Smart TVs integrate on-demand
services and web apps with off-air viewing, but which of these is the better
connected?
If you’ve tracked the history of TV
development you may have noticed that Smart (aka Connected) TV has been quietly
evolving whilst the likes of LED lighting, 3D TV and OLED have grabbed all the
headlines.
Smart TV just hasn’t had the attention it
deserves, possibly because it lacks that tangible wow factor and because early
versions flattered to deceive, offering rather perfunctory services that
weren’t that well implemented. They also suffered by comparison with the
experience of accessing similar features on a computer via the internet. But
now the overlooked kid has grown into a good looking significant fellow,
properly deserving our attention.
Essentially Smart TV consists of
video-on-demand (including movies and TV shows) services plus music, games, and
more, all delivered to your screen by broadband. All new Smart TVs have a
selection of these applications pre-installed (as do some PVRs and Blu-ray
decks) whilst users can select and download additional applications.
Other peripheral smart skills include
features such as Skype, home networking, internet browsing, social media and
interaction with tablets and smartphones. Samsung might even argue that its
gimmicky voice and gesture control is an essential facet of Smart TV.
All the major brands have upped their Smart
TV game considerably, hence our decision to pitch two of the leading exponents
against each other. We’ve recalled Sony’s flagship KDL-46HX853, which
distinguished itself previously as our top screen for sports viewing. It faces
Samsung’s UE-46ES7000, which has many of the same features found on the awesome
UE-46ES8000.
Test criteria
Thoroughly assessing a screen for its Smart
TV features is not possible without a broadband connection. Phone in advance to
make sure your retailer can provide this before you visit the shop
Some high-end screens let you ‘throw’
content on to them from an iPad or Android tablet. This can be used as a way of
toping up your TV’s roster of built-in apps
Video on demand is data-hungry and requires
a fast broadband connection. You may need to check if your internet provision
is up to the job of coping with HD movies and shows
Sony KDL-46HX853
Sony
KDL-46HX853
Features
·
Screen size: 46in
·
Display type: LCD
·
Backlighting: Edge-lit LED
·
Resolution: 1920 x 1080p
·
Tuners: Analogue UHF; DVB-T, DVB-T2
·
Speakers: 30W (10W + 10W + 10W)
·
Image processing: 800Hz (200Hz + backlight
scanning), local dimming
·
EPG: Freeview HD 7-day
·
CI slot: Yes
·
Teletext: Yes
·
Apps: 57 including Skype, Opera internet
browser, Twitter, Facebook, RSS feed, TVitter, Forte Audio Player and 33 games
·
Video on demand: BBC iPlayer, YouTube, Netflix,
Demand 5, BBC News, Sky News, LoveFilm, Sony Entertainment Television, AOL ON
·
Web browser: Yes
·
Wi-Fi networking: Yes
·
Ethernet: Yes
·
SD out/in: 1 x Scart (RGB/composite), c
composite video in,
·
HD in: 4 x HDMI v1.4, component video, PC RGB,
·
Audio out: Digital optical audio, headphones
jack
·
Audio in: Stereo Phono, PC audio
·
Data ports: 2 x USB 2.0, Ethernet
Ratings
Plus
·
Superb picture quality
·
Plentiful preset modes
·
Excellent Motion Flow
Minus
·
Complicated to use
·
Ugly remote control
·
Inferior shadow detail
·
Build: 10 stars
·
Setup: 7 stars
·
Searching: 9 stars
·
Navigation: 9 stars
·
Performance: 9 stars
·
Features: 10 stars
·
Value: 9 stars
·
Overall: 89%
Samsung 46ES7000
Samsung
46ES7000
Features
·
Screen size: 46in
·
Display type: Edge-lit LED
·
Resolution: 1920 x 1080p
·
Tuners: Analogue UHF; DVB-T; DVB-T2; DVB-S;
DVB-S2
·
Speakers: 2 x 10W
·
Image processing: 800Hz
·
EPG: Freeview HD 7-day, Freesat 7-day
·
CI slot: Yes
·
Teletext: Yes
·
Apps: 125 games, 22 sports, 77 lifestyle (incI
Sportify, Facebook, Twitter, Skype, vTuner, Picasa), 73 information, 41
education
·
Video on demand: ITV Player, iPlayer, YouTube,
Nextflix, Acetrax, LoveFilm, Curzon On Demand, Digital Theatre, FluxPlayer, BBS
Sport, Docubox,
·
Web browser: Yes
·
Wi-Fi networking: Yes
·
Ethernet: Yes
·
SD out/in: 1 x Scart (RGB/composite) in/Scart
composite video out only, composite video in
·
HD in: 3 x HDMI v1.4, component video, PC RGB,
·
Audio out: Digital optical audio, headphones
jack
·
Audio in: Mini jacks; stereo phono
·
Data ports: 3 x USB, Ethernet
Ratings
Plus
·
Impeccable HD images
·
Attractive menu system
·
Good selection of apps
Minus
·
Soft Freeview SD pics
·
Fixed Smart Hub
·
Some LED light pooling
·
Build: 9 stars
·
Setup: 9 stars
·
Searching: 9 stars
·
Navigation: 9 stars
·
Performance: 8 stars
·
Features: 10 stars
·
Value: 8 stars
·
Overall: 87%
There’s a $600 difference between these two
locally dimmed LED edge-lit screens so the Samsung 46ES7000 has really got its
work cut out to overcome the Sony KDL-46HX853. The Samsung 46ES7000 does at
least boast a Freesat HD tuner, built-in Skype camera, a secondary ‘smart’
remote and the gimmick that is voice and gesture control.
