CES 2007 - The Best of CE from the Show
by Manveer Wasson on January 18, 2007 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Displays
Westinghouse TX Series - Affordable 1080p LCD TVs
Westinghouse surprised us all with an affordable line of 1080p LCD monitors last summer; you could purchase a 42” 1080p LCD for a street price of around $1600. However, these monitors did not include a tuner so an external set-top box was required for watching TV. For 2007 Westinghouse is following up with the new TX line of 1080p TVs with integrated HD tuners (ATSC and QAM). The line includes the 42” TX-42F430S, 47” TX-47F430S, and the 52” TX-52F480S. The 42” and 47” models will have MSRPs of $1999 and $2499, respectively and will ship this April. These sets will feature 5000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 8ms gray-to-gray response time, and 4 HDMI ports. The price for the 52” model has not been announced, but it will ship in this coming May. This set will have a 6.5ms gray-to-gray response time.
One thoughtful addition Westinghouse has added to this year’s lineup of sets is the ability for the consumer to upgrade the firmware of their own sets. Users of last year’s Westinghouse sets know that in order to receive the firmware update, a service technician has to come out to the customer’s home. The new sets feature a USB service port. To upgrade the firmware on these sets, the customer only needs to download the firmware off Westinghouse’s web site onto a USB memory stick, and then reboot the TV with the memory stick in connected.
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SignalPST - Thursday, January 18, 2007 - link
I'm very interested in the Samsung 30" LED LCD. Awesome resolution, great response and contrast, and most imporantly, it'll have very good color reproduction.sprockkets - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
Those micro projectors are sweet, and being LED powered, and priced right, will be something I'm lookin to buy.semo - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
about the quad hd displaythat got me thinking so i phoned westinghouse and here is the conversation word for word:
1st phone call:
me:we need those 4 in 1 plasmas.
westinghouse: do you mean our quad full hd displays
me: yeah, yeah those jobies. we need 10. 5 minutes ago. move it move it.
wh: who are you?
me: military.
wh: that will be $250,000 per display sir.
2nd phone call:
me: [in poorly imitated feminin voice] we are interested in buying a qhd display from you.
wh: and you are?
me: nuns.
wh: we can give you one for $10,000 but let me speak to my manager.
me: ok dear.
---muzak---
wh: yeah ok great news, we can get you one $5,500.
me: [voice almost back to normal] thank you child.
kirbalo - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
I was at the show and the LG Rep. told me that both the Consumer player, and the PC Drive would both retail for about $1100 next month...not $2000.ManveerW - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
kirbalo,The cost of the drive will actually be around $1200. I corrected it in the article. Thanks for pointing it out!
Manveer Wasson
somegeek - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
After the first CES 2007 article "Convergence Happened" I was expecting something new. None of the products at the show have made convergence a reality. It's still an ambiguous, convoluted idea, like converging movies and games.- Set top boxes, like AppleTV, have been around for years and have failed to catch on.
- Xbox 360 is not an option for people who don't play games, so it won't be mainstream.
- IPTV on the Xbox 360 will have a smaller audience than the Xbox 360.
- Small HTPCs haven't caught on, DTX won't change that.
- The iPhone is a Jack of All Trades, Master of None.
Convergence hasn't happened and it won't ever happen. Specialized, divergent technology is:
- Cheaper to buy
- Cheaper to build
- Easier to use
- Easier to make
- Easier to sell
- More efficient
- More reliable
- More profitable
- Smaller
- Simpler
mesyn191 - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
Sure, there were a few cool things, but so hideously expensive even if I sold my right kidney it'd only be enough for the down payment on the loan to pay for em'. All the HD stuff is so DRM'd no freakin' way am I gonna be paying money for it, don't see how many other people will either.randomlinh - Thursday, January 18, 2007 - link
I doubt people will care about DRM for now. Not many people seem to bother trying to back up their movies they buy. I don't see that changing. Therefore those who complain are in the minority.srue - Wednesday, January 17, 2007 - link
I like the "No Cameras" sign below the Samsung Wireless Plasma.