Sony LCD TV KDL-32W650A Review
By Chris Heinonen on
Performance
Value
Overall
Just a decade ago, the best displays you could buy for your home were close to 30” in size. CRTs were unable to go much larger so displays like the Sony KD-34XBR960 were state-of-the-art then. Now 32” displays are seemingly relegated to entry-level, low-end models despite being the best-selling TV size.
For many people 32” is an ideal size. They have smaller apartments or condos, or want a high-quality TV in a room that doesn’t dominate the space. Some vendors release premium 32” displays in Europe and Asia where space is more of a concern but not in the USA. This year Sony is bucking that trend by releasing the KDL-32W650A LCD TV.
The 32” W650A comes in at the middle of the Sony LCD range, but is a higher end 32” LCD than almost anyone else produces. With full 1920x1080p resolution, WiFi, streaming content, Reality Creation technology and more, the 650A is not lacking for features. Straight out of the box, the display impresses me.
Setting It Up
Setting up the 650A requires attaching the stand, but it isn’t your usual stand. The included stand can function as a tabletop stand or as a wall mount. It is a bit of an ingenious design on Sony’s part to make it work as both. The downside is that the display lacks VESA mounting holes for a full-motion stand but most people typically mount a display flat.
After the quick stand attachment you can connect your devices, but not too many. In one of the few downsides I found for the W650A, there is only a pair of HDMI inputs on the rear. One is ARC compatible so you can easily use it with a HDMI equipped sound bar but I’d still prefer more. There are component and composite video connections but I’d really like at least 3 HDMI inputs on a display of this caliber. All the inputs are side or bottom mounted, not rear, so it is easy to keep it flat against the wall.
As soon as the W650A is connected I turned it on and used a pair of test discs, World of Wonder and Spears & Munsil on Blu-ray, to set up the basic controls. I used the Cinema 1 mode as it looked the most accurate and made a few small adjustments. Then I used my full setup of calibration gear to get everything really dialed in.
I shouldn’t have bothered.
The W650A comes as well calibrated out of the box as anything I have seen. The gamma is spot-on in cinema mode to 2.4 and the grayscale is basically perfect. The only thing I set was getting the backlight level correct (a setting of 3 produces 35 ftL while 4 produces 40 fL) as no other control is adjusted by more than 1. Save your money on a calibration if you buy the W650A as it just doesn’t need it. It looks and measures perfect out of the box. Full details on the best and after calibration numbers, and other test data, are found on the second page.
How Does It Look?
In use the W650A is even better. It handles the darkest of dark scenes, the hilltop from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, with ease. The last LCD I reviewed is a cloudy, muddled mess on this scene. The Sony is clear with great black level definition and loads of shadow detail. Action is clear and crisp on the 120 Hz panel and colors are accurate. Having owned one of those amazing 34” XBR960 CRT displays, I am having flashbacks to the joys of a small, beautiful display.
Other films continue to show off what the Sony can do. Zero Dark Thirty has incredibly clarity and detail on the W650A. You can make out the subtle dark shades and folds in a black suit at the CIA while scenes in the desert are bright and vivid. The nighttime raid on the bin Laden compound is easy to follow and make out despite the incredibly dark shadows it often has.
Amelie and its bright, imaginary dream world of Paris pop off the screen on the W650A. In their bar encounter, the skin of Amelie Poulan is warm and smooth while that of Dominique Bretodeau has the worn creases and wrinkles of time. The blue sky of director Jean-Piere Jeunet’s imagination is just as he wants it to be: startlingly real but dreamlike at the same time.
The W650A has a wide range of streaming content at your disposal as well. It has the proprietary Sony Music and Video unlimited services that other companies can’t offer and the main services as well: Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon On Demand and more. Sony has a bit of a custom interface for Hulu Plus and Amazon On Demand while Netflix uses the standard Netflix one. Setting them up is reasonably easy but I do with Sony let you enter all the credentials online instead of some online and some with the remote.
