The Sony Bravia 8 II is a TV enthusiast’s dream

Sony has a history of making fantabulous TVs, from the Trinitron CRTs of past period to the world’s first OLED astir 20 years ago to 2016’s ZD9 mini-LED that delivered exceptional brightness and dimming power for the time. And while Samsung hit Sony to the marketplace pinch the S95B, successful 2022 Sony was the first institution to denote a QD-OLED TV. That TV, the A95K, was the champion TV I had ever seen — until the A95L successful 2023. Now we person the adjacent successful the series. The naming normal has changed, but pinch the Bravia 8 II, Sony erstwhile again intends to create the best-ever QD-OLED TV.

Since its merchandise successful June 2025, the Bravia 8 II has received praise for its heavy blacks and protector detail, fantabulous processing, and realistic image quality. Like the A95K successful 2022, and the A95L successful 2023 and 2024, the Sony Bravia 8 II was named the King of TV by the judges of the Value Electronics’ 2025 TV Shootout (including Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel). It’s a spot brighter than the A95L, its processing is stellar — particularly the measurement it elevates the look of lower-quality contented — and it runs connected Google OS (which is simply a awesome use complete its QD-OLED and OLED competitors from Samsung, LG, and Panasonic, which trust connected either their own, clunkier interfaces aliases connected Amazon Fire TV). Since it’s an OLED, its blacks are heavy and inky, and amended erstwhile the lights are connected than the Samsung S95F QD-OLED, which uses a matte finish. But it isn’t rather arsenic meticulous retired of the container arsenic the A95L, which measured virtually perfect. Because of those sky-high expectations, immoderate reviewers and enthusiasts person rated the Bravia 8 II little than it deserves.

There’s nary specified a point arsenic a cleanable TV. Each 1 has thing it doesn’t do rather right. But while the Bravia 8 II does person immoderate insignificant issues, they’re the benignant that only TV enthusiasts are apt to notice. And those enthusiasts are the aforesaid group that will get the Bravia 8 II calibrated, eliminating astir of the issues. Even though I’m exceedingly peculiar astir TV capacity (it’s my career, aft all), nary of the issues were deal-breakers for me, because pinch existent contented they were either fleeting aliases not visible from a normal viewing distance. When it comes down to it, I’ve seldom enjoyed watching a TV much than this one.

At a Sony Electronics arena I attended astatine Sony Pictures successful Los Angeles a mates years ago, institution reps boasted that Sony products are utilized successful each level of cinema production, from the cameras and lenses to the $40,000 show utilized to maestro the last product. Sony’s tagline for its Bravia TVs and speakers is “Cinema is coming home,” and the Bravia 8 II is its top-end OLED, designed to present arsenic adjacent to a theater-level capacity successful your surviving room arsenic possible. It’s what cinephiles chase: a TV that accurately displays the creators’ intent. And it’s for that logic I’m being a spot picky successful my assessment.

The Bravia 8 II is only disposable successful 55- and 65-inch sizes pinch MSRPs of $2,599.99 and $3,299.99, respectively (Sony provided a 65-inch exemplary for our review). Only 2 of the 4 HDMI inputs are 2.1, allowing for 4K/120Hz signals pinch VRR, and 1 of those ports (HDMI 3) is the eARC connection. So if you’re connecting a soundbar aliases receiver and aren’t routing a crippled console done it, you’re losing 1 of the HDMI 2.1 inputs.

Like its predecessor, the A95L, the Bravia 8 II uses feet connected retired adjacent the surface separator that tin beryllium attached successful 2 tallness positions — 1 pinch the bottommost separator of the TV astir half an inch from the aboveground it’s resting connected and the 2nd elevating the TV 3 inches. That’s capable to accommodate a soundbar correct nether the surface alternatively of successful beforehand of it, arsenic pinch TVs for illustration the TCL QM9K that person pedestal stands. But it besides intends you request a media console wide capable to fresh the TV.

Since it’s a QD-OLED TV, the Bravia 8 II comes pinch the axenic blacks and pixel-level power we expect from an OLED, pinch the other colour vibrancy of quantum dots. Matched pinch Sony’s fantabulous image processing, which has been the champion connected the marketplace for years, the Bravia 8 II delivers a awesome 4K image. Stars sparkle, there’s awesome item successful the shadows, and scenery looks realistic and inviting. The grittiness of early Los Angeles successful Blade Runner 2049 is heightened by the specifications visible successful the dark, rainy streets. The buildings among the trees of Rivendell look for illustration a existent solace from the evils creeping done Middle-earth. At galore points during my reappraisal process I was sucked into what I was watching and forgot I was location to evaluate. Even a YouTube video of a train winding its measurement done snow-covered villages successful Switzerland was mesmerizing, and kept my attraction arsenic I dreamed of a picnic successful the Alps.

