Sony is trying to deliver a fix for their 4K TVs – A1, XE93, EX94 and ZD9 series as well as their Blu-ray players after owners complained that they lacked dynamic HDR like Dolby Vision.
This type of HDR technology, which adapts the picture frame-by-frame is designed to give you the best possible colours, usually provides a more realistic image than normal HDR 10. As such, it’s absence on high-end AV kit is noteworthy.
The fix that Sony is currently working on has been promised for more than 12 months.
And its only now as more people become affected that Sony has begun the process of developing a fix.
European based John Archer who often does TV reviews for SmartHouse, said that the new update doesn’t appear to support Dolby Vision playback over HDMI or USB.
So, if you have a Dolby Vision-capable player, such as the Cambridge CXUHD, or a compatible streaming box like Apple TV 4K, you’re out of luck unless you’re using a built-in app like Netflix.
According to Archer, Sony has removed all mentions of Dolby Vision from its latest patch note, and apparently started issuing another update that removes the limited Dolby Vision support altogether (although that remains unconfirmed).
Asked for comment, Sony said: “[The] Dolby Vision support software update has not started yet and we will release details of what functionality will be supported at the same time as the software update.”
John Archer said that speculation has it that there are several reasons why the Dolby Vision update might not work.
One possibility is the televisions implemented a new version of Dolby Vision that might be incompatible with those on older devices. Or maybe there’s a bug in using HDMI that Sony is trying to fix. Those certainly seem viable theories, and must surely be preferable to the possibility that Sony televisions simply can’t handle Dolby Vision.
And since Samsung has control of the other dynamic metadata format HDR10+, right now Sony is tipped to have been left high and dry without a satisfactory solution.
TV, Sony, Display, HDR, dolby vision
