Sony Bravia XBR KDL-52XBR4 52″ 1080p LCD HDTV
The Sony BRAVIA XBR KDL-52XBR4 52-inch 1080p LCD Flat Panel HDTV continues Sony’s tradition of making outstanding televisions, and with a 52-inch screen, you’ll be the envy of all your neighbors. Sony does not hold back with any technologies, and the XBR series is its flagship line–so with the XBR, you know you’ll get the best quality home theater experience available.
 The KDL-52XBR4 has vibrant colors and a 178-degree viewing angle. View larger. View product demo (requires Flash). |
 The XBR series delivers beautful visuals while incorporating all of Sony’s latest technologies.View more details. |
Top-Notch Video Performance
The XBR KDL-52XBR4 is a 1080p television with a full 1920 x 1080 resolution, the highest resolution available for the sharpest, clearest picture. The KDL-52XBR uses the most recent HDMI 1.3 interface, which houses both audio and video signals in one connector and has the bandwidth to support the data needed for the high resolution. Sony’s Bravia Engine Pro Full Digital Video Processor upconverts all video signals to 1080p so you can watch all your old DVDs on this glorious display.
Sony complements the high resolution with the latest technology in color reproduction. The KDL-52XBR is a 10-bit display with 10-bit processing. Most panels are only 8-bit. The added bit depth here means a larger color palette for more faithful color reproduction and smoother transitions from one color to the next. Additionally, the display also supports the new x.v.Color standard, which dramatically increases the available color space. The end result is a picture that is so detailed, colorful, and vibrant, you’d have a hard time distinguishing it from real life.
The KDL-52XBR4 features Sony’s Motionflow technology, which automatically adjusts for and applies the proper processing for optimal motion reproduction depending on the video input. This includes support for 24 frames per second (24p) video, which displays video content at the 24-frames-per-second rate at which it was originally filmed or recorded. With 24p, you get the most faithful possible reproduction of the original.
A Wide Variety of Inputs
This Sony television’s wide variety of inputs ensures compatibility with your other home theater components. There are three HDMI connections for Blu-Ray, HD DVD, and other technologies requiring the high bandwidth, and two component video inputs, three composite video inputs, one S-Video input, one PC Audio and Video input, and five analog audio inputs. Even with a collection of legacy components, you shouldn’t have a problem connecting to the KDL-52XBR4.
Stunning Looks
The KDL-52XBR4 not only displays stunning video but is itself a head-turner. It features Sony’s unique floating glass frame along with a black bezel that can be interchanged with optional color bezels to match the display to your decor.
Outstanding Ergonomics and Simplicity of Control
Sony’s Xross Media Bar interface is an award-winning, intuitive on-screen display that makes setup a breeze, with menus and controls logically laid out for quick access. The KDL-52XBR4 also features Theatre Sync technology, based on the HDMI-CEC standard, which means you can easily connect to and control compatible devices. For example, when the KDL-52XBR4 is connected to a compatible DVD player, you can turn on both the DVD player and the television and start playing a DVD with a single push of a button on the remote. When you’re done, another push of a button powers everything down. With Theatre Sync, you can spend time enjoying the movie rather than waste time setting everything up.
More Than Just a Television
Because more and more people expect to view photos on their HDTVs, Sony developed a Photo TV HD mode that optimally sets the sharpness, gradation, and color to make digital photos look like printed photography.
The KDL-52XBR4 is backed by a 1-year limited warranty for parts and labor.
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Full HD QualityHDTV provides up to six times the visual detail of the Standard Definition television. You need an HDTV set, HD sound and a source of HD content to make sure you’re really getting HD. |
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What’s in the Box
KDL-52XBR4 52-inch LCD flat panel HDTV, remote control, 2 AA batteries, AC power cord, operating instructions, quick setup guide, warranty card, table top stand, and support strap.
Customer Review:
Look no further…Let me save you countless hours on the internet and hours at the stores looking at different sets. I have been researching flat panel screens for over two years, perusing the internet sites such as CNET and several others to compare specs, user feedbacks, etc… Went to specialty video/audio stores, big box stores (Best Buy and Circuit City) to compare the sets I was interested in. After two years, it was between Sony XBR, Samsung F series LCD, Sharp Aquos LCD and for the plasmas, I looked at Panasonic 58″ 700U set (about $3.3k on sale) as well as Pioneer 5080HD (which is probably the best plasma out there and was selling for about $3.5k).
