The Sony produces (once properly adjusted - more on that later) an excellent overall image, and at its best, some of the best black levels I have seen to date (it relies on a dynamic iris, so contrast varies with the scene).
The image itself is very natural, a key strength, which reminds me of the Samsung SP-H710AE. By comparison, most other 1080p projectors seem initially to have more wow factor, but after watching the Sony for a while, my own adjusted BenQ PE-8720, for example, seems to be oversaturated, more contrasty, overall, less real or natural than the Sony. On the downside, the Sony definitely isn't going to be considered one of the sharper projectors out there, nor one of the brightest. It's brightness, I should note, though, was better than expected, since the Sony is usually considered one of the less bright around. I didn't find that to be true either measuring it, or watching it.