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Official Sony HX820 Owner's Thread (46HX820, 55HX820)

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#1 ·
Welcome to the Official Sony Bravia KDL-HX820 Owner's Thread (46HX820, 55HX820)


This is the place to share information, questions and settings about the Bravia KDL-xxHX820 series


I have had my 55HX820 for almost a month now and am very happy with it. Of course I upgraded from a 5 year old Westinghouse LVM-42W2 so the jump from that to a new Sony was bound to impress.


No one else had started a official thread on this model yet so I thought I would get things started.
 
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#2,382 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicagorunner10 /forum/post/22027336


I just realized I didn't answer your second point...


No, I don't have auto-update enabled. Initially, when it seemed like the restarts were all happening within the first minute of two after turning it on, that was my very first suspicion, that an auto-update happened. However even then I didn't really think there would be that many updates to cause a restart as often as it was.


Of course, having auto-updated turned off for quite a few months now, confirming that no update happened when a restart happens, and the fact that it can happen any time, not just right after powering on, the auto-update doesn't seem to have to do with this issue.

Hi, I think this may be related to my post (just above this one). Have you looked at te service diag screen to determine what (if any) errors are being logged? I wonder if it's the same as mine and you're getting HOST_WDT errors.
 
#2,384 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicagorunner10 /forum/post/22033819


After some searching around I finally found how to get into the Service Menu (as I never had done it before), however I have yet to find how to get to the Error Log.


If you let me know how you did it, I'll definitely check.

See post #424 for screenshoot.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...5#post20969565

With TV off, on the remote press:

1. Display

2. Channel #5

3. Down on the Volume Button

4. Power the TV on (with on button on remote).
 
#2,385 ·
Hmm, this is weird...


I have no problem getting into the Service menu (tv is off, press Display -> Channel 5 -> Volume Up -> Power), but the Error Log isn't coming up with the similar steps provided in that post.


With the TV off, I pressed: Display -> Channel 5 -> Volume Down -> Power


Anyone else have trouble getting the error log to show up? Does that just mean there are no errors?
 
#2,386 ·
Well, just tried it again and it this time it worked; the "Self Check" diagnostics screen came up; maybe before I was waiting too long after powering off or not waiting long enough...


Anyway, yes, the error log is showing three HOST_WDT errors; (the far right column for the HOST_WDT line reads '03'; the full line reads as:


103 HOST_WDT ------- -------- -------- 03


All other lines have '00' at the far right column.


Also, there's a value at the very bottom of the screen, not sure what it refers to: 01620-00494-01713


So....

The question is, what is the HOST_WDT error, does it have to do with the 'random restart' issue?


Also, I've definitely had WAY more than three random restarts since I've owned this TV, so not sure how that corresponds to the '03'. Is anyone sure that the '03' actually means the number occurrences? Maybe it's something else, (don't just assume).
 
#2,387 ·
Also, I'll include one more point since I've noticed that the other posts that mention the HOST_WDT errors all seem to tie it to the DLNA streaming.


Based on what I've seen, I don't think the random restart issue is tied to DLNA streaming.


I just recently started trying out this feature in the past month using Serviio on my computer (awesome feature), only used it about a total of 3 or 4 hours total, and it worked flawlessly the whole time. No errors, never had to restart a video, and no random restarts while using the DLNA streaming feature.


Every time I've seen the random restart has been viewing cable TV via HDMI. Oh yeah, and once when plaing Wii via Component cables
 
#2,388 ·
Another update came down either yesterday or the day before, and just a minute ago, my 55HX820 restarted itself twice within three minutes. The restarts occurred within a few minutes of turning on the TV after it had been off for over nine hours.


Sony can't even figure it out.
 
#2,389 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicagorunner10 /forum/post/22035043


Also, I've definitely had WAY more than three random restarts since I've owned this TV, so not sure how that corresponds to the '03'. Is anyone sure that the '03' actually means the number occurrences? Maybe it's something else, (don't just assume).

Well, goolgling a little i found one guy say that it takes 3 errors (resets?) to log a count on the diag screen. Not sure if that's true or not.
 