Netflix plays back very well though did take a while to buffer for HD content. Amazon On Demand works great with my Prime subscription and Hulu Plus also looks great. Even on a 32” display I can still tell the difference between Blu-ray and streaming content but having the full array of services integrated into the display is useful and saves you a valuable HDMI input.
Sony needs a bit of congratulations on the on-screen display for the W650A. Fast, graphical, and easy to use, it puts other OSDs that I have recently used to shame. This is something I first saw on the STR-DN1040 receiver and something that continues here. I only hope that more vendors can learn from this and start to make their equipment more intuitive to use.
Bench Test Data and Analysis
I stated in the review that the Sony KDL-32W650A does not really need a calibration and I mean that. Straight out of the box I set it to the Cinema 1 mode and adjusted the primary controls (Color, Tint, Brightness, Contrast, Sharpness) using test discs and a color filter. I disabled all the fancy processing features that really aren’t necessary and got a result that is almost textbook perfect. CalMAN 5.1.2 is used for testing the display with an AccuPel DVG-5000 pattern generator along with C6 and i1Pro meters.
Pre-Calibration
The average grayscale dE2000 is only 1.22 without a calibration. No value is above 3, which is considered the minimum error to be visible. Our gamma tracks with an average of 2.37, very close to the 2.40 target that we are after. The average dE2000 error for primary and secondary color saturations is 1.37 and the average error for the massive color checker chart in CalMAN 5.1.2 is only 1.70. All of these values are below what is visible to most people.
Setting the light output of the Sony to 36 foot Lamberts (ftL), the minimum light level with an all-black screen is 0.0065 ftL. This resulting contrast ratio is 5565:1 which is very nice for a LCD set. Sony doesn’t use any tricks like turning the backlight off to achieve that number either. The set just produces a very nice black level as I can see when watching films.
The only issue I can find with the KDL-32W650A before calibration is that skin tones are a bit off. They have a bit too much red push to them, but the rest of the gamut it well controlled.
Post-Calibration
Post-Calibration there is really no change. I tweaked some setting by 1, but otherwise left everything at the defaults. Our grayscale error has fallen to 0.89 on average, which is still invisible. The largest change is that 100% white now has a lower maximum error thanks to the white balance adjustment, so there are no errors visible at all. Our gamma is slightly worse at 2.34 but not by much. The contrast ratio increased to 6313:1 thanks to a lower black reading. That reading is within the margin of error for the C6 meter, so effectively the contrast ratios are the same.
We do see a bit of a problem in the saturations and color checker charts now. Our average error for Saturations has fallen slightly, but we actually have more readings above the visible line of 3.0. We also see that skin tones have gotten a bit worse as our red push increased from before. Even though our averages have improved, we actually have more visible errors than we did before.
After the calibration and consulting the charts, I wound up resetting everything back to its previous levels except for white balance. As the white balance was only adjusted by a single click, there is truly no need to calibrate the Sony. You’ll only serve to make the picture worse it seems.
Video Processing
The KDL-32W650A flew through my video processing tests with HD material. Film and Video content were both deinterlaced properly, though interlaced HD film content is very rare. It can handle all colorspaces correctly (RGB, YCbCr 4:2:2 and YCbCr 4:4:4) and does not introduce any errors to the image. The only processing test that failed is for 480i resolution film content. If you are going to watch a DVD on the Sony, use a player that at least converts it to 480p first and you’ll have no issues. Players that output DVDs at 480i are very rare anyway.
