The smart television ecosystem in India hasn’t seen an ecosystem collaboration of the kinds Sony India envisions with its new Cinema is Coming Home concept. The basic idea is something we’ve heard before often with TV makers, promising to deliver a cinema-like experience. But Sony’s building this concept on three key pillars, which arrives in India after its release in some countries earlier this year, encompassing the Bravia 2024 lineup. At this time, no other TV maker in India has a concept as detailed as this, in place for TVs customers can buy.
First, the updated picture and audio processing hardware and associated algorithms that are now part of the 2024 line-up of Sony Bravia televisions, including the Bravia 9, Bravia 8, Bravia 7 and Bravia 3 models.. Second, is collaborating with platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Sony Pictures Core, for something they reference as Studio Calibration. Thirdly, Bravia TVs integrating cinema-derived formats such as IMAX Enhanced and Dolby Vision as well as Dolby Atmos.
“A lot goes into making movies, the colour, lighting, tonality, the calibrations. Our intent is to calibrate TVs in such a way that you see a movie exactly how it has been envisaged and shot by the creator,” Sunil Nayyar, Managing Director, Sony India, tells HT. He adds that competition TVs cannot replicate this level of precision because they don’t have the core hardware and software that Sony’s building the experience with.
The 2024 Bravia TVs can deliver the Cinema is Coming Home concept due to the updated hardware such as the XR Processor, on which audio and video processing algorithms build. The Netflix Adaptive Calibrated Mode, for instance, reworks brightness of visuals depending on ambient lighting in the room. It’ll be a similar approach for all picture settings calibrations with the Prime Video Calibrated Mode.
Nayyar confirms to HT that the entire concept suite is now available on all compatible TVs, and there is no need to wait for any software updates.
The Bravia 8, which has an OLED panel, makes use of the company’s XR Processor with artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to work on something called the ‘focal point’. The idea is to understand what part of a visual would a human viewer’s eyes be drawn to (and that changes with every scene change) to begin enhancement of the image from that region. Scoreboards in Live sports, for example.
“The way we perceive the world is based on all kinds of information coming from our eyes and ears to our brain. Working in the same way, XR Processor cross-analyses hundreds of thousands of elements at once,” Sony’s technical data explains the workings of the XR Processor. This succeeds the previous generation chip, Bravia XR, with a Bravia Core calibration mode. In a way, that chip first showed the direction towards honing in on the focal point, with its then unmatched cognitive capabilities.
At that time, when it was first introduced with the 2021 TV range, Sony had pitched its abilities as that it “thinks like we humans do”.
“One of these elements is the focal point—which can detect where humans tend to focus the most. By cross-analysing each picture element including focal point, it generates depth information and adjusts each part to give the picture the most depth and reality,” it adds.
“It’s a game of light, of playing with lighting and colours. If you don’t reproduce it properly, that content simply becomes a commodity,” says Nayyar.
What Nayyar is referring to is a feature set that would include XR Processor, XR Contrast Booster, XR Triluminos Pro, XR Backlight Master Drive, Studio Calibrated, IMAX Enhanced and Dolby Vision technologies. For audio, Dolby Atmos figures prominently across the line-up.
Sony has seemingly received a vote of confidence from filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli, who is partnering with the company for the Cinema is Coming Home concept. “This concept redefines the home viewing experience, enabling audiences to truly immerse themselves in the authentic essence of cinema. It’s not just about watching a film; it’s about experiencing the magic and emotion of storytelling in the comfort of home,” he says, in a statement.
Not all Bravia TVs that are part of the 2024 line-up are equal though, with variation depending on pricing. The portfolio is taking shape.
In a way, the Bravia 9 and Bravia 8 can be considered dual flagships, since the Bravia 9 (in 85-inch and 75-inch; priced ₹4,49,990 onwards) broadens the display tech variety with Mini LED panels, while the Bravia 8 (65-inch and 55-inch; priced ₹2,19,990 onwards) is for those who’d prefer an OLED display. There is parity on most functionality including Sony Pictures Core, R Contrast Booster, XR Triluminos Pro, XR Backlight Master Drive, Studio Calibrated, IMAX Enhanced and Dolby Vision.
The Mini LED Bravia 7 (in 75-inch, 65-inch and 55-inch; ₹1,82,800 onwards) misses out on IMAX Enhanced while ticking off the rest of the list. The comparatively entry-spec Bravia 3 (50-inch, 55-inch all the way up to 85-inch; prices start ₹83,990) supports Sony Pictures Core, Triluminos Pro and Dolby audio—that’s also because it uses a different X1 chip for processing.
Alongside, Sony hopes to plug its latest generation audio hardware, including the Bravia Theatre Bar 9, Bravia Theatre Bar 8 and Bravia Theatre Quad, into the Cinema is Coming Home concept. These add-ons cost a pretty penny too, such as the Bravia Theatre Bar 8 sporting a price tag of ₹89,990 while the Bravia Theatre Bar 9 demanding you part with ₹1,29,990.
The Bravia 2024 line-up runs the Google TV smart TV platform, as well as Amazon’s Alexa assistant and Apple’s AirPlay 2 as well as Apple Home support integrated. Sony does overlay Google TV more than most other TV brands, to often improve access to settings and specific functionality such as notification and automatic calibration.