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Deal Alert: Toshiba 42LZ196 42-inch REGZA 1080p LCD HDTV: $1749.97
If you simply must have a full High Definition flat panel LCD HDTV, it's hard to go wrong with Toshiba's Regza series, and it's even harder to go wrong when it's on sale for $1100 below its original list price. OneCall currently has Toshiba's 42LZ196 Cinema Series Pro 42-inch 1080p LCD HDTV for sale for $1749.97 including delivery. Toshiba 42LZ196 1080p Cinema Series Pro LCD HDTV on OneCall: $1750 delivered With any TV purchase, you can also save 10% on the Bose CineMate digital home theater speaker system or 10% on Polk Audio speaker systems (see "special offers" tab on the TV's detail page). Details from the Manufacturer Video:REGZA - Premium LCD TV. All REGZA models combine the fast CineSpeed LCD panel, with industry leading PixelPure Hi-bit 12-bit digital video processing, for the best possible picture quality.
Flat Panel Sales Drop, Rear Projection HDTV Sales Rise
Consumer flat panel TV sales dropped 20 percent in January from December, while the average street price sank 10 percent, Pacific Media reported. Sales of rear projection HDTVs rose 1.5 percent during the same period, according to the report.DLP units gained 19 unit sales share points, capturing 70 percent market share. Pacific notes that online retail sales of deeply discounted LG Electronics models played a large part in the gain. The 60-inch to 69-inch 1080p segment was the most popular, grabbing nearly 21% unit market share. Average street prices for 55-inch to 59-inch 720p models declined nearly 40 percent due to close-out sales of certain models.Samsung regained its lead over Sony in unit sales, but Sony remained on top with a 30 percent revenue share. The top selling model for January was the 62-inch Toshiba 62HM196, which took a 7.4 percent unit market share with an average street price of $1,818.
HD DVD ahead in Europe for now
According to Industry sources, the HD DVD format is retaining a lead in the European market next-generation blue-laser optical disc drives/players/recorders. Toshiba's HD-E1 HD DVD player, accounted for an 85% market share in January, leaving Sony and Samsung Electronics equipment for Blu-ray Disc trailing behind with 15% of the European market. Before the launch of the HD-E1, Toshiba's European market share for blue-laser products in 2006 was about 58%. HD DVD's lead in Europe may not last for much longer however, with the March 23rd launch of the Blu-ray-equipped PlayStation 3 (PS3) console approaching quickly. Rising demand for HDTV equipment will boost consumer interest in blue laser HD formats. As more homes turn to HD, the format that can provide the best prices for both hardware and HD content should capture the growing market.
HD-DVD Leads Blu-ray In Europe
In the continuing next-gen DVD format war, it looks as though HD-DVD leads Blu-ray in Europe by a whopping 85% - 15%. The PS3 is set to launch at the end of the month over there which should help the Blu-ray format, depending on how well the console sells. Toshiba, mainly through its US$499 HD-E1 HD DVD player, accounted for an 85% market share of next-generation blue-laser optical disc drives/players/recorders sold in Europe in January of this year, according to industry sources in Taiwan. The reports on next-gen DVD formats is getting a bit ridiculous. Last month we heard how, according to Nielsen VideoScan numbers, Blu-ray was beating HD-DVD in the next-gen DVD war. Buried in the report was the fact that, in January, the only HD movies released that month were on Blu-ray.
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