Sony A95L vs Panasonic Z85A

Sony A95L offers an incredible HDR effect, achieving an impressive brightness level of 1500 nits in scenes such as those from Life of Pi or Sicario 2. These results are truly remarkable – the bright elements in these films practically come to life on the screen, providing the viewer with immersive visual experiences. The only thing that can be noticed is minor issues with maintaining brightness in a scene from The Meg, where the entire scene is flooded with light. However, this is a natural effect associated with OLED technology. The wide coverage of the BT.2020 colour palette at 89% also deserves high praise, placing A95L Sony among the top televisions in terms of colour reproduction. All this is made possible by the QD-OLED panel from Samsung Displays.

The Panasonic Z85A is an OLED television, so one can immediately expect great effects in films. And indeed – our tests have shown that the WOLED panel can achieve around 800 nits of peak brightness in optimal conditions. This is a solid result that performs well in most demanding HDR scenes, allowing viewers to enjoy a dynamic and detail-rich image. However, like any OLED, the Z85A has its limits. In very bright scenes covering the entire screen – such as the final sequence from the film The Meg – the television reduces brightness to around 400 nits. This is standard behaviour for this technology, so if someone plans to watch films in a brightly sunlit living room, it is worth keeping this in mind. The coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 98% also deserves high praise. Thanks to this, the television reproduces a wide range of colours that stand out with vibrancy and depth, and details in HDR scenes are sharp and precise. In short – the Panasonic Z85A delivers a solid HDR effect that will satisfy any film enthusiast.

The best factory mode for colour reproduction in the Sony A95L is IMAX Enhanced. This mode appears to be well calibrated at first glance, but upon closer examination, several areas requiring improvement can be identified. Firstly, the white balance for both SDR content and 4K HDR is affected by an excess of blue and red, leading to a subtle pinkish hue, particularly noticeable on neutral tones. As a result, skin tones are distorted, impacting the realism of the displayed image. This is clearly visible in the comparison image below. Additionally, the Colour Checker test confirms the presence of these errors – colour samples often deviate from their reference values, indicating some inconsistencies in the factory colour reproduction of the A95L Sony. Maximum deltaE error values reach up to 5.8, which is a clear indicator that colours are not always reproduced as precisely as they should be.

Regarding brightness characteristics, gamma for HD/SDR content is generally quite accurate, maintaining an appropriate balance between brightness and contrast. Unfortunately, a significant jump is visible at the end of the graph, leading to a strong brightening of the image when the screen is entirely flooded with white. This can make scenes with a very bright background, such as snowy landscapes or bright daylight, appear too harsh and lose detail. For HDR content, the EOTF curve, which controls luminance, is slightly boosted compared to reference values. This, in turn, causes the image to appear somewhat brighter than it should, which can affect the viewing of more subtle details in the darker parts of the frame.

The Panasonic Z85A offers many picture modes, but the Filmmaker mode definitely stands out from the rest. It is rare for a television to be so well tuned straight out of the box, and the unit we had the opportunity to test really surprised us positively.

However, there were a few minor shortcomings. In the SDR signal, we noticed a slight deficit of red and blue, which resulted in the image having a cooler hue than it should have. This is especially noticeable in the comparative photo. Conversely, in 4K HDR content, the situation was the opposite – an excess of red made the image appear warmer than the creators intended. In terms of brightness characteristics (gamma) and the maintenance of the appropriate EOTF curve, it's hard to find fault. There are slight deviations, but they are so minimal that the average viewer is unlikely to notice them.

It is also worth emphasising that our observations pertain to a specific unit of the television. Two identical models may differ from each other due to natural production variances. Nevertheless, the unit we had in our hands looks really solid and deserves praise. Now it's time for our calibration – we'll see if we can extract even more from this screen!

Sony A95L offers excellent tools for professional screen calibration, which allows users to unlock the maximum potential of the IMAX Enhanced mode. We utilised these tools to achieve a picture quality that will satisfy even the most demanding viewers. After calibration, the white balance for both 4K HDR and SDR content looks simply superb – almost perfect. The Colour Checker test confirmed that deltaE errors do not exceed the value of "2", which means that colour reproduction is incredibly accurate, and any deviations are practically unnoticeable to the human eye.

Calibration also brought significant improvements in terms of brightness – gamma is now perfectly balanced, eliminating the previous issue of excessive lightening in scenes with very bright backgrounds. As a result, even the most vibrant moments, such as snowy landscapes or intense daytime scenes, appear natural, without any risk of overexposure. The EOTF curve, responsible for controlling luminance in HDR content, has also been improved – it now reaches reference levels, both in synthetic tests and during practical movie watching.

As a result of the calibration, A95L Sony offers outstanding experiences, whether you are watching content from regular television or your favourite films. Every detail is reproduced exactly as the creators intended – without unnecessary brightening, with perfectly rendered colours and appropriate depth. This demonstrates that this television, after professional tuning, is capable of competing with the best screens on the market, delivering a picture that truly delights.

The Panasonic Z85A offers truly wide possibilities when it comes to image settings, so we enthusiastically set about calibration. Although we mainly focused on correcting the white balance, the final result exceeded our expectations. Both HD and 4K HDR content now display nearly perfect colour reproduction, with minimal errors that are hard to catch with the naked eye. Well-calibrated televisions are a rarity, and we must admit – it is truly gratifying. Although the gamma and EOTF curve did not require drastic adjustments, it was possible to further stabilise their characteristics across the entire brightness range. After calibration, the Panasonic Z85A is a true gem for home cinema enthusiasts. The image is precise, the colours are natural, and every scene looks exactly as the director intended.

