sharp and Xiaomi Google TVs in Europe. You will also need to make sure that your Disney+ app has been updated to the latest version. 

Some of LG's OLED TVs are also apparently set to get the DTS:X IMAX-Enhanced support feature for Disney+ later this year, though it wasn’t working at the time of writing.

Outside of the TV world, Sony continues its embrace of the IMAX Enhanced format with a trio of home cinema projectors: The VPL-XW5000ES, XW6000ES and VPL-XW7000ES. 

Turning to audio devices, Sony’s new Bravia 8 and Bravia Theatre Bar 9 soundbars, most mid-range and up LG soundbars since 2022, and a couple of Philips soundbars are all capable of playing the IMAX Enhanced DTS:X format. Polk and Definitive Technology, meanwhile, have obtained IMAX Enhanced certification for their Legend/Reserve and Dymension speaker series respectively. 

Finally, a wide range of AV receivers and processors from most of the AV world’s most respected brands now implement IMAX Enhanced support. Denon, Marantz, JBL, Anthem, Arcam, Audiocontrol, Mcintosh, Onkyo, Pioneer, StormAudio and Trinnov all have IMAX Enhanced-capable AVRs and processors in their line-ups that are capable of playing the IMAX Enhanced-specific DTS:X audio mixes. Just check the specifications of any model you’re interested in to be certain that IMAX Enhanced is included.

The range of content and, especially, AV products able to support IMAX Enhanced is growing all the time, so if you like what IMAX Enhanced does, keep an eye on our news and reviews channels for further additions and developments.

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This is everything you need to know about Sony Pictures Core, which features loads of IMAX Enhanced movies

Sony Pictures Core (previously known as Bravia Core) is Sony's high-end movie streaming service. It promises picture quality to rival 4K Blu-ray, a large selection of IMAX Enhanced movies and the latest box office releases from Sony Pictures. But is it right for you? And how can you get it? Here's everything you need to know about Sony Pictures Core...

Sony Pictures Core is a streaming service with a difference. Or quite a few differences, actually. Starting with the fact that it is not currently available on any devices that aren’t made by Sony.

For much of its three-year life, in fact, Sony Pictures Core was available – under its previous Bravia Core name – exclusively on Sony TVs. Playback was later enabled for Sony’s Xperia smartphones, too, and then in October 2023 the service’s availability was finally extended to two other key members of the Sony product family: the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 games consoles.

Since the Bravia part of the old Bravia Core name referred specifically to Sony’s TV technologies, it made sense for Sony to change the service’s name to Sony Pictures Core when it was expanded out to the PlayStation family. But we’d also say the new name more accurately reflects the fact that all of the service’s content comes from Sony’s own film and TV studios (including the Crunchyroll anime streamer Sony bought in 2021).

Free movies for Sony owners

With most streaming services, of course, the idea is to be as widely available as possible. With Sony Pictures Core, though, Sony seems to see the service more as a way of driving purchases of its TVs and games consoles. A notion backed up by the fact that from the moment the service launched as Bravia Core in 2021, Sony TV buyers have been entitled to a number of free recent release movie purchase credits, as well as free access to a curated selection of up to 100 movies from the service’s back catalogue. A classic ‘buy this TV, get free movies’ marketing promo.

The exact number of movie credits and the length of free catalogue access you get depends on the Sony TV you’ve bought. Buy a premium model and you’ll earn 15 free ‘new release’ permanent purchase credits and two years of access to the curated back catalogue titles. Mid-range Sony TVs see the free movie token offer drop to 10, while more entry-level models get you five new release purchase tokens and a year’s subscription to the curated (and regularly updated) back catalogue selection. You should check the small print of any Sony TV you’re thinking of buying to see how much Sony Pictures Core access your TV purchase is getting you.

PlayStation Plus subscribers, meanwhile, bag new free movie credits on the service too, with PlayStation Plus Premium members getting access to the 100 or so curated movie catalogue.

Prices for additional movie rentals and purchases

Sony TV purchase and PS Plus subscription rewards are, of course, not the only way to access content on Sony Pictures Core. You can also rent or buy extra titles, with the amount varying between £13.99 and £7.99 in the UK to buy recent releases, and between £5.49 and £3.49 to rent films where a rental option is available.

Sony claims that there are up to 2000 titles available to rent or buy across the whole of Sony Pictures Core, some available with bonus content such as director’s commentaries and exclusive offers. At the time of writing, titles available went as recent as 2024’s Anyone But You and Tarot, and as old as 1939’s Mr. Smith Goes To Washington – with a huge range of classics across the decades in between. Honestly, it only takes a few moments browsing Sony Pictures Core’s catalogue to come away amazed at just how many classics Sony owns the rights to.

Sony Pictures Core streaming quality

That said, it’s not so much the quantity of content on Sony Pictures Core that’s its main attraction as it is its quality. Starting with the fact that the service claims to support the highest streaming bandwidths in the video streaming world. So while Netflix and Prime Video get by on data rates of under 25Mbps and Apple TV+ tops out at 40Mbps, Sony Pictures Core uses a technology it calls PureStream to support rates up to 80Mbps.

Obviously, this depends on your own broadband system being able to carry such rates. In fact, Sony recommends that your broadband supports rates up to 115Mbps or higher to ensure you enjoy the full-quality Sony Pictures Core experience without buffering, with a minimum of 43Mbps required before the PureStream technology even kicks in.

