The Sony NX503 is the first of the Japanese super-firm’s “monolithic design” TVs to fall into our hands, and boy is it a beauty. It’s more than a pretty face too, with networking, next-gen picture processing and Freeview HD tucked away inside its slick shell. Read on, and get the skinny in our full Sony NX503 review.
The first thing you’ll notice about the Sony NX503 series is its lightness. Prizing it from its box, even if you plump for a 40-inch screen like the one we reviewed, is easy.
An included stand lets you rotate Sony’s huge slab of entertainment tech, although its slightly curved rectangular design is the first hint that this is a mid-range LCD TV, rather than a top of the range set. More expensive Sony Bravia TVs featuring the monolithic design come with a new metallic stand, letting the TV “lean” into their vertical orientation gracefully. Meanwhile the NX503’s table-top holder looks a little cheap, and it’s a shame.
Similarly, while the Sony NX503 looks great from the front, it’s a tubby little fella, owing mainly to its fluorescent backlight, as opposed to LED.
Those niggles aside, however, this is a drop dead gorgeous television. Sony’s LCD panel extends from edge to edge, with almost no bezel in sight. Its glass frontage might reflect annoyingly in direct light, but position it correctly and your peepers are in for a treat.
High definition programmes sparkle with colour and clarity. The fast-moving action of Top Gear positively sizzled across the screen, and even standard definition shows fed from Virgin Media or Freeview seemed sharp and glistening. That’s due to the Sony Bravia Engine 3 humming away inside, upscaling SD pictures, alongside Live Colour processing technology to squeeze the very best out of pictures.
No matter what we fed the NX503, its picture performance knocked our socks off. Blacks, intensified by the glossy glass screen and edge-to-edge LCD display, are deep and rich. It is, for the price, a jaw-dropping screen.
Flick Freeview HD into action, and that stunning performance continues. Sony’s EPG is slick and smooth, while images are unsurprisingly eye-tingling.
And so we turn our Sony NX503 review to its networking abilities. That is, after all, what the N in Sony NX503 stands for.
The Sony NX503 is a TV capable of hooking up to your computer and broadband connection using DLNA. It’s all navigated using Sony’s XrossMediaBar – an interface that’ll be instantly familiar to PS3 or PSP owners. Bravia Internet TV is included, although we’re yet to be wowed by the content on offer. YouTube in the living room hasn’t tempted us in before via Apple TV, Blu-ray players or several games consoles, and we’re not about to have our interest piqued now.
DLNA is a handy addition though, even if the Sony NX503 lacks built-in Wi-Fi. Sure, you can add a dongle to connect wirelessly, but since the NX503 only has one USB socket, you’ll lose the ability to plug in any storage to play back DivX, JPEG or MP3 files on the big screen.
As a networked TV therefore, the Sony NX503 loses points for its “either or” approach to sucking up media. Either you plug in a cumbersome ethernet cable (and suffer all the necessary furniture moving, router shifting and head-scratching that involves) or you slot in a Wi-Fi adapter and lose the ability to simply play back media files locally.
Overall, however, we’re taken with the Sony NX503. Its a mid-priced TV that produces truly spectacular pictures, no matter which TV provider you have hooked up at home. Its envy-inducing design is smarter than most TVs, and the lack of a metallic stand will, realistically, never be noticed by your less tech-savvy mates.
Balancing value, price, features and design this is one of 2010’s very best TVs, and with few caveats one that deserves to share your lounge.
We love the Sony NX503 so much, it’s earned a place in our Top 5 Best LCD TV list. Find out more about our Top 5s.
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