Why are Sony Tv's always more than equivalent Samsungs?

[maygit]

I've always been a big fan of Sony products, don't get me wrong, but the Samsungs seem to have equal PQ at a cheaper price AND they rate better in reviews like on Cnet.
Samsung vs Sony comparisons:
40" Samsung 530: $1099.99
40" Sony S Series: $1199.99

40" Samsung 550: $1299.99
40" Sony V Series: $1499.99

40" Samsung 650: $1799.99
40" Sony W Series: $1899.99

46" Samsung 650: $2199.99
40" Sony Z Series: $2299.99

46" Samsung 750: $2399.99
40" Sony XBR 6: $2499.99

46" Samsung 850: $2699.99
46" Sony XBR 6: $2999.99

Those are the normal prices i've come up with. I tried at first to do model vs. model but once the sony's got so much I did price to price(hence the 46" sammys vs 40" sonys). Now where I work, we have the Sony 40" Z and W next to the 40" Samsung 650 and I'd say they're close but I like the sammy better especially for the price. Also I've noticed that with coaxial cable hooked up, you can see the motion enhancer working much more on the Samsungs with a medium setting vs when the Sony's are on High. I will admit the Sony's(excluding the Z) have slightly better viewing angles but because Samsung offers the swivel base, they make up for this problem and then some.

Can someone give me a good reason why the Sony's are more and if they are, is it worth the extra "X" amount of dollars over a similar samsung? Heck, for the price of the 46" XBR 6, you might as well spend an extra $500 and get the 46" 950 with LED backlighting don't you agree?

[callas01]

it can be argued that the internal components are a little better, but also you are paying for the name too.

[JasonR]

I would say customer support...

[arush5268d]

I believe that Samsung makes some of the LCD panels for Sony. I think the Bravia series...


I'm not a LCD fan for Home Theater.....but if I ever did buy a LCD it would be a Samsung or a Sony. They both build a quality TV IMHO.

[blackhawktraffic]

Cant really say, but I love my Sony...no issues of any sort.

[PCiAM]

A lot of it probably has to do with brand name. I've owned LCDs from both companies. SONY's PQ is a bit more realistic with crisper colors while the Samsung's colors are much more vivid (perhaps due to their glossy screens). All in all, both give astounding PQ.

I bought the SONY KDL46W4100 recently, but ended up exchanging it for the Samsung LN46a750. I couldn't be happier. In my opinion, the latest line of Sony's (V/W/Z) aren't as good as the Samsung's 6/7/8/950. They have too many problems (clouding; sparkle defects) that aren't plaging the latest line of Samsungs. To be fair, though, the XBR supposedly is the best PQ available, but it's out of my price budget.

[moviefan]

Sony's strategy is to "fair price" the new XBR 6,7 & 8 TVs. Since the stores will not be able to discount them, the price difference will become even greater. We'll see how long that lasts!
For that kind of money, I'll take the Pioneer Kuro Pro Elite (and I did!)

[StretchMaK]

Originally Posted by PCiAM

A lot of it probably has to do with brand name. I've owned LCDs from both companies. SONY's PQ is a bit more realistic with crisper colors while the Samsung's colors are much more vivid (perhaps due to their glossy screens). All in all, both give astounding PQ.

I bought the SONY KDL46W4100 recently, but ended up exchanging it for the Samsung LN46a750. I couldn't be happier. In my opinion, the latest line of Sony's (V/W/Z) aren't as good as the Samsung's 6/7/8/950. They have too many problems (clouding; sparkle defects) that aren't plaging the latest line of Samsungs. To be fair, though, the XBR supposedly is the best PQ available, but it's out of my price budget.

Just proves the to each his own thing is true. I looked at several samsung and sony TV's before getting the 46z4100. The samsungs all looked like the pic was fake or to vivid or something. Very happy with the sony so far.

[Valore]

Originally Posted by PCiAM

A lot of it probably has to do with brand name.

Exactley right! Strong advertising helps too i.e. Bose. IMO Bose is garbage, but due to its strong advertising, it has created quite a name for itself.

I personally prefer sony

[Clark Kent]

Sony knowingly prices their products a little higher than the competition. They have a strong brand with a loyal customer base.

[rubberghost]

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

Sony knowingly prices their products a little higher than the competition. They have a strong brand with a loyal customer base.

exactamundo.

