Sony has unveiled its first RGB LED TV, the Bravia 7 II, a model that aims to redefine color performance in the LED TV space. While the technology is still nascent, this television demonstrates that RGB LED backlighting can deliver serious performance, especially when paired with Sony’s class-leading image processing. The Bravia 7 II joins the flagship Bravia 9 II in ushering in a new era of backlight technology that uses individual red, green, and blue LEDs instead of the traditional all-blue or white LEDs.

What Makes RGB LED Different?

Traditional LED TVs use a backlight composed of blue or white LEDs, relying on a color filter to produce the full spectrum of colors. RGB LED sets, by contrast, have individual red, green, and blue light sources that can be controlled independently. This allows the TV to generate more colors with greater purity and brightness, reducing the dependency on the color filter. Sony drives each LED individually, granting fine-grained control over color mixing and enabling higher color volume.

The technology has been explored before in professional monitors and high-end displays, but consumer adoption has been slow due to cost and complexity. The Bravia 7 II is one of the first mainstream attempts to bring RGB LED to the living room, alongside models from Hisense and Samsung. Sony’s implementation benefits from its renowned XR processing, which helps manage the inherent challenges of the technology, notably color crosstalk.

Color Crosstalk and Real-World Performance

Color crosstalk occurs when light from one color LED bleeds into adjacent pixels that should be displaying a different color. In test patterns, the Bravia 7 II shows evidence of this: a green rectangle can create a subtle halo in the surrounding area, and the effect appears with many colors. However, outside of synthetic patterns, crosstalk is rarely noticeable. During normal viewing of movies, TV shows, and sports, the review sample exhibited only minor instances, such as the blue of a Prime Video tile slightly tinting white text on the Apple TV interface. In film content like Star Wars: The Last Jedi or Mad Max: Fury Road, crosstalk was essentially invisible during active viewing.

The TV includes an interesting menu option to switch the backlight from color LEDs to white LEDs. While this eliminates crosstalk entirely, it reduces color gamut coverage from 88% of BT.2020 to 73%, dropping P3 coverage from near full to 91%. For most users, the color mode is the superior choice, as the crosstalk is a non-issue in content.

Brightness and Color Accuracy

The Bravia 7 II measures approximately 2,200 nits of peak brightness. While not the brightest on the market—TCL’s X11L and LG’s G5 OLED surpass it—this is ample for a typical living room, especially since most HDR content is mastered at 1,000 nits. Sony’s Professional picture mode delivers excellent out-of-the-box accuracy with only minor oversaturation in red and slightly elevated lighter grays in HDR. The TV’s ability to cover 88% of BT.2020 is impressive, though the benefit is currently limited to content specifically mastered in that wide color gamut, such as Planet Earth II. Nature documentaries look spectacular, with lush greens and vibrant blues.

Specifications at a Glance

• Display type: RGB LED
• HDR formats: Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG
• Operating system: Google TV
• HDMI inputs: 2× HDMI 2.1 (one with eARC), 2× HDMI 2.0
• Audio support: Dolby Atmos, DTS:X
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, ALLM, VRR
• Sizes available: 50, 55, 65, 75, 85, 98 inches

Design and Connectivity

The Bravia 7 II sports a distinctive pedestal stand with a lenticular screen that causes hanging cables to visually disappear from the front. This clever cable management solution is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. The stand also includes a rear slot to gather cables at the center of the TV. However, the screen itself is quite reflective, lacking the anti-glare coating found on the more expensive Bravia 9 II. In rooms with ambient lighting, reflections can be distracting.

Sony’s decision to include only two HDMI 2.1 ports—one of which is the eARC port—feels stingy in 2026. Competitors now offer full HDMI 2.1 support across all ports. This means users wanting to connect a soundbar via eARC and multiple high-refresh-rate gaming consoles or PCs will have to compromise. The remote is lightweight and battery-powered but lacks a backlight.

Blacks and Contrast

Despite the advanced backlight, the Bravia 7 II remains an LCD TV at heart. It handles blooming better than many local-dimming sets, but it cannot match the pixel-level contrast of OLEDs. For viewers who prioritize deep blacks and infinite contrast in a dark room, an OLED such as the LG C6 remains the superior choice. However, for bright rooms and mixed-use scenarios, the Sony’s high brightness and accurate colors make it a compelling option.

Pricing and Competition

The 65-inch Bravia 7 II is priced at $2,600, which is $600 more than Hisense’s UR9 RGB LED TV after its price cut and $500 more than Samsung’s R85H. The premium is justified by Sony’s superior processing and color accuracy, but it places the TV in a difficult spot against both cheaper RGB models and premium OLEDs. The 75-inch version costs $3,100, and the larger 85-inch and 98-inch sizes command even higher prices. For those who can afford it, the Bravia 7 II delivers a refined picture that stands out in the growing RGB LED category.

The review notes that the TV’s performance in Professional mode is beautiful across all content types. Color crosstalk is effectively a non-issue in movies, and the display’s peak brightness handles specular highlights with ease. The inclusion of a white backlight mode is a curious novelty, but the color mode is the default for a reason.

As more RGB LED TVs enter the market, Sony’s entry sets a high bar for image processing and accuracy. The Bravia 7 II proves that the technology can work well in real-world conditions, even if it cannot completely overcome the inherent limitations of LCD technology. With a handful of minor drawbacks—reflective screen, limited HDMI 2.1, high price—the Bravia 7 II remains an excellent choice for videophiles seeking the best RGB LED experience available today.

Source: The Verge News