Enjoy Tumbling prices bode well for consumers interested in entertainment technology

Tumbling prices bode well for consumers interested in entertainment technology
Electronics retailers are fighting a sluggish economy, fierce competition for sales and constant technological progress. In response, they are slashing prices, which will be welcome news to consumers wanting the latest home entertainment technology, industry expert John Thomson says.

BY VANCOUVER SUN OCTOBER 9, 2010 BE THE FIRST TO POST A COMMENT


Electronics retailers are fighting a sluggish economy, fierce competition for sales and constant technological progress. In response, they are slashing prices, which will be welcome news to consumers wanting the latest home entertainment technology, industry expert John Thomson says.

"In fact, the 2009 top-of-the-line Panasonic Viera -- which doesn't support 3-D TV-- was priced higher than this year's Viera with 3-D," says Thomson, associate publisher and editorial director of the consumer tech industry magazine MarketNews and the consumer-focused tech publication Here's How. "A combination of large supply and slow sales means that consumers can get some pretty good deals this fall."

In television retail, 3-D TVs and 3-D Blu-ray players are touted as the 'next big thing' -- even though the broadcast industry is struggling to respond to consumer interest. For the moment, 3-D programming is not widely available on broadcast, cable or satellite TV, and there are few 3-D Blu-ray disks available. In addition, the technology still requires viewers to watch what is available using 3-D glasses. But the good news, Thomson says, is "the TVs that can support 3-D are built using top-of-the-line HDTV components, so they are your best buy in terms of 2-D and 3-D picture quality."

LCD, LED and plasma 3-D TVs are becoming mass-market commodities, with models now being offered by LG, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, and Sony. For those who prefer overhead video projectors -- for a bigger screen and a more movie-like experience -- "LG has introduced the CF3D projector, which lets you watch in 3-D using the low-cost passive glasses used in movie theatres," says Greg Tarr, executive editor of TWICE ( This Week in Consumer Electronics) magazine in New York. "This unit also provides excellent HDTV images in 2-D, which you can watch without glasses."
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