Philips ain't much for introducing new gear here on US soil, but for those fortunate enough to buy their milk with Euros, the company has a cornucopiaof new kit to tempt you with. It seems as if the company chose to skip right over CES and do its own thing here in late February, with the "2010 Consumer Lifestyle" event bringing to us a refreshed lineup of LED-backlit
Ambilight HDTVs (7000, 8000 and 9000 series), a new Immersive Sound home theater system (with tri-speaker satellites) and the aluminum-tinged Soundbar HTS9140. We're also told that the new line of 8000 and 9000 LED 1080p TVs are
3D capable, with a "3D upgrade pack" to be made available separately and include two Active3D glasses and a wireless transmitter. In related news, that now-forgotten Cinema 21:9 set -- which was supposed to ship many moon ago -- now has a "summer 2010" estimated arrival date on it, though we certainly aren't holding our breath just yet. Hit the source link for all the other goods, but don't expect to find much in the way of pricing and availability.
posted February 25th 2010 10:33AM
Does it come with that woman? Thats all I care about...
@SolidSnake I want that apartment with that view as well.
@SolidSnake She's your dime a dozen chick.
BTW, Is it me or does that TV look small?
@JonS
I imagine the ad is aimed at the UK where 32" tvs are still the norm.
Phillips please send the 9000 series state side...pretty please.
@SolidSnake
I am genuinely surprised the woman went for the guy. It was obviously for the abundance of money and lack of taste: Why spend all that money on that apartment and only get a 36" TV on a large pastel wall? It just proves money can buy you happiness. Just look at Kanye West.
@Sean Connery
Yeah, Kanye seems like a happy guy...
cornucopiaof
@Mongooose
Looking by the reaction of the readers, yes, it seems to make them horny, and endlessly.
That apart, Philips sure thinks it is smart in pushing out what looks like a probable photoshop job. Because their real tv is very different.
If you played with the UI on the set, you would conclude that Philips should better make vacuum cleaners - man, do they know how to suck ! The ambilight looks great in images like this. In reality, it is spiky LEDs changing colors well *after* the video. Although they claim support for media playback, except for basic jpg and mp3, most of the rest is seen as alien ware. And Philips has this unique feature when all of a sudden the TV stops reacting to your remote control, the UI disappears and a full minute later, life resumes. I guess in the interim, their software went for a coffee break. Talking of which, each time you want to start the TV, you might as well take a coffee break - a leisurely one in fact, because the TV needs what looks like hours to start up. And believe me, they remind you about how proud you should be owing a Philly ..by splashing their logo on the screen while making you wait just a bit longer for video.
The only welcome relief is their NetTV. Customized to every European country, this is probably the finest example of how to bring relevant content to the TV. The only concern is - lacking any industry collaboration, how long can Philips continue to run this service? Or, as a customer, how much extra am I shelling out for their NetTV services? Of course the NetTV too..like all else suffers the Philips malaise - it takes an eternity to load, and lacking a QWERTY (or AZERTY) keypad, this can leave you high and dry. Hope Philips works on the NetTV and makes it really use-able on the TV end. Their NetTV content partnership looks to be going the right direction.
My summary: The only real reason to buy a Philips (if you live in Europe) is NetTV. If you live elsewhere, you'll get much better TVs for a much lesser price. So don't bother Philips.
they're still pushing that Ambilight crap?
@chris2
I love my Ambilight TV, you can turn it off if you want but watching Music concerts with it on is fantastic.
@chris2 Its not crap. Seriously, until you've seen it in action you've no idea how effective it is. I had an early Amblight LCD (until my removal men dropped it :() and it was a fantastic bit of kit. Too expensive though, which is why I replaced it with a Bravia on the insurance.
@Hookey
Yeah you do pay alot for the Ambilight, I think I paid about £1750 for my 42" 2 years ago.
@chris2
we had one in our bedroom. at first i thought it was a gimmic but i got it cause there was a packaged deal. it worked really great at night time. the brightness of just the tv in a very dark room sometimes hurts your eyes so the ambilight helped light up the room too. price wasnt too bad either a few years ago. 40" 1080p lcd with massage chair and attoman for $1300.
@chris2
did you ever have an ambilight TV? No - then shut up ...
