HDTV Best Price Blog

Vizio Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2008 surpassed Sony Corp. to become the United States’ second-largest flat-panel television brand, as increasingly value-conscious consumers embraced the company’s combination of competitive price/performance, increased marketing efforts, popular retail channels and rising brand recognition, according to iSuppli Corp.

U.S.-based value brand Vizio accounted for 14.3 percent of flat panel TV - i.e. LCD and plasma–unit shipments in the United States in the fourth quarter, up an impressive 3.11 percentage points from 11.2 percent in the third quarter. In contrast, premium brands Sony and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. suffered declines of 0.42 percent and 0.62 percent respectively during the same period.

Sony’s share declined to 13.5 percent in the fourth quarter, down from 13.9 percent in the third, allowing Vizio to take the No. 2 rank, behind only Samsung with its 20.2 percent share.

Vizio in the fourth quarter posted the second-best performance among the Top-5 flat-panel television suppliers in the United States on a percentage basis. Only No. 4 brand Panasonic exceeded Vizio’s results, with its shipments rising by 3.12 percent.

The attached table presents iSuppli’s ranking of flat-panel television brands by unit shipments in the fourth quarter of 2008.

“Vizio’s success in the fourth quarter was partly due to increasing brand recognition, courtesy of the company’s strong marketing efforts and retail strategy,” said Riddhi Patel, principal analyst, television systems, for iSuppli.

“A cornerstone of Vizio’s selling strategy is Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, which features the company’s LCD-TV products. U.S. consumers in November and December 2008 bought more televisions at Wal-Mart than at Best Buy, the first time this has occurred in the two years iSuppli has been conducting research in this area.”

In September and October 2008, flat panel-television unit sales at Best Buy exceeded those of Wal-Mart by 2.9 and 3.3 percentage points respectively,” according to a survey of U.S. consumers conducted by iSuppli’s U.S. Television Consumer Preference Analysis service. However, in November, flat panel-television sales at Wal-Mart exceeded those at Best Buy by 2.3 percentage points, making Wal-Mart the biggest flat panel seller in the United States. In December, the sales gap grew to 2.9 points.

“This is an indication that in the present tough economic climate, consumers are becoming less brand conscious and prefer televisions that they perceive to have good picture quality and that are less expensive compared to the competition, rather than seeking models with a lot of extra features,” Patel added.

The attached figure presents the results of iSuppli’s survey of U.S. consumer television retailer preferences.

Bumpy times for flat-panel televisions
The U.S. television market has been impacted by the recession and the past two quarters have been a struggle for brands and retailers. Consumer spending has decelerated and sales of big-ticket items like LCD-TVs have not grown as quickly as in the past.

This decelerating growth and stiffening competition has led to a shakeout among television brands.

“Brands are finding it hard to survive in the current economic climate amid tough price competition,” Patel said. “Olevia LCD-TVs are no longer available since the company filed for bankruptcy in 2008. Pioneer has announced its exit from the television market. During 2009, a few value brands will disappear from the market. The brands that survive will be the ones that either own or have very close ties with the LCD and plasma panel makers, allowing them to keep their costs down.”

Technorati Tags: LCD TV, Vizio LCD TV

Vizio will abandon its plasma TV efforts so it can focus solely on its LCD TV line that helped give U.S. consumers another low-cost brand to choose from when shopping for a new TV.
Although the Vizio web site still shows several plasma models, the company didn’t announce any new plasma units during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) last month in Las Vegas.  If Vizio and Pioneer both exit the plasma TV market, then U.S. consumers will be left choosing from Samsung, Panasonic or LG Electronics.

Vizio’s current plasma TV inventory is dwindling fast, so consumers interested in purchasing a Vizio-made plasma TV should likely hurry.

The news comes days after rumors surfaced indicating Pioneer will also abandon its plasma TV efforts so it can focus on LCDs.

Manufacturers are able to charge more for LCD TVs and can sell them much faster and easier than plasma TVs.  Furthermore, manufacturers are able to generate higher revenue from LCD TV sales, and shoppers interested in environmental friendly technology avoided plasma TVs in the past.

Moving forward, Vizio will focus on adding new features to its LCD line of TV models.  For example, Vizio is putting the finishing touches on its first LED-backlit LCD TV, which will be available in July — it’s a 55-inch model using 240Hz technology, and will cost $1,999.

Although it has carved out a niche market for itself as a low-priced TV manufacturer since its creation five years ago, Vizo understands that it must branch out and offer a wider variety of products.  Aside from TVs, Vizio plans to launch its first standalone Blu-ray player in May for $199, which will be significantly less than most other Blu-ray players available on the market today.

Technorati Tags: cheap LCD TV, cheap LCD TVs, Cheap Plasma TV, cheap plasma TVs

LCD TVs today are made available not only for rich individuals but also for the average earners. With the discount coupons that are almost everywhere on the internet, you can get even cheaper LCD TVs. But you must also distinguish which of these discounts are true. There are other discounts that are just posing and covering up for the low quality of the product. Usually the low quality products are second hand appliances.

