Test Sony Bravia 8 II (65xr8m2): QD-Oled returns to Sony, but at what price?

The Sony A95L was one of the best TVs in 2023 with its QD-Oled slab, but the Japanese did not replace it in 2024 since it has now adopted a biennial range renewal. Meanwhile, the nomenclature has changed, and so far the Bravia 9 Mini – Led was enthroned at the top of the Sony catalog, followed by Bravia 8 OLED. Today we are testing the Bravia 8 II, which is inserted between the two with a QD-Oled slab and a name blurring the logic of range a little, it must be admitted.

This Bravia 8 II has the desire to replace the famous A95L (and not the Bravia 8 which remains in the catalog) by retaining the “cinema” philosophy dear to the Japanese manufacturer, with a just colorimetry and a quality video processing. It obviously has an XR processor, as well as a Google TV interface. This television also wants to directly face the high -end competitors Samsung S95F and LG G5 with a price displayed at its fairly close outing on diagonals 55 and 65 inch.

• 65xr8m2/65bravia8 II in 65 inches (tested here) at € 3,200
• 55xr8m2/55bravia8 II in 55 inches at € 2500

This price is strangely similar to that of Bravia 9, supposed to remain the most premium model of the manufacturer, but let’s see if this Sony Bravia 8 II will be able to assert itself in the face of an excellent 2025 TV vintage Oled Samsung and LG.

All the brightness and colorimetry measurements mentioned in this article were carried out with a more HL -display calibrated probe and the Calman Ultimate software.

The nature of the screen is no doubt in this year 2025: the structure of the subpixels clearly shows a typical arrangement of the QD-Oled slabs.

The FilmMaker mode is, as usual, to subscribers absent from Sony; It will therefore be necessary to move towards professional mode to obtain the best image quality possible. In this mode, we obtained an average delta e of 1.8, the colorimetric drifts being therefore imperceptible. One aspect that Sony long has mastered, except for the Bravia 8 of 2024 which had missed the march on this point.

The average temperature measured at 6715 k flirts with the D65 standard, giving the image a neutrality very close to the expected 6,500 k. The gamma follows the 2.2 curve in a fairly linear way, guaranteeing a good representation of the gray levels, although the standard is rather around 2.4. That said, nothing very serious.

The QD -Oled structure allows each pixel to emit its own light, inducing a theoretically infinite contrast. Blacks are therefore perfectly deep, as usual with OLED technology and unlike LCDs which sometimes display a halo around very clear objects.

The viewing angles are excellent with a loss of brightness of only 17 % to 45 °, one of the forces of the QD-Oled compared to the LCDs which can lose up to 70 %. Please note, the brightness in SDR is quite low on this model and it will be necessary to visit the tv settings to raise the level by selecting “SDR brightness – low, medium or high” (deactivated by default). Station, this impacts the representation of gray on the screen and the image is therefore less precise …

Full HD content scaling algorithms are in any case always as effective at Sony, as is the movement compensation engine, inactivated in professional mode, but not in cinema mode for example. The brightness of the television can also be adapted depending on the ambient lighting if you wish.

HDR: All good, but …

Bravia 8 II is compatible with HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision formats, the most used, even if the HDR10+ lacks the call. Note that you must always manually unlock HDMI ports in the menus to get the best possible image quality if you connect an external source to TV. To do this, simply go to chains & entries> External inputs> HDMI signal format> improved format.

The EOTF curve is almost perfectly followed on this model with dark areas between 0 and 20 %, a bit brighter than they should be, but it is really light.

On our window 10 %, we noted a bright peak of 1650 cd/m², which is good in absolute terms, but not at the level of the best. For comparison, the Samsung S95F peaks at around 2100 CD/m², while the LG G5 climbs to 2300 CD/m² and the Bravia 9 or the TCL C89K at 3200 CD/m². We are therefore closer to a Samsung S90F, which tickles the 1500 CD/m², than the very high -end of competitors.

With an average HDR Delta of only 1.5, color fidelity is perfectly guaranteed. The coverage of colorimetric spaces is also excellent: 100 % for DCI-P3 and a very solid 88.4 % for REC.2020, thanks to QD-Oled technology which remains the best in this area.

The image quality is therefore excellent to the overall, with beautiful contrasts and good colorimetry, even if we regret a slightly behind light compared to the high -end models of the market.

Zero clouding and zero blooming

OLED technology naturally prevents clouding (heterogeneous light spot on the screen), just like the blooming (halo around light objects on a dark background). There is therefore no concern to do on that side.

We have measured an average reflectance of 16 %, a very good score characteristic of QD-Oled slabs, or even a little better than the LG Vanta Black filter found on the G range (18 % reflectance). Well heard, it is not as good as the Samsung anti -reflective filter on its S95F (barely 6 %). For comparison, most OLED and Mini-LED tiles are more around 24 %, even 40 % on certain entry-level models.

As soon as the Sony Bravia 8 II detects a console, it automatically rocks in game mode thanks to AllM technology. The delay in display (input lag) falls into a good 17.1 ms, but high -end competitors are generally around 9 or 10 ms. There will therefore be an image of delay between the moment when we perform an action at the controller and its repercussions on the screen. OLED and QD-OLED do not indulge any perspective, which avoids everything ghostinga good point.

The responsiveness is therefore excellent on this Bravia 8 II, but it should be noted two faults. Thus, TV has only two HDMI 2.1 ports (obviously compatible with VRR and Allm), which could interfere with certain users with several consoles. Deuzio, although the difference is minimal, its cooling rate is limited to 120 Hz, when some competitors climb to 144 Hz, or even 165 Hz. Sony should be put on this point.

The Delta E remains for its part content in game mode with an average of 2.4 in SDR and 1.8 in HDR, testifying to very good precision of colors, which is not always the case elsewhere.

The neat design of the Sony Bravia 8 II is similar to that of these range cousins. The feet can be positioned in a tightened or apart, and its adjustable height allows you to place a sound bar below without encroaching on the image. A fairly clever system that is only found in Sony and which adapts roughly to any configuration.

The connection is located at the rear with covers that allow a clean installation by guiding the cables. There are four HDMI ports, including two 2.1 and one EARC, two USB ports (one in 3.0), an optical audio output, an ethernet port, an antenna input and a CI+. TV also has WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 for optimal wireless connectivity.

On the software side, we find Google TV, a fluid and complete bone with a lot of apps. The interface is pleasant and intuitive with an effective quick menu bar. It also allows access to all popular streaming services: Netflix, Disney+, Video Prime, MyCanal, Apple TV, Arte, etc. Chromecast and Airplay 2 are also part of the part of a video stream to the TV directly from your smartphone, while the voice command works via Google Assistant.

The main remote control is still as well designed with a compact design and shortcuts to the most common services. Unlike Bravia 8 and 9, it is not backlit and works with battery, a slightly regrettable return, it must be admitted. Sony also provides a second more classic remote control, which is aimed at nostalgic for the digital pavement.