Sony Bravia 7 (XR70) vs Panasonic W95B

Now that we know the TV handles contrast well, let’s check how it performs in terms of HDR effects. The luminance graph shows very high capabilities for this model – 1500 nits is truly an impressive result. HDR effects are particularly striking in scenes where most of the screen is covered in light, such as in the 1st, 3rd, and 5th test scenes. Minor imperfections, typical of this technology, are still visible with very small light effects, as seen in the scene from the film "Sicario 2," where brightness drops to 500 nits. Although these aren't staggering results, they can be considered decent. Additionally, it's worth praising the TV for its high coverage of a wide colour gamut – DCI-P3 at 96%, which allows for vibrant, saturated colours.

The Panasonic W95B is truly a bright screen, capable of achieving peak luminance levels of around 1400 nits. In brighter, well-lit movie scenes, this value translates into spectacular HDR effects that can leave a big impression. However, knowing our test setup, you probably see that in very demanding shots – such as the moon in the distance or the lights of a helicopter in a scene from Sicario 2 – the television doesn’t impress. In such situations, brightness drops to around 200 nits, making the HDR effect much less noticeable. This happens because Panasonic focuses on maintaining deep blacks, not illuminating the background – which shouldn’t be a concern for many users. However, it’s important to remember that in such moments, the picture starts to resemble SDR content. The coverage of the colour palette also deserves praise, as it reaches around 93% of the DCI-P3 space thanks to the use of the PFS filter (also known from QLED technology). This means that most films look very good in terms of saturation and colours, maintaining a cinematic quality to the image.

The IMAX Enhanced mode on the Sony BRAVIA 7 TV is definitely the best mode available on this model, although it is not without its flaws, as its name might suggest. The biggest issue is white balance – both in HD and 4K HDR content, there is a noticeable dominance of the red colour, which causes the image to take on pinkish hues. This is particularly evident on the test image with snow, where the pinkish tint becomes very noticeable. Errors in the Colour Checker test also confirm these deviations – although they are not catastrophic, there is a tendency to lean towards warmer tones. In terms of brightness characteristics, the gamma remains at a decent level with a slight spike but without major issues. However, the biggest challenge is with 4K material. It is clear that the EOTF curve is significantly above the reference graph, making the image appear overly bright.

In Filmmaker mode, the Panasonic W95B offers an image with quite accurate colour reproduction, although it is not without minor imperfections. The white balance slightly leans towards red, which can cause a subtle warm tint to the image, and the gamma curve is slightly elevated, making the screen appear a bit brighter. It's good that the manufacturer has included this mode – even in its factory configuration, it provides a fairly natural look for films. However, knowing how susceptible Panasonic televisions are to calibration, we decided to check how much the image could be improved after professional tuning.

Sony BRAVIA XR70 offers a wide range of tools that allow you to customise the image to your own preferences, enabling significant adjustments to the settings. White balance has been freed from the red colour dominance issue – snow no longer takes on pink hues, which was previously noticeable. Although there are slight deviations in the final part of the white balance chart regarding a drop in blue colour, they are acceptable and difficult to notice in everyday use. The Colour Checker test confirms that colour reproduction errors are no longer as pronounced and rarely exceed a value of 2, which is a very good result. As for brightness, gamma, although it didn't require major improvement, has been slightly adjusted. However, the most significant change has been noted in the EOTF curve – the television no longer has issues with excessively brightening the entire image in 4K materials. However, upon closer examination and incorporating the EOTF characteristics in film materials, some limitations of the television become apparent due to the previously discussed dimming algorithm. Some small elements may be slightly more illuminated, but these errors are minor enough that most users won't notice them. Overall, the calibration results are very, very positive.

After professional calibration, the Panasonic W95B shows what it’s really capable of. Colour errors have mostly dropped below values of 2–3, making them practically invisible to the human eye. The excess red in the white balance has also been corrected, which means the image is no longer slightly tinted pink, and details in dark areas no longer get lost due to excessive dimming in the gamma. The improvement in HDR content is also noticeable – colour saturation is now more stable and doesn’t lean towards blue as distinctly as it did before. It’s truly a fantastic television for watching movies and series in the highest possible quality. While we know that Mini LED screens are not always perfectly suited for this, the W95B is a prime example that with proper tuning, a result close to OLEDs can be achieved.

