Z9J - The 8K Master Series

By David, Carlisle Sony Centre

BRAVIA XR is the name given to Sony’s premium TV range for 2021, and the Z9J is the flagship 8K Master Series TV. Available in 75” & 85”, it replaces the incredibly popular ZH8. We sat down to spend time with this 8K marvel and put it through its paces.

Sony Z9J

This year, Sony introduced its brand new Cognitive XR Processor, it’s what drives the new range of premium Sony TVs. Designed to replicate the way our brains respond to picture and sound, XR Processor gives you the ultimate viewing/listening experience!

This TV is jam packed full of upgraded features, the XR Contrast Booster 15 is the best yet, giving real black depth and impressive brightness without losing detail in dark scenes or being over saturated. Playing back ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ on Blu-Ray, we were blown away by the black levels and accurate backlighting of the Z9J.

The light and colour sensor means you can optimise colour and brightness of the picture to your light source automatically, something we found worked well in our dimly lit living room space.

Thankfully, the Z9J’s screen is anti-reflective, and the X-Wide Angle panel means that no matter where you’re watching there is no loss of quality. We found this to be incredibly effective, and the anti-reflective surface made a huge difference.

Above: Z9J’s X-Wide Angle panel makes for a much better experience, no matter where you’re sat.

Above: The anti-reflective panel reduces reflections in the screen, bringing the cinematic experience to life!

If sound quality is important to you (and it should be!), then the Z9J’s got you covered with its Acoustic Multi-Audio technology, it has high frequency tweeters in the frame, delivering sound to the right places on the screen. Streaming from Netflix was pin-sharp and sounded superb.

We liked the front facing subwoofers, which delivered deep powerful bass and a beautiful full sound range. This really complimented the gorgeous visuals.

If you’re a gamer, look no further. HDMI 2.1 grants access to features like 8K 60fps & 4K 120fps, meaning supported games will be super smooth, have quicker response times and low input lag. Pair this with XR Motion Clarity, and Z9J keeps everything smooth for the best gaming experience or your favourite action-packed movies. The best part? It’s free from any motion blur!

Finally, there are smart TV’s and there is Sony’s new Google TV platform. It gives you access to all your favourite streaming apps and hands-free voice search means you simply need to tell your TV what you are looking for.

We have to say, the Z9J is a brilliant effort from Sony. Excellent picture matched with the exemplary sound performance makes this a real juggernaut in the 8K TV space. You can find out more and place an order for your very own Z9J, here!