2009 Sees Growth in Flat-Panel Market

Let's face it, 2009 won't exactly go down as a positive year for business, growth, or prosperity. Foreclosures were widespread, businesses were forced to close their doors, people lost their life savings, and many industries saw little or no profit. But believe it or not, one industry saw growth and sales: the flat-panel TV industry.

According to DisplaySearch, "a leading provider of reliable information, highly insightful analysis, and industry events specifically focused on the display supply chain and display-related industries," the flat-panel TV market saw a growth in excess of 32%. The growth rate is similarly to that of 2008 and that type of growth is expected to continue in 2010. Due to new technology such as LED backlights, internet connection, and 3-D, will grow 10 million to 228 million units this year.

DisplaySearch believes LCD TVs will see the strongest growth this year with a 24% increase from 2009. Plasmas are expected to increase around 6% this year, shipping more than 15 million units. DisplaySearch also says that CRT TVs will eventually fade from the market all together. In 2009, they saw a 40% decrease and this year, a 36% decrease is expected.

One reason for last year's dramatic increase is thought to be price. The average LCD TV price fell about 24% last year and this year, they are expected to fall another 5% (10% for plasmas).

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Planning your next trade show or big event and looking for a Plasma Rental, or large screen Monitor Rental? Then call 800-736-8772 for affordable AV Rentals nationwide!

Panasonic's 2010 Plasmas & LCDs are Awesome!

Panasonic launched it's new line of Plasma and LCD TVs in January, and last week they gave a "formal demonstration" of their new televisions, according to CNET.com. The TVs, which will be in stores over the next few months, are said to have lots of great new features and a lot better picture quality than previous models. Here is a look at what you can expect from the company, according to CNET.

The Panasonic TC-PVT25 series is 3-D compatible and comes with a pair of 3D glasses. It has a 96Hz refresh option for 1080p/24 compatibility, short-throw phosphors, Pro Setting user menu with advanced controls, and ISFccc mode. The 50 and 54-inch models will be available in May or June and a price has yet to be determined.

The TC-PG25 and TC-PG20 series both have infinite black panel with 5,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. They are THX certified, feature VieraCast, which adds Netflix, Pandora, Twitter, Fox Sports, and other content, and Skype video calling. They have optional Wi-Fi connection, VGA-style PC input, two USB ports, and an image viewer that handle both video and photos. Aside from a few cosmetic reasons and their compatibility with a network camera. The TC-PG25 series includes, 42, 46, 50, and 54-inch models. They will be available in March or April and range from $1199.95 to $1999.95. The TC-PG20 series will only include 50 and 54-inch models, and will also be available in March/April, but prices are currently unknown.

The TC-PS2 series features 2,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, an improve anti-reflective filter, and Clean Touch bezel. The 42, 46, 50, and 54-inch models will be available in February and March and range from $899.95 to $1,599.95. The 58 and 65-inch models will be available in June and will cost $1,899.95 and $2,799.95 respectively.

The TC-PU2 series has 1080p resolution and both the 42 and 50-inch models will available in March for $799.95 and $1,099.95 respectively. The TC-PC2 features 720p resolution and an image viewer for photos. The 42, 46, and 50-inch TVs will be available in March or April for $599.95, $699.95, and $799.95.

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Planning your next trade show or big event and looking for a Plasma Rental, or large screen Monitor Rental? Then call 800-736-8772 for affordable AV Rentals nationwide!

Bang and Olufsen 46-inch BeoVision 10-46 LCD

Nearly everybody has a high-def LCD tv in their living room nowadays but that doesn't stop companies from trying to make the biggest and baddest one of them all. Competition in the tv market is fierce right now and each manufacturer is trying to out do everybody else, including Bang and Olfusen.

Bang and Olfusen have just unveiled a 46-inch LCD with some very nice high-end built-in speakers. As far as uniqueness goes, the BeoVision 10-46 is practically identical to the already existing BeoVision 10, which is a 40-inch LCD. Spec wise the BeoVision 10-46 offers an aluminum frame as well as a 200Hz refresh rate and LED backlight.

