Crazy-Thin X9005C is Highlight of Sony’s 2015 4K TV Lineup

It’s not only smartphones that want to get slimmer and slimmer – TVs are trimming down too, and none more than Sony’s new super, razor-thin slim 4K TV, which must be about as thin as it’s possible for a television to be. Looking at the Bravia from the front it’s a monster, big, beautiful and sharp, but viewed from the side you’ll barely even see its there. That’s how thin it is.

Sony X9005C

The Sony Bravia X90C ‘name’ hardly does justice to what this display really is. The telly – soon to be available in the UK as the 55in Sony KD-55X9005C and the 65in KD-65X9005C – looks enormous when viewed from the front, but that same display astonishingly measures just 4.9 millimetres thick – less than a fifth of an inch, and even thinner than the latest iPhone 6. Crazy-thin is the only word to described this.

But why make a TV so ridiculously thin, you might ask? Simple, it’s all about the aesthetics, reckons Sony. When mounted to your living room wall, the Bravia X9005C appears almost completely flush, as if it were a part of the wall, rather than being stuck on there.

Despite the lack of ‘thickness’ in the super-narrow frame, Sony reckons the design of the KD55X9005C and KD65X9005C takes nothing away from the overall experience. The company claims the Bravia X90C – powered by its new 4K X1 Processor and non-quantum-dot-based TRILUMINOS colour gamut – delivers more vivid images, sharper contrast and clearer blues and greens than any of its 4K Ultra HD rivals on show at CES 2015.

Whether or not you’ll be able to find some native 4K content to watch on your gorgeously slim UHD (ultra high-definition) television remains to be seen. The vast majority of programmes and movies made today are not made in such high resolution, although Sony is at least trying to get some content out there. In fact, the Japanese brand says it’s confident that by the time the Bravia X9005C hits the shops this summer, consumers will have over 1,400 4K titles to choose from, though it neglected to say where this content would come from, and nor did it say if they were films, TV shows or something else. Still, at least there’s always Netflix 4K streaming.

Also noteworthy is that the 55-inch and 65-inch X9005C run Google’s Android TV operating system. Just like Android for mobile phones, it allows access to the Google Play Store, and thousands of different apps. These include streaming services like Hulu, Netflix and YouTube, which can all be accessed directly through the TV. The Bravia X900C also features voice search to make it easier to find content, while Google Cast allows media to be streamed to the TV directly from a compatible Android phone.

To pave way for its super-slim styling, the Sony X90C had to shed the local dimming technology found on the step-up X93C and X94C models. We’ll bring you more details on availability and prices as soon as we can.

9 comments

  1. I’d much rather these companies put their money into better contrast, colour and motion handling than marketing gimmicks like curved TVs and the thinnest TV.

    I couldn’t care less.

  2. Most likely they used Sharp panel

  3. This has nothing to do with aesthetics. Its all about saving money. Thinner means smaller components means less material means less cost. This mean lighter, also means smaller packing footprint and cost means less freight costs (get more on a palette). Result = picture imperfections. Panasonic found this out with vertical lines and other issues with screen uniformity with their plasma models over the last years they made them.

    Its no good having a panel that runs good out of the box but after 3 months use picture degrades due to design. I have seen this issue with both 2014 and before Plasma and 2015 LEDs (Samsung 8200 and 8500). They start out great but after a few months of normal usage the picture quality (especially uniformity) degrades to less quality than panels made 5 to six years ago which are still working just fine.

    Anyone serious about a good TV will tick picture quality above thickness when asked what’s more important to them when buying a TV.

  4. oled will solve the problems .

  5. I agree with Razoola. Panels are increasingly looking like a consumable, the intention being to replace rather than repair. Thin screens are inpractical in a family environment the risks of major accidents if inproperly installed should be a major consideration for purchasers. Pleased to to see the matter of viewer content raised again, broadcasters have obviously been left in limbo as to what to do, investing in 21st Century upgrades is not what they need in these frugal times.

  6. It’s all publicity seeking, to have the thinnest TV on at the show, giving Sony some bragging rights compared to their rivals. It has no local dimming so black level won’t be among the best.

  7. completly useless, its not the thinnest TV the bottom wich houses the brains and conections is still fat :P

    this will only cause the tv to have bad uniformity, it would be a much better Set if they produced a cheaper X930C without the side speakers.

    And how are these sets supposed to do HDR if they are only edgelit localdimming or even worse frame dimming? wiil they just up the brightness of the whole screen?

  8. The X83C, W80C and W75C will all be available in 43 inches. Does anyone have any clue, what kind of panels those are? I’m guessing VA, but what manufacturer? Has AUO upped their 42 inch panels to 43 inches?

    @John117

    They aren’t HDR compatible. Only the 75 inch X94C supports HDR, the X93C and X90C don’t. If you want the most DCI coverage and HDR you have to get the most expensive model.

  9. @Alex yeah, just saw that, these will only suport X-tend dinamic range wich is not real HDR.

    So if we want a complete UHD set we have to go for the most expensive TVs this year wich are FALD, might as well buy a discounted 2014 set.

    How come there is not a single big brand betting on FALD sets in the midrange segment but budget and chinese brands do.

    In the US Vizio had a 4K 70″ FALD set for 2499$/~1650£, how come none of the big boys tried to beat that at this year CES.