#2,390 ·
Hello,


I just bought the 46 inch hx820 through tigerdirect and received it this Monday. I am moving from the old heavy ancient Sony wega to this tv. Unfortunately, I discovered this forum only yesterday otherwise after reading about so many problems, I might have bought it from brick and mortar store instead of online. My question is what all I should be checking before the 7 day return window closes? Apologies in advance if I sound a noob but this is my first big screen lcd/led of any kind. That does'nt mean I can't tell a good picture from bad one



1) I have seen lot of posts here regarding creases and flashlighting but I am not sure what it means. What is the best way to check for them?


2) I am not sure if I got the new TV. The box it came in had a transparent tape on top side. The person who delivered opened the box from below by pressing a clip. Is there supposed to be a tape on top or should it have been sealed by some adhesive or something? Also, I noticed a few scratches on the back side of the flat plate (part of tv stand) on which the tv is mounted. Does it mean tg sold me a refurbished tv when I paid for a new one?


3) My cable box is not working (I need to get it fixed tomm) but am not very impressed by the quality of videos I saw on youtube. This might be due to the lower resolution on youtube. Also, some videos on youtube dont play even though they play fine on my laptop.


4) Watched Inception blue ray using s480 blue ray player that came bundled with the tv yesterday. The blue ray player was not connected by hdmi though. The picture looked a bit hazy/out of focus maybe.


Anything else I should be looking for? I have gone through some pages here and would be doing more reading over weekend. I did do lot of research before zeroing on this. Colors on samsung tvs looked a bit too artificial to me. I hope I am able to keep this! Thanks a ton in advance
 
#2,391 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicagorunner10 /forum/post/22026015


Ok guys, what's the story on the random reboots on the HX820?


Had the TV six months now; the first few months I had the TV, I noticed the random reboots only like once or twice a month, so wasn't super concerned, but recently I've been noticing it as often as once every day or two.


Previously it seemed like it only happened when I was not actively watching the TV, but just had it on in the background, so I turned off all the 'eco' features (unlikely it was the cause anyway though, because the TV wouldn't always turn right back on if that was the case).


But then yesterday, the restart happened when I was kicking back and playing some Wii, and that was the last straw.
or at least when I started to get more annoyed with it.


I should also mention that I work from home, and usually have the TV on in the background, so we're talking upwards of 8-10 hrs, 5 days a week. Often on mute too, which is usually how i notice the restart because when it restarts, when it comes back on, it's not on mute.


I've read through a good part of this thread and others, seen others mention it as well, so I know others have seen it as well, but I've seen no solutions or suggested root causes. I've also made sure the TV is on the latest software update (PKG4.003AAA)


Any ideas, or resolutions floating around out there?

I have had this issue off and on since I have owned the set. It seems to be more likely to happen within the first 5 minutes after powering it on.
 
#2,392 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicagorunner10 /forum/post/22026015


Ok guys, what's the story on the random reboots on the HX820?


Had the TV six months now; the first few months I had the TV, I noticed the random reboots only like once or twice a month, so wasn't super concerned, but recently I've been noticing it as often as once every day or two.


Previously it seemed like it only happened when I was not actively watching the TV, but just had it on in the background, so I turned off all the 'eco' features (unlikely it was the cause anyway though, because the TV wouldn't always turn right back on if that was the case).


But then yesterday, the restart happened when I was kicking back and playing some Wii, and that was the last straw.
or at least when I started to get more annoyed with it.


I should also mention that I work from home, and usually have the TV on in the background, so we're talking upwards of 8-10 hrs, 5 days a week. Often on mute too, which is usually how i notice the restart because when it restarts, when it comes back on, it's not on mute.


I've read through a good part of this thread and others, seen others mention it as well, so I know others have seen it as well, but I've seen no solutions or suggested root causes. I've also made sure the TV is on the latest software update (PKG4.003AAA)


Any ideas, or resolutions floating around out there?

Hi I'm new to this forum but I've been following this thread on and off for a little over a month now. I too have the problem with the HX820 randomly rebooting. That's why I was here in the first place.


Let me preface that I have the 46" version connected to the internet via Ethernet cable to a D-Link 825 wireless router. There is no new firmware for this router for over 2 years and I'm well aware of the D-Link 655 firmware fix. Since I don't have that router and I'm not using wireless, I was stumped.