High-end speakers are built into the bottom of the tv and offer very good sound quality. What is really going to attract consumers is the design of the 10-46. The tv is a wall mounted LCD that measures 5.4cm thin and 46 inches diagonally. As far as other details go there really are none though it is thought that the 10-46 is to be exactly the same as the BeoVision 10 so refer to that for a general idea.

This tv is set to be released in April in "selected markets" which generally means not the US. There is no official word on pricing as of yet but the BeoVision 10 was released with a price that came just under $10,000 so be prepared to drop a pretty penny on this one as well.

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Planning your next trade show or big event and looking for a Plasma Rental, or large screen Monitor Rental? Then call 800-736-8772 for affordable AV Rentals nationwide!

New: LG's 15-inch OLED TV Coming in 2010

Last week, LG, the world's second biggest TV brand, released a set of photos of its new OLED 15-inch screen and in September, they will be showing off a model at the IFA 2009 consumer electric show in Berlin. The television is set to start selling in Korea by November 2009, and overseas in 2010. As far as affordability goes, be prepared to dip into your life savings for this one. If Sony's two-year-old 11-inch XEL-1, the world's first OLED TV, is any indication, it retails in the United States for a cool $2,500.

The television set will use organic display technology and is the largest commercial model to do so, so far. These active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AM-OLED) displays use self-glowing materials, have better picture quality, consume less power and are thinner than liquid crystal displays (LCD). Compared to LCDs, the much higher price has kept it from becoming a mainstream, mass-produced technology for TVs and PC monitors, however, OLED screens are starting to make their way to high-end mobile phones.

According to LG, DisplaySearch research projects OLED TVs to reach 320,000 units in 2011 and 2.33 million by 2013. LG says it also plans to unveil a 40-inch OLED in the "not too distant future."

The Eco-Friendly MutiSync E222W

The amazing, 22-inch, eco-friendly MultiSync E222W from NEC is set to join our world in early July. It allows you to go green with its Eco Mode that reduces power consumption and heat generation. It also includes Intelligent Power Management and an off timer. These features will assist in energy conservation and reduction of carbon emissions by switching to a low-power state automatically when the monitor is on but not in use. The MultiSync E222W consumes 50% less power and contains half the mercury content of most LCD displays. It is Energy Star 5.0 and EPEAT Silver compliant.

The E222W also contains some consumer pleasing specs. It has an ErgoDesign adjustable stand that features 4-way ergonomic design including: height-adjust, tilt, swivel, and pivot. It has 1680x1050 16:10 resolution, 250 cd/m2 brightness, and a fantastic 5 millisecond response time. With the reasonable price tag of $269, this monitor is definitely something to look forward to this summer.

World's Thinnest LCD From LG

It seems like everything we own these days has to be the slimmest or the smallest. We have to have the smallest phones, the slimmest computer and now even the slimmest t.v. With such an emphasis on size, there are different opportunities for things to happen. One of which being the goal of having the "Worlds Thinnest LCD". With their new 42in and 47in LCD tv's, LG has accomplished the feat of world's thinnest LCD.

These new tv's are the thinnest 1080p LCD TV's to use edge-lit LED backlights. These tiny tots come in at an incredible 5.9mm (0.23in) of thickness. Considering these tv's are made by LG, you can bet that the company is going to incorporate some of their signature components into the tv's. Added into the tv's is LG Display's LGS, or Light Guide Sheet, Technology. This incorporation cut the thickness in half compared to the typical LGP, or Light Guide Plates.

The tv's do pretty well performance wise. They both have an improved color gamut switching from the 72% NTSC, which was standard, to 80% NTSC. The tv's have a motion picture response time (MPRT) of 8ms. This is due to the incorporation of 120Hz technology, which reduces motion blur. Both the 42in and the 47in come in with 178/178 viewing angles, 450 cd/m2 brightness, and 10-bit LCD panels. The 47in model consumes roughly 130W of power and the 42in consumes 110W.

