Sony has long been a dominant force in the television industry, known for its high-end processing and picture quality. With the introduction of the Bravia 7 II, the company is making its first foray into RGB LED technology — a display approach that uses red, green, and blue LEDs as the backlight source instead of the conventional white or blue LEDs. This move places Sony alongside competitors like Hisense and TCL in the emerging RGB TV segment, but the Bravia 7 II aims to differentiate itself through superior image processing, color accuracy, and a design that turns heads.
What is RGB LED Technology?
Traditional LED TVs use a backlight that is either all-blue or all-white, then rely on a color filter and quantum dots or phosphors to produce the full color spectrum. RGB LED TVs, by contrast, use individual red, green, and blue LEDs arranged in zones behind the LCD panel. This allows for more direct control over the color output, reducing the burden on the color filter and enabling a wider color gamut and higher brightness. Sony drives each LED individually, giving the Bravia 7 II fine-grained control over the color mix. The technology promises more vibrant, saturated colors without the need for aggressive backlight boosting.
However, RGB LED has a potential downside: color crosstalk. Because each backlight zone covers multiple pixels, the red LED in a zone might slightly bleed into neighboring pixels that are supposed to be white or a lighter color. In test patterns, this effect can be visible — a green rectangle might cast a faint halo, or a blue tile could tint nearby white text. Sony’s processing largely mitigates this in real-world content, but it remains a consideration for purists.
Design and Build: A Statement of Intent
The Bravia 7 II is available in sizes from 50 to 98 inches, with the 65-inch model reviewed here priced at $2,600. The most eye-catching design element is the pedestal stand, which incorporates a lenticular screen on its front. This screen creates an optical illusion that makes cables hanging behind the TV disappear from view while still allowing light and color to pass through. It’s a clever and nerdy solution to cable management that adds a touch of elegance. The stand also includes a slot in the back to gather cables neatly at the center of the TV. The remote is battery-powered and lightweight but lacks a backlight — a minor annoyance in dark rooms. The TV itself has a reflective screen; while it doesn't produce the rainbow artifacts seen on some competitors, it doesn't do much to reduce glare from lamps or windows. For brighter rooms, the more expensive Bravia 9 II offers a non-glare panel.
Picture Performance: Where Sony Shines
The Bravia 7 II delivers exceptional color accuracy out of the box, especially in the Professional picture mode. SDR content shows remarkably accurate grayscale and colors, though reds are slightly oversaturated. HDR content benefits from a measured peak brightness of 2,200 nits, which is ample for most living rooms even if it doesn't match the absolute brightness of TCL's X11L or last year's LG G5 OLED. The TV covers 88 percent of the BT.2020 color space, a figure that rivals many high-end OLEDs. This wide gamut is most apparent in content mastered for BT.2020, like the nature documentary Planet Earth II, where lush green jungles and shimmering blue hummingbird feathers pop off the screen. For most current content, which is mastered in the smaller P3 color space, the advantage is less pronounced but still contributes to a vibrant, lifelike image.
Color crosstalk, the main worry with RGB LED, is mostly a non-issue in normal viewing. In movies like Star Wars: The Last Jedi or Mad Max: Fury Road, or during a live F1 race, no distracting color bleed was observed. Only in unusual test patterns or static UI elements — such as the blue tile of the Prime Video app on an Apple TV — does a slight color cast appear. Sony even includes a menu option to switch the backlight from color to white light, which eliminates crosstalk but reduces color gamut coverage to 73 percent of BT.2020 and 91 percent of P3. This feature seems more like a curiosity than a practical tool.
The TV handles blooming well for an LCD, but it cannot match the pixel-level contrast of an OLED. Black levels are good but not infinite, and in dark scenes with bright subtitles or highlights, some blooming is visible. For viewers who prioritize absolute black levels, an OLED like the LG C6 remains the better choice.
Gaming and Connectivity: A Mixed Bag
Gamers will find the Bravia 7 II supports 4K at 120Hz, Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM), and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR). However, only two of the four HDMI inputs are HDMI 2.1; one of those is the eARC port. This means if you use the eARC port for a soundbar or AV receiver, you have only one other port for a high-refresh-rate device. In 2026, when many competitors offer full HDMI 2.1 support on all inputs, this is a notable limitation. The TV’s input lag is competitive, and the picture quality in Game mode remains excellent, but the port shortage may frustrate multi-console owners.
Price and Competition
At $2,600 for the 65-inch model, the Bravia 7 II is expensive compared to rivals. Hisense’s top-end RGB LED TV, the UR9, was priced $600 less after an initial price cut, and Samsung’s R85H is $500 cheaper. The Sony justifies its premium with superior processing and color accuracy — in a direct comparison, the Bravia 7 II delivers a more natural and refined image than the Hisense. However, the price gap may be too wide for budget-conscious buyers. The Bravia 7 II also is less bright than some competitors, but its brightness is sufficient for most rooms, and its handling of specular highlights is excellent.
Sony’s Bravia 7 II is a strong entry in the RGB LED market, proving that the technology can deliver a beautiful picture without major compromises. The color crosstalk issue is largely theoretical in real use, and the TV’s color accuracy and processing make it a joy to watch. The reflective screen and limited HDMI 2.1 ports are downsides, but for those who prioritize picture quality above all else, the Bravia 7 II is a compelling choice. As more RGB LED TVs hit the market, Sony has set a high bar for performance and design.
Source: The Verge News