On the test bench the Sony performs remarkably well. It is one of the best performing displays I have ever tested out of the box, and shows that Sony really has tried to put out the best performing display they can in a 32” package.
| Calibration Summary |
|---|
| Measurement | Pre-Calibration | Post-Calibration |
|---|---|---|
| Contrast Ratio: | 5565:1 | 6313:1 |
| White Level: | 36.17 ftL | 36.23 ftL |
| Black Level: | 0.0065 ftL | 0.0057 ftL |
| Gamma Point: | 2.37 | 2.34 |
| Average Grayscale dE2000: | 1.2206 | 0.89 |
| Average Saturations dE2000: | 1.37 | 1.35 |
| Average Color Checker dE2000: | 1.70 | 1.93 |
| Summary: | The Sony KDL-32W650A is virtually perfect out of the box in the Cinema 1 preset. Use a test disc to get the basic controls right and then leave it alone for a stunning image. | |
What Can Be Improved
One feature that disappointed me with the W650A is the black frame insertion. Called LED Motion Mode, it inserts black frames between video frames to produce more fluid motion and a more film-like image. It does what it says, but it adds some noticeable flicker and drops the light output to an unreasonably low-level. Even with the backlight at maximum in a pitch-black room I found it too dark to use. It’s too bad as it is a feature I really like.
The major downside that people will have with the KDL-32W650A is value. It is hard to choose a 32” display for $650 when you can get a reference-quality 50” plasma for $1,000 or a cheaper 32” Smart TV for $300. If you have the room for something like the Panasonic ST60 Plasma then it is impossible to deny that it is a better value. If you don’t have that much space, or don’t want a display that large, then I don’t know of a 32” display with a better image than the KDL-32W650A.
Conclusions
I’d like to see an extra HDMI input, and some VESA mounting holes, but that is it for flaws on the KDL-32W650A. For gamers it will do well as game mode produces only 32ms of lag. Cinema produces 72ms of lag in comparison so you are best served in the game mode. For watching movies and TV it is nothing short of stunning. I’d like to keep it as a reference monitor for evaluating Blu-ray players next to my computer if I could.
If you have space constraints or want a smaller set, but don’t want to sacrifice image quality, go check out the KDL-32W650A. It might be the only game in town, but Sony has knocked this one out of the park where image quality is concerned.
Pros
Beautiful image, good streaming content, included wall mount
Cons
Only 2 HDMI, No VESA Mounting, Price
Summary
It is expensive, but the KDL-32W650A has what matters: a beautiful image. If you don't want a 50" or larger TV and want a reference level image, it should be your first audition.
MLegend says
Oh my gosh, thank you so much for this review! I’ve been looking for settings and input lag results for this tv for so long. I appreciate it very much. Thank you!
MLegend says
Could you maybe post the full settings for the pre-calibrated results since you seemed to prefer them to post-calibrated? Please :)
chrisheinonen says
The only adjustments made pre-calibration were done using the Disney World of Wonder Blu-ray and Spears and Munsil HD Benchmark, Version 2 in order to set contrast and brightness correctly. The defaults (Warm 2 color, -2 for Gamma) with those set correctly, which you can do by eye with a disc, resulted in a practically perfect image.
MLegend says
Thanks Chris. Did you just leave everything else on the default setting?
Chris Heinonen says
Yes. The cinema setting and then just adjust the controls you can do with a disc correctly and it will be as good as it really gets.
MLegend says
Thank you.
Mayank says
Is this the best in class Led tv??
Chris Heinonen says
Of the ones I have tested or read reviews of, yes. The accuracy is top notch and the image itself is fantastic. It really is amazing how great an image you get for $650 now compared to a few years ago.
Anthony Khoury says
hello i just brought this Tv, i have connected to my Pc with a AMD 7870 video card (hdmi cable) but im not getting 120Hz i have read that HDMI doesn’t deliver that, in windows 8 just 60hz. how can i achieve 120hz in my pc ? use the other mini displayport of my video card? ohh and something else, i read the manual of my KDL-32W650A and i dint see 120Hz on the specifications just 60hz and dint read motion-flow 240 in any place.. :/ please help sorry my bad english
Chris Heinonen says
Anthony,
Even for TVs that use a 120Hz or 240Hz panel, they only accept a 60Hz input at the maximum. The HDMI chips that they use don’t allow for higher rates than that. To display things at 120Hz or 240Hz they either repeat frames (usually only for films that are 24Hz) or interpolate frames to create the appearance of faster motion.
