It's been a good run,
XEL-1, but you knew this day would come. After wowing just about everyone with your 3mm thickness and stunning base
back in late 2007, we suspect that most normal humans decided to pass right on by after the drooling process was complete. After all, it's not like too many Earthlings have
nearly $2,000 to drop on an 11-inch set. Since the display's debut, few other OLED TVs have made it to the commercial market in any size, and there's no question that cost is largely to blame. Today, Sony announced that it was pulling the plug on XEL-1 sales and production in Japan, citing "sluggish demand" as the cause. For now, the outfit will continue to hawk the miniaturized wonder in other nations, but we get the feeling that's only to dry up remaining inventory. Oh, and if you're one of those "collector" types, snapping one up right now might not be the worst idea.
[Thanks, Trevor]
Update: It's worth pointing out that a Japanese
report from
AV Watch notes that the discontinuation is going down for another reason. Reportedly, Japan is forcing TV makers to integrate a "youth control filter" into their wares, presumably in an effort to shield those precious eyes from the evils of the content world. Sony's obviously not interested in complying, but this could just be a great excuse to nix a product that's already collecting too must dust on retail shelves.
posted February 16th 2010 6:58AM
Oh Japan, how you are getting rid of technologies which haven't even permeated the mainstream in America.
@ 'sluggish demand'
Try dropping the price to $200-300.
@cdf74dc9
While I admit, I would only buy one of these if it was in the range you cite, this was some kind of hot shot neato cutting edge thing.
I saw these in the Sony Style store several times, and I just don't get it. The screen is thing, yes, but the TV isn't. The base is much wider than my TV at home. Lots of thin screens have thick bases. I don't see the advantage.
Then, I really don't mind a thick TV if it's got a big and sharp picture.
@cdf74dc9 Or increase size to 65+ where the LCD didn't reach in the consumer market today
@cdf74dc9
Seriously. These are about $1500 too much. Even if it's because of the teenage proof, they don't sell enough of these to warrant the R&D, and implementation so it's easier to kill. However, if this were flying off the shelves, Sony would fix it and release it as a new model like they always do.
@cdf74dc9
I am certain this set was released to test their OLED technology on a larger sized screen, and refine the technology from the data collected from the field. I am sure they are now entering into the next stage of production, big screen TVs. Yeah, it's all speculation - but I agree that this thing will definitely make a nice TV in a smaller space or at the least, a collector's item.
@Thinker
Sony released this TV out of corporate pride, as a halo product and to justify the huge investment it made in OLED research. It's still not clear whether OLED has the potential to overtake and displace LCD displays like LCD did to CRT, or if, like plasma, it will fade out into a dwindling niche market.
I think it says a lot that Sony has not released a follow-up product in over two years, though the popularity of OLED in mobile devices is enough that you can't write off the techology completely.
@bebop: They haven't released a proper follow-on to their XBR8 models either. I think that's less due to not caring, and more to being hard-hit by the current economic doldrums.
Pity, it was at around $1,000 an inch just two short years ago, I guess $200 an inch is still too much for a luxury market?
Too bad, because these TV's are really phenomenal!
@GenericMessage They missed out on the fact that luxury market likes Bverything BIG, that include screens.
Of course this didn't sell, 11 inches for the price they were asking? I would use a screen this size maybe for the back seat of my car but it has no use inside my house. Not even a screen this small is worth having in the kitchen and I don't think it's even wall mountable.
@Brian
If they add these to their VAIO's, then they would sell like hotcakes.
a "youth control filter", presumably in an effort to shield those precious eyes from the evils of the content world.
You mean the average japanese TV-show? Although not really evil, certainly bizarre!
@hj
I was wondering about that...how bad must these shows be that the Japanese want to shield their children from them? Shudders...
well try putting yourself in their shoes, it costs a bomb due to the production costs, makes you wonder why they even started it O.o
on the subject of the youth control filter .... o.o.......i don't get it , in japan they have channels just for porn and how do they plan to use this filter, no ordinary tv just 'detects youth' lol forgive me if i am being ignorant, doesn't make much sense with my limited knowledge
These are $6,000 in Australia. Sony rips us off bigtime
@rygar Australian dummies only get ripped off if you buy them!
@rygar I might have to buy some and sell it to the auzzies on the cheap. Now if I could only find some buyers
Well, if they display it like that no wonder... people cant see it!
