Sony KDL52XBR9 52-Inch 1080p 240 Hz LCD HDTV

52XBR9 arrived today and I connected it tonight. I am very impressed. This is not my first HDTV. It replaces a 34-inch Sony WEGA tube-based high-def television that I bought in 2003, and I have an XBR6 in another room.

Picture quality is very good. I'm not an expert and won't quibble about technical details. All I know is that I can see the makeup on the news anchor's face, and I can examine his dental work. That's probably more than I really need to see :-) A baseball flying across Busch Stadium looks like a baseball - not like something from the Hubble telescope. The picture seems to pop out into the room, and that effect is enhanced by the TV's narrow frame.

Sound quality is also very good. I use a separate speaker and amp system if I'm watching something where sound is especially important, but the built-in speakers here serve their purpose quite well and are amply adequate for routine use.