Product face-offs
Sony Bravia KDL-32S4000
 | |||
| Screen size | 32 inches (81 cm) | ||
| Resolution | 1366 x 768 | ||
| HD compatibility (1080i/720p) | Yes | ||
| HD Ready certification | Yes | ||
| Brightness | NC | ||
| Contrast ratio | 30 000 : 1 | ||
| Viewing angles (H+V) | 178 ° / 178 ° | ||
| Response time | NC | ||
| Sound level | 2 x 10 Watt RMS | ||
| Connectivity | VGA • HDMI (x3) • SCART (x2) • Component • Composite | ||
| Dimensions (LxHxW) | 809 x 584 x 242 mm | ||
| Weight | 15.5 kg | ||
Not so great with a PC
The S4000 series works reasonably well when connected to a computer, but the native resolution of 1360 x 768 pixels makes it of limited interest for use with a PC.
Icons and text all appear very large, and it's not really suitable for playing games or as a replacement monitor.
For anything other than using your computer as a multimedia server to store movies, you'd be better off going for a Full HD TV.
Icons and text all appear very large, and it's not really suitable for playing games or as a replacement monitor.
For anything other than using your computer as a multimedia server to store movies, you'd be better off going for a Full HD TV.
Vincent Lheur
Test date: 2008-11-19
Test date: 2008-11-19
Having looked at as many of today's high-end TVs, we've decided to skip a few pages through the manufacturers' catalogues to look at some more affordable models.
The first to catch our eye was this S4000 series from Sony, widely available for less than 600 euros (625 USD / 500 GBP) in its 32'' version, and is also available in two smaller versions (20'' and 26'') and two larger versions (37'' and 40'').
These low prices don't necessarily make for a good deal, however.
Even though screens below 37'' can easily manage the HD Ready resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, provided you're far enough away from the TV, it's rather wasted given than the integrated digital tuner doesn't support HD.
If you have to make do with Standard Definition television pictures, then it would be nice to enjoy Blu-ray movies in High Definition.
Unfortunately, though, we were extremely disappointed by the poor quality of HD films on the S4000.
With our DVD player set to 1080i, the TV shows a very poor quality image that's closer to SD than HD pictures.
You might think that that's reasonable for a HD Ready screen, but using a 1080i signal is a fair test, because that's the resolution that's used for broadcasting HDTV in most of Europe, and it's the kind of signal that an external digital tuner would send.
All we can say about the results of this test is that it really can't do very much.
Even with a source set to 720p, the improvement in quality is far from stunning, and the results were almost as disappointing as with a high-resolution source.
These mediocre pictures are probably as a result of Sony's decision to include the first version of its Bravia Engine image processing, rather than the Bravia Engine 2 that's found in its majority of the rest of its line-up.
Fortunately, the S4000 is better at upscaling SD sources than it is at HD ones, where text suffers jagged edges like those you can see on the right. On the left is the upscaling done by the Sony PlayStation 3, the current market leader on this score in our book.
These problems are a shame, because all of our other measurements of picture quality were excellent, and this was backed up by our viewing tests.
The ANSI contrast ratio was in excess of 2000:1, and with whites at 170 cd/m², blacks were as low as 0.08 cd/m², an outstanding score.
Just last year, such strong deep blacks were reserved for the most expensive TVs on the market.
Colors look natural, but the gamma curve is sometimes a little skewed, depending on the nature of the scene in question.
This suggests the S4000 is applying a few dynamic filters to the image, which persist even when dynamic contrast is turned off and activate Cinema mode.
It's not the most noticeable problem, and the worst defect is definitely the pitiful quality of upscaling on the S4000.
Apart from these visual problems, these entry-level models all have to make do without the excellent XrossMediaBar interface found on Sony's more advanced products.
It also doesn't support the 1080p/24 Hz mode that works so well for Blu-ray content, or even 1080p standard mode, given that its native resolution is 1080i.
This TV is held back just as much when it comes to the sound, which is very weak and unclear.
It's so bad that you're left wondering if Sony hasn't deliberately included shoddy speakers to make its better TVs stand out more.
The first to catch our eye was this S4000 series from Sony, widely available for less than 600 euros (625 USD / 500 GBP) in its 32'' version, and is also available in two smaller versions (20'' and 26'') and two larger versions (37'' and 40'').
These low prices don't necessarily make for a good deal, however.
Even though screens below 37'' can easily manage the HD Ready resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, provided you're far enough away from the TV, it's rather wasted given than the integrated digital tuner doesn't support HD.
If you have to make do with Standard Definition television pictures, then it would be nice to enjoy Blu-ray movies in High Definition.
Unfortunately, though, we were extremely disappointed by the poor quality of HD films on the S4000.
With our DVD player set to 1080i, the TV shows a very poor quality image that's closer to SD than HD pictures.
You might think that that's reasonable for a HD Ready screen, but using a 1080i signal is a fair test, because that's the resolution that's used for broadcasting HDTV in most of Europe, and it's the kind of signal that an external digital tuner would send.
All we can say about the results of this test is that it really can't do very much.
Even with a source set to 720p, the improvement in quality is far from stunning, and the results were almost as disappointing as with a high-resolution source.
These mediocre pictures are probably as a result of Sony's decision to include the first version of its Bravia Engine image processing, rather than the Bravia Engine 2 that's found in its majority of the rest of its line-up.
Fortunately, the S4000 is better at upscaling SD sources than it is at HD ones, where text suffers jagged edges like those you can see on the right. On the left is the upscaling done by the Sony PlayStation 3, the current market leader on this score in our book.
These problems are a shame, because all of our other measurements of picture quality were excellent, and this was backed up by our viewing tests.
The ANSI contrast ratio was in excess of 2000:1, and with whites at 170 cd/m², blacks were as low as 0.08 cd/m², an outstanding score.
Just last year, such strong deep blacks were reserved for the most expensive TVs on the market.
Colors look natural, but the gamma curve is sometimes a little skewed, depending on the nature of the scene in question.
This suggests the S4000 is applying a few dynamic filters to the image, which persist even when dynamic contrast is turned off and activate Cinema mode.
It's not the most noticeable problem, and the worst defect is definitely the pitiful quality of upscaling on the S4000.
Stripped back to the bare minimum, the connectors avaiable should stil manage to satisfy most current needs
Apart from these visual problems, these entry-level models all have to make do without the excellent XrossMediaBar interface found on Sony's more advanced products.
It also doesn't support the 1080p/24 Hz mode that works so well for Blu-ray content, or even 1080p standard mode, given that its native resolution is 1080i.
This TV is held back just as much when it comes to the sound, which is very weak and unclear.
It's so bad that you're left wondering if Sony hasn't deliberately included shoddy speakers to make its better TVs stand out more.
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Good contrast, deep blacks
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Poor upscaling
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No 1080p compatibility
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Tinny sound
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Tuner is not HD compatible
With a rather imperfect picture, no HD tuner and mediocre sound, there's not a lot to recommend about the S4000, despite its low price tag. There are plenty of better TVs out there for not much more money.
