Mitsubishi Plans 3D-Ready 75-Inch LaserVue TV, Dealers Say
Mitsubishi’s LaserVue TV will make another run at the rear projection market, this time with a 3D-ready 75-inch model priced at $5,999, said dealers briefed on the plans. The set, part of the A91 series, will feature StreamTV that provides access to 100 streaming applications including Flickr, Facebook, Pandora and Twitter.
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The plans represent a shift from earlier strategies to offer a 65-inch model, too, and the set will require a separate adapter to receive 3D programming, dealers said. Frank DeMartin, Mitsubishi vice president of marketing, declined to comment. The adapter is expected to be sold in a $399 bundle with two pairs of 3D glasses and a demo disc, retailers said.
Mitsubishi has promised to offer LaserVue sets at a “more practical price point” this year (CED Jan 7 p4). Since announcing plans for LaserVue in 2006, Mitsubishi has struggled with the product line. The company stopped shipments after finding a glitch in the equipment used to make the sets. It also postponed from last fall shipping new 67- and 73-inch models. Earlier last year it cut the price of the original 65-inch set last year $1,000 to $5,999, which seemed to raise sales, company officials said.
Mitsubishi, which has been selling 3D-capable DLP-based rear projection TVs for several years, will continue the push this year. The 738 series and 838 series of rear-projection TVs will require adapters at first. But the TVs are expected to get a firmware upgrade in June, July or August that will make the device unnecessary, retailers said.
The 738 and 838 series will support side-by-side 3D signal checkerboard formats, dealers said. The adapter will initially be required to play back other 3D formats, including top-bottom and frame packing used in new 3D Blu-ray Disc players, retailers said. The 738 series includes 1080p 60-, 65- ($1,799), 73- ($2,399) and 82-inch ($3,799) models that feature StreamTV and DeepField Imager and that are compatible with a USB 802.11n wireless adapter. The high-end Diamond 838 sets include 65- ($2,199), 73- ($2,799) and 82-inch ($4,499) models that add the 32-watt, 16-Speaker Immersive sound package, Bluetooth A2DP audio streaming, four HDMI connectors with CEC and NetCommand. The immersive technology offers variable subwoofer output and a center channel mode.
The entry-level 638 series will have 60- ($1,199), 65- ($1,499) and 73-inch ($1,999) sets. The TVs will have three HDMI connectors and CEC. Mitsubishi created a variant of the 638 series for Costco and Aaron Rents -- called C10 -- that features the same sizes but with a different design, dealers said. Mitsubishi has already been selling rear-projection TVs through Costco, but will deliver a wider selection this year.
Mitsubishi is the only remaining supplier of rear-projection sets in the U.S. With annual U.S. sales at 400,000-500,000 units, dealers said, demand persists for the TVs. “We still sell hundreds and hundreds of them every month, but as LCD and plasma TVs move to 65-inch and larger sizes there is getting to be less room for them,” a West Coast retailer said.
In LCD TVs, Mitsubishi Unisen sets will feature LED edge lighting and the 16-speaker Immersive sound system. The 154, 164 and Diamond 265 TVs will contain 120 Hz panels, StreamTV, four HDMI connectors, 12-bit video processing, Deep Color and x.v. color support. The 154 line has a 55-inch model ($2,499). The 164 series has 40- ($1,699), 46- ($2,099) and 55-inch ($2,699) models. Both lines have wireless Internet and Bluetooth A2DP audio. The Diamond TVs including 46- ($2,499) and 55-inch ($3,199) sets, which add 240 Hz panels and an 18-speaker Immersive Sound system.