Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD Android TV Review: High Performer!
In 2022, the company has launched Sony X75K in the TV segment in which TVs are available in sizes ranging from 43 inches to 65 inches. Today I am going to review the 43 inch variant of this series which is Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD LED Smart TVIts price is Rs 53,190 which is listed on Sony’s own online store. Companies like Xiaomi and Realme provide 43 inch 4K TV in the range of up to Rs 30,000, compared to them, the price of this Sony TV seems quite high.
However, this new TV from Sony comes with the promise of better performance for its price and is positioned as a premium option for those customers who want to go a little above the budget TV range. Is the Sony KD-43X75K that premium? Let’s find out in this review.
Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD Android TV design and specifications
Sony X75K is the most affordable TV in the company’s Ultra HD TV series. But 43X75K is not as affordable as it is said to be. Priced at Rs 53,910, it is quite expensive compared to other companies and for its 65 inch size, the price reaches Rs 1 lakh. All TVs in the company’s X75K range come with Ultra-HD (3840×2160 pixels) LED LCD displays with support for High Dynamic Range, HLG and HDR10 formats.
When it comes to design, the Sony KD-43X75K TV looks a little nicer than the typical 43-inch TVs you’ll find. The credit for this goes to the beautiful finish of the thin border around the screen. Sony logo is given on the front. The TV is as thick as you’d expect from an LED TV of this size. The TV has a slight slope at the bottom due to which the bottom firing speakers appear to protrude slightly.
The TV can be table mounted or wall mounted, although only a table mount stand is provided in the box. You can use any VESA compatible wall mount to mount it on the wall. Sony provides free technician service for installation, if you want wall mount then it is provided by the company through the technician.
One set of ports and sockets is provided at the back of the TV while the other is provided on the left side of the screen. Ports at the back include an HDMI port (with ARC), video-in socket, Ethernet port for wired connectivity, digital audio out (Toslink) port, and power socket.
When the TV is wall mounted, access to all these ports becomes very difficult, due to which the cables and plugs can bend to such an extent that they get damaged. Before mounting it on the wall, you have to ensure that all these connections are properly made.
For side facing connectivity, two HDMI ports, two USB Type-A ports, a 3.5 mm headphone jack and an antenna socket are provided. These are all easy to access, but I was disappointed that none of these HDMI ports support Audio Return Channel (ARC). However, all HDMI ports support the latest HDCP 2.3 standard.
Talking about its other key specifications, it has a refresh rate of 50Hz, Sony MotionFlow XR 200 interpolation algorithm, and 16GB inbuilt storage for apps and app data. The TV has a 20W bottom firing, open baffle speaker system with support for Dolby Audio. Wireless connectivity includes Bluetooth 5 and dual-band Wi-Fi connectivity and wired Ethernet connectivity.
Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD Android TV remote and features
The company ships a large, fully functional remote with the TV. It has infrared emitter and Bluetooth connectivity. When connected via Bluetooth, its infrared emitter is used only to turn the TV on or off. Apart from that, all other functions like voice commands from the microphone installed on the remote etc. also use Bluetooth connectivity. For that you do not have to point the remote towards the TV.
Number pad, direction pad, back and home button are provided for navigation on the remote. Apart from this, playback controls and hot keys for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, and YouTube Music are provided. A dedicated button is also provided to activate Google Assistant. Apart from this, an information button is also provided in it which gives information about the resolution of streaming content, connection speed and many more things. The remote looks good, works great.
The Sony KD-43X75K includes built-in Google Chromecast, Sony X1 4K processor, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and AirPlay 2, and it comes equipped with HDMI CEC support for controlling connected devices. You can also use the TV’s Bluetooth connectivity for wireless headphones and speakers.
All these features work as expected, but do note that for Apple devices you will need a separate app to create wireless connectivity with the TV. I used AirScreen, available for Android TV on the Google Play store, and it worked well.
Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD Android TV software and interface
The Google TV user interface was launched with Google TV with Chromecast in 2020. But most of the TV manufacturers are preferring to go with the already tried and tested Android TV interface. Sony adopted the new user interface quite early and the KD-43X75K runs Android TV 11 with Google TV UI on top. It comes with Google Play Store for Android TV which has more than 5000 apps designed and optimized for use on TV. Apart from this, easy access to Google Assistant and Chromecast is also available.
