Sony Bravia W800B Series

Cactus TV – My smart 3year old Sony Bravia TV had sound but no picture just coloured vertical lines. I googled the problem and it looked like an easy fix take the back off and unplug a few leads plug them back in and off she goes. It didn’t work so I took it to the technician and he said he tried a few new parts and it didn’t fix it so put it down to the screen being cupoot. So looks like a new TV?  Show details

Ok as a TV, poor as a Smart TV – I bought one quite a few years ago and am still using it as a main TV, however it's only because I've got it connected to various set-top boxes that fulfil the Smart TV function better, namely I've got an Apple TV and an Xbox One. So I haven't been using the unit's Smart TV features for a while. Picture quality is fairly good, which is this… Read more

TV's only strong suit. Be sure to tune the picture properly by finding some recommended settings for this TV model via Google - I've done that and never had to touch the settings since.

Sound quality is poor as far as I'm concerned, and no amount of apparent software wizardry that it claims to have like "voice zoom" etc., seems to make it better. If you need to watch a movie in the evening that's at a sound level decent enough not to wake your kids, you'll find yourself constantly needing to adjust the volume because it's too quiet to hear the speech during a calm scene and then erupts loudly when there's an intense scene.

The Wi-Fi on my unit has also been dodgy, constantly disconnecting. But when I've had to use internet functionality like FreeviewPlus (yes, it's Freeview-certified) I've got it connected via ethernet so that didn't bother me personally.

The Smart TV software is very poor. Not only does it provide a bad experience, but it also slows down the startup of the TV almost every time. So even if you're not using smart functions, you're still worse off for it. A poor execution by Sony - this model would have been better off as a standard, "non-smart" HD TV, and they could have made it quicker and more responsive with basic software.

Given that it's a discontinued model, if you're reading this you're probably considering getting a used one. In this case, it may actually be a good value TV as long as the price is right, as you are indeed getting a good HD picture quality. I'd recommend getting a sound bar to go with it, and using a set-top box like Apple TV / Chromecast / Telstra TV, or a gaming console like a PS4 or Xbox One for the Smart TV apps and features.

Not a bad TV for price – Some reviews, like on a TV box that we stare at every day at some point, do come down to personal perspective. I went to this Sony from a small 15 year old Hitachi, which wasn't bad, but a new bright colourful 55inch screen was pretty cool. My 7 year old would just stand right in front of it, looking left, right, mesmerized. I can't fault… Read more

picture quality although some more expensive TV's at the store looked even better.

The remote is simple but works well. My kids have now dropped it 1000x and despite obvious damage it still works. Ports are accessible, the stand is sturdy and TV is reasonably easy to wipe and keep clean. Moving it is tricky as it's large and thin but ours lives in one spot.

We find some apps work better than others and there can be significant delays, regardless of Wi-Fi/modem strength, and some frequently fail. Rebooting or updating doesn't generally fix this. Straight internet access is even slower and poorly configured. Moving around with the standard remote is also not easy - I assume a laser pointer remote would be a solution to this.

The Sony is preset with apps so a model where you can delete what you don't want and add what you do (like a phone) would be ideal. We only use a handful of available apps, the others just clog the screen and (maybe) slow the TV down.

This TV for us came down to the quality/price acceptance. For what we paid we were very happy with what we got. We could have paid twice as much and maybe ended up with an improvement with apps and perhaps picture quality but justifying that wasn't possible - for us. If you can get this TV at a good price, get it. If you're looking at a new model, consider some of these comments as they tend to 'follow' the price point trend.

