Photo gallery: Sony Bravia KDL-32D3100The Sony Bravia 32D3100 is the smallest unit on offer as part of the company's MotionFlow 100Hz range. The image quality is excellent with only a few minor issues and the implementation of 100Hz technology has been done well. With support for 1080p video signals (via scaling), 24 frame cinema mode and three HDMI ports, it is a well-rounded package for those with looking for a smaller sized television with all the features of a larger panel.
Design
The D series has a quaint feel with hard edges and a simplistic aesthetic. The speakers are not visible and the stand is pre-installed. At the rear, there are three HDMI ports, two Component, three S-Video and three Composite connections. While this unit is suitable for those wishing to view high definition content, it is good to see Sony providing for those that still use older connections. In addition, there is also an analogue 15pin D-Sub port so you can connect your PC (with 1:1 pixel mapping).
Features
The Sony Bravia 32D3100 is a 32inch LCD television with a native resolution of 1366 x 768. It uses 100Hz MotionFlow technology to smooth out motion and does so quite well. The only issue that is worth mentioning is that 100Hz interpolation generally removes a great deal of motion blur and makes images look slightly fake. You get used to it over time, and it can be turned off if you don't like it, but it is still a point worth considering.
This television is able to display content authored in 1080p24. This format is mostly used for movies as it is designed to replicate the traditional 24 frames per second in which movies are projected. The most common place you will find 24p content is on Blu-Ray and HD-DVD Discs.
Performance
Since this is a 720p television we were quite eager to check how well it supported 1080p content. It is able to display a 1080p signal by down-scaling to the native resolution of the panel. We viewed the Blu-Ray film Casino Royale and found the image quality to be rather good. The colours were a little excessive and there was also a high level of over-sharpening but by changing the picture mode to "standard" and lowering the sharpness level, these issues were greatly reduced. We would also recommend increasing the contrast to full when in "standard" mode as the change from "vivid" tends to dull the image.
For standard definition tests we viewed the lobby scene from The Matrix on DVD. There was a noticeable amount of interpolation noise and some slight pixilation on curved edges but it was no more than we have come to expect from watching a DVD on a high definition panel, and should satisfy most user's needs.
Conclusion
While the 32D3100 is the most expensive 32 inch unit in the Bravia range, its features and image quality are well worth the price tag. Despite some minor issues, it performed well in our tests with image quality that is on-par with many high-end televisions. We were most impressed by how well it handled resolutions above its native 720p and by its competent integration of 100Hz technology.
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