Update for Sony LED TVs improves picture quality in PS5 VRR games

With a firmware update, Sony improves HDR picture quality in VRR games on PlayStation 5. New software is now available to download for select 2021 and 2022 LED TVs!

It must be said, a great achievement of the community. Not only several owners of an affected Sony LCD TV, but also several members of the press have reported issues with picture quality when playing games on PlayStation 5 with VRR (Variable Refresh Rate) enabled. More precisely, Sony disabled the TVs local dimming feature as soon as the device was set to “extended picture mode (VRR)” via input settings. Of course, this greatly affected the contrast, especially when playing in HDR.

Perfect PS5 VRR Games for Sony LCD TVs

The firmware is currently rolling out to 2021 and 2022 TVs, including last year’s popular X90J, X95J, and Z9J (8K) models, as well as newer X90K, X95K, and X9K (8K) TVs. Anyone who has bought an OLED TV from Sony does not have to worry about this “problem” as they have a completely different dimming algorithm. The mid-range models X85J and X85K were also excluded from the VRR problem, since a different image processor is used here. The new software can be installed via the TVs automatic update feature or downloaded below:

Luckily, fans “guide” Sony

Sony was previously criticized by the community for its poor communication on this issue. It was only with mounting pressure that the issues were addressed and ultimately resolved. This puts Sony ahead of the competition. Most TV manufacturers continue to disable local dimming on their TVs when placed in game mode (with or without VRR). This should bring the input lag to an optimal value. As several users report, there is no noticeable increase in input lag despite local dimming enabled on Sony TVs. However, the visual benefits are immediately apparent.

Changelog firmware update version 6.5929

• Resolves an issue where subtitles are not displayed on certain content
• Resolves an issue where the clock screen freezes on the TV
• Fixes an issue where only the right side of the screen is visible
• Fixes an issue where certain YouTube content turns into a green image
• Resolves an issue where, under certain circumstances, it is not possible to watch one channel while a recording is in progress on another channel
• Improves auto local dimming (*1) and peak luminance (*2) when Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) is enabled.
  (*1) for Z9J / X95J / X90J / Z9K / X95K / X90K / X90S
  (*2) for Z9J / A90J / A80J / X95J / X90-92-93-94J / Z9K / A95K / A90-92-93-94K / A80K / X95K / X90K / X90-94S
• Proximity warning camera sensor feature support (for 2022 models only)

Unfortunately, the Sony XH90 (2022) is left out

Anyone hoping that Sony’s first 4K TV with an HDMI 2.1 interface, the XH90 from 2020, will also benefit from the firmware update will sadly be disappointed. The model also received the new firmware version 6.1772 on June 29, 2022, but the list of improvements does not include the items of local dimming and maximum brightness with VRR activated. Minor bug fixes still find their way into the XH90, which you can find in the sony support page can see.