Sony Bravia KDL50W800C (50")
Verified16 reviews
Say NO to software upgrades – Just wanted to provide an update on initial review of this now discontinued TV. Still would not touch another Sony , I went to Aldi and got a 50" cheapie for 1/7th of the price of a Sony . No fancy features but that works to this day , now as the kitchen TV. After Sony TV run out of warranty I pulled it apart and found that other then one of… Read more
the backlight LED strips drawing more current the hardware was fine. The issue was with Sony software updates which as a safety measure for newer TVs it lowered the threshold current where backlight would cause the TV to shutdown with error code. After contacting Sony to obtain one of their older versions I was informed that it was not possible to downgrade to an older versions of software which made the TV obsolete. Eventually I found a copy of earlier software on the net which I knew it would work with my TV and edited the line of code with version number and renamed the file to a higher number then what my Sony tv had at the time which tricked the tv into accepting it as a new upgrade. After rebooting the TV worked again and did so until a couple of months ago when tv finally died. The lesson I learned here is to say NO to any tv "updates" because the latest software is not always the best option for an older tv.
Long lasting- Great quality – Bought this TV 6 years back. Never ever had an issue other than having to replace the report. Works great with 3D glasses. Great quality video. Support USB, Wireless, HDMI and other common connection methods. Show details
Sony WAS a Premium brand TV – Bought this TV 6-8 years ago In-store from TGG. A 100 Mhz was supposed to be 'a class abovve'. NOT SO. Sony were considered to be a premium brand in the ilk of National (showing my age perhaps), Panasonic, Apple, and was thought to be a reliable & trouble free option. Nothing could have been further from the truth, from the experience with this… Read more
TV
I will never buy a Sony TV again. Since 6 months of age the TV has repeatedly lost its Wi-fi connection. The service people (european electronics) replaced all then boards and the wifi adapter.
It was great for 6 months, then started doing the same thing again with an additional message displayed 'unable to download'. Never found out why the message.
The wi-fi adapter was re-replaced by the same service company. Since then it has fallen out of warranty (original and the 3 month warranty from the service group). YES only 3 months reputation on it!!
Now we have to hard reset it at least 3 times a week. It rarely looses wifi (signal now a little stronger), however it refuses to return to 'digital tv category', IF I have been using an attached device (like foxtel or fetch). IT goes instead to 'Google streaming channels', of which I have little interest (less so now).
A reset is the ONLY thing that has a chance of bringing it back to normal...90% of the time.
It could also (when this occurs) advise that it has lost ALL digital channels, or none have been saved. A reset again returns the channel listing and perhaps even the digital txv category.
Will never buy this brand again, one of a number of brands that have lost the plot and their loyal; customer base, I am guessing.
Don't buy this rubish – Since we bought this TV five years ago, we had nothing but issues, glitches, doesn't turn on...ect. sony customer service is ZERO. Had it repaired under the extended warranty from JBHFI but this rubish TV always have issues. if any one out there thinking of buying SONY TV please walk away as you are wasting your money. Also you get no support from Sony.
Sony Brava KDL -50W800C – The picture quality appears superior then my old equivalent Samsung (which blew the motherboard after 2 years). I'm surprised to read about the rebotting issue even though I have had it occur to me a few times over the last 5 years (since I purchased the tv) it has never been a long term problem. Maybe the firmware fixed my issues or I'm just lucky.
Problems all the since I'v got this crap TV! TV repair man told me that Do not buy SONY Bravia! – If you don't waist your money and your time, DO NOT BUY SONY TV!!! The TV switched off suddenly, When you use time recording while watching youtube then the vioce come from TV and Youtube! Internet connection are faulty! Show details
Only lasted 3 years. Pathetic customer service and dishonest pricing – Picture quality was decent, the major issue here was reliability and customer service. The TV stopped working after merely 3 years, it is stuck in a startup loop when powered on. This seems to be an extremely common problem. Can't help but be reminded of the "Sony Timer" urban legend. Sony customer service initially offered a 15% discount on a… Read more
new TV as part of a trade-in deal, and asked me to pick a TV from their website. They kept following up daily after I said I'd think about it, as I am not so confident of the quality since the TV only lasted 3 years. The discount was then extended to 30%, so I thought I'd give them another chance.
When it came to processing the trade-in, Sony tells me the discount would be applied to the full retail price. Which is completely fine and expected, but the problem here is that their website was not showing RRP, it only displayed one price, which one would assume was the retail price as there were no indications of it being something else. But according to Sony, the price displayed was already-discounted, and when asked why the RRP was not displayed, they simply blamed it on "an IT issue". An online store that isn't able to clearly display original/discounted prices is simply pathetic.
The website price ended up being even cheaper than the price after a 30% "discount", and I was "advised" to purchase directly from the website as it is "more economical than the trade-in". Thank you Einstein. This offered me absolutely no incentive to proceed with the trade-in, as this was equivalent to just buying a replacement TV out of pocket.
At this point I feel the whole ordeal was very disingenuous on Sony's part, and there was zero effort in trying to retain an existing customer. I explained my frustrations but in the end there was no effort to improve the situation at all by Sony. Unfortunately it has been a complete waste of time but I've decided to recycle the TV and stay away from all Sony products in the future.
