Sony 34xbr910 (1 Viewer)

[Mac F]

Has anyone actually seen the new sony 34xbr910? It was presented at the winter CES show, but I don't know if it was a mock-up, a prototype, or a working model. It is supposed to have significantly more dpi than the predicessor.

 

[Doug Pyle]

According to local dealers and a Sony Hawaii representative here, this should be in shops in September.

Has anyone had a look at it, to see how much improvement in resolution there is over the 34XBR800 or the 34" 510? Or the price? I'm likely to get either the 510 (the price is now much better than last year's model) or the 34XBR910 (if the resolution improvement is striking and the price reasonable).

Salespeople all say the 510 is basically the same as the 34XBR800 was but with DVI, though I can't find independent review or specs on the 510.

 

[Robin Banks]

Mac F,

Check out some of the post in the AVS forum. Be sure to go to the direct view forum for the posts. (www.avsforum.com)

A number of folks in the N.Y. and Seattle areas have reported seeing, touching, feeling, and actually buying the new 34XBR910. At Circuit City of all places!

According to some of the posts, the new set is a sight to behold. Some are even calling it the best direct view set on the market. PERIOD!

Here in the DC metro area, I have yet to lay my eyes on one. There is a Circuit City nearby that says that they have them in stock, but they have yet to put them on the showroom floor. Dammit!!! My old XBR250 can't wait for it's new home in the bedroom. HA! LOL!

Anyway, good luck!

 

[John_V]

I have the XBR800, and have checked out the new 910. Here's what I thought. (BTW, the XBR800 does have a DVI input).

I've been an 34-xbr800 owner for about 9 months, and have had a chance to view the new 910 side-by-side with the 800 at circuit city. Both sets were running the in-store HDTV feed, connected with component cables. I'll try to answer the question many xbr800 owners are asking: "did I make a mistake in purchasing the 800? Is my TV now inferior?"

Well, I wouldn't say inferior, but the degree to which the 910 looks better than the 800 is directly correlated to your viewing distance. At 5 feet, you'll definitely see the 910's super fine pitch screen is better. Solid areas of color look...solid. On the 800, you'll see the vertical stripes of color with black in between, not solid.

However getting out around 8 feet, the difference really drops off. I did a good 15 minutes of continuous viewing at 8.5 feet, which is the viewing distance for my 800 at home. Here, you really had to scrutinize to see the difference in picture. Yes, the 910 was still better, but only slightly so. Also, I didn't think the light output difference was as drastic as some people have described it. Using the default standard, movie, and pro picture modes, the 910 was only moderately less bright.

So there you have it. If I was viewing my 800 at a 5-6 foot distance, I'd start looking for people to sell it to, and get the 910!

On a practical note, the 910 has one negative that the 800 does not. The top of the 910 is not flat, it slopes down towards the front of the set a little. This would make a less stable base for a center channel speaker. The 800 has a completely flat surface on top.

 

[Matt Lee]

I saw it a couple days ago at Circuit City (in Milwaukee, WI) and was impressed. I was only standing maybe 3 feet away, and it was next to a 32HS510, but there was a very noticable improvement in clarity and detail over the 510. They had the XBR800 but it was on the other side of the room so I couldn't directly compare those. The XBR800 was going for about $2k WITH stand, which seemed like a nice deal, almost made me think about getting one of those, as I can't afford to demand the absolute best picture with my financial situation, otherwise I'd definitely go 910.

Turns out I'm going HD RPTV so it doesn't really affect me. I could see how from further away you wouldn't notice the difference as much, but isn't that how it always goes? I definitely thought the 910 was an improvement in overall PQ, and if I were buying a direct view set and could afford it, I would definitely go for the 910. But I don't think you're losing too much if you get an 800 or 510 for a lower budget, especially since they're both dropping in price now. If I was going direct view on my real-life budget I'd probably still get a 510 or XBR800 (whichever I could get cheaper). Hope this helps.