The PureStream name accurately describes why the sort of streaming bandwidths the Sony Pictures Core service offers matter; basically, the higher the bandwidth of a digital video signal, the less that signal should have to be compressed. And the less a video stream has to be compressed, the sharper, cleaner and more natural the resulting video playback should look.

Unfortunately, PureStream is only available via Sony TVs. Via the PS5 or PS4, movies are streamed at the sort of bit-rates that are common with rival streaming services.

IMAX Enhanced content on Sony Pictures Core

At least as important as the unique streaming speeds supported by Sony Pictures Core is the quality of the masters it provides. Pretty much every remotely recent release is available in 4K resolution and high dynamic range, and Sony has been pretty busy remastering a fair number of its old catalogue titles in 4K too.

Sony Pictures has also been the most enthusiastic embracer of the IMAX Enhanced home video system. Full details about this can be found in our IMAX Enhanced explainer, but briefly, IMAX Enhanced involves three key features. First, titles are scanned and mastered in 4K HDR using a special IMAX system that’s designed to enhance the clarity and colour of the resulting home video presentations, as well as remove excess noise and grain.

Second, where a film features sections shot in IMAX’s relatively tall 1.9:1 aspect ratio, those sections will appear in that ratio, even if the rest of the film is shown in a wider aspect ratio.

Finally, IMAX Enhanced titles are accompanied by special ‘signature’ DTS audio mixes that are apparently designed to deliver more of the full dynamism of an IMAX theatrical release’s audio track. These IMAX Enhanced DTS:X tracks can now be output from Sony TVs to compatible AV receivers and soundbars using HDMI’s eARC functionality.

At the time of writing, Sony Pictures Core carries 157 IMAX Enhanced titles – including, surprisingly, a few golden oldies such as Easy Rider and Gandhi alongside the more expected modern releases and classics.

As well as all the IMAX Enhanced titles on Sony Pictures Core adding DTS soundtracks to their specially mastered pictures, many of the other recent and semi-recent non-IMAX films the service carries are accompanied by Dolby Atmos sound mixes.

Is Sony Pictures Core any good?

So does all of this impressive technical spec really add up to a superior streaming experience? We’d say it really does, actually. Provided you have the broadband speed for it and remember to activate the PureStream technology via the app’s Settings (it’s off by default), a full 80Mbps Sony Pictures Core 4K HDR experience really does look cleaner (especially in dark areas), crisper, more detailed and more dynamic than the streams of any other service. Though Apple TV can get quite close with some of its best-looking shows.

We wouldn’t say Sony Pictures Core’s performance is quite up there with good 4K Blu-ray image quality, but it delivers some supremely engaging images by streaming standards – especially with many of its IMAX Enhanced titles.

So if you’re the proud owner of one of the best Sony TVs and haven’t yet explored what Sony Pictures Core has to offer, you really owe it to yourself to check it out. Especially as the tokens you earned when you bought your TV mean you can check out the service’s quality across a decent number of films without having to spend a single extra penny.

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Here are our reviews of the Award-winning Sony A80L and the flagship Sony A95L

Hands up: who’s been let down by their cinema experiences because of inconsiderate chatty audience members, flickering mobile screens, dingy interiors, overpriced snacks and even pricier tickets? My trips to UK cinema chains over the years have become infrequent for a variety of those issues, and I have opted to either go for midday or midnight screenings (when there are fewer people), or head all the way into London and splash out for the full-blown Dolby Atmos/Vision or IMAX screening for specific films, on rare occasions only.

But that means giving up popping over to your local cinema for any new film that might interest you – and there are plenty of fantastic new films being released, and not just the big Marvel blockbusters or latest Nolan opus – or simply waiting for the home release on Blu-ray or streaming. While I imagine many What Hi-Fi? readers have a rather lovely home cinema set-up at home, be it a large OLED TV, projector or a full surround speaker system, unless you have your own private cinema room then it’s still no substitute for going to the movies and being transported to another world by the magic of a dark room, large screen and enveloping sound as you watch pictures come to life.

So it's a rare thing to find a cinema that delivers a comfortable, distraction-free and affordable experience these days. But that's exactly what my local independent cinema in Reading town centre has managed to do – and then some. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising costs of, well, everything, cinema-going numbers have been at an all-time low, so it takes a certain amount of will, luck and fortitude to open an independent cinema. Reading Biscuit Factory opened in the summer of 2021 and has easily become not only my favourite cinema to visit but also a wonderful place to just hang out in – another rarity these days. It’s a community space as well as a cinema, with an open, welcoming and brightly-lit area with ample seating and a relaxing, friendly environment where you can meet with friends, have a sit down or even work. For free.

Located in the town centre, the Reading Biscuit Factory (so named after the town’s Huntley & Palmer’s biscuit legacy) has three screens – none of which have Dolby Atmos or Vision, the largest screen has about 90+ seats – and it is an absolute joy watching films in there. They show the latest blockbuster releases as well as independent films – horror and animation especially get a look in – and they regularly show classic cult films, short films and live event screenings. An adult ticket is roughly a tenner (less if you become a member, which I’ve been for two years now – worth every penny), and there are inclusive screenings for those hard of hearing, those aged 60+ and also baby-friendly ones.

