Sony KLV-26HG2 review

Features
Sony's menu system always looks the part, which removes the sting of having to set up the TV to your optimal conditions. All on-screen graphics are located in the bottom corner of the screen so they don't obscure the main picture, and you can even change the colour scheme if you're bored with the standard white. As always, Sony's remote control completes the easy-to-use interface thanks to its solid feel and the clearly labelled buttons.

The Memory Stick feature isn't as fully implemented as it could have been -- in fact, it's pretty limited. Other Sony LCDs let you record programmes to a Memory Stick for playback on the TV itself or in a portable device. This TV, however, doesn't let you record anything -- it just displays photos. The lack of MP3 playback (or Sony's preferred format, ATRAC) is a real missed opportunity. If you take the Memory Stick straight from the camera, then the TV will find the photos automatically, but if you've transferred them from a PC, you have to point to the right folder. The photo options are very limited -- you can set it to do an automatic slideshow, but the only customisation is the display time. Images from our Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7 looked particularly nice on-screen.

The majority of the TV's picture options are useful, but we can't figure out why anyone would want to drop the backlight level with the Power Saving mode. More relevant is the ability to format any video material to fit the widescreen format. Many programmes (especially on daytime TV) are still in a 4:3 format, and it can be annoying to have them stretched across the screen, making characters look bloated. The KLV-26HG2 will either keep the square format intact, or remove the top and bottom of the picture to make it look more natural. If this sounds complicated, you can leave the TV on Smart mode and it will automatically adjust the picture.

More and more flat screens are incorporating virtual surround sound technology, but this is one of the smallest models we've seen to offer Virtual Dolby Surround. If you're in a small room, you might grow to like the effect, but the Dynamic setting made the speakers sound far more punchy. As the side of the television proudly boasts, the speakers also incorporate BBE technology.

Performance
We've said quite a lot about Sony's Wega Engine in other reviews, but it really is one of the best picture processing technologies around. Sony knows that the majority of analogue video sources look poor on a digital screen, so Wega Engine keeps all the picture processing in the digital form instead of having numerous digital-to-analogue conversions diluting the picture quality. The first thing you'll notice is how detailed the picture looks across all sources. Freeview doesn't degenerate into a horrible, blocky mess, which is a common problem on other screens.

The lack of PC input means you can't get the best out of the TV, but component video is still very impressive. The contrast depth is excellent, and if you turn Power Saving off and Dynamic Picture on, the brightness is excellent. The panel doesn't struggle with detail in the darker areas of the picture and colours look natural.

The sound is slightly weak, and unlike the bigger Sony TVs we've had in recently, there's no input to turn the TV speakers into one centre channel (when using a home cinema system). It's fine for everyday use -- vocals are clear -- but you might want to bring out the big speakers if you're watching a movie.

Edited by Mary Lojkine
Additional editing by Nick Hide