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Whats new in HDTVs: Consumer Electronics Show 2012

April 6, 2012 by  
Filed under HDTV

Consumer Electronics Show 2012

SmartReview.com attended the Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas (CES 2012) to bring back information on the latest products for 2012. Here is a short overview of what caught our attention at the show in regards to the latest HDTVs.

Many of the TV manufacturers were showing advanced technology, including OLED displays and 4K HDTVs (also referred to as QFHD (3840×2160) Quad high definition). Also presented was an 8K HDTV prototype, and wireless & cordless HDTVs. 2012 will be the year of the big TV, as Sharp, LG and Samsung were all showing giant LED HDTVs in the 70, 75, 80 and 84 inch sizes. Smart TVs were on display at many of the manufacturers as internet and device connected TVs are becoming more common. Giant touchscreen TVs that can be used for presentations were shown as well.

World's Largest 3D OLED TV

LG TVs 2012: LG was displaying their new models and had several 55-inch OLED displays showing 3D content. LG was handing out passive 3D polarized glasses to everyone in the area, as most of their TVs were displaying 3D content. The OLED displays looked great, with very deep blacks, and colors that were vibrant and bright. The OLED displays were showing 3D content. LG uses passive 3D technology on all of its TVs, using inexpensive polarized glasses. SmartReview was very impressed by LG’s 84LM9600 84 inch 4K LED TV (84UD). Currently this TV is touted as the world’s largest Ultra definition 3D TV. Since passive 3D cuts the resolution in half, this 84 inch 4K TV will show 3D in Full 1080p HD for each eye. It was the best 3D that SmartReview saw at the show. LG as well as other companies are really big on Smart TVs (which give you internet content, apps, and more). LG was also displaying a pen touch TV, which is a touchscreen with a special pen to write on it.

New LG 2012 Models: SmartReview now has reviews on several of the LG Cinema Series Smart LED 3D TVs, including the LM7600 models, the LM6700 models, and the LM6200 models. (All of these models include 6 pairs of 3D glasses). The LM8600 Series is the first LG model with a Dual Core processor. This will greatly improve navigating the Smart TV functions, and internet connectivity. The 240Hz models are the LM7600 models, and LM8600 Series TVs.

Panasonic Display at CES 2012

Panasonic Viera TVs 2012: Panasonic has revamped its product line, and we are seeing a move to larger LED TVs (as last year Panasonic focused on smaller sized LED TVs). Panasonic makes some of the best Plasma TVs available, and has made some incremental improvements on these TVs. Also significant is that both their LED and Plasma TVs will see significant energy savings for 2012 over the 2011 models. They had a display showing how many watts a 2011 model was using versus the 2012 model. The savings were dramatic. (59 watts this year versus 82 watts from last year’s model). Panasonic Plasma has one of the fastest TV screens at 2500 pixels/second (up from 1200 last year) as we were told by a Panasonic rep at the show. Panasonic’s largest TV for 2012 is 65 inches. New IPS panels used for their LED TVs let more light shine through (brighter picture) and are more energy efficient. Panasonic LED TVs covered by SmartReview include the ET5 Series and E50 Series. Panasonic for 2012 has completely re-invented their top of the line plasma TVs. Panasonic is using a different cell structure, a new plasma gas that is more efficient and does not take as much energy to fire up, more internet options, thinner and lighter. These upgrades are available on the new ST50 models and GT50 THX models.

Samsung Super OLED TV

Samsung TVs 2012: Samsung and LG both had 55-inch OLED displays at CES 2012. LG showed their models with 3D content, while Samsung showed their Super OLED models with regular 1080p high definition content, so it was not possible to give a direct comparison of picture quality. However we can say that both LG and Samsung provided some of the best 3D and Regular HD pictures that we have seen. The Samsung Super OLED HDTVs are produced with a single pane of glass. Their Super OLED TV received the Best of Innovations 2012 award. (See our video of the Samsung OLED display). Samsung’s Super OLED will be on sale in the second half of 2012. New for 2012 is Samsung’s ES8000 Series TVs with a screen size up to 75-inches. SmartReview felt that the Samsung ES8000 series produced some of the best images for a 1080p LED TV at the show. The ES8000 incorporates a dual core CPU which will make Smart TV apps run smoothly. Samsung’s Smart TVs feature Smart Content, Smart Apps, Smart Interactions, and other unique ways to interact with your HDTV. This includes facial recognition, voice control, and motion control. Samsung has an app store for apps to add to your TV. Samsung’s ES6100 Series is Samsung’s best TV without 3D and Samsung’s ES6500 Series is the lowest priced “ES”series TV with 3D. Samsung’s Samsung’s EH6000 Series is a very popular high quality no frills HDTV without Smart TV or 3D abilities.

