The First sub $200 HD Player

[kn]

I just found an interesting article. Check this out...

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/25/business/yourmoney/25TELE.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

It talks about the upcoming shopping season related specifically to flat panels. Here's the quote I found most interesting:

"Perhaps as worrisome to retailers are signs that growth is slowing, said Gregory Melich, a retail-sector analyst at Morgan Stanley. “For the past few months, growth in the total TV market has been zero or negative, because demand is not there at these price points,” he said.

Morgan Stanley research indicates that two-thirds of American households will not buy an HDTV until the price of a 37-inch or larger set drops below $600. The price of a 37-inch L.C.D. set averaged about $1,200 in June, according to iSuppli. “When the price goes to $800, 17 million more Americans will consider buying one,” Mr. Melich said."

The interesting part about this is that there are few if any 1080P sets in the larger size that are under $1000. There are NO sizable flat panels in 1080P below $600 for certain. This certainly implies there will be a whole lot of less expensive flat panels sold over the next couple of years to the average Joe and a hellavu lot of them will not be 1080P...