Sony XBR75X940E vs XBR75X900E Review (X940E vs X900E) – What are their differences?

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The Sony XBR75X940E and the Sony XBR75X900E are part of Sony’s 2017 4K HDR TV X Series. The advantage of both is they offer a stunning picture quality on a big screen 75 Inch television. Both support HDR and are powered by a number of technologies that makes the HDR performance great. So what are the differences and which one is a better choice for you?

Short Review about the Sony XBR75X900E

The Sony XBR75X900E is part of the X900E series, the second to the top series of Sony’s 2017 4K HDRTV lineup X series. The mainstay technology behind this television is the new 4K HDR Processor X1 as the picture engine, Full array Local Dimming, X-tended Dynamic Range Pro, TriLuminos Display, and much more. As a mid-priced TV, the picture quality and performance is great for its class. Nevertheless, like other Sony TVs with a VA panel, the Side Viewing angle is a major downside of the XBR75X900E. Additionally there is no 3D technology option.

Overall the picture quality of the Sony XBR75X900E is very good. Black level is very deep and contrast is very strong which makes dark room performance great. Although peak brightness is not as bright as the X930E series, it is still above average and its HDR performance is also above average. Additionally with TriLuminos Display enabled, the color delivered by the XBR75X900E looks accurate, even when displaying HDR content which requires wide color gamut. In addition to stunning picture quality for its class, the XBR75X900E also has good motion handling that makes it offer a smooth picture quality when used for watching sports or fast movies. Additionally, it is also equipped with great UHD Up-scaling engine called 4K X-Reality Pro that allows you to enjoy lower resolution content in near 4K quality sharply and clearly. For gaming, the XBR75X900E has low input lag that makes it acceptable to use for playing games. And for the smart TV platform, the Sony XBR75X900E comes with Google Android TV 2017.

>>  Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X900E <<

Short Review of the Sony XBR75X940E

The next level above the Sony XBR75X900E is the Sony XBR75X940E which comes with some additional features and a higher level of technology to make its performance better. It supports both HDR formats: HDR 10 and Dolby Vision and even HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). For producing stunning picture quality on a big screen 75 Inch, it is powered by a number of Sony’s most advanced technologies such as 4K HDR processor X1 Extreme as its processor, Direct Led backlight with Full Array Local Dimming technology, X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro, and more. Like the XBR75X900E, the lack of 3D technology and a poor side viewing angle become its major downside.

Overall the picture quality of the Sony XBR75X940E is good and even better than the XBR75X900E. No matter the lighting condition of the room where it is used, the picture looks consistently amazing with deep level, a strong contrast and saturated color. Peak brightness is very bright and even exceeds 1000 nits making its HDR performance great. Essentially it offers better picture quality and HDR performance than the lower series XBR75X900E. In addition to stunning picture quality on a big screen 75 Inch, the Sony XBR75X940E also offers great performance on some features like good motion handling for sports and fast movies, a great UHD Up-scaling engine that allows you to enjoy video content with any resolution in 4K quality, low input lag for any kind of game, and more. No matter whether you use it for watching Movies, Sports, TV shows, or playing Games, the XBR75X940E offers a very satisfactory performance. And for completing your home entertainment with the Smart Experience, the Sony XBR75X940E also comes with Google Android TV as its smart TV platform.