Also many vendors are faking their 120Hz and 240Hz and so on specifications. A 120Hz TV now might only be a 60Hz panel with a light that flashes more often to create the illusion of a faster one. Unfortunately this is really hard to tell without actually talking to them directly.
Anthony Khoury says
Hello and thanks for the fast response, i understand better now.
so this TV is native 60Hz ? because i search in amazon and it says 60Hz, on the original box or manuals i went to Sony web and i didn’t read 120Hz no were and in the place i brought it says 120HZ and it cost me more money. so i really want to know if this is native 60HZ or native 120Hz
even knowing im not gonna get 120Hz because of what you explain me, but i can send back the TV because cost me more, just for the fact that they put on the sticker 120Hz. thanks
Chris Heinonen says
I think all 32″ TVs that I’m aware of are just 60Hz. They use backlighting tricks to try to enhance motion resolution and approximate a 120Hz set. The Sony uses black frame insertion, where it turns off the backlight for a second, to do this. I like black frame insertion typically, but the way the Sony implements it makes the image too dark.
Anthony Khoury says
Thanks Chris, very useful information !! saludos desde la Republica Dominicana! : )
Jim says
I am looking to purchase since the motionflow is supposed to be double
in this unit at 240hz – is this another marketing trick do you think or
genuine? I had the 60hz version and it the motionflow was a bit blurry.
Just a tip, if you live in Canada the unit has been on sale at Futureshop for $549.00 – I’ve watch the pricing gradually decrease, seems Sony is still finding the right price.
Thanks
Chris Heinonen says
Jim,
The controls that would indicate that the panel is 120 Hz or 240 Hz are absent on this set. It is a 60 Hz set that uses backlighting tricks to simulate 120 Hz. No 32″ set currently on the market runs at 120 Hz that I’m aware of.
Jim says
Thank you. I read the article but do you have an opinion on motion blurriness? High, low or average? I will be watching a few HD channels OTA (Over the Air). Also, do you sell the test discs? Thx!
Chris Heinonen says
Jim,
The motion blur was around average for a set this size. The Samsung F5000 is a little bit better because you can use the scanning backlight on it, but none of them are worlds better.
For the test discs, the links in the article point you to Amazon to pick them up. I don’t sell them myself, but buying them through the links helps support the site.
Jim says
Ok thank you for that. I don’t see we have the F5000 in Canada other than 22″, too small, most likely the Sony.
Jim says
Final question, what 32 inch in your opinion has the best motion control (that is reduces the blurriness). I know there is a trade off between darkness and performance, at least from what I’ve read. You’re right about the 60hz. Or what would you suggest is the minimum tv size to get a great motion control. Thanks
Jim says
Update:
I purchased the Samsung UN32F6300 – it’s a 120Hz refresh rate with 240hz motion. Very happy with the motion control. It’s was a great deal at $447.99 for Black Friday that the Sony couldn’t compete with.
I’ve found the 240hz is definitely worth the increase in price when looking for better motion control.
Philip says
Jim
Would like to know where the audio out jack is located.
Thanks
Chris Heinonen says
On the back there is an optical audio output you can see in the exterior photos. One of the HDMI inputs is also ARC compatible if you choose a sound bar or receiver with Audio Return Channel support. Thanks.
Heytham says
Great review. Just one question, any backlight bleeding and is it good for gaming?
Chris Heinonen says
There is a small bit of backlight bleed in the corners, what you’ll see on any LCD, but nothing excessive. It’s a very low level compared to other LCDs.
