Sony Bravia KDL-40EX703 review

Amazingly well-specified 40" LCD TV with Freeview HD

Sony Bravia KDL-40EX703
Sony's 40-inch LED TV is bursting with high-end features, despite its slim frame

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Sony bravia kdl-40ex703

Audio is crisp and clear with a pleasing mid-range that captures dialogue nicely. The sound 'image' is also reasonably wide and airy with whatever's going on getting a decent amount of space to breathe.

It's not three-dimensional in the same way that surround sound systems can be said to be (and we can't think of too many reasons to bother with the KDL-40EX703's S-Force pseudo-surround setting), but the various effects do at least have room to breathe and the soundfield appears to extend beyond the confines of the frame edges.

There is a decent amount of volume at your disposal, although we did detect a hint of the buzzing that betrays a speaker working at the limits of its capabilities when the dial went beyond the 80 per cent mark.

There isn't a huge amount of bass to play with, but you'll find just enough to give movies a little bit of extra oomph.

Value

The recommended price of just over a grand (bearing in mind the likely savings some judicious shopping around might bring) is about bang on for the KDL-40EX703.

There aren't all that many 40-inch sets around, and you could spend the same amount on an extremely well-specified 37-incher, or a larger but less exciting 42-inch model, but you certainly won't find many direct rivals that offer this kind of performance on top of built-in Freeview HD and web widgets.

Only the best Philips sets are better connected, and the only conceivable gap in this Sony's armoury is a lack of 3D compatibility, but that particular technology is by no means sufficiently established for this to be a minus point.

It's attractive, it's technically excellent, and its futureproof spec means it won't need replacing for years to come, making it a formidable bargain by anyone's reckoning.

Latest in Televisions
Eight Samsung TVs mounted to the wall showing different basketball games
Samsung is offering you 8 new TVs in one bundle for March Madness, in case you want to watch all games at once like a Bond villain’s lair
OLED Philips Roku TV
The new 65-inch Roku OLED TV is already under $1,000, and that's a price I can get behind
close-up of soundbar mesh with Sonos branding
Sonos reportedly cancels its streaming video player, but I hope it resurrects one part of it, because it could be huge
Best Google Chromecast Apps
Following recent problems, Chromecasts are getting a free update to Android 14 – here's what that means
Sony RGB LED visualization
I saw Sony’s next-gen RGB mini-LED TV tech in action, and OLED TVs should be worried
Google Chromecast 2
Chromecasts are still broken – but Google tells fuming owners not to factory reset their devices
Latest in Reviews
Alienware 27 AW2725Q monitor on desk displaying a scene from Cyberpunk 2077
I played games with Alienware's new 27-inch 4K OLED monitor and now I don't want to see another LCD panel
MacBook Air 15-inch with M4 chip on a creative's desk with screen open
I've reviewed the Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (M4) - and it remains the best 15-inch laptop I'd recommend for most people
Samsung Music Frame on a table beside some books and a vase
I spent six weeks listening to the Samsung Music Frame and it kept missing the beat
GlocalMe KeyTracker
When I tested this global tracker, it trounced the Apple AirTag in so many ways
Groov-e Boston DAB radio on a wooden table
I tested this affordable DAB radio and, sadly, its tinny output made me think of every car garage I've ever been to
An AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D on its retail packaging
I've reviewed three generations of 3D V-cache processors, and the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D is the best there is