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X940E <<

Sony XBR75X940E vs Sony XBR75X900E Key Specs

Specs and Features XBR75X900E XBR75X940E
Panel Type VA Panel VA Panel
Resolution 4K (2160 x 3840) 4K (2160 x 3840)
LED Backlight Direct Led Direct Led
Local Dimming Yes (Full Array Local Dimming) Yes (Full Array Local Dimming)
TriLuminos Display Yes Yes
Extended Dynamic Range Pro Yes (5X) Yes (10X)
HDR (High Dynamic Range) Yes (HDR 10, HLG) Yes (HDR 10, Dolby Vision, HLG)
Image Processor 4K HDR Processor X1 4K HDR Processor X1 Extreme
Picture Engine 4K X Reality Pro 4K X Reality Pro
Motion Control Motion Flow XR960 (native 120 Hz) Motion Flow XR960 (native 120 Hz)
3D Technology No No
Smart TV Platform Android TV Android TV
Speaker Type Bass Reflex Speaker Front-face 3-way speaker (tweeter/mid-range/woofer)
Audio Output 10 W + 10 Watt 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W
HDMI Ports 4 (3 Side, 1Rear) 4 (1 side/3 bottom)
USB Ports 3 (side) 3 (2 side, 1 bottom)
Price See today’s price See today’s price

The differences between the Sony XBR75X900E and the XBR75X940E

Picture Engine

One of the major differences between the Sony XBR75X940E and the XBR75X900E is its picture engine. Although essentially both use the X1 Engine for their picture engine, there is a difference on the technology embedded inside X1 Extreme and the New X1 engine. Inside the new 4K HDR Processor X1 behind the XBR75X900E, there is the Dynamic Contrast Enhancer, Super Bit Mapping 4K HDR, and Object-based HDR Remaster. Meanwhile inside the X1 Extreme, in addition to technologies that are embedded inside the X1, there is also Precision Color Mapping and Dual Data Base Processing. The result, Precision color mapping makes the color of the picture look more accurate while Dual Data Base Processing makes detailed images look more realistic.

Technology Embeded 4K HDR Processor X1 (New) 4K HDR Processor X1 Extreme
Dynamic Contrast Enhancer Yes Yes
Precision Color Mapping No Yes
Dual Data Base Processing No Yes
Super Bit Mapping 4K HDR Yes Yes
Object-based HDR Remaster technology Yes Yes

Local Dimming Technology

Both of them equally use direct LED backlight with Full array local dimming. The difference between them is about the number of dimming zones of the local dimming technology behind it. Although Sony does not reveal how many dimming zones for each, but definitely the Sony XBR75X940E has more dimming zones than the XBR75X900E. As you mightl know, the more dimming zones of local dimming, the black level produced is deeper and the peak brightness is brighter and also black uniformity and the gray uniformity is better.

The Level of X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro

As we see in the comparison table above, the other difference between these series is about the level of X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro. The Sony XBR75X900E is powered by X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro 5X while the XBR75X940E is powered by X-Tended Dynamic Range Pro 10X. The multiplication in here just illustrates how many times the brightness range can be improved compared to conventional TV. This means the brightness range of the XBR75X940E is wider than the XBR75X900E. Nevertheless, this technology also depends on other technologies like local dimming and backlight technology.

HDR Format

Both support HDR and the HDR formats that supported by them is different. The Sony XBR75X900D supports HDR 10 only while the XBR75X940D supports HDR 10 and Dolby Vision. This means you can enjoy both HDR 10 and Dolby Vision Content on the screen of the XBR75X940E while on the the XBR75X900E, you can enjoy HDR 10 content only. Actually both support HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma), an HDR format for broadcasting. Because the standardization of HDL is not yet confirmed, for a while the firmware of both didn’t support HLG yet. But once HLG is confirmed, there is a firmware update for each that already supports HLG.

Sound Quality

The other difference between them is the audio system driving them. As seen on the comparison table above, the Sony XBR75X940E is equipped with a Front-face 3-way speaker (tweeter/mid-range/woofer) with 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W + 10 W. Meanwhile, the XBR75X900E is equipped with a 2 channel Bass Reflex Speaker with 10 W + 10 Watt sound output. From here we can see that the XBR75X940 offers more impressive sound quality than the XBR75X900E. But for you who care about sound quality, the additional external sound bar is still recommended, even for the XBR75X940E that has a more impressive sound quality than the XBR75X900E.