The projection screen and surround sound are of perfectly good quality, but it’s the general feel of the cinema – as well as of my fellow respectful cinema goers – that makes the experience so much nicer than any other cinema I’ve been to in ages.

The first films I watched there were Spider-Man: No Way Home and Titane – both very different films and very different audiences, but memorable for their common factor: a group of film fans excited to watch a new release and enjoy it fully on a big screen, and a sense of normalcy coming back after months of uncertainty.

To this day, three years on, I have never encountered a single instance of people needlessly talking during the film or mobile phone screens turned on. Yes, you can bring snacks and drinks bought on the premises into the screen, but besides the occasional crunch of popcorn and rustling of wrappers (thankfully not at any inopportune times), it’s been an annoyance-free experience. There are no nachos here, but there is some good house wine. The cinema is run by friendly faces too, happy to chat about films and what we thought about some of the stranger screenings (we're all still unsure about the existential body horror of Titane).

There are so many films, big and small, that I've seen at Reading Biscuit Factory (or RBF, for short), that I've rarely felt like I was missing out on not being in a bigger, flashier cinema kitted out with Atmos or IMAX. My memorable cinema experiences have varied from watching Everything Everywhere All At Once with an audience fizzing with excitement as the mind-bending story unfolded on screen to being the only person at the Sunday midday Fast X screening (which means I got to yell and gesticulate at all the ridiculousness; it's a good thing no one else was there to see me).

By far the most packed and popular screenings I've been to have been the "Keep It Cult" themed nights, where RBF puts on a classic, cult film, giving you a slice of the niche that London's famed Prince Charles Cinema enjoys. Once again, thoughts of 4K (or 8K) quality or how many nits I'm seeing were pushed to the background as I got to enjoy classics such as My Own Private Idaho and Before Sunrise on the big screen for the first time. The packed audience was more varied than I've seen at any other showing, too. There was no discernible demographic or age group; it was simply a mix of people who had either seen the films before or were watching them for the first time, young and old – the one common thread being that we all love films. 

Does this mean I don’t ever miss the Dolby Atmos/IMAX experience altogether? Not entirely. Watching Mad Max: Fury Road and Dune: Part One on some of the best IMAX/Atmos screens in the country was an astonishing, awe-inspiring, jaw-dropping visual and aural spectacle. Both films were exhilarating, visceral and remain two of my favourite-ever movie-going experiences. I'm so glad I made the effort to watch them on the biggest screen with the most engulfing, immersive sound. I imagine I would have enjoyed Dune: Part Two and Furiosa a fair bit more if I'd given them the same all-out treatment, but I don't feel too bad about it as I probably would've missed out entirely if I had tried to find a time to go into London. Thankfully, the Biscuit Factory cinema is only 10 minutes away from my house. I really have no excuse not to go even more regularly. 

On the other hand, I didn't feel like I missed out at all at last summer's Barbenheimer double bill. I have no doubt that the IMAX/Atmos/70mm film screenings of Oppenheimer were amazing, but my experience of watching it at RBF was no less mesmerising. The storytelling was no less potent and once again the full audience was in rapt silence during the Trinity test scene. It was just as powerful in our little indie cinema. In contrast, watching Barbie the next day was full of bright, bubbly energy, the crowd buzzing with excitement as the Biscuit Factory team made a whole event of it: a themed party, themed drinks, everyone dressed up – it was just so much fun to be part of a cinematic event as a whole.

The Reading Biscuit Factory is very much a cinema for cinema lovers. But it's also more than that: it's a community space and there's always something different happening there. There are stand-up and comedy nights, quiz nights, workshops, craft store pop-ups and, more recently (and to the delight of this vinyl fan), a semi-permanent second-hand record store at the weekends, complete with a DJ spinning records. It has its own bar, cafe, and currently excellent on-site pizza courtesy of Sarv's Slice – there's an attempt to highlight local vendors and artists that is admirable, and just adds to the friendly, inviting, warm feeling of the space. And the pizza is delicious. 

It bears repeating: you don't have to buy anything to justify being there. Unlike most other cinemas, you aren't funnelled towards the ticket or concession stands and the main aim doesn't seem to be to part you with your hard-earned cash. 

The Biscuit Factory isn't the only indie cinema around that's finding favour with locals and film fanatics alike. I've recently been to the even newer, even smaller The Garden Cinema in Soho for a recent 4K-restoration screening of Withnail & I and its cosy art-deco environment was utterly charming. There are other indie cinemas with rich histories, unique settings and eclectic schedules that I'd love to visit – Totnes Cinema, the Electric in Birmingham and The Tyneside, to name but three. 

In a time when going to the cinema feels like a luxury, or you're out of the habit or are burned by bad experiences, places that value and prioritise giving you a good, affordable experience where you can enjoy a good mix of films with fellow like-minded fans are places that should be celebrated. Going to see a film should feel like a special event, but it should also be a normal event – one you can afford to go to regularly to spend a few hours away from your real-life issues and be enchanted by movie magic on the big screen, all without ever feeling shortchanged. What a local indie cinema such as the Reading Biscuit Factory (and many others) offers compared with the big-name multiplexes and anonymous cinema chains is a friendly space where everyone is welcomed, where it's affordable (or free) to spend time, and where the experience of watching films is so enjoyable that you'll want to visit over and over again.