Three years later I need a new TV – The issue for me hasn't been picture quality, good. Speaker, not so good, ports, difficult to access, operating system ok. Cost of repair. Forget it. The issue is the SONY wall mount. It was difficult to install and now I must decide if that is to be replaced as well. I wish I had brought something with a universal fitting.  Show details

It's simply ok – Suggest buying a different tv - it works but there are a few issues including a delay going to the home menu once turned on, issues with connecting with Netflix (looking at google reviews this issue occurs quite a lot with Sony tvs), disconnects to the wifi quite a bit.  Show details

Not so great but ok – Have been using sony bravia KDL50W800B for the past 2 and half years and has a few important features like 3D. It has few problems with loading the apps even when the wifi signal is quite strong and occasionally disconnects from wifi automatically. It comes along with 2 3D glasses being included. The 3D quality is quite good for its price.… Read more

Powerful edge LEDs generate colorful and bright pictures from center and front parts. Sony has made improvements on this model of camera, making it provide a better experience overall. Social viewing comes as great application exhibited by Smart TV connections. Photoshare feature delivers great fun for both iOS and Android gadgets, during sharing of photos with any group. The KDL50W800B also has 2 USB and 4 HDMI inputs. The Subwoofer Out on TV is quite an interesting feature which could make up for weakened on-board performance. On the flip side it doesn't support playing all the video formats on USB which is a big let down. Also it takes lot of time to load the items in the hard disks.

LCD Panel fault after 2 years – The Bravia is a sleek and great looking TV but it is a shame the same attention to detail wasn't paid on the parts that matter. While it was working we were very happy with it, good picture and decent enough sound, and it was another part of our Sony arsenal of products. It is now the last as I definitely won't be purchasing again and will be… Read more

advising others the same. To have a major fault on a +$1000 premium brand TV after 2 years of light use is appalling. It would have been fine if Sony customer service made any attempt to appease the situation but to charge over $150 for just the assessment and then parts and labor on top of that is disgraceful. A quick search online shows that this far from an isolated incident with this product but Sony refuse to acknowledge it. The telltale sign was when dropping it to our local repairer for an assessment, the two customers in front of us were doing the exact same thing with TVs very similar in model and age, and lined up along the entrance way were 4 more Bravia models that were dropped there that week.

Unfortunately I've now lost all confidence in Sony products and will be going back to Samsung as our old LCD is still going strong after 9 years. I hope Sony has worked to rectify the problems with the W800C series but not addressing this problem with respect has in my eyes, tarnished a brand which I had always held in high regard.

Very disappointing – The actual picture is very good. However it's WiFi ability is dismal. It needs to be connected via ether network cable. This means I know have an ugly cable running up my wall. Very disappointed with Sony. It's a known problem and Sony have not offered to fix it. I will not be buying another Sony TV again.  Show details

Breathtakingly Mediocre – The picture is good, the sound is acceptable, but there's nothing smart about this TV. The YouTube app stutters and hiccups (despite a strong WiFi signal and a super-fast NBN connection), the ABC iView app stopped working sometime last year and hasn't worked since, and the media player can't play half the formats that I give it. Every press… Read more

of the remote control incurs an annoying delay, and some features are virtually unusable due to their lagginess. Even basic channel changing can be incredibly frustrating due to the device's lack of responsiveness. My brother-in-law has a cheaper LG TV that is 3 years older than this and every interaction with it is instantaneous. How Sony gets away with releasing products built on such an inferior platform is beyond me.

My advice: buy a cheap basic TV and use a Chromecast/Roku/Apple TV to get actual content onto it.

Sony Media player stop Copyright infringements – Having put my movies on a hard drive, my Sony TV stops my PC streaming to the Sony TV, due it detecting it as a non original movie disk. If I had known, I wouldn't have brought this TV. Sony own copyright to many movies and of course insists they are right to do this. Sorry, Sony you will loose it in sales of TV,and angry customers will bypass… Read more

that anyway. Otherwise, a bit laggy with memory but better than some smart TV's. Now if we could please have some smart Sony Execs to understand customers they could get in the black once again..........

Perfect TV – I am using this model since last two years and I am fully satisfied with it. Stunning picture clarity and beautiful colours. Sony is always the best in tv for picture clarity, vivid colors and resolution. I am using other gadgets from Sony and will recommend to others also. Go for Sony

Pretty good – I have been having a pretty good time with this tv. has the right colour range that i want, although i did have to change some settings in colour. I am now very satisied with the picture quality. Also the tv that i recieved has very low sound so i have to turn the volume right up.

