Our Verdict
Good TV for a range of usages. Low native contrast ratio so blacks appear gray in a dark room, but image remains accurate when viewed at an angle. Motion handling is great which is good for sports or gaming but unfortunately the input lag is fairly high.
- Great for fast motion content like sports and video games
- Wide viewing angle
- Blacks appear a little gray in the dark
- Average HDR performance
Below average for watching movies in a dark room. Low native contrast ratio so blacks appear gray, but uniformity is quite good.
Good for watching TV in a bright room. Image remains accurate when viewed at an angle which is good for wide living rooms. Can get fairly bright to combat glare and reflection handling is decent.
Good choice for watching sports. Image remains accurate when viewed at an angle so everyone gets a good view. Motion handling is great so only a short trail can be seen following fast moving objects.
Capable gaming TV for 1080p sources but input lag is a bit high for 4k sources, even for casual gamers. Motion handling is great but there is some temporary image retention.
Supports HDR10. Can produce a wide color gamut and gets quite bright to display HDR content which is good. Unfortunately picture quality is below average due to low native contrast ratio.
Supports HDR gaming. Picture quality is below average due to low native contrast ratio, and 4k input lag is a bit high. Motion handling is great and can produce bright vivid highlights with HDR.
Great PC monitor. Image remains accurate even when the sides are viewed from up close. Supports 4:4:4 for clear text across all backgrounds. Unfortunately the input lag at 4k is quite high, but motion handling is great.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We reviewed the 55" (Sony XBR-55X850D). It has an IPS panel.
Update: The 65" and 75" are also IPS, so our review is also valid for that one. But the 85" has a VA panel, so it will produce better blacks directly in front, but worse color accuracy at an angle.
As an interesting note, the 55" shares a panel very similar to the 2016 LG 55UH8500 that we reviewed a few weeks ago. The response time measurements are almost the same, as well as the contrast ratio (around 1200:1, which is very good for an IPS).
| Size | Model | UK | Panel |
| 55" | XBR-55X850D | KD-55XD8505 | IPS |
| 65" | XBR-65X850D | KD-65XD8505 | IPS |
| 75" | XBR-75X850D | KD-75XD8505 | IPS |
| 85" | XBR-85X850D | KD-85XD8505 | VA |
Popular TV Comparisons
Compared to other TVs, the Sony X850D is a good choice for wide living rooms with seating on the side of the TV. If the main viewing position is directly in front of the TV, there are better alternatives.
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
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
for pictures & test results