For gaming, the game mode has 32ms of lag when I measured it. The non-game modes are more than double that, so make sure to use the game mode. 32ms is pretty good for a TV. CNet has a long list of tested displays here: http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33199_7-57587317-221/game-mode-on-cnet-tests-tvs-for-input-lag/
not my real name says
I don’t see any information on internet access, nor do I see any capacity to stream content from a local network server. I’ve been burned by Sony before with a network-compatible Blu-Ray player that didn’t recognize most common video formats. I’d like a clear understanding of what connectivity options exist for this unit and what media formats it can support.
Chris Heinonen says
I discussed the online streaming content, including Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon. Those all worked well for me, though Sony sometimes uses their own interface instead of the standard ones.
I did not do testing of local video files as most people don’t really use that, and there are so many different settings to try that it is impossible to test them all. I know my Oppo player won’t do .264 MKVs using the Handbrake defaults, but will do .264 MKVs with the flags set differently.
Chris Heinonen says
You should be able to use the WiFi settings to connect it to your router. As long as you have your router name and password it is an easy process. The integrated iManual will walk you through this process.
Jeff says
I just purchased one of these sets and the picture quality is fantastic. The one thing I am trying to work through is to be able to mount it using an articulated type mount. While it does come with a bracket to be able to hang it on a wall, seems that Sony has designed this set with a non-vesa mount on the back. If anyone has any experience or suggestions, that would be great. Thanks.
Chris Heinonen says
Sony really designed this for the included stand/mount combination, but I’ll be interested to see if someone else has figured out a way to use a standard VESA mount with it.
Darkmind says
I have not found any information regarding what panel type is used on this TV. I mean, is it an IPS or VA LCD panel type (I know it says LED LCD but it’s absolutely irrelevant unless it’s clearly stated whether it’s IPS or VA). Also, what contrast ratio has it got? If it’s got around 800:1 to 1000:1 and doesn’t alter colors AT ALL and it has some glow from angles on dark images, then it’s most likely an IPS panel. If it has 3000:1 – like contrast ratios and alters colors and contrast levels from sides but especially from above, then it’s most likely a VA panel. I would only be interested in this TV if it had IPS panel. Also does it have interpolation (or motionclear/pro, whatever its name given by Sony?) Also, when considering high or higher end 32-inch TVs you may want to consider Panasonic TX-L32E6B (or E for continental Europe, same model, just different digital tuner to match the geographical region settings). If someone can provide and update, please do so.
Chris Heinonen says
It is almost certainly a VA panel as every TV uses VA aside from the Panasonic models that use IPS. Most people value the higher contrast ratios that VA can produce more than the off-axis benefits of IPS it seems.
There is no interpolation. It is a 60 Hz panel that uses backlight tricks to produce an effective 120 Hz.
Darkmind says
I have had the chance to compare the two models in store as well and the Sony appeared to have a pixelated, image, probably because of exaggerated contrast with unnatural colors, not to mention the fact that even though contrast ratio is higher than in IPS screens, it’s pointless when you move just 10-20 degrees off-axis and your perfect black becomes gray and colors shift. I find that colors in VA panels are all but natural and images also seem to lose their HD appearance, the only real benefit of VA panels is black level. Colors are much more vibrant in IPS panels, with no color loss as you move off axis and they have improved black levels more and more. With the higher-end sets bearing local dimming, there is no question that IPS panels are getting closer to the natural looks of plasma TVs than VA. IPS glow is also fixed in certain higher end displays with the use of filter. But even in the middle and lower-end market, I find that IPS are better all-round performers, with black levels being the only disadvantage. Can’t understand why people accept unnatural colors and off-axis color shift, but they should really do a side-by-side comparison to decide fully informed.
Miki says
How do u compare this with Panasonic TX-L32E6B.Have read great reviews about this model. Which is better? Please do review this model. It costs much less but provides great picture afaik.
Chris Heinonen says
I will see if I can get one in for review, but I can’t guarantee anything.
michael says
The vesa mount thing is irrelevant because the stand is actually a wall mount too. The reviewer should have noted that.
