Design
The first thing that you'll notice about the top of the range Bravia "S" series LCD TV when you lift it out of the box is its size and weight. There's no getting past 26.2kgs of TV that measures in at 999 x 693 x 103mm sans stand. That's not a problem specific only to this panel -- most 40 inch TVs are rather weighty -- but we'd suggest having a few burly blokes handy, especially if you're considering wall-mounting the unit. It does come with a supplied small stand that works quite well at keeping the set stable.
The most impressive thing about the KLV-S40A10 is naturally the size -- a 40 inch LCD tends to dominate all but the smallest of rooms, and as always it's worth noting that if you're going to be using the panel in a smaller room, you're essentially wasting your dough, as you'll be forced to sit too close to the screen for comfort or optimal viewing conditions.
The KLV-S40A10 has the general hallmarks of Sony's well-established design ideas -- it's stark where it needs to be, with a minimum of visual clutter on the front display, and suitably recessed buttons that run along the top of the TV itself. All of the unit's inputs lie at the back of the panel -- which could be of concern if you're planning on wall-mounting it and want to change inputs on any kind of regular basis. The side of the panel does offer up a Composite/S-Video connector for the Playstation generation to plug games systems in on an ad-hoc basis.
Features
The KLV-S40A10 features a maximum resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels across its 40 inch (101cm) display, with a claimed contrast ratio of 1000:1 and a fast response time of 8ms. The display does come with inbuilt speakers of only moderate output capabilities, although it's arguably highly unlikely that any consumers would be looking at dropping over five grand on a TV and not have some kind of complimentary audio system to co-ordinate it with.
One interesting feature of the KLV-S40A10 is the inbuilt light sensor, which automatically adjusts the picture settings depending on the ambient light in the room -- this lets you enjoy nice pitch black movies on the same screen that you all huddle around in the brightly lit daytime to watch the cricket.
In terms of inputs, the big omission on the KLV-S40A10 is the lack of digital HDMI inputs. That's a luxury you'll find on the "V" series Bravia TVs, but the mid-range "S" series panels instead offer Component, S-Video, Composite and PC VGA connectors only. There's not too many PC graphics cards that'll natively support 1366 x 768, but you should still be able to connect up and get a good proportion of the screen working that way if you really fancy having a truly massive PC monitor. The HDMI inputs that adorn the "V" series model aren't that much more expensive in the grand scheme of things -- they turn the AU$5,299 KLV-S40A10 into the AU$5,799 KLV-V40A10, as well as pumping up the brightness and contrast ratio.
Performance
As previously mentioned, the KLV-S40A10 is an impressive looking display, and it backs up that impressive look with some very nice visual outputs. We tested with a variety of signal types, from component DVD and digital TV set top box to the rather more mundane (and jagged) Playstation 2, and once a comfortable distance was attained from the screen, we could set in to enjoy the Bravia KLV-S40A10's display. Our one noted concern during testing was that the remote control on our test sample was sometimes a touch unresponsive, even with a fresh change of batteries.
As plasmas slowly burn away and LCD TVs move into the larger and larger sizes, it's not surprising to see LCD models at prices that you'd have paid for plasmas only a very short time ago. The KLV-S40A10 suffers most from comparison with the LCDs in Sony's own range -- with lifespans that can exceed a decade, we're still of the opinion that if you're going to spend AU$5,299 on a TV, you'd be better off spending the additional $300 (or $500 with a set top box) on the top of the range V series Bravia, rather than the V series compromise model. That being said, the KLV-S40A10 is still a very nice display unit that should work well within most home settings.
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markey
06/04/2008, 10:29 AM
rating
10/10
Great, a really good LCD TV.
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Tadpoll
28/11/2006, 02:14 PM
rating
10/10
Very good set, this can be found at a good price. Darks are dark and lights are light, still nothing compared to the Bravia XBR2 is more expensive, but it still a great set for the price.
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29/08/2006, 09:47 AM
rating
9/10
KLV-S40A10
This is a good TV. You can't expect a better picture from it if well calibrated. Very similar to the XBR side by side. The light sensor was a very good idea but it is not adjusted to the living room light. PC connection must be set to atleast 1.4 gamma (on the PC) to get a decent picture. TV should also have gamma control in the menu. Overall, good TV you will not regret your purchase.
Pros: Smart stretch - stretches only sides of the picture and not the center, separate memory for each input and screen stretching memory for each signal (ie. 480p, 720p). Decent sound.
Cons: No gamma control. Bad factory presents, needs to be calibrated. Too much red push. Light sensor never reaches max. in bright rooms. Black corrector is horrible. Only 1 HDMI and 1 Component. Speakers are not detachable. No PIP.
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Happy Owner.
11/08/2006, 03:13 PM
rating
9/10
Amazing picture. Would buy it again in a heartbeat.
Pros: Picture, Colours match Plasmas, Sharpness only LCD delivers.
Cons: 1 HDMI input
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10/08/2006, 11:48 AM
rating
8/10
Awsome TV, if you have the money for it GET IT
Youll like it
Pros: The picture quality is great, especially if you watch a lot of HD channels, i want to buy an xbox 360 to play on it as well.
Cons: Does not look too good up close, not even on HD.
Expenisive.VERY expensive.
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Schultz
08/04/2006, 10:20 AM
is not a complete package
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midrif
20/01/2006, 03:05 PM
Fabulous for DVD and maybe HDTV
When I got it home and hook up to pay-tv, I was horrified that the pictures were washed out. I hook back my old set (a Philips 26" LCD) and found that the pay-tv signal was poor even on the old set.... just that the poor quality signal is magnified by this much larger 40-incher tv. Two days later, I got Batman - The Beginning on DVD and it was a wonderful visual experience. Nonetheless, there seems to be some issues with color decoding on this set with the intense red which results in "reddy" skin tones on people and bright red being displayed for anything red in colour. Toning down the color intensity modifies this a bit but then other colors suffer. There also seems to be a smoggy picture (whitish tinge like the brightness being set too high) when not viewed from directly in front.... gets worst as you change viewing angle further to the sides in all directions. Overall, I would recommend to look elsewhere.. another brand or technology maybe?
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Nick
25/11/2005, 11:59 PM
Just one thing
This does seem like a nice TV, but I just wanted to add that the 1366 x 768 resolution doesnt seem to be a problem for any of the video cards I've used: one was an integrated TNT2 Aladdin from a P3 800Mhz, and the other is an ATI Radeon 9000 of the Mac Mini. Both support this resolution without any add-in support.
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