If your worried about transporting these tv's or mounting them on your wall, thinking they are too heavy, then I can tell you there is nothing to worry about. The 42in model weighs in at around 13.42lbs (6.1kg) with the 47in coming in at 16.06lbs (7.3kg). This is half the weight of all the typical LCD TV's on the market that also use CCFL backlights.

These tv's are definitley slim. But is slim always better? I guess we will find out when these hit store shelves later on this year.

Ghostbust Your Plasma

Have you ever turned off your TV or monitor and there was a ghostly image on the screen? This ghost is referred to as plasma burn. Plasma burn occurs when there is uneven wear in phosphors on a phosphor based screen, whenever a static image is left on the screen for too long; especially a high contrast image the potential for burn in is there.

Newer plasma based tubes include burn-in reduction features. Screen savers and pixel shifting help with the prevention of burn in. Pixel shifting is a slight unnoticeable shift in the image a by one or two pixels. If a ghost does happen many new sets can blast a burn-in with a white image for several minutes to hour. Cable and satellite service providers help with preventing burn in by giving you the option of changing pillar boxes that can also burn in by changing them from black to grey.

Potential for burn-in is greatest during the first 100 or so hours of use, during that time if you keep the contrast low and avoid showing static images or letterbox bars on the screen for long stretches of time it will help prevent any burn-ins. You might get some image retention once in awhile if you look hard enough after hours of static images, but even then it's temporary, not permanent. Video games may be a worry because of static logos that are in the corner of the screen but as long as you wait till after the first 100 hours before any long use it should be fine. Just keep mixing it up. Also, cheaper models of TVs are more prone to burn-in like the Insignia, but a good rule is not to go too cheap if you want to play it safe.

JVC's New HD LCD Televisions Unveiled

JVC has launched a new four-model line of LCD televisions which will feature full HD resolution and a "sleek new cabinet design". Each type of TV model will of course feature 1080/24/30p and will range in size fro mthe 32-inch LT-32J300 to the 52-inc LT-52J300.


The new line of TV's will include a unique dynamic backlight in order to deliver an increased contrast between the blacks and whites on screen. JVC will also be installing an easy to navigate on-screen display with drop down menu's for improved user-interface. The TV's will also come with JVC's Smart Picture technology chip that will analyze source brightness for better images and also a timer for scheduled power up times. All four sets will come with thre HDMI inputs, two component inputs, two S-Video inputs, PC input, SPDIF input and analog video output to ensure maximum compatibility with other media devices.

Availability:

Model Available
LT-32J300 March
LT-42J300 March
LT-46J300 March
LT-52J300 August

See here for more information on JVC's New HD TV Line.

Samsung Releases New Series 9 LCD Televisions

The new Series 9 is Samsungs new flagship line of televisions. They are literally the best LCD Televisions you can buy. The series includes a 46 inch model that costs currently $2,899.99 on Amazon and a 55 inch model for $4,229.95 on Amazon. The technical names are Samsung LN55A950 and Samsung LN46A950. So what makes these televisions so special anyway? Well here is a quick look at the specs:

Native Full HD (1080p, 1920 x 1080) resolution
4ms response time
120Hz refresh rate
LED-backlit technology that makes the darkest blacks ever for a LCD
A said contrast ratio of 2,000,000 to 1
4 HDMI ports
Energy Stat compliance

The series nine also comes with all the features you expect out of a television at this price. You can basically plug anything into it and it has a bunch of features to let you stream movies from your computer onto it. The real story here though is this new back-lit technology that allows such amazing contrast ratios. Pretty much what the new back-lit technology does is on a normal LCD you constantly have the back LED’s bleeding through the blacks so you are not able to get a great contrast ratio or true black. With the back-lit technology though, the television is able to turn off the LED’s in certain areas so that you can receive true blacks. It’s a really nice feature and is the main selling point of the television. The television also looks great and it is said to be really sturdy so you wont have to worry about your new $4000 TV falling if someone accidently bumps into it. Overall the TV is a great Plasma TV alternative and is a must buy if you want the best picture possible.