I wouldn't pay $2000+ for 11". I'm not that desperate. I'd rather pay $20 for the ~ -3 to -4 inches a hooker provides, instead.
$2,000 for a 11 TV, what a joke! then they wonder why they don't sell.
I'm sure manufacturing costs aren't bad at all .... This is a part of marketing stragedy! They are laying the price path for their future models that would seem worth buying after this 11incher.
It's because no one wants to spend over a 2,000$ on a small ass TV screen. If SONY was smart they would of drop the price to 200$ then people might buy it. I think it's stupid they charge a small lil screen for 2,000$ especially that you can't see it even though it's very bright. They should stick their OLED screen to the BIGGER SIZE SCREEN DON'T NEED A TINY SCREEN THAT COULD BLIND YOU.
@Inspector Gadget80: Manufacturing OLED displays in large sizes has been an ongoing problem for the companies trying to make it happen, especially at the level of resolution required for a full 1920x1080 display. Until they have an opportunity to ramp up production volumes, they can't get prices down, or refine the process enough to scale up.
Sony blames the consumer (demand).
Price dictates demand.
Sony needs to blame themselves (price).
OMG I hope this shows up on woot for like $79!!!!!
@derspiess LOL ditto.
I saw this set locally. While the picture is stunning, IMHO, it is far too small to be anything other than a conversation piece. I do not see it as a serious home theater display.
If this were the price for a set in the range of 40" - 60", it would be much easier to swallow, and, I am willing to bet that it would be unbeatable in terms of picture quality when viewed side-by-side (with proper calibration, of course) to even the best of the plasmas like the Kuros.
That said, I have to agree with the poster who says Sony is to blame. IMHO, Sony has that attitude that you will want to pay more for something because it says Sony on the front. Sooner or later, Sony will realize that they are losing business to companies that are producing product of equal or better quality for a lower price.
Fortunately, there are many companies working on large OLED sets for introduction in the 2012 and on time frame. With luck, this will yield a large number of high-quality sets and competition for price.
Why didn't they add 3-d to it? That would rejuvenate interest, since the OLED would do it better than any other tech.
It lived in Japan, and this news received shock a not little.
I want you to be going to appear in a size not imaginable next time.
$2000 for an 11 inch screen is just ridiculous. I don't care how thin it is. A point that has been made on this forum previously: I don't watch my TV from the side. I watch it from the front.
@glennS Plus some LED backlit tv is less than an inch thick. LCDs are catching up in different ways.
DUH! I guess Sony thought introducing a product that screams excess in a global recession was a good idea... But it turns out most consumers, even the sickeningly rich ones actually don't want to buy when the chips are down. Go figure.
What kind of demand were they expecting?
As far as I'm concerned this should be a technology showcase, not a consumer product. Not yet anyway.
I don't care how thin an OLED screen is if its attached to some hulking base station. The XEL-1 is an ugly device, isn't HD and is very expensive so I'm not surprised it's not selling.
That's par for the course for gen 1 kit. Hopefully subsequent iterations will be more practical and cheaper.
Honestly, if Sony put their OLED tech to good use they could make a really nice laptop screen. Throw it on your high end 13" Vaio notebooks later this year as a super premium option and I think it might actually move enough units to be viable and profitable.
Either that or get out a 15" OLED computer monitor out there in 720p, make the bezel, stand, and I/O the bare minimum, and sell it for under $2k. Again, for the high end consumer market, that might be viable. It'd also help try and push forward research, production, and adaption in the market.
Oh dear I hate to laugh, but what's the point. Clearly no interest in an 11" tv that is $2000 and has an ugly base, really why even go into production. It would have been best to have just created the demo model and gone to production on a non base 15",17",22",42"+++ maybe bundle one with a laptop or a desktop?
@iPaul Well, there's the super complex OLED technology that necessitates the base, but why let facts stand in your way?
@Harrison The "super complex OLED technology" doesn't make the dozens or so OLED phones/devices out now any thicker than equivalent lcd models (even the 1.5 year old Cowon S9 has no extra width).
@Harrison It was very impractical for SONY to have anticipated even fringe consumer demand for an OLED product at such a high price point and screen size.
@Harrison It was very impractical for SONY to have anticipated even fringe consumer demand for an OLED product at such a high price point and screen size.
i can't watch anything on a 11 inch screen.........