Sony A90J is the 4K OLED TV series that positioned higher from Sony’s 2021 TV lineup. We can find Sony A80J as the lower series. Sony A9G was 4K OLED TV model that released as part of Sony’s 2019 TV lineup. It can be called as the predecessor model of Sony A90J since we can’t find Sony A9H in Sony’s 2020 TV lineup. Sony A90J comes with 3 screen size options : 83-Inch (XR83A90J), 65-Inch (XR65A90J) and 55-Inch (XR55A90J) while there are also 3 screen size options for Sony A9G : 77-Inch (XBR77A9G), 65-Inch (XBR65A9G) and 55-Inch (XBR55A9G). What is improved in Sony A90J as the newer model? In this article, we will talk about similarities and differences of Sony A90J and A9G before we can find what is improved in Sony A90J.
Sony A90J and A9G Similarities
Both of Sony A90J and A9G are positioned as the higher 4K OLED TV series from Sony. So we can guess that there are a number of similarities between those two TV series. Let’s find out more about their similarities together.
1. 4K OLED Display
Sony A90J and A9G come with 4K UHD resolution. They are also completed with Upscaling technology that allow us to enjoy excellent picture clarity both from original 4K content sources and upscaled non 4K contents. We can also find that the display technology of Sony A90J and A9G are also similar. They both come with OLED panel that can deliver perfect black and infinite contrast since its pixels can be completely powered off and dimmed autonomously with pixel level dimming.
2. HDR Support and Refresh Rate
Sony A90J and A9G already supports HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision. With HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision, We can enjoy enhanced details and expanded contrast from wide range of HDR content sources on the screen of those two TVs. We can also find that the refresh rate technology of Sony A90J and A9G are basically similar. They both come with 120Hz refresh rate. 120Hz refresh rate on top of OLED panel is able to bring excellent motion handling for those two TVs.
3. Dual Database Processing and Live Color Technology
Dual Database Processing and Live Color Technology are two technology that integrated with Sony A90J and A9G. Dual Database Processing is a clarity technology that can reduce on-screen noise especially for upscaled non 4K contents while Live Color Technology is a color technology that integrated with OLED panel of those two TVs to bring more lively color details.
4. Pixel Contrast Booster and Dynamic Contrast Enhancer
Pixel Contrast Booster and Dynamic Contrast Enhancer are two contrast technology that integrated with OLED panel of Sony A90J and A9G. OLED panel is able to delivers perfect black and infinite contrast with its pixel level dimming but its peak brightness is not excellent. That’s way the peak brightness Sony A90J and A9G pixels are improved by pixel contrast booster integrated with their OLED panels. We can also find Dynamic Contrast Enhancer integrated with those two TVs that can automatically adjust the screen brightness according to the environment lighting condition.
5. Smart TV Platform and Remote Control
The smart TV platform that integrated with Sony A90J and A9G are basically similar. They both come with Sony Android TV as their smart TV platform. Sony Android TV allows us to enjoy wide range of premium entertainment from our favorite content providers with 802.11ac wireless provides fast and stable internet connection. We can also run wide collection of smart apps on the screen of those two TVs since they are already connected to Play Store. The remote control that included with Sony A90J and A9G are voice remote control that allow us to control this TV conveniently with our voice. We can also control Sony A90J and A9G with Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Apple AirPlay / HomeKit since they are already supported.
6. Speaker System
The speaker system that integrated with Sony A90J and A9G are basically similar. They both come with Acoustic Surface Audio+ that powered by 20 W + 20 W + 10 W + 10 W. Acoustic Surface Audio+ that powered by 20 W + 20 W + 10 W + 10 W is quite good speaker system that can delivers good surround sound for our favorite entertainment. If you are still unsatisfied with the sound delivered by Acoustic Surface Audio+ of those two TVs, you can also attach additional soundbar. Both of Sony A90J and A9G already support eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel) so that we can setup more advanced AV system to enjoy higher quality audio from more advanced audio format.
We can summarize the similarities of Sony A90J and A9G with the table below.
Sony A90J | Sony A9G | |
Brand | Sony | Sony |
Resolution | 4K UHD | 4K UHD |
Display Technology | OLED | OLED |
Clarity Technology | Dual database processing | Dual database processing |
Color Technology | Live Color Technology | Live Color Technology |
Contrast Technology |
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HDR Support | HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG | HDR10, Dolby Vision, HLG |
Refresh Rate | 120Hz | 120Hz |
Smart TV Platform | Sony Android TV | Sony Android TV |
Remote Control | Voice Remote | Voice Remote |
Control Support |
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Built-in Wifi | 802.11ac | 802.11ac |
Speaker Power Output | 20 W + 20 W + 10 W + 10 W | 20 W + 20 W + 10 W + 10 W |
Speaker Type | Acoustic Surface Audio+ | Acoustic Surface Audio+ |
Audio Return Channel | eARC | eARC |
HDMI/USB | 4/3 | 4/3 |
Sony A90J and A9G Differences
Besides similarities, we can also find that there are several differences between Sony A90J and A9G since they are indeed positioned as the successor and predecessor series. Let’s continue our discussion with the differences of Sony A90J and A9G.
