Sony Bravia 9: Is It Still Competitive?
Sony’s flagship Mini LED TV, the Bravia 9, turned heads in 2024 for its exceptional brightness and class-leading processing. But now it’s 2025, and the TV landscape is changing fast.
With OLED panels getting brighter and buyer expectations on the rise, in this review we want to find out if the Bravia 9 is still worth it. Here's what we found after some thorough hands-on testing...
Sonos Bravia 9 Review: SHS 60-Second Summary: See Latest Pricing The Sony Bravia 9 returns in 2025 as the brand’s flagship 4K Mini LED TV, and after hands-on testing, we can confidently say it still holds its own. It was a standout in 2024 for its brightness and processing, and while OLED competition has stepped up this year, the Bravia 9 remains a top-tier option, especially now that prices have come down. The design feels premium, it's exceptionally bright, colours are beautifully handled, and even the built-in speakers deliver more than you’d expect. Add in its wealth of features, and you’ve got a well-rounded, high-end TV that still feels flagship-worthy, even a year on. 👉 Prefer to watch instead of read? Skip the scroll and watch our full hands-on review on Youtube! | |
| Pros: ✓ Brilliant brightness & great reflection handling ✓ Deep, punchy contrast and minimal blooming ✓ Natural colour tuning ✓ Impressive up-firing audio from the built-in speakers | Cons: ✖ Only two HDMI 2.1 ports ✖ Lacks 144Hz support for high-end PC gaming |
Sony 2025 TV Lineup: Still The Flagship
If you're just starting to explore Sony’s 2025 TV range and want to get a grip on the basics, this is how things currently shape up:
The Bravia 9 remains at the top of the Sony 2025 range, sitting just above the new Bravia 8 II, which uses QD-OLED technology. Interestingly, the Bravia 8 II isn’t a direct replacement for last year’s Bravia 8, but that’s a conversation for another blog.
If you want a deeper dive on how the whole 2025 Sony lineup fits together, we’ve broken it down in a separate blog post that covers all the new models, including Bravia 3, Bravia 5, and more. Explore the full Sony 2025 TV lineup here.
The key takeaway for this review? Sony is still positioning the Bravia 9 as its 4K flagship in 2025, and based on performance alone, it’s easy to see why.
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Price & Value
So last year, the Bravia 9 was pretty universally recognised as the best LED TV around. It launched in three sizes: 65", 75" and 85". All of which came with eye-watering price tags.
Fast forward to 2025 and while it’s still a premium TV, prices have dropped noticeably, making it much more competitive against the likes of LG’s G5 OLED.
What’s most interesting though is that it now sits at a similar price point to Sony’s very own Bravia 8 II, which launched at a higher price and uses QD-OLED tech. That positions the Bravia 9 in a slightly unusual spot this year, offering top-tier Mini LED performance at a cost that invites comparisons with newer OLED rivals.
For us, if you’re after top-tier Sony performance without going OLED, the Bravia 9 is seriously worth considering right now. Prices are down, and if the performance still holds up, you’re getting a high-end, well-rounded TV for great value.
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Design & Build Quality
Before we get into picture quality, let’s talk about the Bravia 9’s design, because if you’re spending this kind of money, you want it to look the part. And it does.
Sony’s One Slate design gives it that ultra-clean, minimalist look that just works in most rooms. It feels premium, and it is. The adjustable stand gives you a bit of flexibility with placement, and it comes with Sony’s slick rechargeable, backlit eco remote, which is a nice touch.
We’ve been testing the 75" version, and fair warning, it’s a bit of a unit. It weighs around 45 kg with the stand, so make sure you’ve got a solid bit of furniture or wall mount ready. But honestly, once it’s set up, it looks fantastic. We’ve actually got a full unboxing and setup video on our YouTube channel if you fancy seeing what it’s like out of the box.
On the back, you get four HDMI ports, with two of them being HDMI 2.1, including one for eARC. It’s enough for most people, but if you’re rocking a PS5, Xbox, and a soundbar, you might run out of HDMI 2.1 options. You can always work around that with a passthrough soundbar or HDMI switch, but it’s something to keep in mind.
As for smart features, the Bravia 9 runs Google TV and we’re big fans. It’s smooth, easy to use, has all the apps you’d expect and doesn’t bombard you with ads. Whether you want quick access to settings or fancy diving into calibration menus, it’s simple to navigate and feels well thought out.
 The Sony Bravia 9 is a Mini LED TV, which means it uses thousands of tiny backlights grouped into 'dimming zones’. Sony’s made those zones extra precise by using upgraded LED drivers, a smarter dimming algorithm, and their powerful XR processor. Throw in quantum dots and you get seriously vibrant colours too. It’s around 30% brighter than the X95L from 2023, making it Sony’s brightest 4K TV to date. All this clever tech means better control over brightness and contrast and less blooming when you’re watching those tricky dark scenes with bright highlights. Cool, right? |
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Picture Quality
When it comes to picture quality, the Bravia 9 really plays to the strengths of Mini LED. We spent time with it in a variety of spaces, and it comfortably held its own against some serious OLED competition. Here’s what we found:
✅ Excellent brightness and reflections handling in bright rooms
✅ Impressive contrast and deep blacks for a Mini LED
✅ Very minimal blooming, even in tough test scenes
✅ Natural, balanced colours with Sony’s signature tuning
✅ Sharp, smooth motion and standout upscaling for lower-res content
Bright Room Performance
In our showroom, which gets plenty of natural light, the Bravia 9 impressed with its consistent brightness across scenes. It's not just the peaks; it's the full-screen punch that stands out. The snow scenes on screensavers, for example, were crisp and packed with detail. Reflections? Barely a problem thanks to Sony’s X-Anti Reflection layer.