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I just saw Inside Out 2 at an Onyx LED cinema and now normal cinema might be ruined

I've figured out how much you need to spend on a projector for it to be better than the cinema – and it's a lot

The best Dolby Atmos movie scenes to test your home cinema system

I’m currently in Los Angeles, primarily to learn about Samsung’s approach to audio design (more on that in the near future), but I’ve just had an experience that may well have ruined my weekly trip to my local cinema.

Nestled among the movie studios in Culver City is the The Culver Theater, a cinema that looks charmingly old-school from the outside but that inside houses several next-gen cinema screens. These are Samsung Onyx screens – huge LED displays that can do things that a cinema projector can only dream of.

The most notable of these things is HDR. The Onyx displays are capable of hitting a peak brightness of 500 nits. That might not sound like much in the face of 2000+ nit TVs, but it’s exceptionally bright for a huge cinema screen. For context, most cinema projectors will hit a peak of around 48 nits, which is decidedly not HDR, IMAX can hit about 75 nits, and a Dolby Cinema will get to about 108 nits. Dolby Cinemas are usually described as having ‘extended dynamic range’ (EDR) rather than ‘high dynamic range’ (HDR).

The other big thing that an LED cinema can do that a regular cinema cannot is black. Projectors beam light onto a white screen and they clearly can’t project black, so dark grey is really the best they can manage. An LED display, on the other hand, can simply turn individual LEDs off, resulting in perfect black.

Between its relatively limited brightness and relatively limited black depth, your average cinema is pretty lacking in contrast. That doesn’t make it bad (though my colleague might tell you otherwise), but I’m here to tell you that it can be much better.

Watching a 300-nit master of Inside Out 2 on a 52-foot Onyx screen is a revelation. That level of pop on that sort of scale is stunning. The image leaps from the screen with gleaming highlights and awesomely punchy colours, and everything is underpinned by those super-solid blacks. The average cinema, such as the local one that I regularly visit, looks grey and washed out by comparison. I was only able to watch 5 minutes or so of the movie at The Culver Theater, so I’ll need to visit said local cinema to see it properly this weekend, and I anticipate it being a massive comedown.

That isn’t to say that the Onyx cinema was perfect. 4K isn’t a very high resolution at that sort of size, and something about the LED tech seems to reveal pixelation in a way that a projector doesn’t. It wasn’t a big deal by any means, but I occasionally felt aware of jaggies in a way that I’m not when I go to a standard cinema.

The sound was a bigger issue, though. In a usual cinema, speakers are positioned directly behind the screen, which is perforated to allow the audio to escape. This means that the sound literally comes from the screen. The same thing isn’t possible with an LED display, so a more creative solution is required. In some Onyx cinemas, speakers are positioned above and below the screen and Samsung’s own DSP technology is used to make it seem as if the sound is coming from the screen, but in The Culver Theater they use ceiling-mounted speakers that are in fact pointed down and towards the screen so that sound bounces off it and back out to the audience.

Unfortunately, I don’t think this latter solution is particularly effective, as I was very aware while watching the movie that voices were coming from above. Perhaps that effect is lessened when sitting further back in the auditorium, but it was a little distracting from my position around the middle of the room.

But there’s a bigger issue still for Onyx cinemas: very few movies are mastered to take advantage of its higher nit count. In fact, currently, Pixar is the only studio that produces 300-nit masters for Onyx. Most of the time, Onyx cinemas have to make do with the 108-nit Dolby masters – and many movies don’t even go that bright. Work is of course being done to persuade more studios to release brighter masters for Onyx, but it appears to be quite a slow process.

That said, even if you were to take the HDR brightness away, I still think those deep blacks would make Onyx look more contrasty and solid than the average cinema. I would like to go back and test that theory but, alas, I’m shortly heading back to the UK and, to the best of my knowledge (I have asked and someone is going to get back to me), we have no Onyx cinemas in good ol’ Blighty. I guess I’ll just have to make do with my local Cineworld for the foreseeable, then.

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Fancy a cinema experience at home? Here are the best projectors

And these are the best AV receivers

For the last week, I've been involved in the testing of JVC's latest high-end home cinema projector, and it taught me an unavoidable truth – if you want a home cinema projector that delivers the full cinema experience, then you need to be willing to shell out some serious cash. 

It's hard to say that without sounding like a total snob, and I recognise that I'm privileged to spend time with a lot of high-end home cinema gear without having to spend a penny of my own money, but it's the truth. The JVC DLA-NZ800 (review coming next week as part of our Home Cinema Week event) cemented this view for me. Watching some of my favourite films on this projector was, in some ways, better than when I watched them in the cinema.

Obvious cinema woes aside – noisy patrons and uncomfortable seats, mainly – the real benefit of using these super premium projectors is that they can deliver a better picture experience than you'll get in many cinemas. I watched two of the biggest releases from the past year on this projector, Dune: Part Two and Oppenheimer, and while the IMAX experience reigns supreme for sheer scale, the picture experience on the JVC is a close contender. 

Most notably, it's the far superior black depths. This is something that I often find myself complaining about on my frequent cinema trips. In most conventional cinemas it's commonplace to see illuminated greyish hues instead of black, or just a dim and illegible picture that lacks defined dark details. Admittedly, the projectors found in most cinema screens are a far cry from the ones we test, and they're designed to serve a different purpose; however, the performance gap is inescapable. 

