Sony Bravia XBR HX929

If price is no object and you want the best, look no further than the Bravia XBR series. The XBR-HX929 features a 240Hz refresh rate (though comparable to 960Hz thanks to Sony’s Motionflow XR 960), which is crucial for high-action footage, such as when watching sports. It also includes Sony’s latest in X-Reality PRO Engine as well as Motionflow, both allowing for much smoother motion on screen. When you top that off with advanced LED backlight control, 3D-compatibility, and of course WiFi and Web Apps, the XBR-HX929 not only gives you a killer sports viewing experience, but also makes for a great TV once the game is over.

Samsung UN LED 6000 Series

Currently among the top rated HDTVs on alaTest, Samsung’s LED UN 6000 series TVs make an excellent choice (and are considerably more affordable than the XBR line Sony offers). The 6000 series includes Samsung’s very own Clear Motion Engine, similar to Motionflow, which gives you a viewing experience similar to that of a 480Hz screen. It also includes just about every feature the HX929 has, minus the advanced LED backlight and a small handful of others.

Vizio XVT-3SV Series

When it comes to getting the most for your money, Vizio is almost always the brand of choice. The XVT-3SV offers many of the same features as Sony’s XBR line, such as localized LED backlight control, built-in WiFi, and Web Apps, yet with all of these advanced features, it’s actually even more affordable than Samsung’s UN 6000 series. Unlike the other two, though, the XVT-3SV does not feature any sort of active motion engine; however, its 240Hz refresh still does a good job keeping up with the action.

Samsung UN LED 8000 Series

Much like the 6000 series, the LED UN 8000 series is very highly rated. In fact, it currently holds the top spot on our HDTV charts. The 8000 series is on par with Sony’s XBR offerings in terms of price and features. It features a more advanced version of the Clear Motion Engine, resulting in a refresh rate comparable to 960Hz, just like the XBR series. It also has localized LED backlight control, though due to its Edge-lit design, it is not quite as effective as Sony’s approach. Where the 8000 series lacks in picture quality, it makes up in unique features, such as wireless syncing with many Samsung devices (ie: smartphones, cameras, and camcorders).

Picture and Sound Quality

Before getting into the real showdown between the competing internet platforms, let’s talk briefly about the picture and sound quality of the Vizio VIA line. For starters, the sound is about what you’d expect from your average HDTV, essentially comparable to Sony and Samsung TVs. It certainly won’t hold up to the standards of a die-hard audiophile, but anyone caring about sound quality that much should have a standalone sound system.

Picture quality is a bit of a different story since it actually varies considerably amongst the VIA line. At the lower end of the spectrum are the standard LCD models. Despite suffering from some slightly lower contrast ratios, the overall image quality is quite good, and their affordable price make them the cheapest internet capable HDTVs by far. The next step up is the Edge-Lit LED models.

They offer nearly identical picture quality to Sony’s NSX Google TV models at a much cheaper price. A 42-inch Edge-Lit VIA can be found for less than $800, compared to the $999 price tag of a 40-inch Sony NSX, though the addition of Google TV may be worth the additional $200 (but more on that later). At the top of the VIA totem pole (not counting the 3D TVs) are the TruLED models, which have a full LED backlight for excellent contrast ratios, resulting in vibrant colors and deep blacks. Vizio’s TruLED TVs offer nearly unrivaled picture quality, but they also step out of Vizio’s usual price range, with prices starting around $1200 for a 42-inch screen.

Internet Apps: Which Platform Holds Supreme

There are a handful of major players when it comes to internet enabled TVs: Vizio’s VIA, Samsung’s Internet@TV, Sony’s Bravia Apps, and Google TV. Oddly enough, Samsung and Vizio’s app engines are almost identical, and because Sony offers TVs with Google TV built in, its Bravia Apps are basically redundant. This leaves the battle between VIA and Google TV.

Built on the Android operating system, Google TV is superior in just about every way. Unlike VIA, Google TV is truly integrated with the internet, allowing things like full web browsing and internet downloads. VIA only offers a handful of applications, like Netflix streaming, Facebook, TV Guides, Weather, and etc, while Google TV has access potentially to the entire Android Marketplace, which has over 200,000 apps. To top it off, Google TV has dedicated hardware for running the platform, making it significantly more responsive than VIA. The only point for VIA is its price, considerably cheaper than Google TV solutions.

It’s also worth noting that Google TV is available in standalone devices, like the Logitech Revue and Sony’s Internet TV Blu-Ray player, which allow you to add internet applications to any television you own; however, if purchasing a new TV, it will generally be more cost effective to go with Sony’s NSX line rather than a TV/Google TV combo.