Sony BRAVIA 5 (XR5) vs TCL C9K

Looking at similar results in terms of black levels and contrast, we expected the same stable performance as last year's model when it comes to HDR content. Unfortunately – and this must be said plainly – there has been a regression here that is hard to miss. The paradox is that the peak brightness of the Bravia 5 can be impressive: in our synthetic tests, the TV reached around 1000 nits in HDR. Sounds great, right? The problem is that this power doesn't always have a real impact on all movie scenes. When small, pinpoint elements appear on the screen, something that in Sony's case was usually fine-tuned with surgical precision, this time it clearly falters. The algorithms try to maintain deep blacks around small objects, but the side effect is that details can be dimmed to the point of becoming barely visible. One only needs to bring up the example of the movie Sicario 2 – there, in some scenes, small light sources practically vanished as if someone had covered them with dark film.

Of course, not everything looks so dramatic. In simpler, brighter scenes, where the image is filled with more light, the Bravia 5 shows that it can shine: literally and figuratively. At those times, the TV achieves values in the range of 600–800 nits, which we saw both in synthetic tests and during movie screenings. The impression is really positive; the brightness adds dynamism, and the colours look vibrant and fresh. However, there remains a certain dissonance. We feel a slight confusion because it is evident that something has gone in the wrong direction. Technological progress – more zones, more backlight power – has not been supported by the kind of refined image management that we usually associate with Sony. Fortunately, there are elements that have not been compromised and are actually at a very high level. We are talking about colour reproduction. Thanks to the use of the PFS filter, the colour palette coverage is excellent – about 97% DCI-P3 and 75% BT.2020. These values allow for a truly wide colour reproduction, giving films a natural and cinematic character.

As we mentioned regarding black levels and contrast – the C9K can make a huge impression in synthetic tests. Our measurements showed that on a screen 10% filled with white, the television can achieve... 4000 nits of brightness! It sounds out of this world, but – and here's where the pattern unfortunately repeats – the numbers say one thing, and the practical experience says another. In real movie scenes, the situation looks different. In the best-case scenario, when light effects occupy a large part of the image and the local dimming algorithm doesn't have to ponder too much about what to do with thousands of zones, the effect is really quite good. At that point, the C9K can hit around 1500 nits, which delivers a pleasant, intense burst and can indeed leave a positive impression.

The problem arises with smaller elements – such as stars in the sky, the moon, or individual reflections. That's when the proverbial cat comes out of the bag: the algorithms are not yet refined, and brightness drops to as low as 400–500 nits. That's a huge difference from the potential 4000 nits we saw in lab tests. Why does this happen? Most likely, the television is trying to protect the black levels in this way and minimize the halo effect around bright objects. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of detail – some details simply vanish, and the scene loses its nature.

Sony Bravia 5 was obviously tested in the best possible mode, which is the Movie mode. Right out of the box, it delivers the most natural colours, definitely better than anything offered by the "eco" or "dynamic" modes, which are more suited for a store display than a living room. However, the Movie mode alone does not guarantee that we can always expect cinematic picture quality. In SDR content, we had no significant complaints – the slightly warmed white balance gave the scenes a golden hue, but it was nothing that was glaring. However, a problem arose with HDR materials. Here, the colour reproduction simply looked bad. The white balance was heavily skewed – with an excess of blue and a clear lack of red. At times, it resembled the store mode of "super vivid picture," where everything is blown out and artificially boosted.

This situation made brightness management seem too aggressive as well. The EOTF graph clearly showed that the television has trouble with overexposing many scenes right out of the box. And while we know what Sony televisions are usually capable of, it was hard to remain indifferent here – that’s why we quickly decided to go for calibration.

For colour tests, we once again reached for the Filmmaker mode – a new feature in TCL televisions for 2025. While the direction is a step in the right way, the execution leaves a lot to be desired. The white balance in SDR content turned out to be too warm – there was an excess of red. On the other hand, in HDR, it swung in the opposite direction: the image became excessively blue. The Colour Checker test revealed quite a few colour inaccuracies that were noticeable to the naked eye. An even bigger problem turned out to be what we mentioned above – brightness management. Regardless of whether we were watching SDR or HDR content, the image tended to wash out the entire scene, giving it an unnatural, almost grotesque character. Therefore, it’s hard to call this a "director's mode" – because no director has ever seen such an image.

After calibration, the situation changed dramatically. We managed to tune the white balance so that entire scenes began to look more natural, and the image gained coherence and elegance. In HDR, we finally got rid of that unwanted clipping effect that had previously spoiled some shots. Suddenly, it turned out that the Bravia 5 can extract much more from films than the first contact "straight out of the box" suggested. Indeed, if we look at the graphs and compare them with the standards, we can see that the beginning of the EOTF curve slightly strays beyond the reference line. However, this is not so much a calibration error as it is a natural limitation of the Mini-LED technology that cannot be bypassed. Sony, rather than clinging tightly to perfect black, prefers to prioritise the visibility of details – and in practice, it’s hard to disagree with that. We prefer to see the texture of the material on the screen rather than a pitch-black spot where all nuances disappear.

The calibration itself was really beneficial. After about an hour spent on settings, we felt that the image resembled that of the best cinema halls – of course on a home scale, but with the same sense of quality and refinement. And in such moments, we remember why we love Sony televisions: because once we fine-tune them, they reward us with a picture that captivates for long hours.