The tonal transition smoothing feature in Sony A95L works really well and is worth noting. We recommend setting it to "Medium" because at this level, you achieve the perfect compromise – no artifacts appear, and the image looks incredibly natural and pleasing to the eye. As a result, the transitions between different shades are smooth while maintaining the detail of the scenes, which further enhances the viewing comfort.

When it comes to upscaling, you can see the full power of the XR processor here. Sony A95L handled our test material featuring a model exceptionally well – the image is remarkably clear, there are no excessive jagged edges, and details in the background are perfectly preserved. The XR processor effectively improves low resolution, delivering very good results that allow you to enjoy materials in almost high quality, even if their source is not ideal.

Now that we know how the Panasonic Z85A performs with tonal transitions in 4K content, it’s time to take a look at its "Gradation Smoothing" feature. It works, but unfortunately not entirely effectively. Regardless of the chosen value – whether it’s low, medium, or high – we were unable to achieve perfectly smooth tonal transitions in our test sequence. We recommend setting this feature to an intermediate level. Although it may slightly blur fine details, at least the issue of film grain loss does not occur, which for many viewers can be crucial when watching classic productions.

As for image scaling, the television performs quite well. It’s noticeable that the image is slightly sharpened, and slim lines may at times appear a bit jagged. However, this is standard in most TVs, and fortunately, it can be adjusted using the sharpness slider. This gives us complete control – we can achieve a more plastic, blurred image or a clearer one, although it may be more “harsh” and artificially sharp. It all depends on user preference and the type of content we are watching. Overall, the scaling is at a solid level and should satisfy most users who are using lower resolution materials.

Sony A95L is a television that should satisfy both gamers and cinema lovers. When it comes to watching films, this model is equipped with the Motionflow feature, which allows you to precisely adjust whether you want the image to be more "cinematic," like in traditional cinema, or exceptionally smooth, like in cinema-style TVs. The "Smoothness" slider lets you regulate the level of fluidity – from subtle changes to a more noticeable effect, while the "Clarity" slider is responsible for reducing flicker and artifacts, helping to achieve a more natural and clear motion. As for gaming and watching sports, the A95L Sony television offers a refresh rate of 120 Hz, making every dynamic action look incredibly smooth. Gamers will appreciate the lack of blur, while sports fans will see every movement in full clarity. Overall, the television performs excellently – both with fast-paced games and emotionally charged film sequences.

The Panasonic Z85A features a 120 Hz panel, which will certainly please both gamers and sports fans. Admittedly, it is not 144 Hz like some gaming TVs, but in practice, the difference is really hard to notice. In games, the image is stable and clear, and during fast action, there is no sign of any blurring. The same applies to sports – a fast-running footballer or a dynamic car manoeuvre looks smooth and natural. The TV also has the “Intelligent Frame Creation” function, which is a motion smoother. There are two sliders here – one is for reducing blur, and the other is for motion smoothness. With these, you can adjust the image to your own preferences – whether it be more of a cinematic effect with gentle transitions between frames, or a maximally smooth image ideal for watching sports.

Sony A95L is a television that will truly satisfy gamers, thanks to several key features that set it apart from the competition. To start with, the 120 Hz refresh rate – this is something everyone who loves fast action games, racing, or dynamic shooters will appreciate. As a result, the image is exceptionally smooth, and the gameplay is more satisfying, without annoying stuttering. The A95L Sony also has an ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode) feature, which automatically engages low latency mode when we turn on the console. What does this mean? Above all, faster response on the screen, which in games where every second matters is simply invaluable. Additionally, there’s VRR (Variable Refresh Rate), which adjusts the image refresh rate to the number of frames generated by the console. The effect? No tearing of the image, and everything looks smooth and cohesive – even with variable FPS.

It is worth mentioning the support for Dolby Vision with low input lag in games – something we don’t often encounter in televisions, and here we have it onboard. Thanks to this, the image in games that support HDR is incredibly vibrant, with rich colours and excellent contrast. Both the brightest and darkest details are visible, making everything look as the game creators intended. And then there's the "Game Bar" – a small but very practical feature. With it, we have all the most important gaming-related settings at our fingertips, such as VRR or latency information. There’s no need to interrupt gameplay to adjust parameters – everything is right at hand.

However, it should be remembered that the A95L offers only two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports, one of which is designated for eARC. This may pose a limitation if we plan to connect multiple devices – for instance, a next-gen console and a soundbar simultaneously. In such a case, the eARC occupying one of those ports can be somewhat problematic, blocking the possibility of connecting a second console.

Panasonic is mainly associated with home cinema televisions, but the Z85A demonstrates that it can also step into the gaming world with a really strong impact. This hardware can easily be called a gaming beast – it has everything needed for comfortable gameplay.

Although there are only two HDMI 2.1 ports, both operate at full bandwidth, so we can easily connect both a next-gen console and a gaming PC. All key features are supported: ALLM automatically switches the television to game mode, VRR ensures smooth images without stuttering or tearing, and with correctly implemented HGIG and Dolby Vision, HDR games look really good – colours are vivid, details are sharp, and dark scenes are clear. We also find a Game Bar in the form of a clear, circular menu. It may not look as impressive as the competition's, but it is intuitive and contains all the important settings we would like to have at hand during gameplay.

In summary – the Panasonic Z85A is equipment that truly surprises with its gaming capabilities. It is a television on which both console gamers and PC players will feel at home. It is smooth, dynamic, and simply good.