Sony Bravia 7 Review: A Solid Choice So Long as You Don't Mind Following the TV's Lead

Jump ToOverviewPros and ConsSetup and UsabilityPicture QualityVerdictBravia 7 Mini-LED QLED 4K TVIt doesn't quite meet the bar set by Sony's own Bravia 9 mini-LED, but it's still a great TV, so long as you ignore the off-angle viewing issues.In a crowded market for QLEDs, Sony's Bravia 7 doesn't do too much to stand out. Still, its bright, beautiful display makes watching colorful films a real treat with some excellent HDR. The biggest issues come from its bad off-angle viewing experience and unflattering glare in direct light, but if you're set on a Bravia, this is a good choice for the price. Starting at $1,700 at 55 inches (Reviewed at $2,000 at 65 inches) Bravia 7 65-InchProsGreat HDR capabilities Relatively clean Google TV-based interfaceA good choice for PlayStation 5-specific gamingConsGlare issues in direct lightOff-angle viewing is quite bad compared to more expensive optionsThere's only one 4K 120 Hz HDMI portSuggested ReadingJustice Department to Criminally Charge Boeing for Breaching 737 Max Settlement: ReportsApple Rumored to Be Working on AirPods With Built-in CamerasOur Best Look Yet at Deadpool & Wolverine's Supervillain, and a Familiar FriendSamsung’s Latest QLEDs and OLEDs Do the Hard Work For Great Gaming CCShare SubtitlesOffEnglishJustice Department to Criminally Charge Boeing for Breaching 737 Max Settlement: ReportsApple Rumored to Be Working on AirPods With Built-in CamerasOur Best Look Yet at Deadpool & Wolverine's Supervillain, and a Familiar FriendSamsung’s Latest QLEDs and OLEDs Do the Hard Work For Great Gaming CCShare SubtitlesOffEnglishRelated ContentRelated ContentThe Bravia 7, on the other hand, is your bread and butter 4K QLED TV. It’s not as cheap as some of theAdvertisementSony’s push for mini-LED is subtle and overt throughout the latest Bravia line. If you’re getting a Sony TV, you can get a larger size 4K mini-LED for the same price as a smaller OLED. That’s something we reviewers are more keen to point out, but Sony positioned its TVs similarly. That’s why Sony’s pushing the XR Backlight Masterdrive technology on the LCDs, something that’s not there on the Bravia 8. AdvertisementCan the Bravia 7 beat OLED? No, not quite. The Bravia 9 has better overall quality, but the last time I looked at one in person was back in April. Once you settle for something closer to mid-range, you’ll see the tiny differences in color contrast and how deep the blacks go. The Bravia 7 is easily one of the top contenders in the 2024 realm of high-quality 4K QLEDs with some excellent HDR settings. Can it match up to QD-OLED? Not quite.It makes a really solid attempt, though. The blacks are very close to ink-deep. Watching a movie like AdvertisementYou can easily compare the Bravia 7 to the Samsung QN90D 4K QLED in terms of overall picture quality, costing hundreds of dollars less. It’s a Google TV, so take that as you will, but Sony still has room to grow by fixing its settings menus. It doesn’t play as nicely with non-Sony gaming products as with PlayStation.Sony Bravia 7 Setup and UsabilityWhy Can’t We Have More Than One 4K HDMI?Photo: Artem Golub / GizmodoAdvertisementThe setup on the Bravia 7 was not too different from any other big TV, save for the feet that slot into the underside of the display. That’s because you can position the feet in the center and sides of the screen if you have a smaller cabinet or want more room to place a soundbar. I rocked and quaked the TV, but everything seemed solid. The Bravia 7 is about 2.5 inches along the back, so consider that if you plan on hanging it from your wall.You’ll first notice that while there are 4 HDMI ports, only one supports 4K at 120 Hz eARC/ARC. That’s annoying if you have multiple game consoles or players that support high refresh rates at 4K. It also needs to be said that it’s pretty irritating that the power cable is on the other side of the TV from its box with two USB-A, four HDMIs, and ethernet. You probably want to plug everything into the same outlet, but you might need an extension cable just for the TV. The plug in the box wasn’t nearly long enough to reach the outlet.AdvertisementGetting a good picture quality going is another story. The TV’s default IMAX Enhanced picture mode was fine for the most part, and then Professional was suitable for most other kinds of content. It takes a lot of effort to find and then turn off the damn motion smoothing setting, though, at the very least, you can pin Picture Settings to the quick settings menu on the remote. The Picture & Sound menu. After that, I realized my picture was dipping in brightness and graininess. I quickly