Dark-coloured suits and the black and white sections of Oppenheimer looked convincingly black with this projector, and were an improvement on when I saw the movie in the cinema. I was convinced I could never watch the film in any other way, due to how good it was in an IMAX, but clearly I was getting ahead of myself; I just needed a very expensive home cinema. 

The contrast on display with this projector is what's responsible here, as the bright and dark parts of the image are delivered with precision and impact. This ensures that black depths and dark details are carefully crafted, as well as adding bucket loads of subtle three-dimensional solidity to the image, making me feel like I could reach out and touch whatever is on screen. 

Better yet is the level of detail on display. This JVC is capable of 8K via the new eShift X system and, for once, I'm not complaining about 8K. It's an ingenious system that digs out finer details in everything from the Fremen's stillsuits to the granular textures in the sand dunes of Arrakis in Dune: Part Two. There is a clear difference in picture performance, which we'll dig further into in our full review, so I won't spoil the results in full, but the bottom line is that I'm convinced it's a definite improvement over the picture quality found in the majority of cinemas, albeit in a much smaller size.

There are specialist cinemas cropping up with higher specifications, such as the Dolby Cinemas that feature more capable projectors with Dolby Vision HDR support and Dolby Atmos sound systems. However, these are few and far between. The average multiplex will struggle to compete with a projector like this one in my mind.

So let's answer the unavoidable question, how much do you really need to spend on a projector that bests your local big-screen? To be frank, it may well be about £15,000 – which I recognise is a ludicrous figure to most of us, but remember we're talking about serious enthusiast projectors here. You can get a perfectly good picture from a projector that costs a fraction of the JVC DLA-N800's price, and we recommend many models in cheaper price ranges such as the Epson EH-TW9400, yours for around £2500, or the Sony VPL-XW5000ES, which will set you back £5000. However, we're talking about outdoing the cinema here, so the price is expectedly high.

There are already a few options to choose from at this elevated price point. One of our favourite models is the Award-winning Sony VPL-XW7000ES, which currently floats around the £13,000 mark, while the latest model from JVC sits at £16,000, so £15,000 is an average figure. You can, of course, go even further up the chain with the JVC DLA-NZ900, which retails at £26,000. We haven't tried that model yet, although I'm willing to bet it's probably pretty special.

So am I expecting the average person to shell out £15,000 on a projector? Of course not. Thankfully, there are plenty of good projectors to be found at much cheaper prices, as you can see in our round-up of the best projectors. But if money is no object in your quest to create a home cinema that can better the high street cinema experience, then I think this might just be the threshold. 

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Check out our pick of the best projector deals

And read our full Sony VPL-XW7000ES review

Disney Plus is set to become the first streaming service to offer DTS:X soundtracks for its content when it adds the immersive audio format in May of this year. In doing so, it'll also become the first service to incorporate both major immersive audio formats thanks to the fact it already includes Dolby Atmos for a wide range of its content. 

After introducing the IMAX Enhanced aspect ratio (1.90:1) back in 2021 on a selection of Marvel titles including Captain America: Civil War, Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers: Infinity War, Disney claimed that the option to use an accompanying DTS:X audio track will be added at a later date, which turned out to be a longer wait than we anticipated. Thankfully, Disney has confirmed that the end is in sight for those who are patiently waiting, as DTS:X will be added to select titles on the 15th of May.

Up until now, DTS:X has been exclusively reserved for Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray discs, however, the introduction of a new streaming-friendly codec has allowed Disney to implement it within its service. There will likely be some compromise to sound quality, as it won't be lossless DTS audio like on physical disc formats, although this is to be expected and likely won't be an issue to all but the most discerning audiophiles.

It will launch the sound format on the platform as "IMAX Enhanced sound", using the upcoming Queen Rock Montreal concert film as a headlining title to debut the feature. It's set to be the first film within the genre to include DTS-enhanced sound according to Disney. DTS:X will also come to the existing library of IMAX Enhanced superhero films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe catalogue (18 titles in total), with recent entries including The Marvels and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 joining the collection. 

It's still a fairly slim selection of content as of now, with Dolby Atmos being the predominant immersive audio format on the platform. On the subject of Dolby, what if you prefer to use the Atmos track instead? FlatpanelsHD suggests that Disney will likely allow users to swap between audio tracks much like how you can pick between the 21:9 or the IMAX Enhanced aspect ratio for video.

As for compatibility, Disney claims that a wide range of devices will be supported at launch. This will include TVs that run the Android TV and Google TV operating systems from manufacturers such as Sony, Hisense, Sharp, Xiaomi, and others, as well as a selection of AV receivers from the likes of Denon, Marantz, and JBL. 

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Read our full Disney Plus review

Check out our picks for the best soundbars

And the best OLED TV

We certainly can't knock Xgimi's ambitions, as it made headlines with a "world first" projector released in 2023. Just six months ago we were taking a look at the Horizon Ultra, which was the world's first Dolby Vision-compatible long throw projector; and we assumed that's about as far as the company would take its Horizon series. Well, the brand's latest reveal at CES has proven us wrong, as the Ultra has been surpassed by a new model.

