Sony Grand Wega XBR 70" LCOS Projection TV

Instant Movie Theater | Worth Every Penny | Wow

Strengths: Deep black level, inputs galore, nice remote, rich menu options, contemporary design, fabulous picture, complimentary bulb and of course...it's a SONY!

Weaknesses: None.

Summary: - My wife and I decided to acquire a large-screen TV this year. Being creatures of habit, we created a list of requirements and set out to find the TV we both could live with. After countless months of gathering ratings, reading feedback, visiting stores and the web sites of manufacturers, the Sony KDSR70XBR2 was an easy result of a comprehensive process.

- Knowing the best deals were on the Internet, we found a merchant with a great rating and saved a generous amount of time, money, and concern. A portion of the savings was allocated toward a 3-year warranty. In less than a week, the TV arrived from New York to our home in Arizona.

- Paying for only curb-side delivery, we were elated when the transporters moved the television into our home, removed the packaging, and didn’t ask for anything in return. We appreciated their professionalism and tipped them generously. They were good to us.

- You know, I could go on for hours about the wonders of this model, the incredible size of the screen, or its state-of-the-art processing. However, I'll spare you and ask that you visit Sony’s web site for that information. What I can say is our money was well-spent. We would duplicate this deal without hesitation. We are EXTREMELY pleased.

- One other thing: We did not purchase the stand. Instead, we went to Ikea, purchased two Benno TV units, placed four 18” x 18” tiles across the top of the units, and the XBR2 rests on a contemporary base that meets the design requirements of our decor. See the result in the attached photo.

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• i'm in the market to buy this tv within 2 weeks, could you tell m...
• I purchased from Butterflyphoto.com in December 2006. They are l...
• Love the decor of your movie room. Just a quick question on the ...

Pricey but worth it!!

Strengths: Size, PQ, 1080p inputs via HDMI, extra lamp, 180W, HDMI input in the front, SXRD chips

Weaknesses: Screen - too much gain in the Fresnel Lens!

Summary: Much better than last year's rendition of SXRD! The new 180W bulb really gives a pop to the colors and assists with eliminating color non-uniformity issues that plagued last years XBR1's.

Please be sure to feed GOOD signal to this TV or else you will be disappointed with the glaring mistakes this TV brings out from the fed signal :)!!

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• Weaknesses: Screen - too much gain in the Fresnel Lens! - What do...
• Does this TV actually comes with an extra Lamp?
• Yes it does, extra lamp in a box with the TV. I have had this set...
• I have KDSR60XBR1, how does it compare to that? Should I go and g...

WORTH THE WAIT AND PRICETAG!!

Strengths: The size of course, PQuality is good on normal signal, but GREAT on the 1080i, extra lamp, deep black levels

Weaknesses: really needs the HD signal to look great, doesnt do much to correct std signal

Summary: cant wait to get a blu-ray hooked up to this set, now if we could receive more than a handful of HD signals from the directv folks, purchased from AE, great people, think if your on the fence, go ahead and pull the trigger, dont see the price coming down much more on this. It would be helpful to have a tech book on where to set some of the settings for optimal performance.

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THE Television for a Large Room or Theatre

Strengths: Viewing area | Bright colors | 2 rear, 1 front HDMI inputs (accepts 1080p) | Generous inputs | Removable speakers | TV Guide OnScreen | Excellent remote

Weaknesses: Weight | Warm-up time (~20 secs) | Width (with speaker's attached) | PC input (does not fill screen) | 1080p accepted by HDMI only

Summary: Size is both an enabling and inhibiting element of this extraordinary TV. 70" of viewing pleasure creates an enjoyable experience for watching standard, enhanced, or high definition TV. Being a rear projection TV (LCoS -- liquid crystal on silicon), it weighs in around 140 lbs., but has a decently small foot print. Pretty hefty and awkward for lifting up to the 2nd story (like I did) or down in the basement, the user manual suggests using 3 people to lift the TV and offers indentations in the TV's housing for hand placement, but this didn't make it any easier.

I would opt for the "white-glove" service if your pocketbook allows for it, or have at lease 2 strong people ready to handle this behemoth. It takes a small balancing act, too, as the weight is somewhat distributed like an older tube television.

The color is amazing and more than substantially bright. Some may want to dim the light emittance, but I enjoy not having to turn on any lights to spare my oculars the pain of a dim television in the dark. Also, the 180-watt lamp tears through most sun glare and is the easiest TV to view in daylight, by far.

Colors are crisp and saturated, but blacks and whites could be truer if you were comparing side-by-side. However, for regular everyday viewing, you won't know, or care -- you will get lost in this huge, immersive picture. If you don't buy this TV for the enjoyment of it's size (plus favorably well-equipped options to boot), don't bother yet buying an HD television.

Standard definition is poorer when compared to viewing on a regular TV but is still watchable. You don't notice the grainy and sometimes pixilated pictures after about a minute of viewing. It reminds me of DVDs when they first came out: I never wanted to watch TV after watching a DVD, but I always went back. You have to remember that the native resolution of this TV is 1080p with a substantially inferior signal source, if not hi-def; but, trust me, it's fine and you'll be okay until analog signals stop broadcasting in a couple years.

