Flat Panel Trends - Thin is In and Speed Kills

[admin]

Flat panel televisions are continuing to transform in teh marketplace. This year we saw a great number of companies looking to go "thin". While flat panels are traditionally advertised as being hangable on the wall, consumers have been reluctant to do so. With this year's batch of new products it looks like the trends may shift and these LCD televisions might be finding their way onto the walls of many consumers' homes.

Discuss "Flat Panel Trends - Thin is In and Speed Kills" here. Read the article.

 

[gbenfield]

Great summary - I can't wait to see some of the LED backlit sets. Any word on when they'll hit the market?

 

[mudrummer99]

Great summary - I can't wait to see some of the LED backlit sets. Any word on when they'll hit the market?

BBY Magnolia stores should start having the 950 series of the samsungs anytime now, my store received ours on thurs.

Mike

 

[IndoSlim]

Sony's new 240Hz TVs...

Check out the reposted press release here:

http://www.avrev.com/home-theater-news/lcd-hdtv-news/sony-debuts-240hz-lcd-hdtv.html

 

[darien87]

Flat panel televisions are continuing to transform in teh marketplace. This year we saw a great number of companies looking to go "thin". While flat panels are traditionally advertised as being hangable on the wall, consumers have been reluctant to do so. With this year's batch of new products it looks like the trends may shift and these LCD televisions might be finding their way onto the walls of many consumers' homes.

Discuss "Flat Panel Trends - Thin is In and Speed Kills" here. Read the article.

God I love Asian girls.

Good to see Samsung is pushing the envelop of LCD technology. Motion blur is about the only complaint I have with my current Samsung. Maybe I'll look at getting one of the new TV's and moving my current one to the bedroom.

 

[itschris]

I'm wondering when larger sets - 60, 65, 70, etc will start coming to market at a reasonable price. For me, I guess I'll be sticking with my DLP until then. I just don't want to give up the bigger picture for the cool factor. But damn... I do wanna be cool!

 

[Audioholics]

I personally think that larger flat panels will start to become all the rage when they get to be <1-inch in thickness overall. Bottom line, however, is that it is up to the production lines to creep up the sizing, and it's just too darn convenient (right now) to pump out 37-, 40-, and 47-inch panels given their current level of (successful) yields.

 

[itschris]

I personally think that larger flat panels will start to become all the rage when they get to be <1-inch in thickness overall. Bottom line, however, is that it is up to the production lines to creep up the sizing, and it's just too darn convenient (right now) to pump out 37-, 40-, and 47-inch panels given their current level of (successful) yields.

I would think that the sweet spot for TV size would be about 55". I think that it would fit in most homes size-wise and give many folks, even those not into harder core HT the "big screen" experience while maintaning normalcy in the room. Granted an 80" screen becomes a focal point and a lot of people just aren't into that. I'm shocked that so many people still get 40 and 42 inch tv's, but you're right though, that's what's selling. Hell, everytime I go to SAMs, someone's walking to the parking lot with a Samsung 42" tv.

I do think the typical size will gravitate more to the 50" mark and then I'm hoping we'll start seeing larger flat panel displays.

How long, realistically, until we see a nice quality 70" LCD or Plasma in the $2500 to $3000 range?

 

[allargon]

A 42" TV is perfectly fine for the average 6-8 ft. viewing distance in a typical family room. Despite the push for 1080p, 720p is still high def. A 42" display is around $1k or less. A 50" display is usually $1500-$2k. That's a heckuva difference in price.

My 57" display was $1500. I would've loved to spend an extra $1k + tax to get a 73" display, but I just couldn't really justify it. (Granted, I later spent that extra $1k on HD DVD's, etc. But, I couldn't initially justify it!)

 

[Junkman]

Thin is in & Sound Quality is Out!

Thin may be the latest and greatest trend in TVs, but the sound quality of the built-in speakers is getting hammered!

I've been trying to find a 26" or 32" TV to squeeze into a space where it won't be hooked up to external speakers. I can't even get to hear the built-in speakers in some of the stores I have been to, but I'm pretty disappointed in what I have listened to so far. What kills me is that -- like most other review sites -- even the Audioholics LCD TV reviews don't evaluate sound quality. Hopefully this will change.

Does any have any recommendations for 26" or 32" TVs that sound good?

Has anyone found a review site that actually evaluates the built-in speakers?

 

[wunderkind]

^ because Audioholics will likely have an AVR and fancy speakers.

 

[aberkowitz]

Does any have any recommendations for 26" or 32" TVs that sound good?

Has anyone found a review site that actually evaluates the built-in speakers?

I have a 32" Sharp Aquos that's I moved to the bedroom and I use the built-in speakers. I would never describe them as great, but they're good enough for watching movies and TV in bed.

 

[roshi]

I too have a Sharp Aquos, but 37 and I think it has good build-in speakers. Generally I think they sound better than most Tv's I heard, even big old CRTs. Can't beat the external speakers though, that's for sure...

 

[Audioholics]

I think flat panels over 55-inches will never really be the dominant selling size just because of bulkiness and weight. Now perhaps when these displays go to a new format that is incredibly thin and light that will change... Right now I think even a $3000 70-inch LCD is a hard sell to someone trying to fit it into their home and situate it into an average sized living room.

The nice thing, though is that by the time TVs drop to those prices, the 42-inchers would run about $500 in comparison - so bring it on!