A1E Loss Of 4K & HDR Content With Netflix & Bluetooth

[MasterMech]

Hello all, I have owned my A1E for the last three years & have had very little problems with it but today I loaded up Netflix & I am unable to watched anything in 4K or HDR/Dolby Vision with the only option being HD.

I did a quick google search & found that with other Sony models when a Bluetooth device is paired to the TV it can cause this exact issue & I do have a pair of headphones I use for watching TV paired.

As soon as I disconnect the headphones from the TV I am able to view content in 4K & HDR/Dolby Vision without issue, as soon as I pair the headphones back again the 4K & HDR/Dolby Vision flags disappear.

I have just updated to the latest firmware v6.6575 to see if that would fix the issue but it still persists.

I can watch HDR content on the Amazon Video app without issue with my Bluetooth headphones paired.

Can anyone else confirm this is the same for them?

I have been watching 4K HDR content via Netflix with my Bluetooth headphones for years & now it seems its broken for some reason.😔

[MasterMech]

Anyone?

[rooobb]

It is something that is related only to Netflix app and was going on for years now (working, not working depending on the app version). The official position now is the one reported in this article https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/support/articles/00202828 but may be putting more pression on Netflix itself it can be solved (as you said other app are working regardless of the BT paired or not)

[MasterMech]

Many thanks for your reply, that is very sad to hear that nothing is being done to resolve the issue. Like I said I have been watching Netflix with my Bluetooth headphones for the last two years without issue.

I did not update the TV before this issue occurred so I guess the Netflix app got updated without my knowledge in the background.

I will try contacting Netflix but I will bet they just blame Sony for the issue.

So this issue also occurs with various other models on Sony TV's & not just the A1E?

[rooobb]

I have the A1 too, but in the article you can see to which tv model apply too.

Be aware that Netflix is a google store app and updated by it without having to update the firmware. You can still disable the automatic update there and, if I remember well, you should be able to uninstall any update on this pecific preinstalled app and find out on alternative store a version that worked before... I didn't do it because I do not use often headphones

[MasterMech]

I see so I can downgrade my my Netflix version or do I need so side load to do that?

[rooobb]

If you want to install a specific version that is not actually available on playstore you have to sideload it

[MasterMech · Accepted solution]

This issue has now been resolved, I updated to the latest firmware (6.7140) & am now able to use my Bluetooth headphones when watching HDR/4K content with the Netflix app.

I contacted Sony support & was initially told this was normal & part of the design of the TV, after telling them twice that I had been using Bluetooth headphones with my TV for the last three years without issue they said they would take a look.

I also contacted Netflix who noted the issue but with no public bug reporting system I have no way of finding out if they fixed the issue or not which is crazy.

Basically its just a "leave it with us" & cross your fingers its magically fixed with no way to track the progress or resolution.

I was probably just really lucky this latest firmware update fixed my problem.