One of the biggest disappointments for me is the TV's side-speakers, which are removable. I prefer bottom-mounted speakers to reduce the overall width of the TV which has earned this Sony 70XBR2 the nickname of Dumbo. Don't shy away, though. I chose this model over a Samsung, Mitsubishi, and Toshiba of similar size and more appealing (to me) configuration. All the outputs are there for you to hook this theatre-appropriate TV to your equally large sound system.

You cannot go wrong with this TV. However, make sure you have the room for its size so it blends into your room without taking it over.

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Sony 70XBR2

Strengths: Size, 1080P , 3HDMI inputs, addition lamp included, ajustability, unbelievable picture quality, 2.5 milisecond response time, deep blacks, detachable speakers

Weaknesses: It is a large set and about 24 inches deep so you need a big space to put it. I really don't see this as a negative.

Summary: After spending many months of looking at and reading about every brand and type of big TV, I finally took the plunge and got the 70 XBR2. This is the 4th Sony I have purchased and although there are many other nice sets out there, I still think Sony is the best overall with a long track record. This TV is similar to the 70 inch Qualia which sold for over $10,000 a few years ago and did not include 1080P. Most retail stores are selling it for $5999. The picture is awesome and if you want to feel like you were in the movie theater then this is the set for you. With the matching stand from Sony this TV looks more like a work of art and certainly will be the focal point of any room it is in. The HD picuture quality is unbelievable when connected to Direct TV. When connected to a Blu-ray DVD player it will blow you away. I have hooked mine up to a Sony PS3 player for both games and to use as my Blu-ray DVD player. Watching golf and other athletic events is almost as good as being there--and much cheaper! If you have the space don't settle for smaller becasue the picture quality won't get any better than with this monster.

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Sony Grand WEGA 70 in. HDTV KDSR70XBR2

Strengths: Color gamut and rendition due to the UHP lamp and image engine design is excellent. Superb clarity with HD content feed, which is absolutely essential.

Weaknesses: Turn on/off light is on one side and is extremely silent. Lamp does takes a few seconds (10 -15 secs) to warm up and render picture on the screen. Be patient. Requires dimming capability: too bright

Summary: 2007-01-29 15:21:20 This is one of the best LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) based rear projection TV. The color gamut and rendition is excellent and so is the image clarity with HD feed. HD feed is essential with this TV; standard TV signals will produce slight blurring effects when viewing video. I've set it for viewing at a distance of about 8 feet and the immersion effect is just awesome since there is very little peripheral image left over (visit www.myhometheater.home... to get the minimum size HDTV required to get this impact). The image design seems extremely good and makes the best utilization of the UHP (Ultra High Pressure) lamp spectra. The higher wattage lamp (compared to the one used in other LCOS based systems) also makes the image look brighter and the white is really a nice cool/vivid white. Though lower wattage lamp may be adequate for smaller diameter screens, for this size a higher wattage lamp is desired. Flat panel LCD HDTVs use florescent lamps and therefore do not provide a large color gamut and DLP based systems use UHP lamp but have image break up due to field sequential operation. The TV (with US warranty) comes with a spare lamp which is an excellent deal. No mention is made in the manual that rapid turn on/off mechanism may reduce lamp life but they do have a built in protection. The TV stand that comes with it (separate purchase) is the only one in the market that can accommodate this TV (with the speakers attached). The built in speakers have adequate performance but definitely would go better with a good home theater or a sound projection system. Good viewing across the room, in spite of the Fresnel lens. At times, the image does appear 3D. The stand design is good and sturdy and worth every penny but would have preferred something more bolder to match the TV.

Drawbacks: On/Off light is hidden on the right side and there is no mechanism to indicate that the TV is on: especially for a few seconds prior to image displayed on the screen. Not too many commercials use HD cameras, therefore many commercials appear fuzzy. One can see a slight variation in image quality from one HD channel to another, probably due to the difference in quality/image stabilization of the camera used. When viewed at a shorter distance 1-2 feet away, screen texture is noticeable but at 8 feet, it is not disturbing. HDTV shows great detail: can see the TV hosts's nostrils, facial wrinkles/spots, clothing texture and color details at a distance of 8 feet which could not be noticeable on smaller and/or standard TV.

Reccommendation: Do not compromise on screen size. Larger is better and gives an immersive viewing.

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Great Big TV; Great Big Picture

Strengths: Great picture, especially in high def

Weaknesses: Only weakness is depth compared to plasma

Summary: Decided on this TV after looking at plasmas and lcd's. The high resolution coupled with price to size ratio was the deciding factor. I had a Sony xbr 53 before high def was available and the tv still works well. We now have it in the play room for our kids. The picture on this tv is increadable on the high def channels. The size makes the room like a movie theater. I have not hooked up surround sound yet, because we moved the tv into a different room from the last tv. However; the sound is very good from the tv's speakers. The tv also has detachable speakers if you want to remove them with a surround system. We bought a playstation 3 and hooked it up with HDMI cables. Cost less than Blu-ray but has one in it and the game. Phenomenal picture with Blu-ray movies. Also this tv comes with an extra bulb, which is only thing that goes out compared to plasma.

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