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X900E <<

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X940E <<

Performance of The Sony XBR75X940E and The Sony XBR75X900E

Picture quality

Overall, the Sony XBR75X940E offers better picture quality than the XBR75X900E. This is due to the technology advantages behind it like X1 Extreme and the number of zones of local dimming technology. Black level is deeper and peak brightness is brighter which makes it offer a greater HDR performance. Additionally the Dual Data Base processing makes the picture displayed on screen of the XBR75X940E to look sharper and more realistic than what’s produced by the XBR75X900E.

But even so, aside from their difference of picture quality, both offer good picture quality for their class. Black level and native contrast ratio produced by them is very deep and strong. Even when used in a dark room, blacks of images still look absolute black on each screen. Let alone when input by an HDR signal, image detail in a dark scene will look very clear. This is understandable considering the black level reached by them is lower than the 0.05 nits of the recommendation for displaying HDR 10 content fully, and it may be even lower than 0.02 nits. However compared between them, black level and contrast of the XBR75X940E is a bit deeper and stronger than the XBR75X900E.

A significant difference between them is the peak brightness achieved by each. Despite a peak brightness reached by the Sony XBR75X900E of above average, it is not as bright as what’s reached by the XBR75X940E. This difference will be more noticeable when used in a very bright room with sunlight coming in through a window or when displaying HDR content. HDR performance of the XBR75X900E might be greater than average, but it’s not as great as the XBR75X940E.

Regarding color performance, the color of the picture displayed on each screen looks very accurate. This cannot be separated from great performance of TriLuminos Display behind them. Even when inputted by HDR signals that require a wider color gamut, the color still looks very accurate. As you might know, for displaying HDR10 content, it requires at least 90% of DCI P3 color space while what’s delivered by them is wider than 90% of DCI P3 color space. And when displaying SDR content where it is mastered with Rec.709 that has narrower color coverage than DCI P3, color produced by them certainly looks very accurate. About color performance, with Super Bit Mapping 4K HDR behind them, Color gradient of the picture displayed on their screen looks very smooth, without color banding, even when inputted by HDR signals. You might know, this technology is developed for processing 8 bit or 10 bit signals in 14 bit processing that produces far richer shades of color.

Once again the advantage of the Sony XBR75X900E and the XBR75X900E is Object-based HDR Remaster technology embedded inside the picture engine. By enhancing the brightness range and color of the source, this allows you to enjoy any content with quality close to HDR quality. This means that no matter the source if it is SDR signal, you can enjoy it as close as possible to HDR quality. On other hand, the Sony XBR75X900E and the XBR75X940E are equipped with a great performing UHD Up-scaling engine. The combination of 4K X-Reality Pro and X1 engine allows you to enjoy content with any resolution near 4K quality sharply and clearly. Even when the source is 480p like DVD movies, you will enjoy them in 4K resolution sharply and clearly with small details still preserved well.  And the higher the resolution of the source like cable TV with 720p or Blu Ray Player with 1080p, the result certainly is sharper and clearer, and even not far from a native 4K source.

The only drawback of the Sony XBR75X940E and the XBR75X900E in terms of picture performance is the side viewing angle. Because both use a VA Panel where a poor side viewing angle is its native characteristic, this makes the side viewing angle of he XBR75X900E and the XBR75X940E to be very limited. Starting at 20 degrees off center, the contrast will degrade and blacks of images will tend to look grey. Meanwhile the accuracy of color is also reduced. But even so, as long as you watch TV from center and front, this should not be a big problem.

Motion Handling and 24p Movie Playback

Although both of them are a big screen 75 inch, watching fast moving sports programs and fast movies look correct on the screen. This can not be separated from their great performance when minimizing motion blur. The pixel response time is very low where there is only a short trail following fast moving objects. This makes the picture produced looks smooth with almost no motion blur noticeable when displaying fast moving images. Both of them also do a good job when playing 24p movies. No matter the source of the movies, whether it is 24p movies from Blu Ray, 24p via 60i signal like movies from satellite TV, or even 24p movies from 60p signals, both offer a smooth and clear picture quality with judder-free. And because both have a native 120 Hz refresh rate panel, they also support 30/60fps interpolation.

