The Sony A90K OLED is a mid-range OLED TV in Sony's 2022 lineup. It sits above the Sony A80K/A80CK OLED and below the QD-OLED Sony A95K OLED. It's a bit of an oddity in Sony's lineup, as it's only available in a 42" and 48" size, and it offers very similar specifications and performance to the lower-end A80K. It mainly targets PC and console gamers, and it's part of Sony's "Perfect for PS5" lineup, which offers a few unique features that are exclusive to the PS5, including Auto Genre Picture Mode and Auto HDR Tone Mapping.
Note: We also tested the Sony 42 A90K OLED as a PC monitor. Due to differences in the way TVs and monitors are used, the two sizes were tested with different settings and different test methodology, so the scores and conclusions drawn in the reviews aren't comparable.
Our Verdict
The Sony A90K is an excellent TV for mixed usage. It looks best in a dark room, thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio and perfect black uniformity, with no blooming around bright objects. It makes it a superb choice for watching movies or gaming in the dark. It's also great for watching shows or sports in a bright room, as it has superb reflection handling and passable peak brightness. It has a wide viewing angle, which is great if you have a wide seating arrangement and want to watch sports with a group of friends, as the image remains consistent when viewed from the side. Finally, it's a very good choice for use as a PC monitor, but there are some text clarity issues due to its WRBG subpixel layout.
- Near-infinite contrast ratio for deep blacks and bright highlights.
- Incredible reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent when viewed from the side.
- Low peak brightness.
The Sony A90K is a great TV for watching shows during the day. It has superb reflection handling and passable peak brightness, meaning it can handle a moderate amount of light during the day. It has an amazing viewing angle, which is great if you have a wide seating area, as the image remains consistent when viewed from the sides. The built-in Google TV smart interface has a great selection of streaming apps, so you can quickly find your favorite content. The TV also supports hands-free voice control, so you can search for content or even control other smart devices around the house without having to search for the remote.
- Incredible reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent when viewed from the side.
- Low peak brightness.
- 480p content isn't upscaled properly.
The Sony A90K is an impressive choice for watching sports. It has an amazing viewing angle, which is great for watching sports with a large group of friends, as the image remains accurate when viewed from the side. It also has an incredibly quick response time, so fast action is clear, with no distracting blur around the players. It has superb reflection handling and passable peak brightness, meaning it can handle a moderate amount of glare in a bright room. Finally, it upscales 720p content well, which is great if you're watching sports on cable TV.
- Incredible reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent when viewed from the side.
- No motion blur or ghosting.
- Low peak brightness.
The Sony A90K delivers a fantastic gaming experience. Thanks to its nearly-instantaneous response time, motion is incredibly clear and smooth, and it has low input lag for a responsive gaming experience. It also has a great selection of gaming features, including variable refresh rate support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on two HDMI ports, allowing 4k @ 120Hz gaming with the PS5 or Xbox Series S|X. It's fantastic for gaming in the dark thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio, delivering deep inky blacks with no blooming or haloing around bright objects.
- Near-infinite contrast ratio for deep blacks and bright highlights.
- No motion blur or ghosting.
- VRR support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.
- Low input lag for a responsive gaming experience.
- Low peak brightness.
The Sony A90K is an amazing TV for watching movies in HDR in a dark room. It has relatively low peak brightness in HDR, but this doesn't matter as much with an OLED display like this one, as its near-infinite contrast ratio allows it to display an incredibly impactful HDR experience. It has an excellent color gamut, with nearly full coverage of the DCI-P3 color space used for most HDR content, and it has superb gradient handling, with next to no banding in areas of similar colors.
- Perfect black uniformity with no blooming around bright highlights.
- Near-infinite contrast ratio for deep blacks and bright highlights.
- Removes 24p judder from any source.
- Stutter due to near-instantaneous response time.
- Limited HDR peak brightness.
The Sony A90K is an amazing choice for gaming in HDR. It delivers a fantastic gaming experience, with low input lag and a nearly-instantaneous response time, so motion is smooth and clear. It also has some great gaming features, including HDMI Forum VRR support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth for 4k @ 120Hz gaming. It can't get very bright in HDR, but HDR content still looks impressive as the near-infinite contrast ratio delivers bright highlights right next to deep blacks, with no blooming around bright objects.
