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Sony X90J TV Review

Nathan Rizzuti Avatar
Updated Jan 31, 2024 11:56 AM

True Score

85
83
9

Experts

88
2,458

Consumers

Product Awards

GR Certified

Customer Favorite

Expert Rankings

Sony X90J is a top-tier TV with stunning contrast, low input lag, vibrant HDR, and responsive gaming features. Despite its narrow viewing angles, occasional reflections, and minor blooming, it is immersive for entertainment and gaming. It delivers great performance for the price.

Table of Contents

Product Snapshot

Overview

The Sony X90J TV, released as part of Sony’s 2021 BRAVIA lineup, is an upper mid-range 4K LED TV. You can see if it ranks on our list of best TVs.

The TV sports a 65-inch screen (as well as 50, 55”, and 75” options)) and BRAVIA XR Full Array LED technology, it promises stunning picture quality with deep blacks and vibrant colors.

The TV boasts Dolby Vision HDR for enhanced contrast and realistic visuals, immersing you in movies, sports, and games.

Equipped with two HDMI 2.1 inputs, it enables seamless 4K gaming at up to 120fps, supported by a variable refresh rate (VRR) for smoother gameplay, like many of the best 4k TVs.

Its low input lag and fast response time cater to the gaming community’s demands. Google TV, the intuitive smart interface, grants access to many apps through the Google Play Store, enhancing your streaming experience.

Consensus

our Verdict

The Sony X90J offers great performance and has a peak brightness of 519 cd/m² and Dolby Vision support. It delivers full array local dimming features and deep blacks, but it does experience minor blooming.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t handle direct reflections well, and it has poor 14-degree viewing angles, and a narrow 89.4% color gamut. However, it upscales low-resolution content well.

It’s great for gaming, with a low input lag of 18.1 ms, a fast response time of 10.7 ms, and two HDMI 2.1 inputs, although it lacks FreeSync. The refresh rate is only 60Hz.

However, the Google TV interface gives you many apps. The X90J also has an impressive contrast ratio, tested at 34,435:1, which is good for the category, but not great.

ReasonS to Buy

  • Great picture quality
    • The 4k display works well for many uses but excels for gaming and HDR content, given its stellar response time, refresh rate, and fantastic contrast ratio.

  • Fantastic contrast and deep blacks
    • The display delivers deep black levels, especially when viewing HDR content in dark rooms, given its 34,435: 1 contrast ratio, placing it above average in the 4k category (ref)

  • Low input lag and fast response time for gaming
    • Rapid command inputs for fast-paced gaming, as the input lag tests in at 10.0 ms. Likewise, the TV has near-instant pixel changes, producing no blurriness; tests confirm a .3 ms response time, which is among the best there is for 4k TVs.

  • Strong refresh rate
    • Experience frame shifting with no blurriness or degradation, given the 120 Hz refresh rate with VRR support.

Reason to Avoid

  • Narrow viewing angles
  • Sub-par peak brightness
  • Narrow color gamut

Sony X90J TV Specs

Backlight TypeBacklight TypeFull-Array
Display TypeLED
HDMI Inputs4
HDMI TypeHDMI TypeHDMI 2.1
HDR FormatDolby Vision, HDR10, HLG
HomeKit CompatibleHomeKit CompatibleYes
Max Resolution3840 x 2160 (4k)
Number of Audio ChannelsNumber of Audio Channels7.1
Panel TypePanel TypeLED
Refresh Rate120 Hz
Screen size50", 55", 65", 75", 85"
Smart PlatformSmart PlatformGoogle TV
Speaker OutputSpeaker Output10 + 10 Watts
Sync TechnologySync TechnologyNo
VRRVRRYes

All Specs

Test Results

Color Gamut % (DCI P3 xy)87.055
Color Gamut % (DCI P3 uv)89.4
Color Gamut % (Rec 2020 xy)63.12
Color Gamut % (Rec 2020 uv)65.84
Color Gamut % (sRGB)0
Color Gamut % (Rec 709)0
Color Gamut % (BT.2020)0
Color Gamut % (Adobe RGB)0
Color Gamut % (BT.709)0
Contrast Ratio (x:1)34,435
SDR Brightness (nits)854
HDR Brightness (nits)859
Input Lag (ms)16.6
Response Time (ms)10.7
Color Washout (Degrees)27
Color Shift (Degrees)25
Brightness Loss (Degrees)38
Reflections (%)5.7
Low-Freq Extension (Hz)89.8
Freq Response StdDev @ 70db2.43
Freq Response StdDev @ 80db2.1
Weighted Total Harmonic Distortion @80db0.066
Intermodulation Distortion @80db1.91
EOTF (600 nit delta)0.0024
EOTF (1000 nit delta)0.0024
EOTF (4000 nit delta)0.0024

All Tests

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Product Comparison

Sony X90J TV Review

True Score

85
85
83
86
85

Ranking

#

54

/

158

#

53

/

158

#

71

/

158

#

44

/

158

#

49

/

158

Market Context

The Sony X90J TV, released as part of Sony’s 2021 BRAVIA lineup, is an upper mid-range 4K LED TV. You can see if it ranks…

The Sony X90J TV, released as part of Sony’s 2021 BRAVIA lineup, is an upper mid-range 4K LED TV. You can see if it ranks on our list of best TVs.

