CES 2020: Sony Unveils New 4K and 8K TVs with HomeKit and AirPlay 2 Support

Monday January 6, 2020 2:23 pm PST by Juli Clover
Sony today announced the upcoming launch of several new 2020 4K and 8K sets TV, including the 8H 8K LED, A8H and MASTER Series A9S OLED, and X950H and X900H 4K LED televisions.

All of the new TVs offer support for AirPlay 2 and HomeKit. With ‌AirPlay‌ 2 support, the new TVs will be able to interact with other ‌AirPlay‌ 2 devices such as the HomePod or ‌AirPlay‌ 2-enabled speakers for multi-device whole home audio.


‌HomeKit‌ support allows the Sony TVs to show up in the Home app and respond to Siri voice commands for doing things like changing volume and turning the TV on and off.

Sony started rolling out ‌HomeKit‌ and ‌AirPlay‌ 2 support to some of its existing 2018 and 2019 TVs in December, but the 2020 models will support it out of the box. While the 2020 TVs will support ‌AirPlay‌ 2 and ‌HomeKit‌, there is no mention of Sony introducing the Apple TV app on Sony TVs.

According to Sony, the 2020 TV lineup will include features that have previously been limited to the MASTER series models, with the company aiming to deliver a more immersive viewing experience. Features will include Sony's Picture Processor X1, Triluminos Display, Sound-from-Picture Reality, Netflix Calibrated Mode, and IMAX Enhanced for an IMAX experience at home.

A new feature called Ambient Optimization is also included for optimizing picture and sound quality in any environment, and all of the new TVs will use Sony's new Immersive Edge design concept with a minimalist stand.

TV sizes will range from 48 inches to 85 inches, with full details on each TV available via Sony's press release. Sony plans to introduce these TVs in the spring of 2020, and pricing will be available at that time.

Tags: HomeKit Guide, Sony, AirPlay 2, CES 2020
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Baymowe335
3 weeks ago
We can't even get 1080P content consistently and there is 8K.

Most people watch a lot of 1080i and 720p content if they watch any cable/network TV.
Rating: 12 Votes
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outskirtsofinfinity
3 weeks ago
What the heck is a "TV"? Do they mean "display" or "panel"? Or does it really have a RF tuner built-in?
Rating: 6 Votes
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SDJim
3 weeks ago
The best thing about this is that AirPlay 2 and HomeKit are super useful, and including them on these high-volume, high-penetration products is going to encourage other companies to find ways to integrate. I'm very excited for the future of HomeKit and AirPlay.
Rating: 4 Votes
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nt5672
3 weeks ago


Yeah, It’s going to be a while for here until we can watch every sports game in 4K. 8K content will eventually come to the masses but in my opinion will be limited to streaming services like NETLIX. Though I‘ve heard the 2020 Olympics will be in 8K and a broadcasting company in Japan has made the the permanent switch to 8k. Not sure what percentage of Japanese have an 8K set though. 8K for the viewer from what I’ve heard is only really good for TVs 75” or larger.


Not much good have 8K and compressing it to 1080i quality, which is what we currently get with 1080p over the air. When we sampled cable a few years ago, it was just as bad. It will be 10 years before the internet will be capable of 8k without crippling compression.
Rating: 4 Votes
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mnsportsgeek
3 weeks ago


What the heck is a "TV"? Do they mean "display" or "panel"? Or does it really have a RF tuner built-in?


WhAt'S a CoMpUtEr?
Rating: 4 Votes
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richinaus
2 weeks ago


Is there any one who prefers Sony TVs? I don't believe they manufacture their own displays. Sony has been out of the electronics game. I believe they are selling on the inertia of 90s brand quality.

I do. I feel their designs are better ..... nearly as important as the screen quality for me, as it is a large object that is not on all the time.
Rating: 4 Votes
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s54
3 weeks ago


We can't even get 1080P content consistently and there is 8K.

Most people watch a lot of 1080i and 720p content if they watch any cable/network TV.


That's so true.

The majority of video content on this planet is still streamed in 1080p. And even when it's "4K", there are so many obstacles in actually getting full 4k. Most people who actually have 4K TV's aren't tech-savvy enough to know how to get optimal resolution. This ranges from internet speeds to cables to a plethora of other factors. Not to mention most movies and TV programs advertised as 4K are nowhere near true 4K. Same as when 1080p was advertised, but you hardly ever got true 1080p (even to this day), unless you were using Blu-ray or equivalent.

8K is a joke. It will be 10, maybe 15 years before people with 8K TV's actually get their money's worth.
Rating: 4 Votes
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Internet Enzyme
2 weeks ago


What the heck is a "TV"? Do they mean "display" or "panel"? Or does it really have a RF tuner built-in?


colloquially, a TV is a large display (“large” is also a term with its own ever-shifting definition, of course) that acts as an appliance in people’s homes, meaning that it typically exists as a fixture in a room dedicated to it. a tv includes plenty of hdmi ports, a remote control, and, lately, a competent OS capable of launching multimedia applications. this is my pedantic, descriptivist definition which no one asked for
Rating: 3 Votes
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Erehy Dobon
3 weeks ago


Japan makes the US look like a third world country.

LOL, the Japanese have been using their cellphones' built-in NFC chips as public transit passes since 2005. When Hong Kong decided to implement NFC contactless passes for their public transit system, they basically just carbon copied JR's Suica system.

Yeah, broadcast 1080 TV in Japan looks miles better than ATSC 1080 here in the USA.

My guess is that 8K Jumbotrons will be set up in the most high traffic pedestrian zones in Japan for the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games, probably starting at the passenger terminals at the country's major airports. Many international visitors will wonder why their country's broadcasters are still offering sh*tty overcompressed 1080i @ 30 Hz.

And let's not even get into broadband speeds in Japan.

Like 60+ Mbps download speeds on a bullet train's complimentary WiFi. Two years ago.
Rating: 3 Votes
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sideshowuniqueuser
3 weeks ago


We can't even get 1080P content consistently and there is 8K.

Most people watch a lot of 1080i and 720p content if they watch any cable/network TV.

So what you're saying is the egg shouldn't exist before the chicken? Or wait, maybe you're saying the chicken shouldn't exist before the egg? Or maybe you're just saying we shouldn't have 8K at all, ever?
Rating: 3 Votes

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