I settled on the LCD set so it came down to either the Panny or the Sony 52″ XBR4. Decision was now based on technology - plasma vs LCD and LCD won out for the clarity of the picture and not having to worry about burn-in (even with the pixel shifts on the plasma, you still have burn-in to content with). When you look at these two sets side by side, the clear choice is Sony for all the reason mentioned within these reviews. Samsung was a close second but Sony just seemed a bit better. Many manufacturers are focusing their R&D dollars on LCD, bypassing plasma all together.
Sony is one of them and no longer sells plasma. I bought the Sony 52″ XBR4 last week (Circuit City had a promo for $2,999 which is an incredible price for this top rated set), and got it delivered the day before the super bowl.
Tip #1: don’t be tempted to buy your LCD online saving yourself a couple hundred dollars. Buy it local so if something goes wrong, you won’t have to jump through hoops to get it taken care of. Already had ordered the Sanus tilt mount (via Amazon. Btw, buy it there and you’ll save over $100).
Mounted the Sanus which is great and took me about 2 hrs - would have taken me 1 hr but my stud finder failed on me (saved over $400 from having the big box stores do it. Trust me, you can do this mount yourself if you can find the studs. Although it calls for installing it on two studs, I was able to expand the Sanus bracket to reach a 3rd stud). Installing the brackets on the TV took 10 minutes, mounting it to the wall another 5 minutes. You need two people to get this set out of the box and to lift it to your wall mount. My wife was that second person and she’s 5′ 2″ and weighs 110lbs. It was a struggle but we did it.
Tip 2: make your cut-outs on the wall to run your cables before you mount the TV and also connect your HDMI or component video cables before you mount the TV to the wall. Use a level to make sure the mount on the wall is set right. I’m running the top Monster HDMI 1000HD cable (again, only $89 on Amazon but $179 at the store) from the HDMI 1 input to the HD cable box (Time Warner).
Tip 3: Time Warner does not support HDMI and tries to get you to use their component video cables. Don’t do this. Stick with the HDMI 1000HD cable that supports 10.2 Gbps (ultra high speed) and supports 120 Hz. What an incredible difference. Circuit City actually demonstrates these two technologies (HDMI vs component video) so ck it out there.
Tip 4: By all means, go with a reputable cable manufacture like Monster. Pay the little extra to get the best technology out there. Don’t settle for these “other” wannabes who sell an HDMI cable for $30. You get what you pay for, plus Monster guarantees their technology for ever. Why would you hook up a inferior cable to a top notch TV. As for setting up the TV, all I did was set the input source to HDMI 1 and that’s it. Went to the Time Warner HD channels (say, Discovery or the History channel) and was blown away by the picture quality. Even the standard channels were coming in at 720p. I still have to play with the adjustments on the set to get the best out of this TV. Here’s where I need advice so if any of you gurus out there can direct me, please do so. Watched the super bowl on the Fox HD channel (yes, go Giants) and was again very impressed with the quality and clarity of the picture. Was actually receiving this channel at 720p, not 1080i. Don’t know if this is normal or which is best but do know the picture was incredible.
Tip #5: when using the screen button on the remote, go with “full” as opposed to “wide zoom”. That way, you will still fill the screen without distorting the images. Will be buying a new receiver (perhaps a 7.1 set) and getting in-wall speakers (probably the JBL HTI 8, on sale for $149, regular price $599 at Amazon) and at some point, a blu-ray player (not sure on the brand yet, still researching) any recommendations on a receiver/speaker, blu-ray player, please post them so others can hear of your setup. Also bought the Monster HTS1600 power center (saved over $100 on Amazon). Tip#6: By all means, protect your investment. Go with a power center as opposed to a simple surge protector. Overall, I am extremely satisfied with this purchase and thrilled by the quality of the product. Tip #7: As Nike would say, JUST DO IT, buy this Sony. Sure, the price will still come down over the next year or so, but that’s a year or so you won’t experience HD. You will not regret this purchase. This TV is tops for all the reasons noted here and within all the other threads. One last tidbit. Consumer Reports latest issue just rated this 52″ XBR4 #1. Ck it out.
Customer Review:
Stunning, Absolutely outstanding display technology. Like many others, months of research led me to purchase this. I could not be more delighted with this Television, or my experience with Amazon.
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