Introducing the Horizon Max, which Xgimi is claiming to be the world's first IMAX Enhanced long throw projector. It shares a lot of DNA with its Ultra sibling, including a similar boxy design and Dual Light source which combines laser and LED. In fact, the Max uses the updated 2.0 edition of the Dual Light system, which Xgimi claims will result in an ultra-wide colour gamut and ultra-high brightness, with Xgimi stating an impressive 3100 ISO Lumens (or roughly 3875 ANSI Lumens). That means the Max will reportedly be 35 per cent brighter than the Horizon Ultra – not bad at all.

Unlike the Horizon Ultra, this projector will not support the Dolby picture and sound formats, instead opting for the DTS-derived IMAX technologies, although Xgimi hasn't made it entirely clear as to whether it will support Dolby Atmos or only DTS. Xgimi highlights that IMAX Enhanced is often reserved for premium projector models, but the Horizon Max will make it more accessible to those working on stricter budgets. 

Much like the Horizon Ultra, the Max will include a very user-friendly set-up thanks to auto keystone and focus correction features – in fact, Xgimi is calling this a "projector on autopilot". The Intelligent Screen Adaptation 5.0 (or ISA) system will quickly adjust the picture to best suit the screen or, in many users' cases, the wall that you'll be projecting onto. If you are planning on projecting onto a wall then fear not, as this projector will intelligently recognise different surfaces and adapt the picture as necessary, as did the Horizon Ultra. This means you won't need a perfectly flat white wall to project onto, although we assume this projector can't work miracles so we'll have to test his feature out.

Finally, this projector will have Google TV onboard, which means you'll be able to stream conveniently straight from the projector. This operating system should be familiar to anyone who's used a recent Sony or Philips TV, and we certainly appreciate the 'plug and play' functionality without having to mess about with an external streaming device.

Not only is Xgimi unveiling the Horizon Max at CES, but it will also give a first look at Aladdin – an intriguing hybrid device that acts as a projector, speaker and ceiling light. You might remember the company revealing something similar in 2022 with the Xgimi Magic Lamp. Could this be the international version, as that projector was only released in China?

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Check out the latest CES 2024 news

As well as our picks for the best projectors

And the best projector deals

Last weekend, I completed the ultimate cinematic pilgrimage that has been blocked off on my calendar for months. The unassuming double act of Barbie, a glitzy family-friendly movie centred around the iconic children's toy that isn't afraid to confront issues of gender dynamics and patriarchy, and Oppenheimer, a mature and engrossing look into the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer during the development of the first nuclear bomb, was thoroughly enjoyable for the full six hours I spent sitting in a cinema. Affectionately titled "Barbenheimer", the back-to-back cinema experience was a rollercoaster of emotions and I thoroughly recommend both movies, however, one movie had to come out on top.

As the title may suggest, that film was Oppenheimer, and to put it bluntly, it might be the best cinema experience I have ever had. The film itself is a masterpiece, with Oscar-worthy performances from the likes of Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr and Benny Safdie, and the score has been on repeat in my earphones no matter where I go.

That being said, it was the cinema experience itself that helped to convey this spectacular film in all its glory. Now, I couldn't make it to a 70mm IMAX showing, but I stood firm in not compromising with a lesser screening, so seeing it in standard digital IMAX which is the next best thing. After spending days convincing my friends who were (mostly) adamant that a standard showing would be fine, it was only after I threatened to see it in IMAX by myself (thus jeopardising the Barbenheimer experience as a whole) that I eventually got them to cave and go to an IMAX screening; and before you call me emotionally manipulative, it was for the sake of cinema and art.

This was ultimately the best thing that could have happened, as the film was nothing short of mesmerising in IMAX. I'll try not to spoil anything, but let's face it, you know they're going to set off a nuclear bomb in this film, it was bound to happen. The expanded aspect ratio of the screen gave the full impact of the explosion, as an awe-inspiring yet terrifying column of fire encompassed the screen. Visually the pure scale, mixed with Nolan's masterful direction, can only be truly appreciated on a screen of this size in my humble opinion. 

However, it turned out to be the sound in our screening that played the most important role, as the speakers really did the film justice. As the bomb is set off in the Trinity Test section of the film, there is a frantic build-up that instilled more anxiety into me than in any film I've seen before, followed by a minute or so of silence as the scientists and military witness their creation, which is only broken by Murphy's chilling rendition of Oppenheimer's iconic quote "now I become Death,  the destroyer of worlds".

Shortly after, the full effect of the bomb is not only heard but felt, as an almighty boom erupts from the speakers, which admittedly made me jump out of my skin. It was so bassy and effective that my seat began juddering violently, and at that moment I was utterly entranced. 

Speaking to friends who live in Cornwall, far away from any IMAX cinemas, they found it hard to relate to the way I felt watching the film, which I found gutting as it was absolutely a spectacle. That's not to say they didn't enjoy it, but that it just didn't have the same impact, which sent me on somewhat of a spiral, as I realised that I too will never be able to see that film in the way I did again. Sure I could fork out for more IMAX tickets, but theatrical releases only last so long and I can't think of any affordable home cinema gear that could replicate the way I watched it.

If it isn't already apparent, I loved the film and would quite like to rewatch it, but it's three hours long which is quite the commitment to make for a film I've already seen. No problem, I'll just buy the 4K Blu-ray; the only issue there is that there's only one thing I'd want to watch it on, and that's the 15 thousand pound Sony VPL-XW7000ES 4K laser projector, which is a bit out of my budget.  

