Internet TV Internet Video from Sony
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This article, Internet TV, was last updated on 07 May 2011 and is now out of date and held in our online archive for reference. Explore our latest Technology articles.
Sony Internet Video has loads of apps, but web surfing is a disappointment
Sony Internet Video boasts the BBC's hugely popular iPlayer app, but no app store
Pros: Plenty of pre-loaded apps, responsive text entry, slightly more sensible arrangement of apps than older Sony models
Cons: Fiddly set-up, disjointed presentation of internet options, no app store, poor web browsing experience
Pick of the apps: BBC iPlayer, Demand 5, YouTube, Lovefilm, Dailymotion, Facebook, Twitter, Picasa, Skype, Music Unlimited
More on Sony Bravia TVs
Sony apps offering falls short of smart TV rivals
Sony’s latest incarnation of Internet Video is an improvement on its 2010 line-up, and now includes a full web browser, but it still lacks the straightforward usability of its rivals.
There are plenty of apps to choose from (20 pre-loaded on the model we tested) including most of the usual suspects – Lovefilm, YouTube, Facebook and the BBC's iPlayer– but there is no app store to download and add more apps.
A dedicated ‘internet video’ button on the remote is a handy plus, as is the responsive on-screen keyboard (an improvement on the Sony TVs we’ve tested in the past). Yet the confusing addition of internet widgets, an internet browser, and Sony’s online music service Qriocity doesn’t feel seamlessly integrated like the Samsung Smart TV hub.
Don't bother with the net TV browser
The internet browser itself is not worth bothering with. Surfing appears sluggish, you can’t navigate a page until it’s fully loaded, and zooming in to read text (the default is small) is a real pain. The browser doesn’t support Flash either (unlike its Samsung rivals) which means you can’t playback video on loads of sites (we tried out the BBC news page).
Initial set-up is trickier than it need be, too. The on-screen manual contains information on internet features but there’s only the briefest of mentions in the printed manual. Network settings are not mentioned in either, and need to be checked via the menu system.
Model(s) tested: Bravia KDL-40EX723
Internet TV rating: 2 out of 5
Internet TV is just a fraction of what the Sony Bravia TVs have to offer. For the lowdown on picture and audio performance, check out our full Sony TV test results.