After calibration, we finally managed to tame the white balance – and it immediately translated into a more natural image. Colours finally started to look as they should, and the overall presentation was incomparably better than on the factory settings. In other words – it’s worth taking a moment to improve this, as the gain is really significant. The gamma responsible for brightness management also managed to be brought into order in SDR content, and the effect was more than satisfactory. Unfortunately, when we turned on HDR materials, the situation quickly became complicated. No matter how we set the local dimming, the television had a tendency to do what it liked with the image – either it overexposed everything or darkened the darkest parts too much. Just like we saw in the scene from the movie Billy Lynn. Colour-wise, the improvement after calibration makes a great impression, but brightness management in HDR remains the Achilles' heel of the C9K and presents a certain technological limitation.

Bravia 5 carries the genes of Sony, which remain intact – and thank goodness for that, because we're talking about absolutely exceptional digital image processing. It's no coincidence that for years, it's been considered that TVs from this brand set the standard for how a screen should handle lower quality materials. If someone still watches classic television, old films, or YouTube in lower resolutions, here they get equipment that can turn such content into a surprisingly enjoyable experience. On board, we find several tools worth activating. The first of these is "digital noise reduction." Set to a medium level, it works superbly – smoothing out tonal transitions that usually cause the most trouble in low-quality materials while introducing no artificial artifacts. Importantly, it also doesn't remove the cinematic character, which is the natural grain that is intentionally present in many productions. Another advantage of the Bravia 5 is the upscaling capabilities of the XR processor. The image presented after scaling is soft, yet sharp and clear. The outlines of characters are well-defined, and backgrounds maintain their texture without excessive artificial sharpening. It's hard to find a better TV for watching lower quality materials – Bravia 5 only confirms why Sony is considered the benchmark in this area.

Digital image processing on the TCL C9K is rather average. The smooth tone transition feature seems to be present, but activating it practically changes nothing – colour bands are still visible, and it can unintentionally highlight elements we’d rather keep hidden, such as object textures. Fortunately, it doesn’t remove film grain, but that’s poor consolation given that the effects are still meagre. It’s therefore hard to recommend using this option.

On the other hand, image scaling presents itself much better. Lower quality materials look quite decent – characters and backgrounds are rendered clearly, although of course, with sources like 576p, the laws of physics cannot be fooled. Occasionally, there’s characteristic edge distortion of objects, but that’s the fault of the source itself, not the algorithm. A plus for not having issues with overscan – the image isn't artificially cropped or enlarged.

Bravia 5 has a 120 Hz panel, which in itself sounds like an invitation to watch sports, fast matches or spectacular action films. However, the real magic begins when MotionFlow – Sony's proprietary motion smoother – comes into play. Thanks to this feature, we can adjust the character of the picture to our own preferences. The "smoothness" slider allows us to transition from a cinematic feel with a slight "judder" to a theatrical fluidity, where every ball in the match glides across the screen as if on a string. The higher the value, the smoother and more fluid it is; the lower it is, the more film-like and natural it becomes. In the options, we also find an additional setting that Sony calls "clarity". This is nothing more than the BFI function (which inserts black frames) aimed at improving motion sharpness. It sounds great in theory, but in practice, it must be used with caution. Why? Because all higher settings cause brightness drops of up to half, and in some cases, contour doubling also appears. So if we want to use it, we recommend setting it to the lowest level – "1" out of the available ten. That way, we gain a bit better motion sharpness without risking losing half the brightness of the picture.

Similar to the C8K, the C9K is also a really fast TV – both figuratively and literally. It features a 4K panel with a refresh rate of 144 Hz, and at lower resolutions, the panel can even ramp up to 288 Hz. Such speed translates into practice – while watching sports or playing games, the image looks very smooth and clear. Additionally, in movies, we get an extra motion smoother called Motion Clarity, which allows you to adjust the smoothness to your own preferences – from cinematic "judder" to almost theatrical smoothness.

In the Bravia 5, there is a significant improvement compared to the X90L model from two years ago. The television offers literally everything its predecessor had, but this time the issues that could frustrate gamers have been addressed. Problems with setting the variable refresh rate (VRR) have disappeared, and there are no longer issues with configuring HDR content in HGiG mode. In short: we get a device that simply works as it should, without any hassles. So, the Bravia 5 has everything you can expect from a modern gaming TV – and it can be confidently advertised with the slogan "ready for PS5." That's something we couldn't say about the X90L model. Well done, Sony!

It's just a shame that this relatively high-priced model lacks a full set of four HDMI 2.1 ports. In everyday use, this won’t be an issue for most people, but if someone has a console, soundbar, and additional equipment connected via HDMI, at some point they'll have to choose or juggle cables.

From a gaming perspective, the TCL C9K is a complete tool. It features two (out of four) full bandwidth 48 Gbps HDMI 2.1 ports, so all the key technologies work: VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). Additionally, the manufacturer has included a really intuitive Game Bar that allows you to quickly check the most important parameters and adjust settings without fumbling through menus. Also, TCL's policy is a plus – the TV isn’t afraid of any HDR formats, even in game mode. Whether it's HGiG or Dolby Vision for the Xbox Series S/X console – everything works as it should, giving the player plenty of freedom.