Sony Bravia KDL-60LX903 review

This monster 60-inch 3D LCD TV is big and clever, but will cost you an arm, leg and maybe a kidney or two

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Sony Bravia KDL-60LX903
This is Sony's top-of-the-range LCD TV and has a price tag to match

TechRadar Verdict

Pros

  • +

    Sheer picture scale

  • +

    Excellent 2D performance

  • +

    Integrated Freeview HD tuner

  • +

    Lots of power-saving modes

  • +

    Full HD resolution and 1080/24p support

  • +

    Powerful networking and unusual features

Cons

  • -

    MotionFlow needs adjusting for natural pictures

  • -

    Given the price, more pairs of 3D glasses should be supplied

  • -

    Only one Scart socket

  • -

    DLNA player doesn't cater for DivX and some other popular codecs

  • -

    3D pictures spoiled by flicker and ghosting

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If money is no object, or the viewing of TV or movies is an all-consuming passion, then this feature-packed giant is definitely worth considering. It will grant you a sense of scale that can only be bettered by a visit to the cinema or a home projector (both of which are more hassle than a self-contained TV).

Unless you've been in outer space these past few months, you'll know that the current big thing is 3D. This is the latest development, in an industry that runs at an ever-faster pace.

We were happy with 4:3 TVs for 50 years until the late 1990s ushered in the widescreen era. Five or so years ago, flat panels and HD ready (followed shortly threafter by full HD) became de rigeur. And now we have 3D, the modern implementation of which is a rapid departure from the crummy red-and-green anaglyphs that older readers might remember.

Today, the upper echelons of the key TV players feature at least one 3D set. Sony is no exception, and its prestige 'Signature' range is topped by the new KDL-60LX903 that we'll examine here.

LED-backlit LCD is the underlying technology here, which is interesting because Sony's arch-rival, Panasonic, has gone to great lengths to point out that only plasma is fast enough to support active-shutter 3D, the technology employed here. Also available in a 40in version, the full HD 60LX903 is equipped with just about every gizmo that Sony could squeeze into it.

In addition to 3D you get a Freeview-HD tuner, plenty of connectivity (including four 1080p/24-capable HDMI ports with CEC device-control), networked multimedia, Sony's Internet-delivered Bravia 'widgets' and a panoply of proprietary technologies including Motionflow 200Hz with Image Blur Reduction, GigaContrast and an Intelligent Presence Sensor.

Add to this a smart 'monolithic design' (that, to be quite frank, doesn't seem radically different to any other high-end glossy-black flatpanel TV currently doing the rounds), and the 60LX903 represents quite an enticing package

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Martin Pipe