And that brings us to the sound, as although we have tested some truly excellent home theatre speakers and AV receivers, I doubt any of them could provide the visceral sofa-shaking sound of the IMAX theatre. So what am I to do? Just never watch the film again? Or perhaps I'll wait for a theatrical re-release, as the BFI often hold these, which is likely my best bet. Ultimately I'd really like to watch it again at home, but I just can't imagine a TV and soundbar doing it any justice.

If there's anything to take from the experience, it would be this: I would strongly recommend that if you plan on seeing Oppenheimer in cinemas, splurge on the IMAX tickets. The whole film is shot using IMAX cameras, so watching it on a screen that supports the expanded aspect ratio and enhanced picture quality makes it a visual treat, and the sound design in the film is begging to be appreciated through a proper cinema sound system.

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Check out our picks for the best projectors

And the best home theatre speakers

As well as the best AV receivers

Onkyo's new AV receiver promises to bring studio-grade audio processing to your home. The TX-RZ70 is one of Onkyo's first products since the brand was acquired by Premium Audio Company (PAC) in 2021. As such, all eyes are on it. Thankfully, this flagship AVR looks great, on paper at least.

It boasts 11.2 channels, with 140 watts per channel. HDMI 2.1, 8K (and 4K) resolution and 40GPS speeds come as standard. It also has full bandwidth functionality for the fastest refresh rates to keep up with the likes of the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.

Audio performance is aided by the 24-bit ESS Sabre DACs which provide ultra-low distortion. The sound is optimised for your room thanks to the Dirac Live Room Correction, while you can also upgrade to Dirac Live Bass Control, which harnesses the power of AI and machine learning to optimise bass performance for your surroundings.

Voice controls come courtesy of Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple's Siri. Roon Ready certification will land in September of this year via a firmware update, letting you access your entire high-resolution music library digitally. 

aptX Bluetooth is onboard too, so you can listen to music in a higher-quality codec using a pair of compatible wireless headphones. And the rest of its spec list reads ticks a large number of tech boxes: Dolby Atmos, Dolby Surround, DTS:X, IMAX Enhanced, AirPlay 2, Chromecast built-in, THX Certified for Theatre Reference Sound and Klipsch Optimized Mode for optimum performance with Klipsch's Reference Premiere speakers all come as standard. Talk about being fully featured.

The Onkyo TX-RZ70 AVR will go on sale in the spring for £3099 (€3299 / $2799).

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Will it make our list of best AV receivers?

22 of the best Dolby Atmos movie scenes to test your home cinema sound

Want something smaller? See our pick of the best soundbars

We already have details on LG's new OLED TVs for 2023, and now comes word of its new soundbars to go with them.

They're designed to work seamlessly with LG's new TVs, and when paired deliver exclusive features like Wow Orchestra – this uses every one of the TV and soundbar's audio channels in unison to create an expanded soundstage with more height, depth and power.

They also pack Dolby Atmos, and IMAX Enhanced powered by DTS:X.

Pair your LG soundbar with your compatible LG TV, and you can bring up the settings menu on-screen using the TV's Home Dashboard. This will let you manage the soundbar's settings and share sound modes with the TV, and all without opening a separate menu. You don't even need to plug them into the TV, thanks to the Wowcast feature that enables wireless connectivity. LG claims this won't compromise sound quality, but we'll have to test them for ourselves to verify that.

They share the design language of LG's new TVs too, with a new bracket that lets you wall- or stand-mount the soundbar at whatever height you like without having to drill holes in the wall.

LG's Triple Sound Technology is on audio duties, featuring what LG claims is the world's first Triple Up-Firing Speaker – this was seen on last year's models, too. But new for this year is Triple Level Spatial Sound Technology. This "employs channel analysis performed by an HRTF-based 3D engine to add a virtual mid-layer", resulting in a more lifelike sound with a more convincing sense of space, according to LG.

Two channel audio can be up-mixed into multi-channel surround sound, while LG's enhanced AI Room Calibration feature reads the layout of the room and optimises the sound accordingly. AI Sound Pro analyses what kind of content you're watching (sports, movies etc) and applies the most appropriate settings to give you the best performance.

All the usual streaming services are supported, as is lossless playback using compatible services like Tidal Connect. Like LG's TVs, they're also kitted out with all the gaming bells and whistles, with VRR, ALLM and 4K 120Hz all coming as standard.

So which models are in the new range? The SC9 is pictured above, while the SE6 is a more compact model made for smaller spaces. The range will be on show at CES this week, so we're sure to find out more soon. Stay tuned!

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These are the best soundbars going

Will LG's new tellies make our list of the best TVs?

Should you buy an LG soundbar? Find out here

Nvidia’s Shield TV streaming platform has received a new update, titled Shield Experience 9.1, that introduces new features for both movie and TV watching, as well as gaming. Disney Plus on the Nvidia Shield TV has received IMAX Enhanced support, which includes an expanded 1.90:1 aspect ratio so you can see more of the original picture on your TV.

So far, the only IMAX Enhanced content on Disney Plus is a selection of Marvel superhero films, including the newly released Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Madness, although it's expected more IMAX Enhanced content will launch on the platform in the future.