learned that the automatic ambient light setting was deep under Ambient Optimization Pro under the Picture & Sound menu.Sony likes to stick many buttons and options in its menus, but I wish the company could clean up its UI so it’s easier to turn off all these unwanted options that greatly impact the viewing experience. It would also be nice if you could tune more of these settings with the Bravia Connect app, but all that does is act as a secondary remote with some quick access to Voice Zoom, picture mode, and brightness settings.AdvertisementThe Sony Bravia 7 isn’t as high-flying as the amazingly bold claims made about the Bravia 9. They’re both mini-LED 4K televisions, but this year’s flagship Sony TV boasts incredible driver technology and amazingly high stated brightness. It’s not quite a match for the best OLED screens, but it still has some excellent contrast.Sony’s base remote is already good enough you don’t need the app.Photo: Artem Golub / GizmodoAdvertisementIt’s a Google TV, which, for all its faults, felt like an easy, breezy setup after dealing with the This TV likes it when you use other Sony products with it, AdvertisementSony Bravia 7 Picture Quality and SoundLooks Great, But Not From Any Off AngleThere are some obvious glare problems on the Bravia 7 when under direct light.Photo: Artem Golub / GizmodoAdvertisementThis TV is not as exciting as the big Bravia 9 with its excessive dimming zones and driver technology. Still, Sony says this similar mini-LED TV uses the same lighting control technology with fewer dimming zones, so you’re not getting as much color definition as you would from the more expensive model. Essentially, Sony is saying you’ll get the same image quality as its previous flagship X95L from last year, though at a fraction of the cost with a lot more zone control than the previous X90L model.What any of that means in practice is pretty nebulous, but it’s still pretty good image quality for the price. Sony likes to boast your Sony Pictures Core app, and its 4K HDR movies are equivalent to a physical Blu-ray DVD. I’ve watched both on the TV, and yes, the 80 Mbps streaming from Core was pretty damn nice overall, and I didn’t notice any problematic blooming.AdvertisementGaming is equally nice, though on titles like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, I needed to bump up HDR brightness and black point to get the most of the visuals. That’s with the Black Equalizer in the Game Menu turned off and on the Standard mode for visuals. FPS mode greatly increases overall brightness but blooms the color to a cartoonish degree.Photo: Artem Golub / GizmodoAdvertisementWhat you’ll also find is that the viewing angle on the Bravia 7 isn’t too great. Take a few steps out of line, and the picture looks washed out. I was only 30 to 40 degrees off-center before seeing a dip in image quality. Another big issue that becomes apparent quite quickly is how reflective the screen can be. There’s a good deal of glare during some daytime viewing or whenever any lights shine nearby.So this TV wants you to be in perfect viewing conditions; otherwise, it will falter. It’s not too hard to keep your couch in a straight-on view of the TV, and if you have the dosh for a large 4K TV, you probably have a living room space without many spotlights on the TV itself. Still, I’ve seen it done better on cheaper televisions than the Bravia 7.AdvertisementThe base speakers on Sony’s TV are nothing to write home about. They work well enough, but there’s very little bass, and it only serves until you can get a quality sound system or sound bar. Sony advertises that you’ll get an interesting soundscape with a Bravia Bar 8 or 9, where the sound comes from the TV speakers and the bar simultaneously, though I couldn’t test that. I also used the Despite the Quibbles, the Bravia 7 is a Solid Entry in a Crowded MarketPhoto: Artem Golub / GizmodoAdvertisementThere’s no perfect TV out there, but the field is so full of good 4K mini-LEDs that you’ll be min-maxing on features and price. The Bravia 7 is taking a lot of good things from the Bravia 9, including a piece of that backlight driver, but I wouldn’t say it has much better quality than the other staples coming out this year. If you have enjoyed Sony’s TVs in the past, you’ll feel right at home on this new beautiful screen. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t shop and perhaps find the best deal. It’s not a perfect TV, but if you play Sony’s game (in the case of the PlayStation, literally), then you’ll have a grand time with some excellent picture quality. Just don’t expect to reach flagship heights on what’s still an upper-mid-range TV.

Based on reporting by gizmodo.com.