Skip to main content

Sony’s blinding 85-inch 8K TV made us squint, while its OLED made us smile

We walked into Sony’s CES 2018 press conference expecting to see the company’s new A8F OLED TV — and it is gorgeous, as expected — but the 85-inch 8K HDR TV prototype that’s on display came as a complete shock, and now we’re giddy with excitement.

This show is all about looking to the future. Manufacturers view this massive trade show as their prime opportunity to show what they’ve got, and in the case of television, paint a brilliant picture of the future. While Samsung’s 146-inch MicroLED “The Wall” TV is a stellar example of this, Sony’s 10,000 nit-capable 85-inch 8K HDR television represents a paradigm shift for LED/LCD TVs, and redefines what high dynamic range (HDR) could mean in the future.

Key Specs

  • 85-inch
  • 8K
  • HDR
  • 10,000 nits
  • Full Array Local Dimming

Let’s start with the fact that Sony has been delivering outstanding LED/LCD TVs over the past few years, routinely landing models on our lists of Best TVs You Can Buy. This is a credit to Sony’s outstanding processing, most recently issued in the form of its 4K HDR X1 Extreme chips, which render outstanding pictures, brilliant and accurate colors, and sparkling HDR contrast. This latest TV utilizes similar processing technology, optimized for 8K resolution and upscaling, but tacks on an incredibly advanced Full Array Local Dimming (FALD) baklight system which, when paired with Sony’s LCD panels, results in an almost eye-blistering 10,000 nit peak luminance.

You don’t have to be a tech expert to sense that 10,000 nits sounds like a lot of … well, nits. But as a quick explainer: Nits are a measurement of brightness — think of it as shorthand for candelas per meter squared (cd/m2), or lux. To put things into perspective, until now, the  brightest TVs on the consumer market peaked at about 2,000 nits. Sony’s latest TV can get 5 times brighter than the best TVs sold to date.

It’s fair to wonder if we need a TV that can get that bright. Really, do we want to feel like we’re staring at the sun when looking at a picture of the sun on our TVs? No, of course we don’t. But that’s not how Sony will use this newly developed power. They say that, with great power comes great responsibility, and though Sony stops short of being a superhero, it does need to judiciously handle how that brightness is applied.

The point here is that Sony has the ability to add spectacular highlights to HDR images that are extremely intense. An image of the sun will never be rendered at this TV’s full brightness capabilities. Rather, the reflection of sun off of small surfaces will be given extra juice to help develop a more lifelike, vibrant image — something closer to what we experience in real life. And that’s that point of HDR imaging: to deliver a picture that is closer to what we see in day-to-day life — something that feels more familiar and real.

You can’t really see how spectacular Sony’s unnamed prototype TV is in our video — we don’t have the camera to capture it, and no other TV or computer monitor can show it off yet. We do, however, hope that our unfettered enthusiasm gives some indication of just how exciting we find this TV technology. To be sure, it proves that OLED and MicroLED aren’t going to kill LCD-based TVs any time soon — there’s still room to innovate.

A8F OLED TV

It’s almost unfair that Sony’s 85-inch 8K HDR TV is stealing all the headlines, because the company’s new OLED — a follow-up to the outstanding Bravia A1E OLED launched last year — is deserving of a great deal of attention as well.

The differences between the A8F and the A1E, which will continue to be sold as Sony’s flagship OLED, are few, and mostly brought down to form factor. The new OLED has a more conventional stand, and, therefore, a more conventional back than the easel-style A1E OLED. This means two things: easier setup for the owner, and lower cost. In other words, its a more practical, conventional OLED TV that should be less expensive than Sony’s flagship, and more competitive with OLED TVs offered by LG and Panasonic.

Enjoy our video of these two outstanding Sony televisions, and be sure to check out our CES page, where you’ll find nonstop coverage of all the latest tech being shown aon the CES 2018 show floor. For even more CES fun, you can also check out our 8-hour a day live broadcast from the show at our YouTube channel.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Caleb Denison
Digital Trends Editor at Large Caleb Denison is a sought-after writer, speaker, and television correspondent with unmatched…
Hisense debuts its first 8K Roku TV, the 75-inch U800GR
Hisense U800GR 8k Roku TV.

We're still several weeks away from CES 2022, but don't tell Hisense that. The company has decided it doesn't need a big, splashy Las Vegas show to show off its big, splashy new Roku TV, which also happens to be its first Roku TV to offer 8K resolution: The Hisense U800GR, which is available December 8 from Best Buy and Amazon for $2,700.

The U800GR packs Hisense's ULED display technology, which in this case means a quantum dot LED panel with a native 120Hz refresh rate and up to 1,000 nits of brightness. Gamers will appreciate the extra smoothness this brings to their fast-action games, as well as the TV's support of auto low-latency mode (ALLM) and variable refresh rate (VRR). You get Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos support, in addition to HDR10 and HLG. Hisense says there are 180 local dimming zones for better contrast and black levels.

Read more
Hisense’s 2021 TV lineup: 8K, Dual-Cell, and gamer-friendly features
The Hisense U8G 4K ULED HDR TV in a living room.

Today, in a hilarious prerecorded video hosted by Community's Joel McHale, Hisense launched its 2021 smart TV lineup, which includes the company's first 8K Roku TV and the first TV in the U.S. to offer Dual-Cell technology. What will these TVs cost, when can you buy them, and exactly which features can you expect? We've got all of the details.
U9DG Series: 4K ULED XD TV with Dual-Cell Technology

You're probably familiar with terms like quantum dots, HDR, and 4K resolution, but Hisense's new U9DG Series brings a new buzzword: Dual-Cell technology.

Read more
Sony CES 2021 TV lineup: Sony is back In a big way
A Sony television sits in a futuristic-looking living room.

CES 2021 is underway, though not quite yet officially. The best new TVs of 2021 we’ve been looking forward to hearing about have been announced. You might be surprised to learn that Sony, which is usually the last to make its reveal, came out early, and big. This announcement comes alongside the Samsung QLED NEO, TCL 6 Series, and LG TV lineup.

Let's start at the top of the new lineup, but hang with me because the last TV I want to talk about is probably the most exciting one and you’re going to want to know why.
Master Series Z9J

Read more