However, the Google TV UI looks better than stock Android, and has some useful features. For example, Google Play Movies is no longer available on the app but is offered in the user interface. This means you can search for movies and TV shows, rent or buy them, and the purchase is done right from the UI.
It also has Rotten Tomatoes’ approved rating in search and recommendations for many titles. The system recommends movies and TV shows from multiple streaming services like Disney+ Hotstar, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime Video and Voot. Overall, Google TV UI is a fresh and much-needed change for Android TV and Sony’s rapid adoption of it gives it a leg up on its competitors. Especially if you like watching streaming content. Everything worked fine for me, and I did not encounter any software issues while using the TV.
Sony KD-43X75K Ultra-HD Android TV performance
Many well-known brands in India offer 43 inch Ultra HD TV at a price of less than Rs 30 thousand. In such a situation, Sony KD-43X75K has to offer something different from the rest, which it does. The TV has a good design, useful and premium features and a great software experience which takes it a notch above the rest. Among these, the parameter that is checked the most is performance… in which this Sony TV does not miss even a bit.
Support for Dolby Vision and HDR10+ in an affordable TV may not seem extraordinary anymore but this Sony TV only comes with support for HLG and HDR10, which may disappoint you. Nevertheless, with the help of picture calibration and superior HDR, it compensates for this shortcoming to a great extent.
The brightness on the TV doesn’t stand out too much with HDR content, but the format makes the colors of the content appear sharper. For example, Our Great National Parks and Bullsh*t The Game Show on Netflix looked best in a dark or dimly lit room. Even in ambient light, attention was not diverted from the TV.
The colors of nature and the bright lights of game shows looked very good on the TV. The skin tone looked very good. Similarly, shades of blue and green were emerging in the forest with perfect accuracy. The Sony KD-43X75K delivers sharp pictures with rich colors and clean motion. Compared to other budget TVs of similar size and specifications, this Sony TV was able to give a more sharp and detailed picture.
This quality was well reflected in the dark scenes of Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Motion also looks great on TV, which is possible due to its motion interpolation. The action scenes of the Venom sequel were playing very smoothly. Even in bright daylight, there was no visible impact on the TV screen. But, when direct sunlight comes into the room, the screen does not appear so reflective. Its black levels were quite good for an LED TV. Apart from this, the contrast level was also able to be set well.
A 43-inch TV is best suited for close viewing, but the smaller size also has an advantage in that even low resolution content looks as sharp and full of details as 4K. The sharpness, clean motion and good color levels of this Sony TV look great in Full HD content. Scenes from Kim’s Convenience and Pacific Rim looked great despite the lower resolution.
The sound quality of the Sony KD-43X75K is average, but it will sound adequate even if you do not use a sound bar or speaker system. The sound sounds good at high volumes, dialogues are clear and the background score is also good. But even at high volume the TV does not sound that loud. Overall, its sound is enough to enjoy watching TV in the bedroom late at night.
I ran into some issues with 5GHz Wi-Fi connectivity. At times the TV was not able to connect with the 5GHz band of my home router even though it was just a few meters away from the TV. In such a situation, there was a hindrance in streaming high resolution content. It showed stable connectivity after switching to the 2.4GHz band.
Verdict
There are many mainstream Ultra HD 43 inch TVs available today. Among them, this Sony TV stands out for its performance. The TV’s functional design, good specifications and software, HDR performance, and general ability to play all types of content make it a list of TVs I enjoyed reviewing. If we look at some of the shortcomings of the TV then it becomes difficult to justify its price.
Above Rs 50 thousand, Sony KD-43X75K TV is costlier than others by about Rs 20 thousand. If you want to buy it as a secondary TV then it does not seem wise to spend so much money. If you want to use it as a primary TV, and you only want a TV of this size, then you can definitely buy it.
55-inch TVs like the Mi TV 5X are available for less than this, so the Sony is only for those who want good performance and can pay a premium price for the 43-inch. It is way ahead of other market competitors of its size and will not disappoint the buyer if the buyer has no problem with its price.