Side by side with the Bravia 8, the difference was immediately noticeable. The Bravia 9 simply felt more at home in a sunlit space. But when we brought in LG’s G5 OLED, things got interesting. In many scenes, the G5 actually looked brighter. However, the Bravia 9 still won on how well it handled reflections, which could be a deciding factor if you’re looking for the best TV to use in a bright space.
Dark Room Performance
Moving into our studio, things shifted again. The Bravia 9’s combination of brightness and contrast created a really enjoyable cinematic experience. Against the G5, it was a closer match than expected and often became a toss-up between the two models.
There’s still more testing to be done before we can say for sure which model is best, but based on how close the margin was in our initial testing, the final decision will likely come down to personal preference.
Contrast & Black Levels
From our testing, the Bravia 9 does a great job of closing the gap between Mini LED and OLED when it comes to black levels. Thanks to that XR Backlight Master Drive, you get impressively deep blacks and bold, punchy contrast, especially for a TV that relies on a backlight.
Now, OLED still has the edge when it comes to those ultra-deep blacks and that cinematic 'pop' in the darkest of scenes. But the Bravia 9 gets a lot closer than you might expect.
That said, if you’re upgrading from an older LED set, the improvement will be obvious straightaway. The only thing worth noting is if you’ve got a really bright room, Sony’s anti-reflective coating can sometimes make the blacks look a touch greyer. Not a dealbreaker, but worth knowing.
Blooming Control
Blooming is one of those things that can really spoil the picture on a lot of Mini LED TVs, but the Bravia 9 handles it surprisingly well.
During regular use, we barely noticed any at all. We actually had to go digging for it, and the clearest example we could find was the settings menu over a black background, which is hardly something you’d see while watching Netflix.
As with everything at SHS, we did run a bit of a stress test using fireworks on a midnight sky, and while the Bravia 9 held up well, you can just about see it lifting the black levels slightly to keep blooming under control. It’s not a big deal and definitely not something that takes away from the viewing experience, but it’s a small reminder that we’re not at perfection just yet. Still, for a Mini LED, it’s really impressive.
Colour & Motion Handling
Sony’s colour tuning has long been one of our favourites, and the Bravia 9 follows that form. Straight out of the box, it looks natural and well-balanced with none of that oversaturation you sometimes get on other TVs. From our side-by-sides, it may not be quite as vivid as the LG G5 in HDR mode, but for things like nature documentaries and animated films, it looks brilliant.
When it comes to motion, there’s not much to fault. Sports, action movies, anything fast-paced all looked smooth and blur-free in our testing, offering exactly what you’d expect at this sort of price point.
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Sound Performance
Sound performance isn’t always the headline feature in TV reviews especially at this level, where most people are likely adding a soundbar or full audio setup. But with the Bravia 9, the built-in speakers are worth mentioning.
Sony’s packed in a 2.2.2 channel speaker system into the Bravia 9, and the standout feature here is the inclusion of up-firing beam tweeters. These work alongside the frame tweeters to create a sense of height by bouncing sound off the ceiling, effectively mimicking overhead channels.
Now, to be clear, it’s still within the limits of what TV speakers can do; we’d still want a bit more low-end punch. But if you’re planning to use the Bravia 9’s speakers out of the box, you’ll likely be pleasantly surprised.
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Gaming Features
When it comes to gaming, this TV ticks pretty much all the boxes you’d need. You’ve got 4K at 120Hz, VRR, ALLM, low input lag, fast response times, and even Dolby Vision in Game Mode. If you're using a PS5, it’ll switch automatically into Game Mode with Auto Genre Mode, and you can even link it to another Bravia TV if your console is set up in another room.
If you're more of a competitive gamer, though, there are other TVs out there with 144Hz support, more HDMI 2.1 ports, and slightly better response stats. But for the average gamer, especially with a next-gen console, the Bravia 9 offers a sharp, smooth, and really immersive experience that’s more than capable.
Sony Bravia 9 Review: Final Verdict
If it’s not already clear, the Bravia 9 is easily one of the best Mini LED TVs we’ve tested. It’s seriously bright, handles reflections exceptionally well, and looks fantastic in both bright and dark spaces. Sony’s processing is still some of the best out there, and the whole package feels premium.
If you’re still a bit unsure about going the OLED route or you’re worried about things like burn-in, the Bravia 9 is probably the best alternative you’ll find right now. And now that the price has dropped a little since launch, it’s a much more appealing option.
That said, OLED has come a long way over this year. The LG G5 isn’t just catching up, it’s starting to push ahead in areas like brightness, all while keeping those signature OLED advantages like perfect blacks and per-pixel contrast. Based on our early testing, the G5 could well be a game changer.
But even with OLED stepping up, we think the Bravia 9 is going to stay in that top tier for 2025. There’s always going to be demand for a high-end LED alternative to OLED, and this is as good as they come.
As for Sony’s decision not to replace it this year—we think it makes sense. The 65-inch model only came out late in 2024, and we’d rather see meaningful updates than a quick refresh just to bump the price.
Other Useful Content
Blog: TV Buying Guide Everything You Need To Know
Blog: Sony 2025 TV Lineup: Bravia 3, Bravia 5, Bravia 8 II & More
Blog: Sony Bravia 8 II QD-OLED (First Look): What's New?
Video: TV Panel Type Buying Guide: OLED vs QLED vs QNED vs Micro LED vs Mini LED & More
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