Sony recently held a briefing in Sydney for the media to showcase their latest tech goodies, and we also took the time to ask them about their plans for updating their Bravia smart TVs running Android TV.
At the briefing, Sony Australia has revealed that all Sony Android TV 2018, 2017 Models (plus some 2016 models) will receive an operating system update to Android TV 8.0 (Oreo) as well as enabling Google Assistant.
A Sony spokesperson told Ausdroid that:
“The plan is to update all 2018 and 2017 models to Oreo within CY [calendar year] 2018. In addition, some models from the 2016 range will also be updated, however we can’t confirm model numbers at this stage. Timings for updates may vary between models”.
Furthermore Sony Australia advised that Australians who own recent model Sony Android TV’s will be glad to know that they will become fully Google Assistant enabled:
Google Assistant is a feature that will be available for Sony BRAVIA TVs at a later date via a firmware update. As the roll-out will be managed by Google, we are unable to provide the exact timing of this update. All 2018 and 2017, and some 2016 models will receive the Google Assistant update. At this stage we can’t confirm the 2016 model numbers that will receive the update. Timings for updates may vary between models.
Speaking of Sony Android TV 2018 models, all of the 4K OLED & LEDÂ will run Android TV as their OS. There are only a few budget 1080P LED W600 models that will have a basic Sony TV interface instead.
Another change is a new minimum size of 55″ which is not surprising as that was a very popular size last year. It is however disappointing that Sony no longer offers a premium 49″ TV for the growing number of Australians who live in small city apartments.
If you were interested in Sony OLED technology last year but weren’t keen on the slanted stand of the A1, the new 55″ & 65″ A8F 4K HDR OLED TV models with Dolby Vision and Acoustic Surface can stand or be mounted flat.
Other new Sony products on display that caught our eye included the updated SRS-XB41, SRS-XB31, and SRS-XB21 EXTRA BASS tough portable wireless speakers, RX100 VI premium pocket camera (with new 24-200mm zoom) and their new sports wireless earphones (WF-SP700N / WI-SP600N).
Sony claims that their new WF-SP700N earphones are the world’s first truly wireless noise cancelling earphones with splash-proof IPX4 design, letting you enjoy undisturbed sound wherever you are. A charging case is also included to enable two more usage sessions up to 3 hours each. An update available in the near future will make the WF-SP700N compatible with Google Assistant for hands-free convenience.
The WI-SP600N model has the same Digital Noise Cancelling and sound technology as the WF-SP700N, plus the same splash-proof rating and future enabled Google Assistant functionality. However they are not wireless as the earpieces are connected by a cable that sits behind the neck.
Several other Sony headphones will also receive an update that enables Google Assistant, specifically the 2017 Noise Cancelling models: WH-H900N, WH-1000XM2, WI-1000X and WF-1000X.
We’ll let you know how well the WF-SP700N’s perform when we’ve finished reviewing them.
Has this update been rolled out yet? Both my Sony TVs are still stuck on 7.0 and lag changing volume….
Yeah the slanted stand was my only annoyance when looking at the A1 OLED TV. Glad Sony fixed that with the A8F (and dropped the RRP by $1k for the 55″ model compared to the A1 as well).
Here’s hoping the Oreo update fixes the god awful lag.
Please message us to let us know if it does
When I was reviewing a 2017 model Sony Android TV last year I couldn’t understand why such an expensive TV was slower to navigate around menus etc compared to my $100 Mi Box 3