Amiblight ist amazing. We dove have an 46" Philips 46PFL9704H with Ambilight 3 and Pro LED (local dimming LED Backlight) here and it's just awesome and definetly one of the best TV-Sets we ever had (had mainly TV's from the german Manufacture Loewe before). It's a difference like day & night when you turn the Ambilight on!
@kefek
"did you ever have an ambilight TV? No - then shut up ..."
But apparently it turns you into an asshole, so count me out.
@acidboy
not as much of an asshole as somebody who calls it crap without ever having seen it or used it.
i'm pretty sure they aren't even looking at the tv
@m3ltingp0int or even there at all ;)
That picture creeps me out.
@doyoucompute yeah, it looks like they've just been hypnotised by the hypnotoad ...or the hypnotv!
Who lives like this?!!!
So... correct me if I'm wrong, but this is a TV that can mask its true contrast ratio by lighting up the wall behind it?
Should we look at some lame TV, or do a hot chick that sitting right in front of me.... That guy has chosen... poorly...
@Dorf You know how I know that you don't get out much?
/he probably does her every day, twice
//the feeling you get when you look at that hot chick/guy is supposed to be associated with that TV, thanks, ads.
@whiskers
Yes, a failed attempt at humor on my part must mean I don't get out. You nailed it... ;)
What an uncomfortable position to watch HDTV!
I love me some Ambilight. Naysayers have never seen it. Damn you Philips for abandoning the NA market. I still say my 3+ year old Philips plasma has a better picture than a lot out there today. Once calibrated it's beautiful, Ambilight or not, SD or HD.
I think he was trying to grab something other than her hand...
@Nitesh
You sir, require some outside time.
Kiddin' Kiddin'
Sweet TV though.
A waste of time if the light doesn't meet standards...and it won't. Get a 6500 Kelvin light or don't bother.
Wish I had a view like that
Cause I really love watching a sunset on a tv thats on a wall perpendicular to where im sitting. I just cant get enough of that shit.
They're gonna get stiff necks sitting like that! And grandma will be proud they aren't watching in a darkened room that would ruin their eys.
Watching some pretty lights when you've got a view like that. Yeah, that's when you know you've got too much money.
Nice trophy.
@Don Corleone
I see what you did there....
why would anyone orient their couch perpendicular to the tv? =/
@tbhuang2
I do. when I have another 42" for a monitor
Call the ambi light?
Does anyone know how I can get one of Philips new Ambilight TVs shipped to the US? I am willing to pay big bucks for one.
I have a 2006 720p model and I do admit the picture quality is not the best; dont get me wrong it is very good, and the ambilight makes watching movies wonderful. However I would like to upgrade to a 1080p but do not want to sacrifice my ambilight. So if anyone knows how I can get one of these over here in the US please let me know...
Why bother with the magnificent view through their floor to ceiling 180-degree windows when they can watch a video of flowers sideways on a 37-inch flat panel instead?
wait, so now they're gonna have 3D ambient light? nice!
Who watches TV like that anyway. Looks super uncomfortable
WTF is up with these cheesy PR shots? Seriously, two models would rather stare at a stupid screenshot of a canned scenery than an actual scenery outside their window? Is that suppose to be imitation of "life"? I guess there's a lot of gullible idiots who think, "OHHH if I get this TV, my life will be just like theirs!" Morons.
The Philips Cinema 21:9 TV is already on sale in the UK. I saw one instore a couple of weeks ago in Manchester. Here is the store I saw it in - Its £3499 in case you were interested.
http://www.tec7.co.uk/Television/LCD/Philips+56PFL9955+21x9+LCD+TV_56PFL9954H/2605.aspx
as long as it throbs purple when you watch pRon, thats all you need ;)
"now-forgotten Cinema 21:9" - What!?!?!?!!?! Why is one on sale at my local electronics store!?!?!?! In fact, I even know a person with one.
an house and view like that and they can only afford that little TV?????
and 100 bones says it PS'd in after the fact.
That's exactly how my wife and I sit and watch TV. Maybe that's why my neck always hurts and she complains about her tail bone hurting.
Here's the full 2010 Philips line-up:
http://www.flatpanelshd.com/news.php?subaction=showfull&id=1267190335