First quarter 2009 numbers are in and it appears LCD TV shipment numbers rebounded nicely from a dismal fourth quarter of 2008 as consumers went after sales and low-cost vendors. In a report from DisplaySearch, overall LCD TV sales rose 23% year over year – in large part to aggressive price cuts and the liquidation of Circuit City. Along the way, premium brands such as Sony and Samsung gave way to inexpensive brands such as Vizio which rose to the top of the shipments list – rising from 13% unit share to 19% unit share during the quarter. 

Premium brands fared better when consumers looked for advanced features or for larger displays – 40 inches or higher. Here are other interesting tidbits from the report:

• While North American sales rose year over year, they actually fell 18% from Q4 sales because of “seasonal effects”
• 32 inch LCD TVs were a bright spot – rising 41% year over year
• 40+ inch LCD TVs saw no growth from Q1 of 2008
• Plasma TV shipments fell 50% quarter over quarter and 5% year over year

Here are the top brands in the North American LCD TVs:

1. Vizio at 18.9 %
2. Samsung at 17.4 %
3. Sony at 14.5 %
4. Funai at 8.5 %
5. Sharp at 7.9 %

Top brands in the North American Plasma TV space:

1. Panasonic at 38.7 %
2. Samsung at 27 %
3. LGE at 11.9 %
4. Vizio at 7.2 %
5. Snayo at 7.1 %

Overall leaders in North American flat panel unit shares are:

1. Samsung at 18.2 %
2. Vizio at 17.9 %
3. Sony at 13.2 %
4. LGE at 8.1 %
5. Funai at 7.8%

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Technorati Tags: LCD TV shipments, Vizio, Samsung, Sony

Black Friday weekend appears to be a great time to pick up a new VIZIO HDTV set. The company announced price cuts on select models for the coming weekend at various retailers – here’s what you need to know:

• VIZIO 19” HD LCD HDTV (VA19) $199.99 at Costco Locations Nationwide through 12/7/08 with Member Only MVM Coupon
• VIZIO 32” Plasma HDTV (VP322) $437.00 at Walmart effective today(Wednesday, 11/26/08) – New Everyday Low Value
• VIZIO 37” HD LCD HDTV (VW37) $499.99 at Costco Locations Black Friday weekend while supplies last Friday-Sunday, 11/28-30/08
• VIZIO 32” Full HD 1080p LCD HDTV (VOJ32LF) $559.99 at SEARS Stores Nationwide thru Sunday, 11/30/08
• VIZIO 42” Full HD 1080p LCD HDTV (VS420) $698.00 at Sam’s Club Locations Nationwide now while supplies last for the Holidays.

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: VIZIO price cuts, HDTV, Black Friday

If you’re like me, then you’ve probably stared at a couple of VIZIO HDTV sets at your local Costco storefront – wondering.. just how good (or bad) are these inexpensive panels anyhow? The one that I’ve been particularly interested in recently was the SV420XVT model which features a 120Hz refresh rate AND sells for only $999.99. Yes there are other 1080p 42 inch panels out there that go for less – but not necessarily one with 120Hz refresh rates. Well the folks at PC Magazine have published a review of the unit here on their website, and it doesn’t look too bad at all. Before I get into the verdict, here are the major specs to the Vizio SV420XVT:

• 42 inch panel
• Integrated NTSC/ATSC/QAM tuner
• 5 ms response time
• 500cd/m2 brightness
• 6500:1 contrast ratio
• 178 degree viewing angle
• 4 HDMI inputs with HDCP
• 2 Component, 2 Composite, 1 S-Video, 1 RGB
• SRS TruSurroundXT – three built-in speakers

All that for $999.99 at your local Costco.. sooo what did PC Mag think?

Despite some occasional visual quirks, the Vizio SV420XVT delivers high-performance LCD technology at an amazing price.

Hmm.. maybe something to consider for the holidays?

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Vizio SV420XVT, PC Magazine, Review

VIZIO announced four new full HD 1080p LCD displays today – the VOJ370F and VOJ320F which are the first in a new decor-colored “JAVA” product series, and the VO32LF-32” LCD and VO37LF-37” LCD which offer full HD are competitive prices. The new Java series offer a unique design flare thanks to a colored bezel and stand treatment. Here’s what you need to know about the four new models:

37 inch – VO37LF

• 1920 x 1080
• 16.7 million colors
• 6500:1 extended contrast ratio
• Side access HD game port including HDMI and Component connectors
• SRS TruSurround XT
• 178 degree viewing angle
• Integrated NTSC/ATSC/QAM HDTV Tuner
• 3 HDMI ports
• Measures 36.3″ W x 25″ H x 8.6″ D with stand
• MSRP of $849.99

32 inch – VO32LF

• 1920 x 1080
• 16.7 million colors
• 6.5 ms response time
• 480 cd/m2 brightness
• 6500:1 dynamic contrast ratio
• SRS TruSurround XT
• 3 HDMI inputs
• 178 degree viewing angle
• Integrated NTSC/ATSC/QAM HDTV Tuner
• MSRP of $649.99

37 inch – VOJ370F

• 1920 x 1080
• 16.7 million colors
• 3 HDMI inputs
• Brown bezel design
• SRS TruSurround XT
• 178 degree viewing angle
• Integrated NTSC/ATSC/QAM HDTV Tuner
• 6500:1 dynamic contrast ratio
• 6.5 ms response time
• Measures 36.3″ W x 25″ H x 8.6″ D
• MSRP of $849.99

