KD-65AG8 - worst TV ever made??

[iaimantl]

I have owned my TV since November 2019. It is registered to me and I can see it in "your items" but magically Sony has no record of it for Warranty purposes, so not  a great start.

Since taking delivery I have experienced a catalogue of problems and two years on it has developed a fresh one. 

Firstly, don't try to use an external hard disk - after the TV boots up it suddenly decides it has found a hard disk attached and prevents you watching TV until cancelling. On the off chance you want to watch something on the disk then forget it - I have hundreds of films on disk but can't afford the 30+ minutes it takes to index them every time, so I give up and watch on one of my trusty Samsungs. 

Is it or isn't it connected to the internet? Other TVs are a long way from the router and have no problem but the Sony is 12 feet away in the same room and constantly flashes "your TV is not connected to the internet" followed by "your TV is connected to the internet2 a few seconds later. May not sound much but try watching TV with that incessant interruption.

Online apps?? Sometimes it will let you and sometimes it won't so again we go one of the Samsungs for Netflix; Prime; iPlayer etc.

And more recently the TV has decided to shed its channels virtually every day. It started with the HD channels which disappeared regularly but now it wipes out many more, including BBC1 and BBC2 every single day. Frustrating if you want to watch Breakfast TV first thing.

I paid £2,000 for this piece of junk and rarely switch it on without a problem. I am now selling it for half that price after less than two years, and going back to another Samsung. They switch on instantly; they change channels without pausing; they have decent Guides; and they work seamlessly with apps and peripherals (did I mention the TV does not recognise my wireless keyboard or even some Sony wireless headphones?).

You can tell I am not impressed can't you. Any Sony I have owned before (TV; video recorder; Hi-Fi) have all died within a couple of months of the warranty expiring so I am expecting it to die completely around Christmas 😞 

[rooobb]

I own an A1 that is more or less technically speaking the same tv and it is still wonderful after 4 years

The only valid proof for any warranty is always the receipt from the shop where you bought it.

I have an hard disk connected to it since the beginning used for recording and never once it asks me to do anything, nor it do whenever I leave a pen drive attached (not that I do it so much since I use the network services for this). And if you are not satisfied with the internal player (that indeed can take a long time to index the content, you have plenty of alternative player you can choose (Nova, MX, VLC, Kodi...))

Nor I did have any problem with the internet connection, even if I switched to an wired one that is always more stable than a wifi one (and it is done via powerline if you don't have the router nearby is a good option).

For OTA channels I think you should check your aerial.

Don't mind to mention the picture quality of your Oled when you compare it to the Samsung (whichever model you have)...

[iaimantl]

OK, let's go through your comments about my post, even though your TV with which you draw comparison is a different model:

1. A receipt is not the only proof of purchase - that is why we are invited to register for Warranty purposes. I did, and the TV shows in my summary of Sony equipment but not for Warranty purposes, as described.

2. I am pleased your hard disk works OK, mine simply does not. And before you blame the disk it works perfectly with four other TVs in the house, ie the non-Sony ones.

3.The internet connection reaches TVs on a different floor and on the other side of the house perfectly. The Sony TV is in the same room, 12 feet away, as already described, and stuggles. Why would anyone use a cable to a so called premium brand connect to a TV in 2021? Again the common attribute with the TVs that work several metres away is that they are not Sony - three Samsungs and an LG.

4. I am unclear why should consider the aerial to be at fault. Firstly it finds and stores the channels OK; secondly its need to be retuned daily has only just started ( it used to be every month or so, lucky me!); thirdly, the same aerial services four other TVs consistently, none of which lose their channels even yearly let alone daily.

5.You seem upset that I have not mentioned the picture quality, although I am unsure why? To help you over that omission I will confirm the picture quality on HD channels and using a 4K input are OK, whereas in standard definition it is dreadful. I have a Samsung QLED from three years ago that is better quality whichever the input. 

[royabrown2]

@iaimantl 

I’m going to take issue with you from the other direction 😛

Lots of other Sony Android sets do the things you describe. Maybe not all at once, admittedly.

But that your set has all these issues may make your particular one TV the worst ever made, but it seems unfair to single out KD-65AG8s in general from all of the models that Sony make or made.

Unless you have evidence that KD-65AG8s in general are particularly worse than other TVs, whether Sony or not?

[iaimantl]

Quite clearly, I am referring to my TV, an item I paid £2,000 for. As I have never bought another, and never will, then it is a little disingenuous to suggest that I am referring to the model in general - although what evidence do you have that these faults aren't common to the model? Most people won't bother to join the forum so you would never see their experiences, but I am talking from my own after almost two years of incessant problems. Your own TV is a different model and therefore my user/owner experience does exceed your own, with respect. 

As for the sig appended to your reply - puts your comments into perspective I guess. 

[rooobb]

So you don't know why even in 2021 a lab connection is better than WiFi for streaming and blame the quality of sd channels and the TV tuner after you overpaid an OLED. And as @royabrown2  wrote your message indeed tell the other the whole model is the worst not your specific set

[rooobb]

Btw are you switching off the TV at the main ore leave it in standby all the time?

[iaimantl]

Well, that took some deciphering. Maybe don't take up writing for a living. Or reasoning!

At what stage did I suggest a wired LAN (not lab) connection was not superior - I clearly suggested that in 2021 it should not ne necessary, and is not for any of my other four TVs located further away from the router. By suggesting that the TV closest to the router needs to be wired you simply amplify my point that the Sony's Wi-fi performance is clearly inferior to Samsung and LG, so thank you. 

I am at a loss to understand your determination to protect the reputation of this model, having never owned one, but I appreciate your assertion that the problems I continue to encounter are prevalent in other Sony models. It appears that, whilst I am critical of this model you are critical of the entire Sony range.

And for clarity, any review of a product is generally based on a single sample, whether that be Which; What Hi-Fi or whoever. They base their findings on the one example tested - exactly as I have. 

You have offered nothing constructive to the conversation, so maybe leave it now as you have no experience of this TV.

[royabrown2]

@iaimantl 

You seems to be conflating me with @rooobb, but we are two different people.

Despite posting in a second language,  something all the rest of us make due allowances for,  Italian @rooobb always talks a great deal of sound sense.

My opinion of Sony, for what it’s worth, is that they have turned into the Lotus of TV manufacturers; their sets, like Lotus cars, are beautiful to look at, but otherwise Lots Of Trouble, Usually Serious.

I regret this, and look to them regaining their crown from the Trinitron days when they were the unchallenged top TV maker; but still, everything behind the screen continues to let them down.

[rooobb]

Thank you @royabrown2 but I don't think I need an advocate for this.

As I wrote @iaimantl the A1 model I own is technically the very same TV and I gave you some tips of what I would have done in two years instead of mourning.

If you don't want to check the aerial at least disable the automatic update of the dvbt service . And if you switch off the TV by unplugging it avoid doing so.

Btw LAN is called the same in Italy but I think you have automatic corrections on mobile also in UK ...