Chris Heinonen says
The included stand does work as a wall mount, but only as the most basic one. The lack of a VESA mount means you can only mount it flat against the wall and not with tilt, swivel, or any extension at all. The free wall mount is a nice bonus but it still needs VESA mounting holes.
Chris Heinonen says
My personal rankings would go: Contrast, Color Reproduction, Refresh Rate, Brightness, and Input Lag. Contrast is first because even if everything else is perfect, the image won’t have any pop and will be dull if the contrast ratio is poor. It’s the most important thing and why many of us love plasma so much.
Color reproduction is important, and the more you know what accurate color looks like, the more you value it as well. Beyond that, refresh rate can be important, but everyone tries to game it so much, and it’s only relative to LCD, that I don’t place as much value on it as the other items. Every LCD is plenty bright now, so to me that’s an inconsequential ranking. Unless you’re watching the TV outside, in the direct sun, in which case you should look at custom outdoor models. And I don’t play video games so input lag is meaningless to me, but I know many people care.
I’d place viewing angle above refresh rate if we are talking about an LCD. I can deal with the blur of a 60 Hz LCD OK, but if the image is totally washed out as soon as you get off-axis at all, that’s more important to me.
Chris Heinonen says
The generally accepted level for visible error is a DeltaE of 3.0 or less. If your error is below that with moving images, you can’t see the difference. With still images most people say a level of 1.0 or less is invisible. The eye is also more sensitive to errors in certain colors than others, so it’s more important to have green correct than blue.
The problem with IPS panels for TVs is that the black levels are just far worse than a VA panel. Viewing angles are better, and contrast shifts are almost nonexistent, but the black level is closer to a dark gray than black. IPS makes for fantastic PC monitors and tablets, but with a TV you really miss the lower black levels that VA can provide. This year it looks like Sony has switched to IPS for some of their panels, as you can read a review here: http://www.hdtvtest.co.uk/news/kdl55w955b-201403103661.htm
For a TV, I would still pick VA because it will provide the superior overall image due to its contrast ratios from the lower black level. Perhaps IPS can improve with better backlighting systems, but right now VA provides an overall better experience.
WOODY says
WOW! I can’t believe this review. You could have gotten just as good a review from Stevie Wonder, Helen Keller, and Ray Charles. This television set…let’s see, how can I put it best….just really stinks. We played with the color for days and could not get the skin tones to look like they should on any color or race of human beings. In trying to adjust the color temperature of the set, the set had two settings, cool and neutral. Neither brought the skin colors out as to what they should be. Most sets also have a “Warm” setting. We got onto an on line chat with a Sony rep and he gave us information as to where to go online to look up Sony’s manual on this television as to trying to make adjustments. We took his advice and did so, and the manual says that there should be 4 choices for color temperature….cool, neutral, warm 1 and warm 2. This set had neither of the warm settings. We got back to the Sony rep and he said oh that’s fixable by going to such and such a site at Sony and downloading the new software for this set, and it would give you those two settings. We don’t get our computer service thru the cable for our TV, so we could not do this, nor did we want to do this. This is a brand new television set made by Sony (Out of either Mexico or China as nothing is made in Japan like it used to be) and the software is old and out dated as the set comes right out of the box? The other thing the on line tech for Sony told us was that if we downloaded this new software for the set and it didn’t work, or it screwed up the current software in the set, that Sony would not take responsibility for it, and that we would then become the owners of the set and could not return it. Who wants crap like that for $650 bucks? The picture is not sharp and clear either even with HD TV. The colors are exaggerated. These are only a few things we found out about the set while trying to set it up. We took it back and put our old Trinitron back into the television space. It’s 20 years old, the colors are real and correct and the picture is sharp and clear. I don’t know what happened to Sony quality, but something sure did in these new TV’s and the transfer of the sets being assembled over seas to Mexico and China. This is not a quality product. If I saw it for sale at a yard sale for $25 bucks, I would not buy it. Try it out in the store before you buy. Ask for the remote and try to set it up yourselves. This television set should never have been let out of the factory. Sony should be ashamed! They’re trying to sell ice cubes to the Eskimos!
Chris Heinonen says
On Page 2 in the calibration details I mention “The only issue I can find with the KDL-32W650A before calibration is that skin tones are a bit off. They have a bit too much red push to them, but the rest of the gamut it well controlled.”
You also wouldn’t need your TV to be connected to the same cable as your Internet, you could use Wi-Fi or a USB drive with the firmware update on it.
mario says
Try with theese settings:
Image/advanced (you must choose the “personal” profile to get access to this setting)/White balance/ Gain R0 G-14 B-29/ BIAS R-1 G-3 B-8
THEN you can try to set Brightness and Contrast and Color and Tint as you wish…
It took a couple of hours with a Spyder4 and a free calibration SW (all DeltaEs under the value of 3…)
Muuuuch better!
Chris Heinonen says
Thanks for sharing your settings and trying to help out, but you should read my piece on “Sharing Calibration Settings”, where another ISF Calibrator and I test out other users settings on our TVs and find they actually make the picture worse than using the built-in settings:
https://referencehometheater.com/2013/commentary/sharing-calibration-settings-results-compared/
Each TV, even from the same model line and built in the same month, has enough variance in it that copying settings is more likely to make it worse than to improve the image.
Miki says
Still waiting for the review of Panasonic TH-L32E6D. Please do review it. Eagerly waiting for your opinion about this set.Please Please Please
Chris Heinonen says
I have asked but will ask again as I haven’t heard back about one yet.
zeu says
Hello
This tv see to have a great picture quality but the more important criteria for me is the contrast cause i always watch the tv in dark at night.
can you tell me if the black level are satisfying for you when it come to watch dark scene in a dark room (light off) ?
i mean is black in dark condition and in dark scenes look real black or is more grey then black ?
And what about the clouding ?
thank’s
Chris Heinonen says
The contrast ratio, and all the details like that, are on the second page. It measures past 6,300:1 which is the best of any 32″ LCD by far. Even with a 2.4 gamma it manages looks very good, though still can’t do shadow details as well as a plasma can at that level. I would probably try to run the gamma at 2.2-2.3 which will still provide the huge contrast ratios but slightly better shadow details.
zeu says
thank you for the quick reply.
I found on another review that this tv have at max a 2880:1 contrast ratio and it was said that at this level this tv isnt highly recomemnded for watching in dark condition.
Is that mean that there is various panel types on this TV (like on 2011 sony Tvs) causes there is a big difference between the mesures ?!
Chris Heinonen says
I’m not sure which review that was, as that contrast reading is much more different than what I saw. I don’t know if Sony is sourcing panels from two sources for it either, I only know for certain about the panel I reviewed.
Chris Heinonen says
The TV and PC Monitor will both work, though using a TV will introduce a couple issues. PCs use the full 0-255 range for RGB data while TVs only use 16-235. So if you are playing back from a PC you might lose shadow details or highlights if your PC tries to convert video content to the PC range, as many do. A PC monitor doesn’t have this issue.
More and more video card drivers have options to fix this, but you should look at your laptop’s options for an external display to see. Beyond that issue, the Sony would work fine.
One more question! says
I see, thank you for the prompt response! You saved me from making the wrong decision and wasting money. Before I make a purchase, I would like to clarify some things if that’s alright. I started comparing specs of TV’s and monitors, are the units the same (can I actually compare contrast ratios and such of a TV to a monitor)?. I ask this because when I did compare, almost every TV I came across that is a suitable size for me and was a bit pricey had higher contrast ratios, and overall higher specs. Does that mean that for entertainment purposes (primarily movies/anime, secondarily games) a TV would have a higher picture quality than a monitor?