Excellent picture & sound quality – I am using HD connection on this tv and it looks like real picture . Internet accessing is also good . Many apps like photo share, screen mirroring makes this tv great . sound is also surrounding because of which we can feel theater like sound (Dolby Digital sound )

Love this TV – Bought at Dick Smith 6 months ago and don't regret it. Beautiful picture,bright colors and nice size. Our kids watch movies and we use a lot USB port. Sound is Ok but we connected the speakers so now it's perfect. I find it easy to use,the manual is in the TV,just use your remote. I don't mind waiting 15 seconds before using the tv guide as… Read more

long as the quality and picture are excellent.

And we don't have any reflecting problems as some of the users say.

I advise not to believe everything said on this website but go to the shop and TRY the tv before buying it.

A great Sony TV – I've had this TV for about 4 months and can say I'm very happy with it. I was never fully happy with previous LED TV's I've owned from LG and Samsung, the colours and picture quality (for me) where never quite right and I could never adjust them to how I liked it. This Sony, while straight out of the box can produce a great picture, after a few… Read more

adjustments of picture settings, can produce a natural and very enjoyable picture quality, colour and blacks are very good, even with a standard def Foxtel signal. The sound quality after a few adjustments can also be OK given the size of the speakers but of course an external amp and larger speakers or a sound bar is the way to go. I also like the minumal matt finish bezel frame and the stand is very unobtrusive. The remote is not too bad given the price of the unit, the TV doesn't come with a full printed instruction manual so you have to use the built in menu which can be a bit involved as some features a bit hard to find, I don't use any of smart TV features such as the Sony Apps etc as I just want great picture quality for free to air, Foxtel, DVD and Apple TV. Overall recommended.

Great apart from shiny screen reflects everything & speakers not as good as previous Bravia – Good TV & great price $549 in Harvey Normans Boxing Day sale. Only really bought it as it was such a good price as my 6 year old Bravia was still working perfectly. Didn't want a smart TV as watch everything through Foxtel but now Netflix is here I'm using it through the app. I find the screen very reflective & can see my living room window &… Read more ·  1

kitchen lights reflected. This didn't happen with my old Bravia. Also the speakers are not as good but as I've got a sound bar it doesn't matter. After 2 months it kept switching itself off & on & the light flashed red a few times. Phoned Sony & the lady at customer support refused to give any help without the serial number. I was phoning from work on a Friday. She informed me they only open mon to fri 9 to 5. Did an online service enquiry & phoned on Monday & spoke to a very helpful guy who gave me a step by step guide to reset it. Then said I can use the factory reset instructions from the website for any future problems. Overall pretty happy but my old Bravia seemed much better quality. The stand being the wall bracket is a very good feature

CHOICES – Ticks most boxes for basic users.Totally disappointed with Store that sold me the set-- told them it was wall mount and would there a bracket problem-- played dumb-since found out SONY ONLY TV NOT COMPATABLE TO OTHER WALL BRACKETS. Sony brackets flimsy and dont feel secure. Next time i buy one compatable to universal brackets.

Great AV, but user interface needs a lot of work – NO swap channel button, have to press 3 buttons to do it. Epg only loads when viewing each of the channels even after hours after watching tv for MANY hours, why does the epg not load in the background. To set a reminder to watch a tv show it takes 4 button presses, sony needs training in designing user interfaces. Home button is geared towards… Read more

using Internet, what about accessing a USB hdd.

Selecting a reminder for a tv show in epg does not allow setting the time, in Australia they can start the show early.

Remote volume and channel button at bottom of remote.

Tv takes about 30 s for the remote to respond after power on.

I will never buy a Sony product again – Picture quality is average, sound quality is terrible, smart functions are laggy and broken, media server constantly locks up and won't play certain files download from the internet (built in copy protection of some kind), 3D has bad ghosting, USB ports are inconveniently located and the EPG is a mess. Bluetooth Is crippled (deliberately) and… Read more

will not pair with any Bluetooth headphones or most other Bluetooth devices. Sony customer service is non existent, the worst I have ever encountered. I regret purchasing this television as well as other Sony products I own and I will never purchase Sony again.

