2020 Sony X950H / XH95 (49", 55", 65", 75" and 85")

[jjhunsecker]

Originally Posted by profholt82

Are you guys talking about the little white light that comes on under the Sony logo on the bottom middle of the television? If so, go to your settings -> device preferences -> led indicator -> off. That should take care of it.

No, there's an amber/yellow light to the left of the logo. It's supposed to have something to do with using the Mic on the remote for Google, but several people have seem to had an issue where it had turned on by itself and nothing -including the steps you've outlined- would trurn it off

[Aragorn the Elfstone]

Originally Posted by profholt82

@Algorn

I really like my x950h, but there are better tvs out there. And OLED makes better picture than LED. The 950 is perfect for my purposes because I needed a new tv for my mancave, and because of space issues on the wall, I needed to keep the size to around 50". There are only 3 tvs on the market right now that come in that size and have 120hz panels. That's important to me for gaming purposes, occasional PC monitor use, and the fact that movies are in 24fps, so they perfectly fit into 120 without any dropped frames unlike 60hz panels which require all sorts of "motion" tinkering settings to eliminate juddering and such. The other 2 tvs that fit this criteria are the LG Nano85 and the LG CX OLED. The Nano85 had mediocre picture quality, but the CX was a thing of beauty. Unfortunately, it was also $1500 (really more than I wanted to spend at this time) and out of stock around me, so I would've had to order it online, and that's a big gamble with tvs.

[Side rant] It seems like most of the negative reviews on amazon and the like are complaints about tvs being damaged in shipping. I wouldn't trust the mail with one. I realize you can return it and get it replaced, but what a hassle that would be with a big tv. Sheesh.

All of that said, the LG BX OLED, Sony A8H are top notch OLED sets worth looking into which also have 120hz panels and excellent picture. They were off the table for my parameters though. Personally, I think the LG CX OLED is the best of the bunch, but you should explore all options to find the one that's perfect for you. I'm sure the x950h would make you happy, but it would be remiss of me to say that it's the best because having put in the research and been hands on with all of these sets, I don't think it's the best overall, but it certainly is the best for the money. If you're willing to spend a bit more though, I think the OLED sets will blow you away.

Many thanks. How concerned should I be about burn-in with OLEDs, though?

Also, which would last me the longest? I’m a bit disappointed that my current TV has started going after just four years.

[profholt82]

Originally Posted by Aragorn the Elfstone

Many thanks. How concerned should I be about burn-in with OLEDs, though?

Also, which would last me the longest? I’m a bit disappointed that my current TV has started going after just four years.

Can't help you there. I don't own an OLED, so I don't know how susceptible they are to burn-in. Having been hands on with the ones I listed, I can attest to their beautiful picture, however. If the burn in possibility is anything like plasma, I think it will come down to being smart and vigilant. Don't leave static screens on for extended periods. And I wouldn't use one as a PC monitor. But I'd assume that if you are careful about it, it won't be an issue.

As far as choosing which tv is going to last the longest, I don't have a crystal ball. Hahahaha
Obviously, Sony and LG are great brands who have been in the tv business for decades, so that bodes well. Even as far as more budget oriented brands like TCL, Visio and Hisense have come, I wouldn't trust their long-term quality in the way I do Sony and LG.

[LincolnB]

Originally Posted by Max Solo

Ok. Got it to go off for now. Not sure what this did but this is what I did ..

Hit red Google play button
Then hit the Google ( color bubble button ) on remote
Then by accident I hit the input button. I scrolled to hdmi 1
Then hit the back button.

Weird but it turned off.

If it comes back on, go into 'time and date' in settings and turn 24hr time on, then off again (or the opposite, if it's already on 24 hr time). Worked for me, though I'm in Australia.

[Synchg]

Originally Posted by Aragorn the Elfstone

Hello guys,

I'm going to be getting a new TV soon, and considering getting the X950H. I'm upgrading from a Samsung JS8500, which I've had for about 4 years, but I'm starting to get purple discoloration on the sides.