When you are going to make your purchase, make sure that you buy from reputable dealers who sell products that are made by those well known companies like Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and Toshiba. Do not buy those cheap, unbranded products because you will just have a lot of problems in the end. You will find it hard to buy new parts and there might be no warranty on these products.

So whenever you shop online, go to those online shops which have many positive feedbacks because chances are they will be real deals. As a matter of fact you can find many cheap Samsung LCD TVs that are being sold online today. There is a Samsung 1080p LCD TV that can be bought at a very reasonable price. Even though most of the prices are quite high, you just have to know the right place to look for these discounts so you can use them and get special prices.

If you are on a budget, there are still cheap LCD TVs out there if you have the patience to browse on the internet. Reputed online stores have great bargains which may be affordable for you.

Technorati Tags: best LCD TV, cheap LCD TV, cheap LCD TVs, Cheap Plasma TV

Cheap LCD TVs can mean at least a couple of different things.

1. It can mean buying a cheap LCD TV from a no-name, or value brand.

2. It can also mean buying an LCD TV from a name brand such as Sony, Panasonic, Sharp, Hitachi, Samsung etc at a discounted price.

Our usual recommendation is that you’ll generally get the best TV for yourself with option 2, but there are certainly no-name brands who offer genuine value - meaning a good quality picture and good TV reliability. The catch is working out which of the no-name brands are the good ones.

We don’t recommend buying a no-name brand from e-Bay for example. Lot’s of fly-by-night’ operators operate there.

So if you want to go for option 1, you need to do plenty of research before committing your cash. You want to know about both the brand and the company you’re buying from.

Flat Panel TV Reliability

The Annual Product Reliability Survey conducted by the US organization Consumer Reports says Panasonic’s 50 plasma is the best TV overall, Hitachi is the worst LCD TV and Philips the worst plasma TV.

It’s surprising to see those tHitachi and Philips in the least reliable list. I don’t know if no-nam ebrands were included in the reliability survey.

Consumer Reports also reported that LCD and plasma TVs generally require few repairs during the first three years of use (flat panel sets overall had a 3% annual repair rate). This means that if you buy extended warranties on flat panel TVs, you would be statistically-speaking, wasting your money.

They also found that Panasonic made the most reliable flat panel TVs and other brands with low repair rates included Sony, Samsung, Toshiba and JVC in LCD TVs and Pioneer and Samsung in plasma TVs.

What’s Going To Happen To Prices Of LCD TVs?

Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple, usually tells it like it is. He wrote a famous letter to early buyers of the first generation iPhone, who were angry that its price was lowered by $200 just a few months after its launch. Steve said that price drops in technology were a given and that: This is life in the technology lane . If you always wait for the next price cut or to buy the new improved model, you’ll never buy any technology product because there is always something better and less expensive on the horizon. Well, Steve could have been talking about LCD TVs because every evolution of LCD TVs has seen either the price drop, or the screen size increase.

LCD TV - Value For Money?

Is a Walmart private brand. Some of the screens e.g. the 23 inch are made by Tatung in Taiwan (who also make screens for Apple). Some of the larger sizes are made by Onida in India. I’d say its likely that other manufacturers will be used as time goes by. So how does the quality compare with other brands? You could ask the question a different way - Should I go High End or Low End? We always say the same thing - its up to you to choose which picture and features suit you best. Not everybody can tell the differences between brands. If you can’t see (or hear) any difference between different LCD TVs you’re paying for brand.

How To Buy An LCD TV At A Good Price

Plasma TVs were the first flat panel television option, but now, LCD TVs have moved past them in sales and popularity. Most people would say LCD TVs compete with plasma TVs in terms of picture quality and often beat them. LCD televisions have other benefits compared with plasmas TVs. They are easier to maintain, claim a longer picture life and they use less power. Most new LCD TVs support high definition signals so they have sharper picture. How and where Can I Buy a Cheap LCD Television? Time is definitely on your side when buying an LCD TV (and a plasma) because prices are falling steadily. You can expect at least a 20% price drop over the next year.

Home Theatre Buying Tips

When you walk into the home theatre system area of your local consumer electronics outlet, the multitude of choices are daunting. Everything is gleaming under the fluorescent lights, very new and very shiny, each system seemingly saying “buy me, buy me”. Before you get to that point, there are many things you need to understand and realize to help you make the best possible decision for your home and your wallet. First you need to determine which room of your home will house this home theatre system. Note that if you are going for the very large screen like 50 or 60 inches or more, the best viewing is from about 10 to 12 feet away.

Get Yourself A Good Deal On An LCD TV

Plasma TVs were the first flat panel television option, but now, LCD TVs have moved past them in sales and popularity. Most people would say LCD TVs compete with plasma TVs in terms of picture quality and often beat them. LCD televisions have other benefits compared with plasmas TVs. They are easier to maintain, claim a longer picture life and they use less power. Most new LCD TVs support high definition signals so they have sharper picture. How and where Can I Buy a Cheap LCD Television? Time is definitely on your side when buying an cheap LCD TV (and a plasma) because prices are falling steadily. You can expect at least a 20% price drop over the next year.

