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.

[oodles2do]

@julianblack

Glad to hear that John Lewis were happy to take your TV back. We've only recently started dialouge with them about returning the set, and also bought the TV in September so it's past the 90 day return period. Hopefully they'll be helpful and accept the return (I'll be buying an LG from them so they'll keep my business) considering the amount of returns they've had to do for these Sony sets. I've made a short-ish, video as evidence of the procedure we have to go through just to change channel, hilariously the TV actually opened guide when requested which it never does anymore. It still took an age to actually change to the requested channel and there's a lot of screen tearing / glitching now, seems like the whole OS is getting itself tied up in knots and no longer has enough memory to process an image.

[cozzykim]

JL took our 55X8509 back well after the 90 day period, but we had to stand our ground at the "tech support" counter.

Perhaps the fact that the returns counter had already accepted the TV back, and we just said that we wouldn't be accepting it back in our house made a difference.

The "tech support" person admitted 'off the record' after the paperwork was done that they had taken a lot of them back as NFFP.

Because they argued the point until caving in, and only then admitting that we were justified in taking it back under the SOG, we voted with our wallet and bought the replacement Sammy from Richer Sounds.

[royabrown]

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@swampygeoff wrote:

I am trying to connect my laptop through screen mirroring but when i search for a device my laptop will only pick up the TV as a 'Digital Media Renderer' and not television. What does this mean, my laptop recognsises that there is something there  but I can't connect. the TV won't recognise that anything is trying to connect so won't produce a code?!

KDL-48R553C

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Hi @swampygeoff

Your laptop needs to be able to cast for that to work; is it Mac or Windows, and which OS? Windows 8 upwards should be able to cast, but earlier OSes need a bit of help.

When your laptop sees the TV, is this with it just on normally - when the TV and the laptop perhaps detect that they can share over DLNA, and the TV represents itself as having the capabilities of a 'Digital Media Renderer' - I.e. it can play suitable files off your laptop, which will now appear in the Great Festering Mishmash of unstructured AV from everywhere when you look at this in the Media Player app - or have you already set the TV to be looking for devices that can mirror to it?

Which perhaps even then, your laptop can't.

Your best bet, though, might be to invoke the built-in Chromecast in the TV, and try it that way.

Here's a good article on the topic of mirroring, which explains the various possibilities, including using a Chromecast.

It doesn't envisage a TV with a built-in virtual Chromecast, but just pretend there's a physical one in back of the TV and go from there 🙂

http://www.howtogeek.com/207429/4-ways-to-view-your-laptop-or-desktop%E2%80%99s-screen-on-your-tv/

This whole thing does assume that you really want to mirror though, rather than just play files off the laptop, which the TV will do in its Media Player app, if you can find the file you want in the GFM there 🙂

[cozzykim]

@swampygeoff

IIRC you have to use Google Chrome and add an extension which communicates with the TV as if it's a Chromecast.

This even worked perfectly and seamlessly with my Linux powered Thinkpad, and is one of the things that we still miss about the Bravia, the Sammy's casting is a fudge by comparison.

EDIT: here you go:

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-cast/boadgeojelhgndaghljhdicfkmllpafd?utm_source=ch...

[frogger38]

@wicols Re: Set crashing when you bring it out of standby with a casting request. I have the same issue and have aded to your thread.

[ryanbrodie]

So Customer Support reached out to me after my previous post instructing me to do the following:

Please follow the steps below to make sure that your TV is updated:

- Put Two copies of the firmware file on the same USB stick.

- One of them with the original name.

- The other one renamed as 'upgrade_uploader.pkg'.

- Unplug the power cable from the main lead.

- Connect the USB stick to USB port 2.

- Re-plug the power cable again.

- The update process should start.

This has only made things worse. The TV failed to enter the update process and instead now only manages to flash the Sony logo before it crashes (before it got up to the Android loading orbs and then crashed).

Anyone have any ideas?

[angelacr]

Are you ready for a good, gut wrenching, weekend making,  smelly-yellow-fluid-taking pop at Sony? http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/271986 The only trouble is, I think it is meant to be serious. But we know better don't we?

(I didn't use the word '*****' so as not to offend our dear Sony editors)

[royabrown]

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@angelacr wrote:

Are you ready for a good, gut wrenching, weekend making,  smelly-yellow-fluid-taking pop at Sony? http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/271986 The only trouble is, I think it is meant to be serious. But we know better don't we?

(I didn't use the word '*****' so as not to offend our dear Sony editors)

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Nothing new there, though.

Anyone who bought one of these Sony Android TVs has been getting an (involuntary) look inside Sony's R&D processes for up to a year past, now 

[oodles2do]

After speaking with an incredibly rude woman on the phone at John Lewis I spoke to her manager, who was fully aware of the Sony Android issues and they agreed to exchange the TV. I'm just waiting on another department to see if they can price match it so I can get it cheaper :).

Bought September, so well outside the 90 return period. I wonder what the retailers are saying to Sony about this? Whether they'll get compensation from Sony.

[alanxce]

I have a KD 55X8509C hooked up to a Sony CT780 sound bar. I have just had a pair of Sony ZX330BT headphones delivered but I am unable to pair them with the tv or the sound bar. Am I right in thinking the Bluetooth on both items is receive only and I therefore need to buy a Bluetooth transmitter to plug into the tv headphone socket?
Not sure if this the right forum but pretty sure the wealth of knowledge of the contributors on here will know the answer.

UPDATE
So I had a Bluetooth transmitter delivered, neat little device which plugged into the tv headphone socket and paired up with the headphones easy enough.What I want is to have my wife using the headphones (impaired hearing) while I enjoy the sound from the sound bar. Sorry, Sony says no. Seems like I can have the output from the tv speakers go to the headphones but no soundbar at at the same time. I don't even think we can have the tv speakers on and the headphones at the same time. And I thought this was going to be easy, duh.