Sony Bravia KDL46D3100

The Sony Bravia KDL46D3100 is a 46in LCD television with a native resolution of 1366x768. It is part of the new MotionFlow 100Hz range which is designed to avoid motion stutter while panning across an image. This television is a return to form for Sony with last years crop of televisions delivering disappointing results in our tests. The D series performed well with excellent image quality across all resolutions and with a wide selection of source material. The only major issue we found was an over-saturation of red in the image - a continuing problem for Sony's Bravia engine.

Even though this is a 720p panel, it is able to accept 1080p source material over HDMI by down scaling to the panels native resolution. It can also accept 1080p 24fps (frames per second) which is a format currently being used in many Blu-ray films. For our first series of tests we viewed a Blu-Ray film at 1080p. At factory default settings the image was awash with overbearing colour and all edges displayed severe over-sharpening. We recommend changing the picture mode from 'vivid' to 'standard' and lowering the sharpness setting to the absolute minimum. This will remove the over-sharpening and curb some of the colours. We were also impressed with the pure black levels and brightness of the panel, even with backlighting at full intensity.

Once tweaked, the image quality was top notch with excellent detail and no pixelation. The contrast between light and dark areas showed no stepping and there were no discolouration or motion issues. It seems that the 100Hz technology works quite well with all motion seeming smooth and jitter-free.

At 720p we ran gaming tests and at 1080i we ran HD-DVD tests. Both were delivered at the same calibre as in the 1080p tests. Like the 1080p content, there were no interpolation issues when displaying 1080i images, looking just as good as they do in the panel's native 720p format.

In standard definition we were surprised at how well the panel performed. Viewing a regular DVD we found no unwanted artefacts or discolouration. There was slightly less interpolation noise than we usually see in most TVs and due to the 100Hz technology, motion was smooth with no jitter.

We also tested the HDTV capabilities via the integrated digital tuner. The channel search was fast and all the usual local channels were found. The image quality was on-par with other televisions we have tested on the same aerial port.

The speakers on the unit produce a good amount of volume and only slightly distort when cranked to maximum. The bass is a little lacking but the treble and mid-tones more than make up for this deficiency. On the whole we found the audio to be quite pleasing to the ear.

We connected a PC to the unit via the VGA D-Sub port and were not disappointed with the result. We were able to connect at 1360x768 with 1:1 pixel mapping. It is rare to find a television that allows this so it was a welcomed addition. There were no image quality problems at all in PC mode and the DisplayMate Video Edition tests were handled flawlessly.

The Bravia D series is an excellent television that will no doubt satisfy most users. It has a wide range of connection options including three HDMI ports so finding somewhere to connect your devices shouldn't be a problem. The heavy emphasis on reds in the image may annoy some viewers: it's worth previewing the screen in store for red before making your final purchase decision.