Sony Android TV : Australia

Sony Android TV : Australia

Android on the big screen is coming of age with Sony's latest Smart TVs.
Running Android on a television or set-top box is one of those ideas which looks great on paper but generally fails to live up to expectations.

Sony's latest effort, available on most of its 2015 range including the 75-inch Ultra HD model I looked at Monday, offers the slickest Android television implementation I've seen yet, but it comes at a price.

We're not just talking about a re-skinned version of Android as you see on many home entertainment devices. Android TV is a flavour of Android 5.0 Lollipop designed from the ground up by Google to run on a Smart TV.

This means that the interface and apps are all customised for a 10-foot user experience from the couch and they play nicely with the remote control. It also means that you don't get dumped into clunky phone-style Android menus as you delve into the advanced settings.

The trade-off for this elegant user experience is that you're limited to a small corner of the Google Play App Store which offers apps optimised for Android TV.

It's an understandable restriction when you consider that it's intended as a form of user experience quality control, but it's still frustrating if you're under the impression that any old Android app will run on the television.

Keep in mind that even the apps available for Android TV might lag behind the mainstream Android app version when it comes to updates with new features.

Entertain me
Living within this app ecosystem might not bother you, depending on why you want your television to run Android. For me it's all about content and media players and here Android TV excels.

I'd say tight access to Google Play movies, TV shows and music is the number one reason to embrace Android on your television. All you content purchases, rentals and subscriptions are at your fingertips without the need to reach for a mobile device and mess around with local streaming – it's the equivalent of what iGadget owners enjoy via the Apple TV.

It's also great to see a wide range of third-party Android local streaming media player apps like Plex, VLC, MX Player and Kodi (formerly XBMC) all optimised for the television and remote control. If you use these apps on other devices then you'll feel right and home and Android TV might let you retire your media centre PC or streaming media set-top box.

To top things off, the television's built-in media player apps also support DLNA. You won't find any of these great local streaming features on an Apple TV, not without hacking it.

Get Smart
Scroll through the slick Android menus and you'll also find standard Smart TV apps such as FreeviewPlus, Netflix (with Ultra HD support and an HDR update on the way), Quickflix, iView, SBS, Plus7, Crackle, YouTube, Pandora, TuneIn and others.

The television's new X1 processor keeps everything smooth and responsive. You can also tap into a limited range of games, with the option of connecting a PlayStation or third-party controller.

There's a reasonable range of titles catering to casual gamers, although it's hard to see people getting too excited when these games are available on other devices. Serious gamers will find a few titles to grab their attention, but I don't see why you'd bother paying again for a limited copy of a game you already own on another platform.

Unfortunately there's no support for PlayStation Now game streaming service in Australia, which is the feature serious gamers are likely looking for from a Sony device.

If you want to use Android apps that aren't available for Android TV, the television supports Chromecast streaming and screen mirroring. This gives you the best of both worlds and might help overcome your frustrations over the limited number of Android TV apps.

So what's the verdict?
Think long and hard about what you want to do with Android on this television and whether it's worth the expense if you won't find the apps on you want in the app store.

In theory just about everything you can do in Android TV on this television, apart from gaming with a PS controller, you could do on your television using an Android smartphone or tablet via screen mirroring.

The beauty of Android TV is that it cuts down on your reliance on mobile devices for some tasks, particularly when it comes to multimedia. Now you can just flop down on the couch with the remote and watch your digital content the old-fashioned way.

If this sounds appealing then Android TV might be for you. Even if you're happy to drive your television from your phone or tablet, Android TV might appeal to members of your household who aren't.

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Sony : 4K Android TV

Sony : 4K Android TV

Sony debuted its new XBR-X850C series of 4K Ultra HD TVs with Android TV Box OC today at VAC’s Santa Monica showroom. On hand for the event were, from left, VAC principal Joseph Akhtarzad; Sony's Connie Schmidt and Philip Jones; and VAC's Tom Campbell.

Santa Monica, Calif. — Sony Electronics will debut its first Ultra HD TVs with Android TV OS at a Video & Audio Center (VAC) store here today.

 The Southern California A/V specialty chain, which has become a de facto launchpad for UHD technology, will preview three 4K models from the new LED LCD series at its Santa Monica showroom this afternoon, and will offer them for sale tomorrow at each of its three stores.

The Android TV line goes on sale nationwide next week.

On display today at VAC are the 55-inch XBR-55X850C, the 65-inch XBR-65X850C, and the 75-inch XBR-75X850C.

Retail pricing begins at $2,199 for the edge-lit 55-inch model, and steps up to $3,499 and $4,999 for the larger stablemates, which both feature direct LED backlighting.

All three models feature Android TV Box OS and Google Cast. Android TV is designed to deliver a simpler user interface and offers the ability to download 300 streaming Android apps from Google Play and use Google’s voice search from a microphone-equipped remote. Android TV also delivers a user interface similar to that of Android tablets and smartphones to deliver a consistent UI experience among Android devices, Sony said.

The onboard Google Cast function can stream content from Cast-enabled audio and video apps on mobile devices to the TV from the Cloud, preventing interruptions from incoming calls and letting consumers use other mobile-device apps while streaming.

The sets also stream 2K and 4K DirecTV programming without a satellite-TV box if the user installs a Genie DVR/server.

The 4K sets also feature MHL 3/HDMI inputs and Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac.

VAC will add two more models next month, the 65-inch XBR-65X930C at $4,499, and the 75-inch XBR-75X940C at $7,999, which will support high dynamic range (HDR) video conforming to the UHD Alliance single-layer HD specification, following a planned firmware update this summer. The TVs will then be capable of displaying HDR video that is expected to be available this year through Netflix and Amazon.com.

All of Sony’s new 4K TVs feature an X1 processor to significantly increase contrast, clarity and color from last year’s models, the company said, while the VAC-displayed models also offer the latest Triluminos technology to provide the widest color range ever on a Sony display, along with dynamic color correction to ensure consistent and accurate colors.

Philip Jones, Sony’s sound and home entertainment technology and training manager, said Triluminos delivers the color gamut of quantum-dot technology without sacrificing brightness and without adding depth to TVs through the addition of a layer of quantum dot crystals.

Jones, who will be on hand for today’s preview, said the Android TV OS  will simplify the user experience through their familiarity with the mobile platform, and cited IDC data showing that Android commands 82 percent of the mobile market.

Tom Campbell, VAC’s spokesman and advisor and a Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) Hall of Fame inductee, said the chain is “very excited” that Sony chose to debut the new series in Southern California via Video & Audio Center. “It provides connectivity like I’ve never seen before, he told TWICE. “If you can use an Android phone you’re ready.”

Campbell added that VAC enjoyed “a very, very strong first quarter” and that “4K UHD TV was a major contributor to the sales increase.”

The 32-year-old Hollywood-area business, led by brothers Joseph and Mayer Akhtarzad, has long been the go-to showplace for CE introductions, and over the last two years has been selected by Sony, LG and Samsung as the launchpad for UHD displays — including last October’s debut of the first 4K Ultra OLED TVs, by LG.

VAC was also recognized by DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group, an industry promotional group for A/V hardware and software, as Hardware Retailer of the Year at a 2015 International CES ceremony in recognition of its role as a “common launch point for new technologies as well as a respected leader in showcasing it.”

The company operates three main Los Angeles showrooms, located here, in Lawndale and in Agoura Hills, and last year took up residence in a former Sony Store in Westfield Century City. VAC is also busy building a major new concept store that will feature such next-gen CE as robotics, drones and wearables.

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