[Blu-Benny]

i feel name has a lot to do w/it. picture quality is great on both brands in my opinion but some names are just gonna always be a little more.

the companies tend to know their customers will stay loyal even w/a little higher price tag.

[ArieS]

Because Samsung is crap.
I've owned a projection TV which died after less than 2 years, thank God I had bought the extended warranty and also a DVD player that was a real POS, movies skipped or froze all the time.
Never again.

[Teabaggins]

the reason for the price difference is because Sony has always been considered the top of the heap for televisions for a couple of decades. the Name really sells the merch in this case.
people like my dad who have been buying Sony for years will continue to do so out of loyalty and high satisfaction levels

[maygit]

I can see that somewhat because I get soooo many customers that come in specifically requesting Sony and they won't budge to look at the Samsungs. Slowly while working with them, i'll let them know Samsung is actually out selling Sony this year and has more top rated models and for a much more affordable price. Then i'll weasel them over to a sammy and instantly sony is out of the question. Most of the time people are looking at the Sony V at first so it's not too difficult to talk them up to the 650 series instead, especially since we have transformers BD playing on it . The picture is unmatched compared to our normal HD loop.

[drago3451]

Originally Posted by maygit

I can see that somewhat because I get soooo many customers that come in specifically requesting Sony and they won't budge to look at the Samsungs. Slowly while working with them, i'll let them know Samsung is actually out selling Sony this year and has more top rated models and for a much more affordable price. Then i'll weasel them over to a sammy and instantly sony is out of the question. Most of the time people are looking at the Sony V at first so it's not too difficult to talk them up to the 650 series instead, especially since we have transformers BD playing on it . The picture is unmatched compared to our normal HD loop.

I will never buy another Samsung anything. I had Cell phones and TVs and had nothing but problems. I know that their flat panels are rated very well but I do not trust the company anymore. I am sure that there are people that feel the same about Sony. I would gladly spend more money on something that I can feel confident about.

[bbatfan13]

I work at a retailer and do the opposite of "maygit". Once I show any Sony the Samsung is out of the question. Then it becomes a battle between Sony and Panasonic Plasma. Samsung has alot of good ideas but poor execution. There is very little difference between the 6/7/8 series and once the customers see that, they see the upside to owning a Sony.

[maygit]

http://reviews.cnet.com/best-high-definition-tvs/

Cnet came out with a review on the sony 52" xbr6 and the samsung 650 still rates better in most scenarios. I did notice they were extremely happy with the black levels produced on the sony panel and the dejudder mode was better but it's definitely not worth it for the price.

Overall the samsung 52" 650 rates better in the end(mainly for color accuracy and other things) and not to mention IT IS ALMOST HALF THE PRICE of the 52" xbr6. So if you were looking for a kick ass picture for the same price as the 52" xbr6, IMO go with the 52" 650 AND the 50" Panasonic 800U or go with the 46" samsung 950 cuz you get a way better tv(way better blacks, color accuracy, and no motion blur w/ motion enhancer on low) and can still save yourself some money to put towards a blu-ray or surround sound. The only thing you do sacrifice is viewing angles on the 950 so if you don't want that problem go with my first option.

I don't like dissing Sony. I've always bought their products(Sony 55" SXRD A2000 is my largest purchase) but you can not deny their prices are outrageous for the PQ they give you this year.

[Polyh3dron]

If you plan on playing lots of games on your LCD, you should know that most of the settings on the Samsungs are not modifiable when Game Mode is used, whereas with the current Sonys, all of the settings are still available (Except for the Motionflow Soap Opera 120hz effect IIRC) in Game Mode.

[PCiAM]

Usually I would say Sony is deserving of its higher price range because usually no other LCD can compare. However, this year, Sony's V/W/Z series have a lot of issues, and in my honest opinion, aren't worth the steep price tag. I purchased a Sony KDL46W4100 because I was a huge Sony loyalist like a lot of consumers, but I had some sparkle defects that a lot of other consumers have, which turns out to be a reported problem in Sony's Bravia Engine for these models according to Sony. Plus the flashlighting/clouding was pretty annoying on my individual set. I ended up exchanging for the Sammy LNa750 and I LOVE it. Definitely happy and prefer it over the latest Sony line.