While it may seem random, I've notice my set reboot every fourth day and within first 5 minute of powering on. Immediately after the reboot, I noticed if I go into the menu screen, the widgets and the internet contents disappear. They eventually will be reloaded but it's very annoying because widget settings are gone. It's a pain to set them back to my liking to have them reset again in four days.


I have contacted SONY about this issue and they made it sound like they never heard this issue at all. They eventually sent someone over to replace the "Mainboard" and I'm still have the same issue.


Ten days ago, on a whim I unplug my Ethernet cable from the TV and the problem seem to go away to this day. The only drawback obviously is I no longer have access to internet features unless I plug it back.


My question to everyone who is having this problem, do you guys happen to be using a D-Link 825 router? If so do you have this issue with Ethernet connection. I'm thinking of trying another router to to rule out this router as the source of the problem.
 
#2,393 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Oh-san /forum/post/0


Hi I'm new to this forum but I've been following this thread on and off for a little over a month now. I too have the problem with the HX820 randomly rebooting. That's why I was here in the first place.


Let me preface that I have the 46" version connected to the internet via Ethernet cable to a D-Link 825 wireless router. There is no new firmware for this router for over 2 years and I'm well aware of the D-Link 655 firmware fix. Since I don't have that router and I'm not using wireless, I was stumped.


While it may seem random, I've notice my set reboot every fourth day and within first 5 minute of powering on. Immediately after the reboot, I noticed if I go into the menu screen, the widgets and the internet contents disappear. They eventually will be reloaded but it's very annoying because widget settings are gone. It's a pain to set them back to my liking to have them reset again in four days.


I have contacted SONY about this issue and they made it sound like they never heard this issue at all. They eventually sent someone over to replace the "Mainboard" and I'm still have the same issue.


Ten days ago, on a whim I unplug my Ethernet cable from the TV and the problem seem to go away to this day. The only drawback obviously is I no longer have access to internet features unless I plug it back.


My question to everyone who is having this problem, do you guys happen to be using a D-Link 825 router? If so do you have this issue with Ethernet connection. I'm thinking of trying another router to to rule out this router as the source of the problem.

Just curious. Did you try connecting the tv wirelessly to your home network ?
 
#2,394 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by LBJ2 /forum/post/22041012


Just curious. Did you try connecting the tv wirelessly to your home network ?

I only connect my TV wireless briefly because my wireless router is in another room. My wireless signal is rather weak. Besides, it was last on my list to test since it take a four day cycle for me to see any result if any for my case.
 
#2,395 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Oh-san /forum/post/22041153


I only connect my TV wireless briefly because my wireless router is in another room. My wireless signal is rather weak. Besides, it was last on my list to test since it take a four day cycle for me to see any result if any for my case.

I forgot to mention that I tried hard reset my TV (unplug power and UP + power) numerous time. This procedure doesn't help for my case.
 
#2,396 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by TeqGuy /forum/post/0


Hello,


I just bought the 46 inch hx820 through tigerdirect and received it this Monday. I am moving from the old heavy ancient Sony wega to this tv. Unfortunately, I discovered this forum only yesterday otherwise after reading about so many problems, I might have bought it from brick and mortar store instead of online. My question is what all I should be checking before the 7 day return window closes? Apologies in advance if I sound a noob but this is my first big screen lcd/led of any kind. That does'nt mean I can't tell a good picture from bad one



1) I have seen lot of posts here regarding creases and flashlighting but I am not sure what it means. What is the best way to check for them?


2) I am not sure if I got the new TV. The box it came in had a transparent tape on top side. The person who delivered opened the box from below by pressing a clip. Is there supposed to be a tape on top or should it have been sealed by some adhesive or something? Also, I noticed a few scratches on the back side of the flat plate (part of tv stand) on which the tv is mounted. Does it mean tg sold me a refurbished tv when I paid for a new one?


3) My cable box is not working (I need to get it fixed tomm) but am not very impressed by the quality of videos I saw on youtube. This might be due to the lower resolution on youtube. Also, some videos on youtube dont play even though they play fine on my laptop.