The TV’s processing and upscaling improves lower-quality content, too, causing it to look smoother and little pixelated, and amended than what I’ve seen connected competitors from LG, TCL, Samsung, and Hisense. Nobody does it amended than Sony. Most of the contented group watch is 1080p — beryllium it from a streaming service, cable, aliases complete the aerial — and location the Bravia 8 II achieves a cleaner and much elaborate image than its competitors.

Brightness has ever been the biggest point holding OLEDs back, and while they still can’t compete pinch mini-LED TVs, they’re now capable to put retired capable ray to guidelines up against ambient lighting conditions. While the LG G5 is the brightest OLED I’ve seen, the Bravia 8 II still gets plentifulness bright. In HDR, the Sony measures 1,590 nits from a 10 percent window, and gets moreover brighter pinch smaller highlights (up to 1,884 nits). As the size of the agleam area increases, the Sony isn’t capable to support that level of brightness (no TV is), and a afloat achromatic surface measures only 239 nits. But nary 1 (other than reviewers) watches a full-field achromatic screen. While watching movies and TV shows successful my surviving room — which admittedly doesn’t get nonstop sunlight — the Sony ably held up to ambient light. If you person ample image windows pinch sunlight streaming through, I’d see the G5; for most, Sony’s brightness should beryllium plenty.

In SDR, if you move Peak Luminance (found nether Brightness) to High, the Sony hits 540 nits, which, again, should beryllium capable unless your surviving room is drenched successful sunlight. For the video purists watching SDR successful a location theater, leaving Professional pinch its default SDR settings, the TV tracks betwixt 107 and 100 nits from mini highlights up to a afloat screen. This is spot-on reference-level brightness for SDR contented successful a acheronian room. It shows that Sony’s engineers are superior astir delivering a reference-quality image pinch minimal settings adjustments.

While the Bravia 8 II is incredibly meticulous retired of the container successful Professional image mode, location are a fewer insignificant issues. Most group won’t beryllium bothered by immoderate of them. In HDR, the grayscale connected the Bravia 8 II leans a small bluish arsenic it gets person to white, successful a measurement the LG G5 doesn’t. It’s astir noticeable successful things for illustration achromatic clouds aliases snowfall connected upland peaks. It’s successful nary measurement unpleasant, conscionable not rather arsenic meticulous and axenic arsenic it should be. Colors besides propulsion a spot toward blue. It’s not drastic — the reddish Corvette successful The Big Lebowski is still red, conscionable not rather arsenic vibrant — but pinch a TV this good, those insignificant specifications guidelines retired more.

I usually don’t urge calibration to astir people, aliases for astir TVs. Out-of-the-box capacity has improved beautiful importantly complete the past fewer years crossed a wide scope of prices and manufacturers, arsenic agelong arsenic you move retired of the default image mode to thing called Movie, Cinema, aliases Professional. And arsenic I’ve said, the Bravia 8 II looks really awesome successful Professional. But it tin still look better. When you opportunity a TV is the 1 that brings cinema home, the group that are buying it are very apt chasing the champion image value they tin get. And for those people, a calibration is worthy it. I performed a speedy 21-point calibration connected the Bravia 8 II, and afterward, the image looked perfect. No much blues successful clouds, and colors from tegument tones to quality backdrops looked moreover much incredible.

If we’re being picky, the Bravia 8 II does person 2 issues circumstantial to QD-OLED panels, but moreover those are little noticeable than connected earlier models. One is the deficiency of a polarizing filter, which tin lead to raised blacks pinch a somewhat purplish color. While location was a small spot of this happening connected the Bravia 8 II, it’s amended than what I’ve seen connected Samsung QD-OLED TVs, and it was hardly noticeable successful regular use. Even pinch the lights connected successful my surviving room, the blacks felt heavy and inky, giving the TV exceptional contrast. And the triangular pixel building of QD-OLEDs tin origin colour fringing of either greenish aliases purple connected the edges of agleam images against acheronian backgrounds. I saw hints of this arsenic well, but from a normal viewing region it’s only noticeable if you’re intently looking for it. It didn’t fuss my family astatine all. And this excessively is little noticeable than connected early procreation QD-OLEDs, though it apt won’t spell distant wholly until and unless Sony changes the pixel building connected QD-OLED panels.

If I were to bargain a TV for myself today, the Sony Bravia 8 II is the 1 I would get — nary question. The image it produces is incredibly engaging, and passim my reappraisal process I recovered myself wanting to watch it much and more, moreover without the calibration. Sure, location are insignificant issues pinch immoderate acheronian segment colour fringing, and it doesn’t get arsenic agleam arsenic different TVs. A lawsuit could beryllium made for the older A95L if you find it discounted, arsenic retired of the container it will beryllium a small much meticulous than the Bravia 8 II. And for a room that’s perfectly bathed successful light, the LG G5 offers very akin capacity pinch a brighter image. But during my clip spent pinch the Sony Bravia 8 II, location was ne'er a moment, beryllium it pinch captious viewing aliases watching a movie pinch my family, erstwhile I wasn’t impressed. It reminded maine why I emotion movies. What much could you inquire from a TV?

Photography by John Higgins / The Verge