Sony Bravia KDL50W800C stops operating after 3 years – Purchased just 3 years ago, TV is stuck on a constant update loop. TV automatically turns on, the 4 update icons appear and start doing their thing... moments later the TV automatically shuts itself off and repeats the process. All of the online options like hard reset, holding buttons down while the plug is out dont work. Posting this review… Read more
now in the hope it will help others find an answer to this problem.
After searching the internet for answers to our TV problem we found that there are soooo many other people experiencing the very same issue with this TV and other similar Sony models.
Turns out its the motherboard and to replace it... well it isnt considered a cheap repair! Buying a new, cheaper brand TV with 3 times the warranty Sony offer would be the better option.
The TV itself while working...
Nice slim lightweight TV Looks nice and sleek Has Netflix installed and a list of other Apps as well.
Mirroring feature to connect device ms such as phones and tablets to play directly from the device... this feature was always a bit hit and miss. When it worked it was great.. we went through a patch where this feature just played up time and time again. Constantly updating to find a fix.
Functionally ... the TV was great when working, but to be honest... the picture quality isnt as great as a MUCH cheaper brand we also have in our house. I guess youd expect much more from a Sony with a much higher price tag.
All in all...
0 out of 5 stars.
Price tag should give a little more longevity. The cheaper Brands have got on average 3 times the longevity on the Sony... Sorry Sony... youve lost this families confidence!
Also taking into consideration the large number of people with the same issue... it really isn't good enough for what you pay for the 'higher end' Sony. Maybe Sony should rethink their Warranty to restore some faith in the Brand.
My Sony Bravia KDL50W800C stops operating just after 3 years – Mum just wants a TV that is easy enough to set up and does the job it should. After 3 years of light domestic use, it now keeps rebooting itself. As advised, we took it to the Sony Authorized Service Centre, it costs $55 to just do the check. Then we were given $350+ quote for the repair of the mainboard. I'm very disappointed because it simply fails to meet a reasonable expectation of a Sony TV. Show details
It was good when it worked. Broke down after 2 years. I wouldn't recommend – It was a wonderful tv the first two years that it worked, but considering the quality of brand and the price paid, I would hope that it was going to last longer than two years before it stopped working. The screen has lines and ghosting. It has been sent it for service but luckily we have a back up tv as it's still in service 6 weeks later and… Read more
with the estimation to be a 12 week service. Come on Sony! You want loyal customers, sticking to your products, you need to up the game in repairs.
Such a great 1080p TV – This TV was perfect for what I needed it for. I bought this particular model because of it's ultra-fast response times which are very handy for video games and the like. The colour and picture quality are superb for an older TV and even though it's only a 1080p panel I don't feel the overwhelming need to upgrade to something in 4K just yet. The… Read more
small bezels around the screen also give it a super sharp appearance that compliments any room. It also plays super well with other technology such as my PS4 Pro and my soundbar. Top notch Sony!
Best TV – Bought my first tv set in Australia from Dicksmith in 2015. It has nice colours, volume and picture quality. Smart tv with pair of 3d glasses gives a very good deal. Enjoyed throughout the 3D movies. However this model discontinued very quickly. I wish it can stays for logn so I can buy another one. Show details
Extremely annoying demo mood – I lost my remote. Seems like there is no use of this damn TV without the remote. I manually used HDMI for a while. But while I'm watching sometime through the HDMI the damn demo video keeps coming up. What the hell is wrong with Sony. There should have been buttons that i could use some features when i don't have remote. Show details
Find out how Sony Bravia KDL50W800C (50") compares to other Full HD TVs
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Hard to beat – This TV is a great all-rounder with a great picture and is great for gamers as it has the lowest input lag. It has 4 HDMI inputs as well which is rare to find. It also has 3D which I love but some people don't like having the feature for some reason. The stand looks great and doubles as a VESA stand if you want to wall mount it. The smart TV… Read more
function is terrible and slow as you'd expect and I'd recommend using another box for smart functions. The speakers are better than most but still, like all slim panel TV's, you should get a sound bar. Sony Bravias are known for lasting quality.
Bravo Sony Bravia! What a machine! – This smart television is tops. The picture quality is superb and the sound is great. We are older yet I find it easy to operate.we have returned home after travelling for several years and needed a house lot of furniture so were on a fairly tight budget however I enjoy my television and wanted to get a good quality television. I haven't regretted… Read more
getting the Bravia as it has lived up to all that it promised. We haven't taken full use of the smart component as we are contracted with another mobile internet service but I can see that when we get the internet to the house it offers a whole more! The television also looks good. It has a nice thin flat screen and sits on a firm chrome base. From what I can see it is easy to use the smart component but it also works wonderfully well just as an ordinary television!
Worst Bravia I ever bought – This is the worst buy ever. If I could return it, I would have. Why? 1. Screen dimming and brighting on dark scenes - no matter what settings you play with, it continues; 2. Android resets settings - I have to reprogram the timer every two weeks; 3. Much like an Apple/Android device - needs restarting/resetting every so often; 4. Sound remains… Read more
on for a couple of seconds after switching the TV off!;
5. Unlike other TVs, I am unable to adjust the volume down to an acceptable level after muting it (know what I'm talking about?).
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