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Sharp's bigger and better HDTVs for 2012 start hitting store shelves
Right on schedule, Sharp let us know it's begun shipments of Aquos 7-series LED HDTVs in 60- and 70-inch sizes. With MSRPs of $2,300 and $3,300, respectively, the 745U models have edge LED lighting, 3D, WiFi and SmartCentral UI built in featuring apps including Netflix, Hulu and Facebook. The 8-series models will bring the company's latest Quad Pixel Plus 2 Quattron tech when they start shipping towards the end of this month as well as full-array LED backlighting and an ultra-slim bezel design. Check after the break for sizes, specs and prices, and let us know if these models have shown up in your neck of the woods yet.
Sharp's biggest LCD HDTVs get even bigger with a new 80-inch model
When is big not big enough? Apparently when it's Sharp's "spectacularge" 70-inch AQUOS LCD HDTVs that were introduced earlier this year, and have now been surpassed by a new 80-inch model the company showed off today. The LC-80LE632U isn't an Elite branded model, but it brings all the features of its smaller brethren including full LED backlighting, 120Hz motion processing, built-in WiFi and access to services like Netflix and Vudu. All that is nice, but it's standout feature is that extra viewing area, which can be yours for $5,499 (MSRP) when it starts shipping in early October. Preorders are already popping up for sub-$5k prices, if you need a big screen and can't go the projection route (front or rear) this might be a good value -- check out the details in the press release after the break.
Samsung to debut first second-gen Blu-ray player at CES
Toshiba and LG have already indicated their plans to wow us at CES, and now the first company to release a Blu-ray player -- Samsung -- has announced it will display the first second generation player next week at CES. The new player is expected to cost 20 percent less than its predecessor (the BD-P1000, pictured above), but contain more interactive functions. We hope that means this will be the first non-PlayStation 3 device to support BD Live features, although we'll have to wait and see. As far as joining LG with a hybrid player like the one it had announced and then denied last year, the company currently has "no plans" to do so, but could if the market remains divided. Other products we can expect to see next week include even larger versions of Samsung's Slim DLP HDTVs, and an all new line of plasmas going all the way up to 80 inches.
