Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Funai aims to bring LCD HDTV / Blu-ray combo

Starting next summer, Funai (Sylvania, Symphonic, Emerson) is planning to sell LCD TVs with integrated Blu-ray Disc players in the US. The Japanese company has a lot of good experience with this approach. Sales from cathode-ray tube TVs with built-in VCRs reached 40% of total TV sales for Funai a few years ago.

Currently 20% of all Funai TV sales in the US are based on TV/DVD player combos. Funai is likely to offer midsize and large screens with integrated Blu-ray players, both at Wal-Mart and electronics stores.

Details regarding release dates and prices are largely unknown at this point but a planned 42-inch LCD TV/Blu-ray combo, for example, is said to be priced between $1,100 and $1,300.

Yes, you'll need to wait for at least one more year before this is released, so in the meantime for those who are still on Standard Definition with a regular DVD player at home and are looking for a perfect moment to upgrade, you might have to wait for a good 12 months more. Of course, if that doesn't tickle your fancy, why don't you go out and purchase a brand new HDTV along with a Sony PS3 to get your High Definition fix?

The company typically brands its wares with names like Sylvania, Symphonic and Emerson, so we wouldn't expect the highest-end stuff here. That said, we're glad to see someone taking this very necessary step, even though you won't catch us recommending 'em to anyone but the technologically challenged.

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