Sony Bravia 7 II review: the True RGB TV revolution is here
A huge generational leap and revolution for LCD TVs
š Review score: 4.5/5
š
Editorās Choice Award
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Pros
š True RGB deepens color depth with more accuracy
š„ Breathes new life into movies, shows, and games
šØ Shows you color within colors youāve never witnessed before
š® Fully gaming-ready with HDMI 2.1, 120Hz, ALLM, VRR, and PS5-specific features
š¬ Avoid the hassle of calibration with Professional, Netflix, Prime Video, and IMAX picture modes
š«„ Clever lenticular stand hides wires
ā Cons
š 2x HDMI 2.1 ports in 2026 still
š $800 price jump over the last generation
š° More expensive than its competitors
The Shortcut Review
RGB LEDs are the biggest trend in TVs for 2026, but the Sony Bravia 7 II is the first RGB TV to really blow me away. This is the first real evolution for LCD TVs since quantum dots, as the color backlight adds so much more vibrancy to all the colors on screen. Color accuracy and depth are also greatly improved, so you can see more varying shades of color on a single object and distinct hues positioned next to each other. The added color breathes new life into everything Iāve been rewatching and playing on the Sony Bravia 7 II.
Now, all of that improvement does come at a steep price. The 65ā Sony Bravia 7 II Iāve been testing costs $2,599, a $800 increase over the previous $1,799 Sony Bravia 7 I reviewed two years ago. Thatās also a higher price than other competing RGB TVs, such as the $2,099 Samsung R85H and the $2,199 Hisense UR9. From my experience of seeing all these TVs in action, the Sony Bravia 7 II is worth the extra expense. It reaches higher brightness while retaining color depth better than its competitors. Sonyās image processing and motion interpolation canāt be beat either.
The Sony Bravia 7 II is a huge generational leap, improving and fixing almost everything about the previous Sony Bravia 7 with wider viewing angles and a far less reflective screen. Sony still needs to get four HDMI 2.1 ports on all its 2026 TVs, but aside from that, the Sony Bravia 7 II is a spectacular 4K TV for streaming and gaming. Itās a statement that shows RGB LED technology has truly arrived.
Full Review
š True RGB. True RGB isnāt just marketing speech; each LED in its backlight includes three separate red, green, and blue LEDs. This allows the backlight to perfectly match the color of the LCD panel, enhancing overall color depth and reducing blue-light blooming. Greens look more verdant, reds are more fiery, and blues are more cerulean thanks to Sonyās True RGB technology. Iāve gone back and rewatched movies like The Wizard of Oz and Coco on the Sony Bravia 7 II just to appreciate how much more colorful they look, as this TV just breathes new life into everything you watch and play.
šColors in colors. The Sony Bravia 7 II doesnāt just render deeper colors, it makes them more accurate. The TV basically adds color contrast, revealing more colors within colors like reds right next to blues, yellows, and greens in the follower field. I saw this most prominently in āFrozen II,ā where I could finally see that every ice crystal actually had another color embedded in its center. This greater color depth also adds more depth to objects such as fire, where you can see all the different shades of red, orange, and yellow flames dance around. That fire on the screen is still a 2D image, but it looks more three-dimensional thanks to the deeper color.
š 2x HDMI 2.1. Itās 2026, and the Sony Bravia 7 II still has only two HDMI 2.1 ports, while even an entry-level Sony Bravia 3 II has four. Sony told me itās largely because these TVs have been in development for so long that they feature an older chipset. If you have a soundbar (without an HDMI pass-through), that leaves you with only one fully gaming-capable HDMI 2.1 port, as one of these precious ports is also used for eARC.
š® Built for gaming. While the Sony Bravia 7 II comes short on HDMI 2.1 ports, itās not lacking in gaming features. Any system you plug into this TV will benefit from its 120Hz refresh rate, variable refresh rate (VRR), and auto low-latency mode (ALLM). PS5 systems, meanwhile, get even more benefit with Auto HDR Tone Mapping, which automatically sets the TVās maximum and minimum brightness to their proper levels. Meanwhile, Auto Genre Picture Mode optimizes your TV picture for whatever types of games you play without having to dig through menus when you switch.
š¾ Truly colorful gaming. All the benefits of True RGB help make gaming look even better on the Sony Bravia 7 II. I started replaying Spider-Man 2 missions just to see how much more vibrant everything was, from the warm sunsets to Spider-Manās bright red and blue suit. This incredible shot of the sunset over a flower-filled field in Ghost of Tsushima looks so lifelike thanks to the enhanced colors from the True RGB screen.
šļø Auto-tuned apps. The Sony Bravia 7 II comes with a Professional mode so you can watch movies without having to calibrate the best settings. Beyond that, it also has calibrated modes for streaming from Netflix and Prime Video, which choose between eight presets for the optimal screen brightness, color temperature, and gamma. My personal favorite preset mode is IMAX Enhanced, which restores more screen space than a 21:9 movie would and enhances the sound to put you back in the movie theater from the comfort of your home.
š ļø Generational fixes. The original Sony Bravia 7ās biggest flaws were its narrow viewing angles and super reflective screen, and the Mark II has all but fixed these issues. This new TV isnāt completely glare-free like the Sony Bravia 9 II, but it takes a strong, direct light to really see my reflection on the Sony Bravia 7 II. Sony has made an even bigger improvement to the Bravia 7 IIās viewing angles, so I can still clearly see whatās on screen without any color shift, even from an extreme 30-degree angle.
Should you buy the Sony Bravia 7 II?
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Yes, ifā¦
šØ You want to see more color in everything you watch and play
šŗ RGB TVs have piqued your interest
ā You want a serious upgrade to your Sony Bravia 7
š± The idea of calibrating your screen frightens you
ā No, ifā¦
š® You have more than two gaming devices (get the $2,099 Samsung R85H instead)
Money is short, but you still want an RGB TV (get the $2,199 Hisense UR9 instead)
Youāre unconvinced of RGB LED technology (get the $1,799 TCL QM8L instead)
Kevin Lee is The Shortcutās Creative Director. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam