And CRTs are finding success in some unexpected situations. For example, major sporting events are supposed to be the killer app for big-screen, high-definition TVs, but CRTs sold surprisingly well before , according to figures released Tuesday by The NPD Group. Nonetheless, though tube TVs make up just under half of the TV volume right now, that number is dropping fast.
Just four years ago, they comprised 88 percent of the market. In 2004, that number dropped to 75 percent, and in the following year to 64 percent. The Consumer Electronics Association is predicting that by 2009, CRTs will no longer be sold in the U.
S. But until then, there are plenty of CRT models to choose from, and it seems the average television buyer is still game for a tube TV at a good bargain. Even Samsung, the , says it still produces one CRT for every eight TVs shipped.
And the Korean electronics giant is still putting money into improving the technology in its tube TVs, like reducing the depth of the TV and improving the circuitry, said Ali Atash, Samsung's senior product manager. At the Consumer Electronics Show this year, five new CRT models that, if glimpsed just briefly, appeared to be flat-panel displays. That's because of the very thin form factor, flat glass and side-mounted speakers.
And it's not a market Samsung plans to abandon anytime soon. "From our perspective, it's very strategic," Atash said. "We've been very confident in the prospects for 2007.
" The main reason for the enduring appeal of CRTs: their prices in many popular sizes remain competitive with LCD prices, said Riddhi Patel, an analyst with iSuppli. In 2006, the average selling price for 30- to 39-inch CRT TVs was $602, while LCDs in that same range averaged around $1,235. "It's still double," Patel noted.
"In 2007, we're predicting in that 30- to 39-inch range (average price of CRTs) would be $411, and LCDs would be $780. The price difference is coming down." Of course, have made huge market inroads, especially in North America, where they accounted for $14 billion in spending on TVs last year, or just under half the total of $30 billion.
Sometimes retail customers are surprised at how expensive LCDs and plasma displays continue to be. "Many of our customers do come in looking for flat-panel TVs, but when they look at the pricing, (a CRT) is very, very much more affordable," said Antony Varghese, a Magnolia Home Theater salesman at Best Buy in San Francisco. As if to prove that point, San Francisco resident Shay Jackson came into the store moments later, clutching one of the store's circular ads.
She was looking for a specific TV she had spotted, and said she was disappointed to discover that the $400 set she had her eye on was a tube. "It doesn't look too fancy. I thought it would be a flat screen," she said.
But since she wasn't willing to spend more than $400, and since it was just for her bedroom, Jackson said she'd be fine "taking it down a notch" and buying a CRT. Varghese said 32 inches is the most popular size of the CRTs sold at his store, particularly for secondary sets. "Some of our customers come in and buy smaller TVs that have DVDs built in, VCRs built in--they just want to put them in their garage.
" JohnFerrero
Feb 28, 2007, 1:44 PM PST
News RSS