Chris Heinonen says
Yes, a TV typically has better picture quality for movies and TV than a PC monitor will. I’ve only reviewed one PC monitor, out of dozens, with a contrast ratio over 1,500:1 but every TV I review offers that. Where a TV will fall short when being used as a PC display is if it doesn’t support full 4:4:4 chroma sampling. Every PC monitor does, but TVs don’t need to since TV content doesn’t come that way.
More details on this can be found here: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1381724/official-4-4-4-chroma-subsampling-thread
I don’t test TVs for this as it’s a fairly small niche, but often the threads at AVS Forum will have an owner that knows.
Miki says
Its been 2 months still no review for Panasonic TX-L32E6B. Chris please do review it.
Chris Heinonen says
I’ve asked for a sample but one doesn’t seem to be available. Since almost no one else reviews 32″ TVs, most companies don’t even have a sample of them available to look at, but I will continue to ask.
Miki says
Yeah i know there are very few who review 32″ TVs & hence i am more dependent on u other than the fact that u r an excellent reviewer. Please continue to try & i hope u do succeed. Thank you in advance. One more thing, if i connect my tv to my pc & use it as a monitor for gaming as well as for watching blurays; then which digital color format should i use i.e. RGB or YCbCr444?
Chris Heinonen says
With PCs you should stick to RGB. All the internal processing is RGB, unlike video content that comes as YCbCr, so that is what you are best to stick with.
Miki says
That was a quick reply.thanks. but my nvidia graphics card has option to select any one of the format. also if video content come as YCbCr & i use RGB wouldnt the colors will render incorrectly?
Chris Heinonen says
Converting YCbCr to RGB is a fairly simple formula, though some things do get it wrong. A PC is unlikely to get it wrong, and if it does it would likely be corrected very fast with an updated driver. You can test both on your TV and see which looks best. If they look identical (which there is a good chance of), then both the video card and TV process RGB and YCbCr correctly. If one looks better than just choose that.
NS22 says
Awesome, I’m glad I came across this discussion because I have a related question to ask! If you can take a look at this I will be very grateful Chris! :) I also have a setup going with a PC connected to my new TV as the main source of video content. I have a calibrator coming in, and before we get to all that, I have to decide between him calibrating while the PC is outputting in Dynamic Range Full (0-255 RGB) while the TV matches this setting with Dynamic Range Full, or if the PC should be outputting Dynamic Range Limited (16-235 RGB) while the TV settings match this with limited range. Now all the TV guys say keep both at limited before calibration, but that’s because all blu-ray players and the blu ray disks are in 16-235 range. However, all my content are .mkv files viewed through various media players, and everything I seem to play now look better when both the PC and TV are set to full dynamic range. The TV calibrators highly recommend against calibration with full range, so what should I do? :(
NS22 says
Hi Chris, I have a quick question for you if you have the time! You have mentioned in the comments here that if you want to use a TV as a PC monitor, the PC should output RGB data that matches the TV settings. Fortunately, my only criteria for the HDTV is that it can properly play movies on the VLC media player from my PC. I have heard that media players set the RGB data to 16-235 within the player window, so then is it true that I have to make sure my TV is set to that range, rather than 0-255? I am a bit confused as to what RGB data levels both my PC and HDTV have to be in to get the optimal video playback.
Chris Heinonen says
What you are really after is something with frame interpolation then. To get this you’ll need to find a display with a true 120Hz refresh rate. I just reviewed the Samsung UN32H6350, which is the only 32″ display available with this now.
If you can do a larger size, there are far more displays that do it. You just need to make sure it’s a true 120Hz or 240Hz panel and many vendors say “Effective 120Hz” which won’t provide what you are looking for.
Deejay Boor says
Oh thats it… I really appreciate your response I gonna see the Samsung that you say and I gonna look bigger TV’s too thanks a lot!