Sony Bravia KDL-46W5500

The basics

The Sony Bravia KDL-46W5500 is a 46-inch Full HD LCD telly with 100Hz motion control, a tonne of picture processing features, 24p Cinema mode, eco settings and four HDMI ports.

The good

LCD tellies have a shelf life comparable to accident-prone mayflies, so it’s a joy to find a futureproof-ish, Full HD flat screen that concentrates on picture, sound and build quality at the expense of high-tech gimmicks. Having said that, this Bravia’s Voice Zoom does a great job at ripping dialogue from over-the-top background noise and Picture Frame mode is just plain cool (if hardly eco-friendly). Standard def signals just about survive the upscaling to 46-inches while High Def footage is pretty much the best you’ll find at this price.

The bad

No, colours aren’t as rich nor blacks as solid as those on the LED-powered 46X4500, but that particular vixen costs twice as much as this foxy lady. Don’t expect too much from AppliCast web apps either – the cheesy calculator, clock and FAQ widgets are on a par with those found gracing dodgy Linux netbooks.

The bottom line

Sony’s tellies are marching proudly towards a new golden age, matching superb visuals with surprisingly affordable price-tags. Hardly budget priced but a bargain nonetheless.