For decades, one thing has always been true of CES: It’s the event where manufacturers roll out their biggest and best TVs for the year. But sometimes, a smaller TV makes waves. Such is the case this year as Sony rolls out a new 48-inch 4K OLED TV. We’ve also found all of the Samsung TVs from CES 2020.
The new, condo-friendly size is an addition to Sony’s Master Series A9S line of OLED TVs — its new premium line of OLED TVs for 2020. And while the price has not yet been announced, we imagine it will be proportional to its size, which could make it one of the most affordable OLED TVs to-date.
Considerably smaller than the normal 55-inch starting size for OLED TVs, the 48-inch Master Series A9S isn’t small on features. Sony has packed it with its best display technologies including a Triluminos display, the Picture Processor X1 Ultimate, X-Motion Clarity (the first time Sony has used the motion-smoothing technology on an OLED display), Dolby Vision HDR, and a new Ambient Optimization feature that uses sensors to adjust picture and sound settings according to the room environment.
It also gets the latest in smart home and wireless communication. With its Android TV OS running Android 9 Pie from the factory, and support for Apple HomeKit and AirPlay 2, it’s also compatible with Amazon Alexa. On the audio side of things, Sony has thrown in Dolby Atmos support via its Acoustic Surface Audio technology which turns the entire OLED display into a speaker — a feature that we found to be surprisingly effective when we reviewed Sony’s A9G 4K OLED TVs in 2019.
In addition to the Ambient Optimization feature, which makes its way into most of the new models, Sony has given its fleet of TVs a new look, which it calls Immersive Edge. That’s a fancy name for what essentially amounts to a new “noiseless” stand, which Sony has positioned at the edges of the screen in order to reduce its visibility.
On Sony’s premier 4K LED TV, the X950H, it has added its X-Wide Angle technology to 55- and 65-inch screen sizes — previously it was only available on the two largest sizes. Sony claims it improves color and brightness for off-angle viewing.
The convenience of hands-free voice commands is showing up in a big way on TVs at CES this year and Sony is no exception. Its Z8H and X950H series get hands-free voice via Google Assistant, which lets you leave the remote on the coffee table.
Finally, all of Sony’s new TVs are compatible with Google Home, Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit and AirPlay 2.
Sony has also revamped much of the rest of its TV lineup for 2020, but as with the new 48-inch A9S, the changes are largely evolutionary as Sony looks to bring its flagship image quality technologies to less expensive models. Here’s Sony’s full 2020 new model lineup:
Z8H 8K LED TV
- 75- and 85-inch sizes
- 8K resolution
- Picture Processor X1 Ultimate
- Full-array LED backlighting
- Frame-Tweeter: A new feature within Sony’s Sound-From-Picture Reality portfolio, the entire frame of the Z8H is used as a tweeter, which Sony claims will enhance the perception that the sound is coming directly from the on-screen image
- New backlit remote
- Two-position stand for those with smaller TV cabinets
- New Ambient Optimization
- Triluminos display
- Dolby Vision/Atmos support
- Hands-free capabilities
- Apple AirPlay 2, HomeKit, compatible with Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and smart speakers
- Android 9 Pie
- 4K 120 fps-compatible
Master Series A9S 4K OLED TV
- 48-inch display
- Small and central aluminum stand
- Master Series picture quality
- Picture Processor X1 Ultimate
- Pixel Contrast Booster
- Acoustic Surface Audio
- X-Motion Clarity
- New Ambient Optimization
- Triluminos Display
- Apple AirPlay 2, HomeKit, compatible with Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and smart speakers
- Android 9 Pie
A8H 4K OLED TV
- 55- and 65-inch sizes
- Picture Processor X1 Ultimate
- Pixel Contrast Booster, which enriches colors at high brightness
- X-Motion Clarity technology (new to Sony’s OLED TVs)
- Two subwoofers with Acoustic Surface Audio
- Dolby Atmos support is new this year
- Dolby Vision HDR
- New Ambient Optimization
- Triluminos display
- Apple AirPlay 2, HomeKit, support for Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and smart speakers
- Android 9 Pie
X950H 4K LED TV
- 49-, 55-, 65-, 75-, and 85-inch sizes
- Picture Processor X1 Ultimate
- Full-array LED backlighting
- X-Wide Angle technology (except 49-inch model)
- Improved Acoustic Multi-Audio, Sound-from-Picture Reality with bi-amp system, which controls the main speaker and invisible tweeter separately, and X-Balanced Speaker, a new shaped speaker unit
- New Ambient Optimization
- Triluminos Display
- Dolby Vision/Atmos support
- Hands-free capabilities
- Apple AirPlay 2, HomeKit, compatible with Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and smart speakers
- Android 9 Pie
X900H 4K LED TV
- 55-, 65-, 75, and 85-inch sizes
- Mid-range Full-array LED backlighting
- Acoustic Multi-Audio (65-inch and larger)
- Dolby Vision/Atmos support
- Bi-amp, X-Balanced Speaker only available for 55-, 65- and 75-inch models
- Triluminos display
- Apple AirPlay 2, HomeKit, compatible with Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and smart speakers
- Android 9 Pie
- 4K 120fps compatible
- Nextgen TV compatible
Sony will be revealing the prices and retail availability of its 2020 TV models in the spring.
Follow our live blog for more CES news and announcements daily.