4) Watched Inception blue ray using s480 blue ray player that came bundled with the tv yesterday. The blue ray player was not connected by hdmi though. The picture looked a bit hazy/out of focus maybe.


Anything else I should be looking for? I have gone through some pages here and would be doing more reading over weekend. I did do lot of research before zeroing on this. Colors on samsung tvs looked a bit too artificial to me. I hope I am able to keep this! Thanks a ton in advance

Quickly flip through this entire thread and look for posted pics (there aren't many) and you'll see an example of the crease issue, which is a very thin, faint border that looks a little brighter than the rest of the image. Some people have it around the whole screen, while others only have it on a side or two. The good thing is that you can minimalize the issue by calibrating the settings.


Flashlighting is simply non-uniform light bleed. If you were watching a dark scene at night with the lights off and you noticed that a black object looks hazy when you know it should be solid black, that would be an example of flashlighting. Many have complained about experiencing this in the corners of the HX820 but can occur anywhere else on the screen. Make sure you have LED Dynamic Control (Options button > Picture Adjustments > Advanced Settings > LED Dynamic Control) set to Standard or Low (standard blocks out more bleed-through, in my opinion). I applied it to all of my HDMI input settings.


Spend some time reading through this thread. Plenty of good info.


EDIT: You need an HDMI cable to transfer a 1080p signal (BluRay), which is why it looked fuzzy. You should also use an HDMI cable from your cable box.


And you can't judge the TV by a YouTube video. The TV upscales all signals so the extremely low resolution videos along with 480i and 480p are going to either look grainy or have a large black border around the entire picture, appearing smaller on the screen because its resolution is native (constant) 1080p.
 
#2,397 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by TeqGuy /forum/post/22039620


Hello,


I just bought the 46 inch hx820 through tigerdirect and received it this Monday. I am moving from the old heavy ancient Sony wega to this tv. Unfortunately, I discovered this forum only yesterday otherwise after reading about so many problems, I might have bought it from brick and mortar store instead of online. My question is what all I should be checking before the 7 day return window closes? Apologies in advance if I sound a noob but this is my first big screen lcd/led of any kind. That does'nt mean I can't tell a good picture from bad one



1) I have seen lot of posts here regarding creases and flashlighting but I am not sure what it means. What is the best way to check for them?


2) I am not sure if I got the new TV. The box it came in had a transparent tape on top side. The person who delivered opened the box from below by pressing a clip. Is there supposed to be a tape on top or should it have been sealed by some adhesive or something? Also, I noticed a few scratches on the back side of the flat plate (part of tv stand) on which the tv is mounted. Does it mean tg sold me a refurbished tv when I paid for a new one?


3) My cable box is not working (I need to get it fixed tomm) but am not very impressed by the quality of videos I saw on youtube. This might be due to the lower resolution on youtube. Also, some videos on youtube dont play even though they play fine on my laptop.


4) Watched Inception blue ray using s480 blue ray player that came bundled with the tv yesterday. The blue ray player was not connected by hdmi though. The picture looked a bit hazy/out of focus maybe.


Anything else I should be looking for? I have gone through some pages here and would be doing more reading over weekend. I did do lot of research before zeroing on this. Colors on samsung tvs looked a bit too artificial to me. I hope I am able to keep this! Thanks a ton in advance

I just bought the KDL-46HX820 from TigerDirect as well and had it delivered a few days ago. I was a bit worried with their no refunds policy on this closeout model. But I felt that I was missing some picture quality with the LG LM6700 I had. In any case, the whole buying experience was actually very positive.


My TV came with the top double taped as well. I opened up the TV though and I'm 99% sure it's a brand new TV. The build date is Feb 2012. Everything looked new, but there were a couple scratches on the UNDER SIDE of the TV stand. Is that what you're talking about?


I did see some flashlighting from the bottom left and right corners and a bit of clouding to the bottom left, but these were pretty minor compared to the LG. After I turned down the backlight to 4 (and LED local dimming is set to standard), these seemed to disappear.


I haven't noticed any creases or dead pixels from my standard viewing distance (10 feet), but I haven't examined the TV under a microscope yet.


I'm not sure why you wouldn't use HDMI to hook up a Bluray player. But you should.