Input/Output

Both are equipped with 4 HDMI Ports and 3 USB Ports for the connectivity where their HDMI supports most of the formats required for HDMI connection such as HDCP 2.2, Audi Return Channel, CEC, and more. The difference is where these ports are located. On the XBR75X900E, 3 HDMI and all USB ports are located at the side while 1 HDMI port is located at the rear. Meanwhile on th XBR75X940E, 1 HDMI and 2 USB Ports are located at the side while 3 HDMI and 1 USB port is located at the bottom. Talking about input lag, overall the XBR75X900E has low input lag, lower than the XBR75X940E at 1080p and 4k signals. This means it is a great TV when used for playing any kind of game with any resolution, even for fast paced games. Although not as low of an input lag as the XBR75X900E, the input lag of the Sony XBR75X940E is also low for 4K signals making it great for playing any kind of 4K game. At a 1080p signal, its input lag is too high. It’s only comfortable when used for playing casual games — for playing fast paced games it might be a bit disappointing.

Smart TV

Both series feature Google Android TV 6.0 version (the 2017 version) as their Smart TV platform. One of the advantages of Android TV is the apps provided where there are many apps available developed by tons of developers where you can download them via the Google Play Store. In addition to apps, content, and games which you can download from the Google Play Store, there’s also a lot of interesting default apps provided like ChromeCast, Google Voice Search, Play Station Now, VoD Service like Netflix, YouTube, Amazon prime, Web Browser, and much more. Talking about performance, it’s very fast and responsive. Once an app is launched, its loading time is very fast. Additionally when selecting between apps this also feels responsive. The user interface and layout is also designed attractively. Unfortunately, the navigation is a bit confusing and not as simple as other platforms (such as Tizen OS and WebOS). But if you are already familiar with this OS, then this should not be a problem.

For the controller, both the Sony XBR75X900E and the Sony XBR75X940E use a basic remote that is also used by most other models of Sony’s 2017 4K HDR TV lineup. The remote is fairly large with a lot of soft buttons. The remote is also equipped with a built-in microphone for voice navigation and voice search functionality. In addition to the remote control, both are equipped with IR blaster that allows you to control other devices connected to your TV with a single Sony remote.

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X900E <<

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the XBR75X940E <<

Summary

Performance XBR75X900E XBR65X940E
Design (4.3/5) (4.3/5)
Picture Quality (4/5) (4.2/5)
HDR (4.1/5) (4.2/5)
Motion Handling (4.6/5) (3/5)
Inputs (4.2/5) (4.3/5)
Sound Quality (3/5) (3.6/5)
Smart TV (3.9/5) (3.9/5)

Conclusion

Overall the picture quality of the Sony XBR75X940E is better than the XBR75X900E, especially when displaying HDR content. This is because its peak brightness is far brighter and the black level is deeper because of the advantages of the technology that supports it. The XBR75X900E has lower input lag that makes it is better for playing games, especially for fast paced 1080p games. Despite the advantage of the XBR75X940E on picture quality and the advantage of the XBR75X900E on input lag, overall both series offer good picture quality for each television in their class. No matter the light condition of the room, their picture quality looks consistently amazing whether displaying SDR and HDR content. Except for poor side viewing angle and the lack of 3D technology, performance offered by each is really great whether used for watching TV shows, Movies, Sports, and playing games.

So which is a better choice for you? Considering the performance offered by each, of course the Sony XBR75X940E is a better choice than the XBR75X900E.  Of course we must remember, that it is much more expensive. Now the decision is yours according to your need and budget.

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the Sony XBR75X900E <<

>> Please click here to see today’s price for the Sony XBR75X940E <<

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