2015 Bravia Android TV Issues

[NickCo1979]

I thought I'd create a generic thread to cover off the issues being encountered on the 2015 Bravia Android TVs. I've listed my issues below with fixes / workarounds and responses from support. All comments and solutions welcome!

1) Hot Swap HDMI doesn't work - manifested by no input on HDMI channels 2, 3 and 4 on the KD-49X8305C. Workaround - reset the TV, either by holding down the remote power button for 5 seconds or by switching the TV off at the wall and then back on again. Further details on this thread: https://community.sony.co.uk/t5/televisions/kd-49x8305c-hdmi-2-3-4-inputs-not-working/td-p/1944435

2) HDD Recording doesn't work - error message states a system update is required but none is available when checking. Hopefully this will be fixed soon by a firmware update.

3) Netflix App doesn't work - this seems like the app has been deliberately disabled. So far a support case has only recommended that a factory reset be performed (took two days to get to that cracking piece of advice.....), with no improvement as a result. A temporary (albeit for advanced users only) workaround is provided by MikeLothian on this thread - https://community.sony.co.uk/t5/televisions/netflix-support-for-kd55x8509c-android-tv/td-p/1945360 

4) Sound lag and performance issues after the TV (KD-49X8305C) has been on standby for a while - manifested for me as stuttering and sound / picture sync issues in all apps (youtube, amazon instant video etc) and HDMI sources (PS4, seperate YouView box etc). Hopefully this will be fixed in a firmware update, at the moment workarounds involve either changing channels to get the sync to work or in my case having to turn the TV off and then on again at the socket.

As stated previously, all comments welcome. Personally I'm willing to give Sony a couple of weeks to fix this, but if it's not done soon I'll be sending my new TV back for a refund as it's not really fit for purpose.

[Anonymous]

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@royabrown wrote:

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@Risc0n wrote:

Well this is interesting, I had the EU firmware on my set. However when it updated it put the UK version back on. I can tell as I now have Youview again. Netflix working ok for me, however I am doing a factory reset like I have done for all firmware updates. Will see if it works once back up and running.

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Yes, it looks to see where it thinks you are, based on the IP address you appear to present, and gives you the release for there.

And it doesn't care where you are really, or what you had before. All releases are full releases - no incrementals or diffs - which is why they take so long, and why Sony don't need to care what you had before.

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Just adding a slight correction on how the TVs check before updating: 

It looks firstly to your chassis, then your location, and then version number.

So, from EU to UK version is only possible when in UK and the to update version is higher than your current one.

[John1950Hitchin]

Thanks Sony for sorting out the only problem I had which was the ITV hub.

• ITV Hub: Playback issue resolved when TV is tuned to certain regional transmitters (2K and 4K models)
• Overall stability improvements (2K and 4K models)

[Risc0n]

Well so far this seems like a very good update. Couple of issues and bugs still around as below:

• Amazon Prime - STILL no 5.1, getting beyond the joke.
• Auto picture - STILL broken after they broke it two firmware releases ago. HERE
• Youtube - Some videos have really bad lip sync. Not sure if this is Sony or Google issue but needs fixing

Enhancements needed:

• Bluetooth sleep for Dualshock 4. Needs a 10 min timer like the PS4 otherwise it stays on until you manually switch off in settings.

[Anonymous]

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Risc0n wrote:

• Bluetooth sleep for Dualshock 4. Needs a 10 min timer like the PS4 otherwise it stays on until you manually switch off in settings.

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This was raised at the end of Feb, and has been passed on to the designers

[Risc0n]

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@Quinnicus wrote:

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@Risc0n wrote:

• Bluetooth sleep for Dualshock 4. Needs a 10 min timer like the PS4 otherwise it stays on until you manually switch off in settings.

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This was raised at the end of Feb, and has been passed on to the designers

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That is good, bit crazy it was never implemented considering they make the PS4 and the controller themsevles! 

[Anonymous]

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@Risc0n wrote:

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@Quinnicus wrote:

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Risc0n wrote:

• Bluetooth sleep for Dualshock 4. Needs a 10 min timer like the PS4 otherwise it stays on until you manually switch off in settings.

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This was raised at the end of Feb, and has been passed on to the designers

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That is good, bit crazy it was never implemented considering they make the PS4 and the controller themsevles! 

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Tell me about it  my issue is that i have to turn bluetooth off completely on the TV before i can use my PS4.  Having it paired on both in the lounge, the TV takes ownership when the PS4 is off.  Which means i cant turn on the PS4 from the controller - too lazy to get off the couch

[alfonzobonzo]

Why is deleting channels so painfully slow. The list moves at a snails
pace, and then off you dont press + < + fast enough, it fritzes out and
dumps you into the previous menus. do these updates get tested. This set
remains badly flawed. Sick of this trying to bin all the soft porn
channels everytime the updates are installed. My old humax HDR fox T2 is
leagues ahead in functionality. Arghhhhhh

[Fixmytelly]

Sorry mate, not a direct reply, it was the only way I could add to the thread on my phone. I do agree with you though, the channel edit is painful, my old Sony telly is much more reliable.

Does anyone know how to delete the endless stream of useless "featured apps"? They're right there in the prime location as soon as I press home and they're for the most part complete junk. I cannot find anything that will allow me to either uninstall or hide these apps. I'm talking about PlayStation video, Berlin philharmonic etc.

If it's not possible to do this now... Can we get this in the next firmware upgrade? I have at the moment a 55" 4K advert for useless tat when I just want to pick out the apps I want easily without having to wade through streams of things I didn't even install!!

I'm on the April 2016 firmware. Netflix works for me without a restart.

Cheers

[ronniebr]

I just updated to the 12th April firmware on my KD-55X8509C and I have mixed feelings about the HDR support for this model.

I tried Marco Polo which is tagged as 4K and HDR in Netflix and sure enough the TV automatically selected the HDR preset. 

However, to my eyes the HDR mode has some drawbacks which I don't like:

1. The average picture "brightness" in daylight isn't very high and because the backlight is already forced to maximum by the HDR preset there doesn't seem to be any way to increase it.
   
   
2. Forcing the backlight to maximum also highlights panel problems which are usually suppressed when the backlight is running at lower levels - for example, when watching in a darkened room, areas which are nearly black appear washed out and the edge "blooming" effect which is sometimes noticable seems worse.

In the Netflix app there doesn't seem to be any way to deselect the HDR preset (I guess this would require that the app requested a non-HDR stream from the Netflix servers).

At least in the Amazon app it's possible to select the non-UHD version of a title and get a non-HDR version that way but without 4K (assuming that it's a Prime title where I don't have to buy the other format).

I can see myself having to downgrade my Netflix subscription to get rid of 4K if HDR becomes the norm for 4K titles and there is no way to manually disable it.

[scoopy6]

@Fixmytelly in the hub menu, in one of the lines of icons related to apps there are 'enable' or 'disable' options. In one of the other lines in the menu, I think in setup, there is an item which concerns what is displayed at the start of the menu. Here you can eliminate those items you don't want to see. (We just left the one for accessing live tv).

Even after the latest update we still get the slow blink of the last or next screen when going between various displays e.g back and forth from live digital tv to channel guide. This effect is inconsistent but very obvious, so it seems odd that everyone else has not reported it. (It might not be the same as the flickering screens which were once said to have been sorted). Could it just be a problem with our example? so would others kindly confirm or deny?