M9 InZone Review: A commendable first attempt for Sony

“It’s a Sony”. Time was when this tag line in Sony commercials said it all. In the guise of a statement, it was a seemingly a question that Sony was posing to the world: “It’s a Sony, isn’t that enough said?”

The tinge of arrogance in that tagline is hard to miss, in retrospect, especially after the rest of the consumer electronics world has caught up with the Japanese giant in quite a few areas, and indeed even surpassed it in some. But if ever any brand had legitimate claims to glory and global greatness, it’s Sony, the brand that gave the world legendary products such as the Walkman, the compact disc, the Betamax tape, the vaunted Trinitron TV followed by the Bravia, the PlayStation and several other innovations.

Of late though, it seemed that the assembly line that churned out new innovations at Sony had started to go slow. But then they sprung the new M9 InZone gaming monitor on the world!

The M9 is Sony’s first foray into computer monitors. With PlayStation users already using monitors from various other brands to build their gaming set-up, Sony must have thought that the opportunity was ripe to keep these users in the family by introducing a monitor.

Enter the M9 Inzone. In essence a stripped-down version of Sony’s Bravia TV in size to make it more suitable for gamers. The 27-inch InZone M9 delivers a high-end gaming experience, boasting impressive performance akin to the Bravia line-up but tailored to the demands of gamers, both PC and PS5, with its 4K resolution to its full array local dimming.

The full array local dimming, which utilises 96 dimming zones to enhance backlighting control, allows for more accurate rendering of HDR content, resulting in vibrant and detailed visuals. The monitor's 4K panel, coupled with a claimed peak brightness of 600 nits, ensures a captivating viewing experience, especially for HDR content.

Gamers will love the M9’s 144Hz variable refresh rate, Nvidia G-Sync compatibility and auto low-latency mode (ALLM). PS5-specific features, such as auto HDR tone mapping and auto genre picture mode, further enhance the gaming experience, providing seamless integration with Sony's console. Fast-paced games, such as Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, shine on the M9, showcasing its prowess in handling both action and atmospheric scenes with finesse.

In our time with the M9, one of its most impressive aspects was the colour accuracy, which was no surprise, given Sony has the excellent Bravia TV engine to fall back on. The IPS LCD panel of the M9 delivered true-to-life colours that were finely balanced between warm and cold tones. Unlike monitors from a lot of other competing brands, Sony did not believe in adding any artificial vibrancy to the colours, making for a very natural colour reproduction, whether you were using it for gaming or just to watch a movie while taking a break from annihilating your enemies on Minecraft.

The response time was equally impressive, and the refresh rate never faltering to tackle the fast action of combat games with aplomb. The contrast left a tad bit to be desired, however, with the blacks looking slightly greyish when the M9 was used in a low-light setting.

The audio, too, was a bit of a let-down, but that is not unexpected in a gaming monitor. To be fair to Sony, none of its competitors, though more experienced in this field, offer monitors with decent audio. But we expected more for Dh3,499.

Aesthetically, while the M9 has a stylish design with great fit and finish, the included stand lacks certain adjustments found in competing models, limiting ergonomic flexibility. Connectivity-wise, there are two HDMI 2.1 ports, a DisplayPort and USB C video support, but Sony does not pack any bundled cables with this piece of kit, so you will have to provide your own and push up the overall cost of ownership in the process.

And that cost is the major gripe in the M9. With fancier gaming monitors available at comparable prices, Sony’s maiden foray into the segment should have been more reasonably priced. Gone are the days when simply sporting the Sony brand was enough for a mark-up. Nevertheless, the M9 InZone is a commendable first effort from Sony in the monitor space.

Sony M9 InZone gaming monitor

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