Since we know that the television handles high-quality content very well, it's worth checking how it performs with lower-quality material. Here, the television shows its potential, and the graphics processor used works remarkably well. On the test screen with the light bulb, there are no issues with colour blending, and the gentle gradation function works very well – we recommend setting it to "Medium".

When it comes to digital processing, or the so-called upscaling, the television sharpens the image quite significantly, which leads to a slight jaggedness, for example on branches in the background, but it doesn't remove desired details. Despite this, the overall appearance is really attractive and may appeal to most users. However, if you prefer a softer, more plastic image, you can reduce this effect in the settings by adjusting the sharpness level to your liking.

In terms of image processing, the Panasonic W95B performs exceptionally well. The proprietary processor responsible for digital image processing effectively upscales lower resolution content to 4K, maintaining a high level of detail and a natural look to contours. The end result is impressive – the upscaling is truly top-notch, and Full HD content can look surprisingly good. Also noteworthy is how the TV smooths tonal transitions in low-quality materials. The algorithm doesn’t operate as aggressively as in some competing models, which helps avoid the loss of detail or the blurring of film grain.

The Sony BRAVIA 7 TV with a 120 Hz panel will satisfy most users in terms of motion fluidity. Additionally, Sony offers a Motion Flow feature that allows for the selection of three different picture settings, adjusting them to personal preferences: Smoothness – Film: This setting improves motion fluidity, giving the image a more cinematic or theatrical quality. Smoothness – Camera: This setting provides even greater fluidity, useful for watching dynamic scenes like sports broadcasts. Clarity: This setting focuses on minimising noise and motion artifacts, resulting in a more stable and clear image.

The 144 Hz panel used in the Panasonic W95B offers excellent smoothness, although in practice, given how television content looks or how new-generation consoles are limited, it’s worth looking at its performance when refreshing at 120 Hz. In this mode, the television performs exceptionally well – despite being a VA panel, which is not known for the fastest pixel response times, motion blur is minimal and difficult to detect with the naked eye.

Sony Bravia 7 has significantly improved its capabilities in terms of compatibility with consoles compared to earlier models. The TV supports variable refresh rate (VRR), which eliminates screen tearing, and it syncs with graphics cards to ensure smooth display. The automatic low latency mode (ALLM) effectively reduces input lag, which is crucial in dynamic games. Dolby Vision with low latency further delivers impressive HDR effects that look great during gameplay.

Sony Bravia 7 also offers a Game Bar feature, providing quick access to settings and monitoring parameters while gaming. An interesting option is the ability to enable a virtual on-screen reticle, which can give a slight advantage in shooter games. However, compared to the Bravia 9 model, the HGIG feature in the Bravia 7 doesn't perform as well, which may be noticeable for more demanding gamers – particularly as the HGIG mode is becoming increasingly popular among gamers as the preferred method for reproducing HDR effects.

A downside is the lack of support for 1440p@120 Hz resolution, which could make gaming easier for users with less powerful graphics cards. Additionally, the Sony Bravia 7 is equipped with two HDMI 2.1 ports, one of which is often used to connect an audio system via eARC, limiting the number of available ports for connecting next-gen consoles.

Aside from the previously mentioned issue related to VRR mode, where local dimming does not work, the Panasonic W95B is a true gaming beast. The TV offers practically everything that gamers could expect – perhaps apart from four HDMI 2.1 ports, as there are only two available. On board, we find automatic low latency mode (ALLM), correctly implemented HDR modes for gamers, including HGiG, as well as support for Dolby Vision in games. The whole package is complemented by an interestingly designed Game Bar, presented in the form of circles. It may not be the most visually attractive, but it fulfills its purpose – allowing quick access to key game parameters and adjusting settings without diving into the system menu.