- Perfect black uniformity with no blooming around bright highlights.
- VRR support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.
- Low input lag for a responsive gaming experience.
- Limited HDR peak brightness.
The Sony A90K is a very good TV for use as a PC monitor. It has low input lag and a nearly instantaneous response time, so your actions on-screen are fluid and responsive. It also has a wide viewing angle, ensuring the sides of the screen remain consistent, but there's some color shifting at the edges. It has good visibility in a moderately lit room, with superb reflection handling but just passable peak brightness, so glare is still distracting in a room with lots of light. Unfortunately, its WRBG subpixel layout delivers just decent text clarity, and there's some color fringing.
- Incredible reflection handling.
- Image remains consistent when viewed from the side.
- No motion blur or ghosting.
- VRR support and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth.
- Low input lag for a responsive gaming experience.
- Low peak brightness.
Changelog
- Updated Sep 26, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Jul 08, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Apr 17, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
- Updated Feb 11, 2025: We uploaded the latest brightness measurements and uniformity photos for the Accelerated Longevity Test.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the 48-inch Sony A90K (XR48A90K), and the results are also valid for the 42-inch model. We also tested the 42-inch Sony 42 A90K OLED (XR42A90K) as a monitor, but note that the scores, test results, and text are all relative to the monitor market, so they're not directly comparable to the results posted in this review.
| Size | Model |
|---|---|
| 42" | XR-42A90K |
| 48" | XR-48A90K |
Our unit was manufactured in June 2022, and you can see the label here.
Popular TV Comparisons
The Sony A90K is an excellent OLED monitor that's only available in smaller 42" and 48" sizes. It performs about the same as the other 48" OLEDs on the market, including the LG 48 C1 OLED, but it comes with a slightly more versatile stand. Unfortunately, it has worse gaming features and higher input lag than the competition, so if you care more about gaming, the LG models are a better choice.
See our recommendations for the best smart TVs and the best TVs for movies.
The LG C5 is better than the Sony A90K. Both TVs deliver the same incredible dark room experience, with deep, inky blacks and perfect uniformity, with no haloing around bright parts of the scenes. The C5 gets a lot brighter, though, so highlights in HDR stand out much better, and bright scenes deliver a more impactful experience.
The LG C4 OLED is better than the Sony A90K OLED. The LG is far brighter in HDR and SDR and more accurate out-of-the-box in SDR. Furthermore, the LG TV is better for gamers due to its lower input lag, four full HDMI 2.1 ports, and 4k @ 144Hz support; the Sony is limited to 120Hz on its two HDMI 2.1 ports. The Sony does have slightly better image processing, but not by much.
The LG C2 OLED is a bit better than the Sony A90K OLED. The LG is significantly brighter in both SDR and HDR, so it can better overcome glare, and bright highlights stand out better in HDR. The LG also has better gaming features, including support for 1440p @ 120Hz gaming, FreeSync variable refresh rate support, and HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all four ports compared to just two ports on the Sony.
The Sony A90J OLED is a bit better than the Sony A90K OLED, but the differences are very minor. The A90J is a bit brighter than the new model, meaning it can handle a bit more glare, and bright highlights in HDR stand out a bit more. Although sharing a similar model name, the A90K isn't a direct replacement for the A90J, as they're available in different sizes. The A90J is available in a 55", 65", and 83" size, while the A90K is only available in 42" and 48" sizes.
We buy and test dozens of TVs yearly, taking an objective, data-driven approach to deliver results you can trust. Our testing process is complex, with hundreds of individual tests that take over a week to complete. Most of our tests use specially designed test patterns that mimic real content, but we also use the same sources you have at home to ensure our results match the real-world experience. We use two main tools for our testing: a Colorimetry Research CR-100 colorimeter and a CR-250 spectroradiometer.
Test Results
Older Test Bench: This product has been tested using an older TV test methodology, before a major update. Some of the test results below aren't directly comparable with other TVs. Learn more
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