Kodak EasyShare at Best Buy $99.99
- Average user rating: 5.0 stars out of 9 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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9 out of 9 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"****BE WARNED!!!***"
Pros: Bright, beautiful display, sharp contrast
Cons: NO 120hz refresh rate
Summary: I've had this TV for about a month now, and let me first say that it is an amazing monitor. It's bright, sharp, and I definitely concur with all of the other positive reviews about it. However, my low rating is more a reflection on sites like Amazon and other websites that continue to "cut and paste" their product descriptions either from previous year model specifications or from really flawed research. In purchasing a new TV, the 3 criteria I had was LCD (Plasma is great but a real drain on electricity); 1080p (we have HD satelite and a Sony PS3/blu-ray); and last but probably the most important for me was 120hz capability. If you look both on this site and on others (ZDnet, Amazon), they all describe this as having Motionflow (Sony's version of 120hz) which dramatically reduces judder. I know that some people don't find the "sopa opera" effect all that appealing, but I really like it for some things and wanted it for my next TV.
THE SONY KDL-32XBR6 DOES NOT HAVE MOTIONFLOW/120hz.
I've researched the forums and because of coflicting reporst (some coming directly from Sony Technical Support) I know that their is still debate on whether it does or not. I've concluded that it DOES NOT. I've spoken with Sony's tech guys...they say it doesn't. Their website suggest from an ommission of this specification on their product description that it does not. And finally, I've spent the better have of a month renting Blu-Ray after Blu-Ray trying to replicate the 120hz "look" and have not been able to do it. I've played with settings on both the tv and my PS3 and their is nothing to indicate that it has Motionflow. It does have Cinemotion which is definitely NOT Motionflow. Even the manual for the TV idicates that only their new "W" series has Motion Enhancer which activates Motionflow (even this isn't entirely accurate because I know that some of the other larger XBR4, 5 and 6 models do have Motionflow.
Anyway, as I said, this is a non-essential feature for some people, but it was a major reason for me choosing this model, and I'm now extremely irritated by Amazon and CNET for posting misleading product information.
With all of this said, I am still satisfied with the TV for all of my other needs. The PS3 games and movies look beatiful, and I've seriously become spoiled for HD (it's actually pretty jarrig to go back to standard definition when switching to non-HD channels). Would I still recomend this TV?...yes but as most know, Sony relies heavily on its name recognition which allows them to hike up the price point of their stuff. I would certainly look at Samsung's LCDs as well. Just as good (if not better) and usually marked $50-$200 less.
- 3 replies to this review
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I have been researching this tv, and with a normal amount of research, I never thought this tv was 120hz. I have seen this very same situation with other brands at 32 inch where all the larger sets in the series offer 120hz. People will automatically assume that the entire series is 120hz, but many sources will clarify this difference if you just look a bit. Although this reviewer seemed to like the the tv, the review is bogged down in things I don't find helpful. This is the case in many of the consumer reviews. As an interested buyer, I look for expert reviews as much as possible as well as consumer reviews.
Finally, as for the price of this tv, it is wonderful. You get what you pay for with Sony. In my opinion, there is no Samsung in this sets class that comes close to the picture quality of this 32XBR6. Do your research, as well as the eyeball test, the contrast ratio on all the Samsung's I found were 15,000:1 and this Sony has a 25,000:1ratio. Amazing for a tv in this class!!!! -
For the record, 120Hz refresh and Motionflow are 2 different things.
Motionflow is the name for a feature that uses an interpolation algorithm that adds unique frames to make the motion look smoother (the soap opera affect you mentioned). Some like it, some don't- to me it depends on the content. Cool for sports and sometimes nature television, always funny looking for movies or ther film based content..
120Hz refresh is just the refresh rate of the TV. It can't be 'turned on' or off like motion enhancement technologies. Since 120 is evenly divisible by 60 and 24, you are able to play content shot at 24fps (like movies) without needing 3:2 pulldown. That's supposed to give you a more film-like quality as opposed to motionflow which does not. But TVs with "120hz Motionflow" are running at 120Hz, even when motionflow is turned off. -
Can the Motionflow be turned off like Samsungs 120hz system?
Sony Bravia KDL-32XBR6:
