Philips' 1080p plasma will cost $5,500, not $3,500.
(Credit: Philips)Sometimes when things seem too good to be true, they're indeed too good to be true. Alas, such is the case for Philips' new 63PFP7422D 63-inch 1080p plasma TV, which was announced at CES with a price tag of $3,500. Turns out $3,500 is the price for the company's current 63-inch plasma model, which features 768p or 1,366x768 resolution. (Really, that makes it your basic 720p HDTV). The new price for the new set is actually $5,500. Oops.
For the record, I did have sneaking suspicion that the price was perhaps overly aggressive, but Philips reps at CES assured me that the only mistake in the initial press release was that the new plasma model did not include a motorized stand. I told them I could live without the motorized stand for $3,500.
Of course, with flat-panel TV prices falling the way they are, by the time Philips 63-inch 1080p plasma comes out around the middle of this year, its street price may dip below $4,000. But for now, it's $5,500. No word yet on if the pricier version of the new model includes a motorized stand. For five grand, it should, right?
First there was 1080p. Now there's something called "Quad Full" or 3,840x2,160 resolution, which Westinghouse showed off in a 56-inch LCD HD monitor at this year's Consumer Electronics Show. The company says that equates to a resolution greater than 8 megapixels and that the LCD offers "stunning, never-before-seen picture reproduction."
Westinghouse's upcoming 52-inch 1080p LCD television
The Quad Full monitor may be the flashy headline act, but the real meat of the story is that Westinghouse is serving up several new LCD televisions, with a full lineup of moderately priced 1080p models in 42-, 47-, and 52-inch sizes. The company has also announced additional all-in-one models that feature a built-in DVD player. A new line of photo frames is on tap as well, and judging from an early peek at the specs, it should be better than the old line, which wasn't impressive.
Here are the highlights of Westinghouse's offerings for 2007.
1080p LCD HDTVs
TX-F430S series
- 42- and 47-inch models
- 1,920x1,080 native resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 4 HDMI, 2 component, 1 composite, 1 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $2,000 MSRP
TX-F480S series
- 52-inch model
- 1,920x1,080 native resolution
- 6.5ms response time
- Inputs: 4 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in May
- Price not available
1,366x768 LCD HDTVs
Many of the HDTVs in this category have multiple model numbers for what seems to be the same TV. Westinghouse has not announced what the differences are between these models at this time.
SK-42H240S and SK-42H360S
- 42-inch models
- 1,366x768 native resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 2 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $1,700 MSRP
SK-32H520S and SK32540S
- 32-inch models
- 1,366x768 native resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 2 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $950 MSRP
SK-32H590D
- 32-inch model
- Built-in slot-loading DVD player
- 1,366x768 native resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 2 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $1,050 MSRP
SK-26H240S and SK-26H520S
- 26-inch model
- 1,366x768 native resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 2 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $700 MSRP
SK-26H590D
- 26-inch model
- 1,366x768 resolution
- 8ms response time
- Inputs: 2 HDMI, 2 component, 2 composite, 2 S-Video, 1 VGA
- Integrated ATSC tuner
- Available in April
- $800 MSRP
I met with HP this morning to hear how its new MediaSmart TVs work with your Media Center PC ecosystem. (Takeaway: the TVs will play your PC-stored digital media, but you have to use Windows Media Player 11, and FairPlay-protected media from the iTunes Store won't work. Also, the built-in 802.11n wireless networking is a much-needed high-bandwidth touch.) The highlight of the meeting, though, was when a member of HP's PR team stepped in to hand the PR manager giving the presentation a write-up of the just-announced Apple TV device.
HP's MediaSmart TV: better than Apple TV?
(Credit: HP)In a heretofore-unseen display of marketing agility, and before he was even halfway done reading the memo, the flack jumped into a point-for-point breakdown of why the external Apple TV is inferior to the value and functionality of HP's MediaSmart TVs. With MediaSmart you get the PC connectivity functionality built into a 1080p display, but with Apple TV, he cited, you still need the screen, and it will support output up to only 720p. He also pointed to out that while Apple TV will, naturally, play iTunes Store content, the movie selection is limited to about 300 titles, and all from one studio. With HP partnering with CinemaNow, you can download more than 4,000 titles from multiple movie houses directly to a MediaSmart television.
For myself, I like the idea of both, at least based on what I've heard. AppleTV has the benefit of letting you hook it up to any screen you want to, while 1080p output gives the MediaSmart TV the quality edge. I can even see a situation in which you'd connect the Apple TV to a MediaSmart TV, or a similar home network-aware TV. In that scenario, everyone's a winner.
The InFocus Play Big IN1 is due to arrive this spring.
(Credit: InFocus)A handful of all-in-one home-theater projectors have hit the market over the last 18 months, and InFocus jumps into this interesting category with the InFocus Play Big IN1, an inexpensive DLP projector with an integrated DVD player and speaker to output sound. While the info on the unit is a little vague, InFocus says that they are also looking into having an iPod dock for playing back iPod videos, to go along with the DVD player "dock" that attaches to the bottom of the projector.
Here are the details so far:
(Credit:
CNET Networks)
Sony's gargantuan booth at CES 2007 covers a lot of real estate, and it's always packed full of onlookers soaking up the sights and sounds. But the flashy booth hides a dirty little secret: Aside from a handful of headline products, very few of the devices on display are actually new. Instead, the company waits until late February to announce a detailed product plan for the forthcoming year (at which time CNET will have in-depth coverage).
King Bravia
(Credit: CNET Networks)In the meantime, there are a few gems on display in the form of prototypes. Designed to showcase a technology or a proof of concept, these products often lack model numbers and specific details. They're hand-built (or simply plastic mock-ups), and they may or may not make it to your corner big box store in the next 18 to 24 months.
Case in point: Sony has three prototype TVs on display this year. The first was an 82-inch Bravia flat-panel LCD. Given the bank-breaking $33,000 price tag on the just announced 70-inch Bravia, we're guessing this one's absence from the TV aisle won't be missed--and with Sharp's 108-incher already taking the LCD size crown, why bother? Except for the bigger size, specs are otherwise identical to the 70-incher.
Thin...but not thin enough?
(Credit: CNET Networks)Next up was a 55-inch SXRD set. Sony's already got larger 60- and 70-inch models using its proprietary flavor of the LCoS rear-projection technology, but this one utilizes a laser light engine that allows for a wall-mountable 10-inch depth versus the 19-inch thickness a bulb-based light engine requires. (If that sounds familiar, it's because Sony showed a slimmed-down 55-inch SXRD prototype last year as well--sans laser, however.) Sounds intriguing, but we think rear-projection sets at any thickness are going to be a hard sell as the world's love affair with ever more affordable flat-panel TVs continues to grow.
OLEDs make LCDs look fat.
(Credit: CNET Networks)The last--and most impressive--were the OLED samples on display. Small organic light-emitting diodes are already in use in some phones and music players, but manufacturers are constantly working to enlarge them in the hopes that they'll eventually be a viable alternative to LCD and plasma TVs. Sony's showing a decently sized 27-incher with a thickness measured not in inches but in millimeters. It may not yet be ready for prime time, but it's certainly a tantalizing view of what the flat-panel future may hold.
The end may be near for this DLP set.
HP announced its new lineup of HDTVs for 2007, and the biggest news is probably that its well-received DLP (digital light processing) rear-projection sets aren't being refreshed for the new year. Word is that the company will let stores sell through the DLPs still out there, but that's it. The focus for 2007 will be on flat-panel models. It's strange, considering that the company invested heavily in DLP technology.
Although I suggested in a recent column that the future for rear-projection sets was pretty dim, I think it's a shame HP's rear-projection sets may soon be extinct. I liked their look and the hideaway front-panel inputs. Alas, a good design and good reviews don't always translate into big sales.
As for new flat-panel models, HP's trotting out 9 new HDTVs at CES 2007. Highlights include bigger sizes--the LCD models now come in 42- and 47-inch screens--and 1080p support. Two top-end MediaSmart models feature built-in wireless media streaming along with 1080p support.
One of the two new MediaSmart LCD TVs
HP will also offer a couple of new plasmas: a 42-inch and a 50-inch. The specs say they have a 60,000-hour lifespan and, naturally, a VGA input for PC connectivity along with multiple HDMI ports. In fact, all HP's new sets will feature three HDMI ports. The company still hasn't announced pricing or availability, but here's the complete list:
2007 HP Flat Panel Televisions
- HP 1080p LC4276N 42-inch LCD TV
- HP 1080p LC4776N 47-inch LCD TV
- HP 720p LC3272N 32-inch LCD TV
- HP 720p LC3772N 37-inch LCD TV
- HP 720p LC4272N 42-inch LCD TV
- HP PL4272N 42-inch plasma TV
- HP PL5072N 50-inch plasma TV
2007 MediaSmart Televisions
In a smart move, Philips is shifting away from plasma and focusing almost exclusively on LCD TVs in 2007. The notable exception is its moderately priced ($3,500) 63-inch plasma TV, which has more potential than the company's earlier 42- and 50-inch plasma TVs that had to go head-to-head against Panasonic's highly regarded models.
LED is now the light behind Ambilight.
(Credit: Philips)According to Philips, its new Ambilight LCD FlatTVs "range in size from 32- to 52-inches (32PFL7332, 42PFL7432D, 42PFL9832D, 47PFL9732D, 47PFL7432D and 52PFL7432D). The 42-, 47-, and 52-inch models now boast 1080p resolution, Perfect Pixel HD Engine to maximize 1080p content for the best picture, Pixel Plus 3 HD, Digital Natural Motion and ClearLCD, the peak of high-definition (HD) for today's demanding consumer."
Probably the biggest news is that Philips is now using LED to power its Ambilight technology. The company says that, "The LED generates more saturated colors, allows for a more compact set design, and consumes less power than prior models."
Here's a look at the full lineup:
Philips' upcoming Ambilight LCD TVs.
(Credit: Philips)
Ever wanted to connect a video component to a monitor or a projector on the other side of the room but didn't want to run an expensive, unsightly HDMI cable to it? Well, Philips has introduced a set of wireless HDMI "cables" that will allegedly hit stores midyear, with a $300 price tag. I know it sounds a little contradictory to call cables wireless, but hey, I don't write the press releases or name the products.
I guess the point is in order to go the wireless HDMI route you will to connect a transceiver to both your video source and monitor, whether it's a TV or a projector. Unfortunately, the transceivers will require power, so you'll need to plug them into an outlet. They are HDCP-compliant.
Philips' wireless HDMI transceivers.
(Credit: Philips)Philips says, "Wireless HDMI is an in-room solution that can transfer a 1080p signal without any signal loss. The signal is never compressed and retains all the attributes as if it were transmitted through a standard HDMI cable. By operating in the ultra wideband (UWB) range, the wireless cable experiences no interference from traditional devices. It functions free from obstruction of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cordless phones, microwaves, and cell phones. Additionally, the wireless HDMI can be placed anywhere within a 25 foot range--in an entertainment center, in a closet, on the other side of the room--without signal loss or degradation."
We're not quite sure how useful wireless HDMI is, but it's a cool concept, and with long HDMI cables costing hundreds of dollars, we can see how this could be an appealing solutions for those with challenging home theater setups.
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