LG 47LX6500

Value Comparison

Priced exactly the same, at $2699 (MSRP), the LG 47LX6500 and Sony KDL-46HX800 are duking it out for your wallet. If you’re interested in these TVs already, it’s probably because of the 3D element, so let’s clear this up, first. The Sony HX800 series is 3D-ready, meaning the screen is capable of displaying 3D. In order to actually watch it, you have to separately purchase 3D glasses and a 3D transmitter bar to sync the screen and the glasses. The LG 47LX6500, like most of the 3D TVs we’ve reviewed, has the transmitter built in, but still needs separately purchased glasses.

The missing transmitter on the Sony seems like a petty exclusion, since people purchasing the TV obviously want 3D. We’re tempted to swing our vote towards LG on that point alone. But the Sony does offer much better blacks and contrast ratio. On the counterpoint, the LG has better color performance and a wider viewing angle. In terms of online content, nobody can beat Sony’s breadth of choices, but if you don’t need anything beyond Netflix, LG suffices just fine.

Overall, the LG offers slightly more value for the dollar, but the performances are pretty evenly drawn. They’re both good TVs.

Core Attributes Comparison
	LG 47LX6500	Sony Bravia KDL-46HX800
Size	47 in.	46 in.
General Type	LED	LED
Format	1080p	1080p

Blacks & Whites

The LG 47LX6500 had a very weak black level compared to the other three TVs here, which hurt its contrast ratio score considerably. As you can see from the chart below, the LG is lagging in this area. The Sony HX800 comes out well ahead.

Color Accuracy

The Sony KDL-46HX800 lagged a little in maintaining a consistent color temperature, but the difference would be hard to spot. In the RGB color curve test, both TVs performed very well.

Color Temperature Comparison
LG 47LX6500 (Score: 9.68)
Sony Bravia KDL-46HX800 (Score: 8.47)

RGB Comparison
LG 47LX6500 (Score: 8.45)
Sony Bravia KDL-46HX800 (Score: 8.06)

Motion

The motion performance of the Sony HX800 outperformed the LG 47LX6500 in most respects, offering smoother motion with less artifacting. In order to get the most out of both TVs, you should try experimenting with the motion processing features (TruMotion and MotionFlow from LG and Sony, respectively).

Motion Scores
	LG 47LX6500	Sony Bravia KDL-46HX800
Motion Score

Viewing Effects

The LG 47LX6500 had a much wider viewing angle than the Sony KDL-46HX800 – twice as wide, in fact.

Viewing Angle Comparison
LG 47LX6500: 3.78	Sony Bravia KDL-46HX800: 11.15

Connectivity

The LG 47LX6500 has an advantage over the Sony HX800 when it comes to connectivity, offering an additional component AV input, an additional USB port, and (should you need them) RS-232C and a Wireless Controller jack.

Connectivity Comparison
	LG 47LX6500	Sony KDL-46HX800	Samsung UN46C8000	Panasonic TC-P50VT20
HDMI	4	4	4	4
Component	3	2	1	2
Composite	1	1	1	2
S-Video	0	0	0	0
VGA	1	1	1	1
Analog Audio In	5	1	1	4
Digital Audio Out	1	1	1	1
Analog Audio Out	1	1	1	0
Ethernet	None	None	None	Yes
Wi-Fi	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
USB	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Memory Card Types	None	None	None	SD/SDHC/SDXC/SDXC
DLNA	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

Other Comparisons

The Sony KDL-46HX800 was not a great 3D performer, but the LG 47LX6500 was worse in its cross-talk issues. The moral of the story: Do not want.