1. Picture Processor
We can find that the picture processor integrated with Sony A90J and A9G are different. Sony A90J comes with Cognitive Processor XR while Sony A9G comes with X1 Ultimate. Cognitive Processor XR is able to delivers more realistic picture optimization based on human eyes focus. So with Cognitive Processor XR, we can expect better picture quality on the screen of Sony A9G.
2. Clarity Technology
The clarity technology of Sony A90J and A9G are slightly different. They are slightly different mainly because they are using different picture processor. While they come with similar Dual Database Processor, they are slightly different in upscaling and Super Resolution. Sony A90J comes with XR 4K Upscaling XR Super Resolution while Sony A9G comes with 4K X-Reality Pro and Object-based Super Resolution. With more advanced XR 4K Upscaling and XR Super Resolution, Sony A90J is able to deliver better clarity on its screen.
3. Contrast Technology
We have talked before that Sony A90J and A9G come with similar Pixel Contrast Booster and Dynamic Contrast Enhancer. But we can also find that they indeed come with other different contrast technology. Sony A90J comes with OLED XR Contrast Pro from its Cognitive Processor XR and XR HDR Remaster while Sony A9G only comes with Object-based HDR Remaster. OLED XR Contrast Pro and XR HDR Remaster are the newer contrast technology that can deliver more excellent contrast vibrancy and reproduce more natural depth than Object-based HDR Remaster.
4. Color Technology
While they both come with similar Live Color Technology on top of OLED panel, we can also find that there are different additional color technology of Sony A90J and A9G. Sony A90J comes with XR Smoothing and XR Triluminos Pro while Sony A9G comes with Precision Color Mapping, Super bit mapping HDR and Triluminos. While they basically work similarly, XR Smoothing and XR Triluminos Pro that powered by Cognitive Processor XR are able to bring better color quality than the older Precision Color Mapping, Super bit mapping HDR and Triluminos.
5. Gaming Technology
Although they come with similar 120Hz native refresh rate, we can find that the gaming technology integrated with Sony A90J is more advanced than Sony A9G as It already supports VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). VRR and ALLM are able to bring more immersive gaming experience when we use Sony A90J as our gaming monitor.
6. ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV)
Sony A90J already comes with ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) while Sony A9G still come with standard ATSC. ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) allows us to enjoy 4K and HDR contents Over the Air (OTA). With ATSC 3.0 integrated with it, we can enjoy OTA 4K and HDR entertainment on the screen Sony A90J while we can’t enjoy it in Sony A9G.
7. Price
As the newer model, Sony A90J is usually offered at the higher price than Sony A9G for similar screen size option. It’s important for us to check the price of Sony A90J and A9G before we can find their price difference since TV prices often change from time to time.
The differences of Sony A90J and A9G can be summarized with the table below.
Sony A90J | Sony A9G | |||||||
Picture Processor | Cognitive Processor XR | X1 Ultimate | ||||||
Clarity Technology |
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Contrast Technology |
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Object-based HDR remaster | ||||||
Color Technology |
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Gaming Technology |
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Motionflow XR | ||||||
ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) | YES | NO | ||||||
Price | Higher | Lower | ||||||
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What is Improved in Sony A90J?
After we talk about similarities and differences of Sony A90J and A9G, we can find that the main improvements of Sony A90J comes from its picture processor (Cognitive Processor XR), ALLM and VRR as well as ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV). Cognitive Processor XR can brings more realistic picture quality. It delivers better clarity with XR 4K Upscaling and XR Super Resolution, better color with XR Smoothing and XR Triluminos Pro as well as better contrast with OLED XR Contrast Pro and XR HDR Remaster. ALLM and VRR is able to bring better gaming experience, While ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) allows Sony A90J to delivers OTA (Over-the-Air) HDR and 4K contents. But in the price side, Sony A90J is indeed usually offered at the higher price than Sony A9G for similar screen size option. So if you don’t mind to spend more for better picture quality from more advanced picture processor, better gaming experience with ALLM and VRR as well as ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) for HDR and 4K OTA contents, then Sony A90G is the one that you should choose.
Sony A90J Prices | |
83-Inch (XR83A90J) | Check Today’s Price… |
65-Inch (XR65A90J) | Check Today’s Price… |
55-Inch (XR55A90J) | Check Today’s Price… |
Sony A9G is the predecessor series of Sony A90J. It was released as part of Sony’s 2019 TV lineup. It’s usually offered at the lower price than Sony A90J for similar screen size option. Sony A9G is a good alternative choice for you if you have more limited budget. It’s still able to delivers excellent contrast vibrancy with OLED panel that completed with Pixel Contrast Booster, rich and accurate color details with Wide Color Gamut of OLED and smooth motion images with 120Hz refresh rate. But its picture quality is still below Samsung A90J since It comes with less advanced picture processor. It also doesn’t come with ALLM and VRR while it’s also not completed with ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV). So if you have more limited budget and don’t mind with less advanced picture processor and the absent of ALLM, VRR and ATSC 3.0 then Sony A9G is the one that you can consider.
Sony A9G Prices | |
77-Inch (XBR77A9G) | Check Today’s Price (Walmart.com)… |
65-Inch (XBR65A9G) | Check Today’s Price (Walmart.com)… |
55-Inch (XBR55A9G) | Check Today’s Price (Walmart.com)… |