The Shield TV also received ALLM, or Automatic Low Latency Mode, which Nvidia hopes will improve gaming performance and responsiveness. The Shield TV supports Nvidia’s GeForce NOW game streaming platform, which has also received some new titles thanks to this update, including Dying Light 2, Rainbow Six Extraction, and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order. When streaming games on the device, it should now automatically switch your TV into game mode, although you will need a TV or monitor that also supports ALLM to take advantage of this.

Finally, Nvidia has included a night listening mode on the Shield TV which, as the name implies, optimises the audio output from the Shield for listening at night. Nvidia claims it works by levelling out loud noises such as explosions, as well as quieter sounds like dialogue, for an even and consistent listening experience. This is aimed at night owls that want to watch or game without disturbing their family or flatmates. 

The Shield Experience 9.1 update is available to download now for the Nvidia Shield TV and Nvidia Shield TV Pro.

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The world of high-end home cinema installations waits for no man and, in an effort to deliver a top-tier custom install experience to consumers with cash to blow on a cinema room, one company thinks it's set a new benchmark.

This 10-seat home cinema room features a 9.2.4. Dolby Atmos surround system, a 4K laser projector and a 3.6 x 2-metre screen, all customised within an inch of its life to deliver the best possible AV experience.

Sadly, unless you're in the market for a new room, you can't go round for movie night. The room has been built by home automation company Cornflake in an effort to showcase just what's available for those who want the ultimate movie and music room - and have the money to spend on it.

It's the first residential project in the UK to use a fully-active, Meyer Sound speaker system. A relatively unknown name in the consumer market, it's seen as the 'go-to' brand in pro audio circles, and can be found in Hollywood movie rooms and live music venues around the world.

MORE: Behind the scenes with Dolby Atmos at the Ministry of Sound

Nine Meyer Sound HMS-5 speakers are completely integrated into the walls and ceiling, four Meyer Sound Acheron Designer speakers are positioned at the front, and two huge X-800C subwoofers are located at the front and back (each standing over 1-metre tall).

The £13,000 screen is an acoustically-transparent design by Display Technologies, which is capable of automatically and almost silently adjusting to the aspect ratio of any film. Pictures are then delivered by the JVC DLA-Z1 4K laser projector, fed by a Kaleidescape movie server and a Panasonic Ultra HD Blu-ray player.

It's all powered by the Trinnov Altitude 32 processor, a high-end receiver with support for Atmos, DTS:X and Auro-3D. Naturally the system - including the lights - can be controled on a phone or tablet.

CATS Packs acoustic treatment, which can fine-tune a room using panels just 50mm thin, help to perfect the sound while still delivering a living-room rather than demo-room design. And there are some natty sofas, too.

Naturally, this isn't the only way to get yourself a seriously plush home cinema, and one or two companies might question the company's "best private home cinema" claim. The IMAX Private Theatre project, for example, comes with a starting price of nearly £2 million, should you want something more akin to a commerical cinema in your spare room.

Tempted to take the plunge? You can see more on the Cornflake website.

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Having claimed to deliver the "ultimate movie experience" for over 20 years, IMAX today drew back the curtain on its new Private Theatre system, a custom-built home cinema install solution designed to bring the immersive IMAX experience to a domestic setting – at a cost, of course.

With a juicy starting asking price of £1.8m, the exclusive everything-in system features IMAX’s patented projection system – dual commercial grade 4K projectors - a curved wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling screen, and proprietary surround sound technology.

While the talking point of IMAX is often its huge, panoramic screen, Larry O’Reilly, head of worldwide sales at IMAX, says their research shows "sound provides more than 50% of the IMAX experience".

Accordingly the system has handmade speakers - aligned by lasers for precise imaging - which IMAX says are capable of "a dynamic range ten times greater" than those found in a typical theatre.

That sky-high cost isn't just about the kit of course, it also covers the bespoke design, installation and tuning of the system by IMAX’s theatre design team, and training on how to operate it.

As part of its inclusive five-year maintenance service, the system’s performance is monitored in real-time around the clock by IMAX's service centre - "24/7/365" - so that any issues or necessary tweaks can be addressed remotely. IMAX promises a five-minute response time. Impressive, as you'd expect for two million quid.

O'Reilly says that the IMAX Private Theatre should be seen as a multimedia entertainment solution.

The system comes pre-loaded with 200 movies (including the biggest IMAX movie releases in the past seven years), and up to four inputs - playing 2D or 3D content - can play simultaneously in a split screen or "multi-screen" mode. Each quadrant of the screen is then individually controllable through the system's tablet controller.

The IMAX system also has specific image-enhancing software built-in to improve the sharpness and colour richness of any content you play through it, whether it’s a high-definition Blu-ray or a standard-definition live broadcast. It better be a decent upscaler...

Apart from being able to cough up the cash, you'll also need a room that can accommodate a 10ft-tall (minimum) screen - plus space behind that for a booth to house the projectors.

While the IMAX Private Theatre can be designed on a much larger scale, the prototype 15-seater model requires a footprint of 12 x 22.5 x 41 feet (HWD).

The IMAX Private Theatre was launched in the US last summer and is now available in the UK and Europe.

Although there are no signs of a more affordable (and no doubt slightly more compromised) version coming to Europe any time soon, there are plans to launch such a solution in China later this year, so watch this space.

In the meantime, you can start enquiring about your multi-million pound home cinema by visiting the IMAX Private Theatre website. Eat your heart out, Dolby Atmos...