Overall very pleased with my purchase from TigerDirect, and the TV is amazing! Trust me, I nitpicked the LG to death and it was a very good TV as well. I'm very pleased with the HD picture quality, the looks, and features for the most part, although the LG supported more video formats over DLNA and was easier to navigate through the menus.
 
#2,398 ·
Hi there,


Wondering if anyone could help me out with the following:


1. Is there a setting to turn on or choose the level of the resolution upscaling for streamed videos and SD cable content? This Sony doesn't seem to be doing as good a job as the LG LM6700 that I had, which I'm using to compare against.


2. Is there anything special you have to do to get this TV to recognize a USB hard drive plugged in? The TV recognizes my DLNA server on my NAS, but it doesn't recognize the DLNA from my laptop nor the USB hard drive, which the LG did.


3. Is there a way to turn off the standby and power on leds?
 
#2,399 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by skeetergmania /forum/post/22044417


Hi there,


Wondering if anyone could help me out with the following:


1. Is there a setting to turn on or choose the level of the resolution upscaling for streamed videos and SD cable content? This Sony doesn't seem to be doing as good a job as the LG LM6700 that I had, which I'm using to compare against.


2. Is there anything special you have to do to get this TV to recognize a USB hard drive plugged in? The TV recognizes my DLNA server on my NAS, but it doesn't recognize the DLNA from my laptop nor the USB hard drive, which the LG did.


3. Is there a way to turn off the standby and power on leds?

Nevermind about #2, my USB drive is formatted in NTFS, which the TV doesn't recognize. It only recognizes various FAT formats.
 
#2,400 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by DaCuse /forum/post/22043410


Quickly flip through this entire thread and look for posted pics (there aren't many) and you'll see an example of the crease issue, which is a very thin, faint border that looks a little brighter than the rest of the image. Some people have it around the whole screen, while others only have it on a side or two. The good thing is that you can minimalize the issue by calibrating the settings.


Flashlighting is simply non-uniform light bleed. If you were watching a dark scene at night with the lights off and you noticed that a black object looks hazy when you know it should be solid black, that would be an example of flashlighting. Many have complained about experiencing this in the corners of the HX820 but can occur anywhere else on the screen. Make sure you have LED Dynamic Control (Options button > Picture Adjustments > Advanced Settings > LED Dynamic Control) set to Standard or Low (standard blocks out more bleed-through, in my opinion). I applied it to all of my HDMI input settings.


Spend some time reading through this thread. Plenty of good info.


EDIT: You need an HDMI cable to transfer a 1080p signal (BluRay), which is why it looked fuzzy. You should also use an HDMI cable from your cable box.


And you can't judge the TV by a YouTube video. The TV upscales all signals so the extremely low resolution videos along with 480i and 480p are going to either look grainy or have a large black border around the entire picture, appearing smaller on the screen because its resolution is native (constant) 1080p.

Thanks a lot for the reply. I did connect the tv to cable box through hdmi cable and hd channels do look neat. Watched Netflix on it as well.


I saw a dead pixel on top left corner and some very minor flashlighting from lower corners but it isnt bad at all. My LED dynamic control was already set to standard.


I have set the picture to cinema 1 and reduced the backlight from 5 to 4. My only doubt currently is in terms of sharpness of the picture. It looks a bit faded/out of focus. The skin tones are also on a redder side. Also when showing the same color on the whole screen, certain parts of screen are a bit darker than others. Is this normal?


Would be great if you can share your picture settings. Thanks once again for the feedback
 
#2,401 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by skeetergmania /forum/post/22044399


I just bought the KDL-46HX820 from TigerDirect as well and had it delivered a few days ago. I was a bit worried with their no refunds policy on this closeout model. But I felt that I was missing some picture quality with the LG LM6700 I had. In any case, the whole buying experience was actually very positive.


My TV came with the top double taped as well. I opened up the TV though and I'm 99% sure it's a brand new TV. The build date is Feb 2012. Everything looked new, but there were a couple scratches on the UNDER SIDE of the TV stand. Is that what you're talking about?