32 inch – VOJ320F

• 1920 x 1080
• 16.7 million colors
• 3 HDMI inputs
• SRS TruSurround XT
• 178 degree viewing angle
• Integrated NTSC/ATSC/QAM HDTV Tuner
• Measures 31.6″ W x 22.4″ H x 8.6″ D
• MSRP $649.99

Technorati Tags: VIZIO, VOJ370F, VOJ320F, VO32LF, VO37LF, LCD TV, HDTV

Think Vizio displays are somewhat boring looking? Well you’ll have to check out the upcoming Vizio VVM monitor. This 26 inch LCD display features a rounded bezel that appears to be borderless when the unit is turned off. Features of the VVM include a 1920 x 1200 resolution, DVI and VGA inputs, a 3 ms response time, and two HDMI inputs. I could be wrong but this could very well be Vizio’s first “LCD Monitor” as opposed to LCD HDTV set.

Note – I couldn’t help but laugh when I read the first sentence in Electricpig’s posting about the VVM – “We’ve never heard of Vizio, but with designs like this in their catalogue, it won’t be long before their kit is gracing a desktop near you.” Since they’re UK based, one could forgive Electricpig for not having heard of Vizio.. but here in the US, Vizio is one of the leading HDTV vendors out there.

[Check it out viz Ubergizmo]

Technorati Tags: Vizio VVM LCD Monitor

Our congrats goes out to William Wang, CEO and Founder of VIZIO, for receiving Ernst & Young’s Annual Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 Award in the Orange County/Desert Cities program.  The award “recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who are building and leading dynamic, growing businesses. The program honors entrepreneurs who have demonstrated exceptionality in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.” Thanks to low prices, good quality, and distribution channels like Costco and Wal-mart, VIZIO has gone from nothingness to one of the leading brands in the HDTV market. Congrats again!

Technorati Tags: VIZIO, Ernst & Young\'s Annual Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 Award, CEO William Wang

VIZIO also announced two new plasma display at incredible prices – the 32 inch model VP322 for $599 and the 42 inch model VP422 for a mere $799. Both models offer 720p resolutions, 30,000:1 contrast ratio, multiple color temperature settings, independent red/green/blue adjustments, component input, PC input, and three HDMI inputs. To top things off, both models also come with a built-in ATSC/QAM/NTSC tuner for over-the-air reception. The new models are available now in Wal-Mart locations nationwide.

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Technorati Tags: VIZIO, VP422, VP322, Plasma Display, HDTV

VIZIO updated their flat panel lineup yesterday with the introduction of a new product line called the XVT Series. Three new HDTV sets were introduced as part of this new series – two new LCD panels and one new Plasma panel.  On the LCD front, there’s the new SV420XVT and the SV47XVT, both of which feature a new black/grey lava look as well as 120Hz processing. On the plasma front, there’s the new VP505XVT which comes with 1080p resolutions and HQV processing. Let’s get into some of the details.

For the VIZIO SV470XVT and SV420XVT LCDs:

• VIZIO Smooth Motion technology (120Hz rates)
• 1080p resolution
• 6500:1 contrast ratio
• SRS Labs TruSurround XT audio processing
• Compatible with VIZIO SV5.1 Upgrade Kit
• Brushed aluminum trimmed VUR8 Universal Learning Remote with PIP keys
• Four HDMI inputs (2 on side and 2 in rear)
• The SV420XVT has an MSRP of $1499.99 while the SV470XVT has an MSRP of $1899.99
• Available in July

For the VIZIO VP505XVT:

• Silicon Optix REON HQV
• 1080p support
• Integrated HD/QAM tuner
• 30,000:1 contrast ratio
• 60,000 to 100,000 hours to half original brightness
• SRS Labs TruSurround XT
• Compatible with VIZIO SV5.1 Upgrade Kit
• New Brandy Wine colored speaker grill
• Four HDMI inputs (2 side and 2 rear)
• Includes 6 foot HDMI cable
• Available in July for $1699.99

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: VIZIO SV470XVT, SV420XVT, VP505XVT, HDTV, LCD TV, Plasma TV

Samsung edged out Sony for the lead in North American LCD shipments during Q1 of this year with 12.8 percent. However, the lead is precarious at best as Sony had 12.7 percent of LCD shipments and Vizio had 12.5 percent.

On the plasma front, Panasonic had the top spot at 33 percent which is down from 38 percent during Q4 of last year. Following Panasonic is LG with a little over 19.2 percent and Samsung with 18.4 percent.

Samsung continued to lead the overall flat panel market (plasma + LCD TVs) with 13.5 percent of the market. Vizio is the surprising runner up with 12.2 percent, edging out Sony who had 11.3 percent.

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Technorati Tags: Samsung, Sony, LG, Vizio, DisplaySearch, Q1 2008

In the heated battle for LCD television dominance, Vizio is still the reigning champ for one more quarter. According to iSuppli, Vizio had 13 percent of the LCD market share for the third quarter of this year – down slightly from 13.7 percent in the second quarter. Other high end brands including Samsung, Sharp, and Sony all have significant shares of the market too – with Sony jumping from 6 percent to 10.1 percent quarter to quarter this year.  The top six players in the LCD market for the third quarter are as follows:

1. Vizio with 13.0 percent
2. Samsung with 12.8 percent
3. Sharp with 12.0 percent
4. Sony with 10.1 percent
5. Polaroid with 9.1 percent
6. Philips with 9.0 percent

[Check it out]

Technorati Tags: Vizio, LCD TV, iSuppli