Sony has scored an aesthetic hit with its
monolithic design that tilts the screen at 6o from its integrated sound system
base, with dark black anti-reflective glass across the entire screen and frame
it’s a sumptuous look and gives the illusion that the KDL-46HX853 is larger
than the Samsung 46ES7000. Not that the 46ES7000 is an ugly duckling, although
the built-in camera along the top edge spoils its otherwise beautifully clean
lines.
Features and setting up
Both screens are jam-packed with
cutting-edge adjustment options but the Samsung just edges it in terms of
picture tools with gamma, white balance, 10point white balance, expert pattern
and flesh tone adjustment to name but a few. Both screens are well equipped to
deal with fast moving objects and Juddery Camera pans thanks to the latest
image processor version, Sony in the guise of its Motion flow XR800, which
imposes interpolation and line blinking on the set’s native 200Hz panel.
Getting the Sony hooked up to a wireless
network is not as effortless as it is with the Samsung, which somehow manages
to take the guesswork and angst out of the process by simply asking for your
wireless router’s password.
Nor is it the Sony the easiest TV to
operate generally thanks to a complex and, at times, illogical menu system. For
example, there are a staggering 14 preset picture and sound modes, including
two cinema modes and a dedicated sports mode, but they only become available if
you first find them in a sub-menu of the TV’s Setting folder. It’s a similar
story with the Smart TV features, which are impressive in number but can cause
confusion with some features appearing as different items in the menu. The star
of the show is the Sony Entertainment Network, or SEN, which gets its own
button on the remote control and appears on the menu home page alongside
Widgets, Applications and Internet Content. Press SEN on the remote and you see
a selection of apps, video titles, music titles and favorites, plus the live
video feed and a Twitter window. These video titles also pop up within the
Internet Content portal in separate Video Unlimited and Sony Entertainment TV
apps. Widgets include tools such as a calendar and alarm clock that can be
overlaid on the screen whilst Applications provides a search facility and
access to the Opera TV store, which has tons of games, business tools,
education apps, etc. You can download a fireplace app, which is a video of a
burning fireside on a continuous loop. If this was a plasma you could even feel
the heat.
Nor
is it the Sony the easiest TV to operate generally thanks to a complex and, at
times, illogical menu system
Samsung’s approach is simpler. The Smart
Hub button on the remote instantly presents you with a gateway to all of the
set’s entertainment sources. It’s a visually successful blend of different
sized icons but the hierarchy leaves a little to be desired.
Next to the live video feed are icons for
five VOD apps comprising LoveFilm, NetFlix, Youtube, The BBC iPlayer and ITV
Player.
Below these are portals including the App
library and Your Video, which is Samsung’s selection of cherry-picked content
from various VOD providers. Other appregation portals are provided for Fitness,
Kids and Social TV, plus a Family Story app, which is a kind of diary.
The bottom two rows are populated with
shortcuts to various TV features (TV guide, settings, etc), more pre-installed
apps and any others that you choose to download. As the page fills up you have to
scroll across to see further hidden apps. You can change the background image
(there are five options) for the Smart Hub page but it’s a pity you can’t edit
it to suit your personal preferences, rather like making a favorites list of TV
channels.
The Your Video portal is annoying too,
because until you choose to view a title you can’t tell which app it actually
comes from. Not everyone can afford to subscribe to the VOD services available.
‘Sony has scored an aesthetic hit with
its monolithic design’