I did see some flashlighting from the bottom left and right corners and a bit of clouding to the bottom left, but these were pretty minor compared to the LG. After I turned down the backlight to 4 (and LED local dimming is set to standard), these seemed to disappear.


I haven't noticed any creases or dead pixels from my standard viewing distance (10 feet), but I haven't examined the TV under a microscope yet.


I'm not sure why you wouldn't use HDMI to hook up a Bluray player. But you should.


Overall very pleased with my purchase from TigerDirect, and the TV is amazing! Trust me, I nitpicked the LG to death and it was a very good TV as well. I'm very pleased with the HD picture quality, the looks, and features for the most part, although the LG supported more video formats over DLNA and was easier to navigate through the menus.

Your reply has been very helpful! Thanks



My tv is also Feb 2012 and yes, I was talking about the underside of the stand as well. I was not using HDMI because I did not have the cable. Got 1 over the weekend and connected the cable box to tv using that. Looks good except for the problems I mentioned in the above post. It must be calibration issue or I am just not used to leds but I feel the picture is a bit hazy/out of focus. The picture looks pretty good with lights turned off and from around 8-10 feet.


What settings do you use for watching normal television? Thanks once again for replying
 
#2,402 ·
When we enabled the LED Dynamic Control setting in our tests, the KDL-46NX720's contrast ratio exploded, giving us a deepest black of 0.01 cd/m2, and a peak brightness of 311.13 cd/m2, for a total contrast ratio of 31113:1. "







Yet they fail to mention this in the review of the HX820, this Panel is designed to have its Led Dynamic control enabled and will give its lowest black level and best picture quality with it enabled. Turning it off is fine for testing as long as you also test and report findings with it enabled, which they didn't do.


Anyhow I have a 55HX820 and I absolutely love it.
 
#2,403 ·
Well....after reading this thread for a week or so I decided to pull the trigger and get 46hx820. Now I'm only hoping that it comes in a perfect condition and without any of those issues people here mentioned. Vendor I got it from won't accept returns so if anything is wrong with the set it's all on Sony. I hope it doesn't have those dreaded crease issues and blooming or dead pixels or flashligh



Wish me luck guys.
 
#2,404 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by maciekmiszkiel /forum/post/0


Well....after reading this thread for a week or so I decided to pull the trigger and get 46hx820. Now I'm only hoping that it comes in a perfect condition and without any of those issues people here mentioned. Vendor I got it from won't accept returns so if anything is wrong with the set it's all on Sony. I hope it doesn't have those dreaded crease issues and blooming or dead pixels or flashligh



Wish me luck guys.

I wish you a ton of luck especially if you have to deal with Sony. I had horizontal darkened bars on my set and they asked for pics. I sent them and they said it was within spec and basically to piss off. No further investigation into it. No sending a tech to see it. Nothing. Their word against my pics (that I told them in advance would be difficult to capture in a photo). Apparently customer satisfaction isn't in their priority anymore. In retrospect, I have owned 4 different Sony televisions and have had a problem with every single one. What always made me stay loyal was their customer service but if it's that gone then so am I as a customer.
 
#2,405 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by brahby /forum/post/22046810


I wish you a ton of luck especially if you have to deal with Sony. I had horizontal darkened bars on my set and they asked for pics. I sent them and they said it was within spec and basically to piss off. No further investigation into it. No sending a tech to see it. Nothing. Their word against my pics (that I told them in advance would be difficult to capture in a photo). Apparently customer satisfaction isn't in their priority anymore. In retrospect, I have owned 4 different Sony televisions and have had a problem with every single one. What always made me stay loyal was their customer service but if it's that gone then so am I as a customer.


Have you tried other channels of support like sony listens or their facebook profile ? I've heard from other ppl here that if you take it there and make it really public they might change their mind. That's what I'll do if my set ends up being crappy.


...now you are making me think that I should change my order and just cancel it. I still can.


On the other hand I've seen a lot of post of happy customers that either received a good set or ended ub being taken care of by adjusting the settings or had their set replaced by sony.
 
#2,406 ·
This was my first real negative experience from them. I wouldn't say to not not get the set if its what you want but I would maybe cancel it and get it from somewhere that you would be able to do an exchange for another if you aren't happy instead if Sony being the only one to rely on.
 
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