The TV sports a 65-inch screen (as well as 50, 55”, and 75” options)) and BRAVIA XR Full Array LED technology, it promises stunning picture quality with deep blacks and vibrant colors.

The TV boasts Dolby Vision HDR for enhanced contrast and realistic visuals, immersing you in movies, sports, and games.

Equipped with two HDMI 2.1 inputs, it enables seamless 4K gaming at up to 120fps, supported by a variable refresh rate (VRR) for smoother gameplay, like many of the best 4k TVs.

Its low input lag and fast response time cater to the gaming community’s demands. Google TV, the intuitive smart interface, grants access to many apps through the Google Play Store, enhancing your streaming experience.

The Sony X90J is the predecessor to the Sony X90K, meaning the two models are very similar but come with a few key differences. First,…

The Sony X90J is the predecessor to the Sony X90K, meaning the two models are very similar but come with a few key differences. First, the X90J, although older, has a superior local dimming feature. However, the X90K is better for gaming, as it has a wider variable refresh rate of 1080p. The contrast ratios are very similar, although the X90K has a slight edge. If you want to learn more, check out our full Sony X90K review.

The Sony X95J TV is a higher-end model of the same series as the Sony X90J. The main difference is that the X95J is significantly…

The Sony X95J TV is a higher-end model of the same series as the Sony X90J. The main difference is that the X95J is significantly better at dealing with reflections in bright rooms and boasts a higher-performing local dimming feature. On the other hand, the X90J presents better black uniformity, although it does have higher blooming than the X95J. For more insight into Sony’s various TV lines, we also have a Sony A95K TV review.

Samsung’s QN90A TV resembles the Sony X90J but boasts a wider color gamut. It also delivers better peak brightness levels and a more vibrant HDR…

Samsung’s QN90A TV resembles the Sony X90J but boasts a wider color gamut. It also delivers better peak brightness levels and a more vibrant HDR experience. It also incorporates specific features to improve viewing angles, whereas Sony has very limited viewing angles. However, one area where the Sony X90J excels over the Samsung is in low-quality smoothing. For more on Samsung’s offerings, check out our Samsung TU9010 4K TV review.

The Sony X90J is the successor to the Sony X900H, and it excels in a few areas. The main area is it has a higher…

The Sony X90J is the successor to the Sony X900H, and it excels in a few areas. The main area is it has a higher contrast ratio, which provides deeper, inkier black levels, especially in dark rooms. The X90J also delivers greater and more consistent brightness levels. However, the X90J has a worse color gamut than its predecessor.

Backlight Type

Full-Array

Full-Array

Full-Array

Full-Array

Full-Array

Display Type

LED

LCD

LED

LED

LCD

HDMI Inputs

4

4

4

4

4

HDMI Type

HDMI 2.1

HDMI 2.1

HDMI 2.1

HDMI 2.1

HDR Format

Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG

Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG

Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG

HDR10, HDR10+, HLG

Yes

HomeKit Compatible

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Max Resolution

3840 x 2160 (4k)

3840 x 2160 (4k)

3840 x 2160 (4k)

3840 x 2160 (4k)

3840 x 2160 (4k)

Number of Audio Channels

7.1

7.1

7.1

n/a

Dig Deeper

Sony X90K TV Review →

Sony X95J TV Review →

Samsung QN90A Review →

Sony X900H Review →

Score Card

E

Expert Score

83

*.75

We place a 75% weighted value on Expert Test Scores

C

Customer Score

88

*.25

We place a 25% weighted value on Customer Scores

True Score

85

Any product with a True Score above 80 is a Absolutely Fresh

Expert Scores

  • Rtings
    101.4

    Category Trust Rating

    80
    PROS Fantastic contrast. Great response time. User-friendly smart interface.Gets very bright to combat glare. Upscales… Read More

    By:

    Jaron Schneider
  • TVFindr
    72

    Category Trust Rating

    70
    Pro XR Prozessor Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos HDMI 2.1 VRR Google TV Contra Viewing… Read More

    By:

    Tobias
  • CNET
    80.25

    Category Trust Rating

    83
    LIKE Excellent image quality Capable Google TV smart system Solid connectivity Subtle, understated design DON’T… Read More

    By:

    David Katzmaier
  • Techradar
    67

    Category Trust Rating

    88
    The Sony X90J offers nearly everything we’d want from a mid-range 4K LED-LCD TV. For… Read More

    By:

    Nick Pino
  • IGN
    69.35

    Category Trust Rating

    80
    As a package, I really like the X90J because of the mix of high-quality features… Read More

    By:

    Stephen Lambrechts
  • T3
    39

    Category Trust Rating

    80
    Sony’s X90J delivers on the promise of its predecessor by addressing many of its issues,… Read More

    By:

    Steve May

Customer Scores