Technorati Tags: best LCD TV, cheap LCD TV, cheap LCD TVs, Cheap Plasma TV

In the present market, cheap LCD TVs are in great demand due to their extraordinary features. Their class apart features have replaced traditional televisions very soon. Initially, when cheap LCD TVs were launched there were the problems like angular resolution and ghosting problem. But, with increasing of cost effective technologies, now cheap LCD TV is no more technically compromised. These are now as technically advanced as costlier LCD TV.
LCD or also called Liquid Crystal Display comes with a flat panel that embedded with liquid crystal for displaying images. Two glass panels are filled with liquid crystal. When electricity passes through these crystals, pixels light up and as a result images produced.

Earlier it was Plasma that was ruling the TV market but after the arrival of LCD monitors, it soon replaced Plasma TV and of course traditional TV. These LCD TVs provide same picture quality as Plasma TV, but come at very low cost. With respect to traditional and Plasma TVs, LCD consumes less electricity. Also you do not need to put much effort for its maintenance. The screens of these TVs are also long lasting as compare to any other screens.
If compared with any other TVs, these LCD TVs are much more better than others. These TVs provide digital pictures and sharper images and as good as Plasma. You can never enjoy the quality of digital pictures with traditional TV. Due to its light weight and sleek designs, it is portable and can be placed anywhere in a room without taking much space. With its dynamic contrast ratio, viewer can enjoy clear and sharp images.

Its increasing popularity made it more demanding in the market and more companies are coming up with their LDC TV. Due to high competition in the TV market, these TVs are coming with low price as well as with more features, which has now made it much affordable to middle class people.
Some of the major companies that are in the the business of manufacturing LCD TV are Samsung, Haier, Sony and many more. These companies are leading firms that offer LCD TV with advanced features, like colour enhancer, dynamic contrast ratio and crystal clear panel to offer world-class quality picture. Many such TVs come with childlock feature to block some channels for children that are objectionable to parents.

Many other useful features that some of these latest cheap LCD TVs possess including teletext, infra-red remote control, digital electronic programming manuals, digital TV tuner and all these are quite user-friendly.
For having the best LCD TV, you need do little market survey to own the best LCD TV. With many online retailers you can compare the prices and can find many lucrative deals.

Technorati Tags: best LCD TV, cheap LCD TV, cheap LCD TVs, Cheap Plasma TV

Television has become a very useful thing in our life and cheap LCD TVs become the number one choice for consumers. This is an entertaining-cum-informative device. The demand of television has been increasing rapidly. Nowadays, traditional televisions have become outdated products these days and the users are now running towards new technological LCD TVs.

LCD TV is completely opposite from a traditional television and is designed to offer high portability. Its liquid crystal display screen allows the users to enjoy seamless viewing experiences. The main advantages of LCD TV include dynamic contrast ratio, viewing angles, high resolution and a sharp image resolution. This wide television is highly appreciated by the users. Its high resolution sharp images give crystal display quality. There are many electronic brands, which manufacture high quality LCD TVs. Some of the names in LCD TV include Samsung, Philips, Haier, LG and many more. Due to the cut-throat competition in the market, these brands have cut down the prices of their LCD TVs. There are many varieties of Cheap LCD TVs, which are easily available in the market. The Cheap LCD TVs mainly cater to the middle and low income group customers. The users need to undertake a comprehensive and thorough survey of the market. This process help the users to get the best deals at the most reasonable prices. Plasma TV is another advance technology television. LCD and Plasma TV, both have flat screens but a LCD TV is far better than a Plasma TV.

Plasma TV comes with best picture, best contrast ratio quality, which offer better pictures. Whereas, a LCD TV allows the users to play video games, or use it as a computer monitor and is a safer option. LCD TV consumes 30-40% less power than a Plasma TV. The main comparison between both the devices is that a LCD TV, usually, comes in sizes below 32 inches and plasma TV in 32 inches and above sizes.

LCD television are digitally rich in LCD technology. The LCD TV performed flawlessly, which has totally changed customer’s preferences. The market trends ‘push’ the manufactures to make LCD TVs. This reliable product works over quality, functionality, performance and availability of TV solutions.

Samsung is one of the leading players in the world of LCD TV. The Samsung LCD TVs deliver high quality and give amazing viewing experience to the users. The Samsung LCD TVs are available at cheap rates with high quality. Some of the best Samsung LCD TVs include the Samsung LA19R71 (Bordeaux ), Samsung LA26R71 (Bordeaux), Samsung LA32S8 (Sonoma Trenz) and Samsung LA32R8 (Bordeaux Art). These televisions come with advanced features with an outstanding picture resolution. These are filled with colour enhancers and offer dynamic contrast ratio, which give amazing viewing experience. The crystal clear panel offers world-class picture quality, by which the users can experience high resolution pictures. Some of its additional and user friendly features include Infrared remote control, teletext, digital TV tuner and digital electronic programming manual.

The Samsung LCD TVs are very much in demand. They are cheap LCD TVs that promise world class entertainment.

Technorati Tags: best LCD TV, cheap LCD TV, cheap LCD TVs, Cheap Plasma TV