Sony HX850 Series with Monolithic Stand

Sony TVs 2012: While LG and Samsung introduced 55-inch OLED displays for CES 2012, Sony has introduced its prototype Crystal LED technology in a 55-inch display. Crystal LED technology uses 6 million LEDs on its panel which light up with no backlight. Sony claims that this technology will improve contrast 3.5 times, and response time by 10 times. Sony for 2012 will be reducing the number of model series from six in 2011 to just three in 2012 (10 new models). HX, EX, and BX series. The top HX Series HX850 and HX750 models will be available in 46 and 55-inch models with built-in WiFi. The HX850 models have a frameless Monolithic design, Gorilla Glass and Motionflow XR 960, while the HX750 models have Motionflow XR480. A rep at the Sony booth told SmartReview that the Sony sets have changed the backlight from the top and bottom to the sides on the HX850 model. Sony has also improved its 3D glasses with a 10 degree tilt so you can lay back on your couch and still see the 3D with full contrast. The new glasses give you 5 hours of use for only 5 minutes of charge. Sony’s XBR range of models will be introduced later in 2012.

Sharp 80-inch LED TV

Sharp Aquos TVs 2012: For CES 2012 Sharp displayed its line of HDTVs, with more LED backlit and 3D models. The big change in 2012 with sharp is the introduction of giant 70 and 80-inch 3D TVs, including the Aquos LC80LE844U 80-inch model with a full array LED backlight. We believe that there is a trend to bigger and bigger HDTVs. Since these TVs can be made lighter than in the past, it is probable that we will be seeing more of these monster sized TVs available.

The big hit at Sharp was their AQUOS Freestyle TVs which are lightweight, cordless (except for the 60-inch model) and wireless. These TVs can be used wirelessly as far away as 98 feet from the video signal. Sharp showed a demonstration (see video) where several models walked around with each size of TV (which were all on and playing a program.) It was an amazing sight and certainly one of our highlights of the CES 2012 show. The rep told SmartReview that the freestyle is currently only being sold in Japan, and Sharp has not announced a date of introduction to the U.S. market yet. Sharp also showed prototypes of their 4K and 8K TVs. Sharp told us that the 4K TV will be out this year. These are ultra-resolution TVs. The 4K TV was side-by-side with a 1080p TV. Both were using a 1080p Blu-ray to display the video. The video was upconverted on the 4K TV. You could definitely see a sharper more vivid picture on the 4K TV, even though the content was the same for both TVs.

Toshiba 4K TV hooked up to 4K Camcorder

Toshiba TVs 2012: One of the most impressive models from Toshiba was the Toshiba 4K TV that was on display at the JVC booth, hooked up to the JVC 4K Camcorder. The 4K TV has four times as many pixels as a regular 1080p HDTV. The images on the Toshiba TV were stunning from JVC’s camcorder. The clearest we had seen at the show, and probably because this TV was getting 4K content, instead of 1080p content. 4K has already started showing up at movie theaters, as they switch from film to digital projectors. Toshiba is introducing a new 50-inch size to LED TVs (normally you only see this size in Plasma). For 2012 Toshiba will use Passive 3D technology.

So to wrap up this article, 2012 has seen some substantial improvements to the 2011 models, but the new technologies including OLED, 4K, and Crystal LED will be the buzzwords for 2012, as will be the advent of giant sized TVs. Keep in mind that the OLED and 4K TVs will be enormously expensive initially. SmartReview.com will display the 2012 models with reviews and commentary as they become available.

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