In honesty, though, it's the perfect excuse I need to upgrade. I've long wanted to get a model that really delivers better HDR (to take full advantage of my UHD discs), and fully array local dimming. The edge lit lighting of the JS8500 has never been satisfactory for me.

However, I am conflicted. I also have my eye on the Sony A8H OLED. However, the potential for burn-in concerns me, and I have read that the X950H is brighter, though the black levels on the OLED would be better (I've used backlighting on the JS8500 to compensate for black uniformity issues).

So I'm looking for some advice on what to do. Which of these models would be better for me? Should I be looking at any others (in this price range)? Thank you in advance for any help.

I'm very excited to upgrade my 4K HDR experience!

that's so bizarre, because i literally just went from the samsung js8500 55 inch to the sony 950h 75inch.
the samsung q90t 75 was also at same price but i went with sony because of dolby vision and i'm really glad i did.
apart from the edgelight local dimming and viewing angle, i didn't mind the js8500. it was only distracting with subtitles and its horizontal blooming.
you'll find alot of movies that had that pop on your js8500 will be too bright on the 950h (if you do end up getting it). no, seriously starship troopers on UHD is ruined for me. will be sticking with the blu-ray or tame that backlight when watching it on this TV. and movies that you found too dim, will now look just right.
the sony A8H 65 inch was on sale around black friday for under 2grand but 75 inch really gives you that immediate theater feel. shots that were framed and intended with that scope in mind.
i dont want to risk burn in myself and i have no problems with the black levels with the 950h and those nearly 1,000 nit nearly full screen moments really are impressive. I dont know how meager they'd look on a automatic brightness limited 700-800 nit OLED. rather weaksauce i imagine.
my only real complaint with the 950h is the viewing angle which I thought would be wider, still drops rather rapidly but maybe that's because im sitting 9 feet away from a 75 inch tv.
i've got my local dimming set to medium with extended dynamic range off.
i would have gotten an OLED myself but for SDR content only.

[recS-12]

Well today Best Buy has the 75” 950H on sale for $2399.99. Is this the lowest it has been? I’m looking to upsize one of my 65” to 75” and was hoping for a $2,000.00 price point. I got both of my 65” Z9D’s at 2K each but this was at the end of production. Do you guys think 2K is possible around the Labor Day sale?

[steve1971]

I got the Sony X950H over the holidays and I replaced my X900E with it. All I can say is wow what a difference between the two sets. From PQ, black levels you name it it beats my 2017 X900E and I never thought I would say that. But movie watching, streaming and just watching programs and movies on my Xfinity 4K DVR cable box is just a night and day difference. Even the wife says it. Blooming is barely noticeable and we watch alot of movies in a dark room so that surprised me and the colors just pop when watching HDR and DV movies. From top to bottom the 950H is an excellent all around tv and hopefully knock on wood it lasts a long time because this will more then likely be my last tv because in a few years I am going the projection route.

[Robert Zohn]

@recS-12, should be the same price at all Sony authorized dealers. The 75" X950H went on sale Monday and the sale ends February 6th.

[Aragorn the Elfstone]

I've decided to go with an LCD over OLED due to the concerns I have over burn-in. But I'm trying to decide between the X900H and the X950H. It sounds like the X950H has the overall better PQ, and I'm not into gaming, but I have heard things about the corners being darkened and some kind of line at the bottom of the screen.

What's your guys' verdict on this? Have you perceived those things? Are they distracting?

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by Aragorn the Elfstone

I've decided to go with an LCD over OLED due to the concerns I have over burn-in. But I'm trying to decide between the X900H and the X950H. It sounds like the X950H has the overall better PQ, and I'm not into gaming, but I have heard things about the corners being darkened and some kind of line at the bottom of the screen.

What's your guys' verdict on this? Have you perceived those things? Are they distracting?

Vignetting (dark corners) is very common in LCDs, and something you can't really avoid with either the X950H or X900H. Personally, that's something that wouldn't bother me at all, but it varies from person to person and only you can decide whether you could live with it or not.