Brilliant tv, value for money – i only paid sub $850 for this at Costco recently. even came with it's own wall mount (the stand turns into a wall mount) so didn't even need to buy extra wall mount. picture is a lot clearer than my samsung plasma from 2yrs ago. Had mine for 1-2 weeks so far. the navigation of the remote is poor, but i haven't seen a tv with good navigation. i still use my beyonwiz dp p2 to watch TV bc it's a million times faster

Good overall but some nagging issues (no TV is perfect!) – I tend to agree with all reviews here (even the 1 star). The TV looks great and works well. The picture is good (I prefer plasma to LCD but Panasonic stopped making the best plasma TVs) but you may find better picture depending if you like the way-too-vivid-and-raw picture quality from the likes of LG or Samsung. There can be the problem of lag… Read more

when images move too fast on the screen, this is so noticeable on all LCD (not an issue at all on Plasmas or old CRTs).

What annoys me is that the remote is not good, main nav buttons are too close or not well laid out, the sound and channel are right at the bottom (most used buttons should be in the middle, how often do u use the keypad?)

The ABC iView app is different to other TV in that is specific to Sony and is absolutely bad. all you see is tiles (with low res thumb nail images and not title under them!!!). So at a glance, u need to know who the hell is in that programme to know what it is or scroll with the cursor on all the thumbanils to find out....

what the hell is that about).

I use a hometheatre so sound is no issue.

I like the style, performance is just ok, the price was right for me $998 :) at the Good Guys.

On noticeable good point is that if you connect your devices via HDMI to the TV and you do not have an HDMI amp, the full digital bitstream can pass through by connecting hte S/P Dif optical cable from the TV to the amp. (I know this may not be of value to many people).

Would I recommend? May be, Try it and compare with a Samsung.

No TV is perfect but there is always a price point ;)

(Bring back Plasmas!)

Great picture but I hate this TV – This "smart" TV from Sony is a joke. No TV guide without internet connection. Web pages can't be viewed due to insufficient memory. Takes 30 seconds to warm up before I can change channel. And don't get me started on the remote. Lightweight plasticky and badly laid out. Overall I'm very dissappointed. First and last time I buy Sony

Great picture - sub-standard sound, inaccessible control panel – This 50 inch Sony TV is elegant and light weight with optional shelf or wall mounting accessories included. Both high and standard definition TV viewing are excellent... sit close and you are in a movie theatre! However, Sony's once renowned audio quality has been sacrificed for appearance. The small, centrally located downcast speakers are… Read more

'thin' and 'raspy' and the voices of TV presenters sound to be coming from their navels.

Standby power is extremely difficult to switch off as the manual control panel is beyond finger reach on the back of the panel.

The 'Football' button on the remote control adds clutter and only suppresses the commentary and boosts the crowd noise. Elegant appearance, excellent picture. Poorly positioned manual control panel. Needs a $200 soundbar to get acceptable TV sound.

Sony Bravia TV Review Comments – Have owned this now for nearly 4 weeks. This is my first Sony TV so researched the purchase thoroughly before buying. I had no difficulty setting it up & connecting it to the internet. An advantage of the Sony is that the foot stand can convert to allow it to be wall hung, without the purchase of expensive wall brackets. All features work well,… Read more

picture clarity is truly remarkable, audio is so so, as expected, but I have mine connected to an amplifier & good quality speakers which makes a world of difference. Audio now matches the picture in quality.

The 3D feature is a bit gimmicky, but does work even though there are not a lot of 3D DVDs on the market yet.

I am using the internet connection, mainly Youtube & am finding that like another free to air channel for choice.

Only issue I had was to replace my modem with an N600 to boost the signal & modem capacity.

Very pleased with the purchase. At this stage, as expected Sony quality & an excellent picture quality & performance. Time will tell if it is good old Sony quality