I don't know what that line at the bottom of the screen would be, but it definitely sounds like a defect and not something you should encounter normally.

[Aragorn the Elfstone]

Thanks! I've decided to finally pull the trigger and bought the X950H.

Can't wait to finally have an UHD Premium Set. The JS8500 I've had served me well enough (I originally bought it for the 3D, not the 4K), but I'm glad to finally get something that will really deliver on the HDR front.

[Takuma]

Does anyone know if there's notable difference between the 49" and 55" models in terms of how good low quality video footage looks?

I'm thinking about getting the 950H (or 9500H as it's called here in Japan), but I'm a little worried about the size. As a 60s and 70s genre cinema buff, very few of my favourite movies are available in 4K or even 2K. DVDs (as well as HD TV with terrible compression) still accounts to half of my movie watching.

Perhaps this footage would look better on a 49" screen?

[profholt82]

Originally Posted by Takuma

Does anyone know if there's notable difference between the 49" and 55" models in terms of how good low quality video footage looks?

I'm thinking about getting the 950H (or 9500H as it's called here in Japan), but I'm a little worried about the size. As a 60s and 70s genre cinema buff, very few of my favourite movies are available in 4K or even 2K. DVDs (as well as HD TV with terrible compression) still accounts to half of my movie watching.

Perhaps this footage would look better on a 49" screen?

For standard definition content being displayed on a modern 4k tv, the smaller the screen, the better the definition of the picture will be. Also, the disc player will play a significant role in that process as well. But yeah, even if a 4k television has a brilliant, top of the line picture processor, a DVD will still look blurry on a large screen. It's just the science of the thing.

[guile]

Originally Posted by Robert Zohn

@recS-12, should be the same price at all Sony authorized dealers. The 75" X950H went on sale Monday and the sale ends February 6th.

Dang $2399 is tempting...but I really want the 85inch version. My tried and true Panny plasma is failing (black vertical line, we had a good run) so I'll soon be in the market for a new set.

I'm REALLY leaning towards the 950h...but I want the 85incher at $3k. Been keeping an eye out for sales (Super Bowel maybe?) but haven't seen anything on the 85inch.

[Robert Zohn]

Sorry your Panny plasma developed a black vertical line!

Sony's 85" X950H is not dropping any lower.

[Takuma]

Alright, I went with the 55" model. Managed to negotiate the price down from 178 000 yen ($1670) shelf price to 160 000 yen ($1505) tax free level price, then 149 000 yen ($1400) that was equal to an expired online-only campaign price (thank goodness I had the expired tab open in my phone's browser), and finally to 116 000 yen ($1090) after a big discount for subscribing to an internet connection via them. And that's with a 6 year warranty. An offer I couldn't refuse.

I was considering the 49" model till the very end, but since I've got a 32" Full HD monitor I figured that can serve as a secondary display for the lowest quality materials e.g. VHS era masters.

[rtorres481]

I just posted this in another thread, but I'm looking to get some input from other Sony TV owners. I have the X900F and it has a dark spot (looks like a gray dot with a light "X" going through it) about 1/3 from the top-center of the screen.

My most recent Sony experience began a few years back with a 900E. And that one had a similar issue. I was able to exchange the set with Sony, and the second one was even worse - it had 2 dark spots!

I contacted Sony again and they offered another exchange, this time for a 900F. And wouldn't you know, there were 2 dark spots on that one. Finally they agreed to an exchange of that unit, but my current 900F has the issue that I described above.

I don't believe that it's a dead or stuck pixel. I'm inclined to believe that something internal is damaged. It's really annoying because I know that it's there and I'm always looking for it.

At times I wonder if I've been too picky because I've heard of TV's having other major problems. Outside of the dark spot, it's a great TV. But after more than 3 years (and 4 similar sets) of dealing with it, I'm considering buying a new TV.

The experience has made me cautious of another Sony due to the dark spot issue. I'm strongly considering the X950H, X900H, or the upcoming X90J. But I'm curious to know if anyone else has had the "dark spot" issue that I've encountered on multiple Sony TVs.