Posted on 09/23/2010 5:09:28 PM PDT by Lorianne
An historically large oversupply of LCD TV panels is causing television prices to fall right in time for the holiday shopping season.
By the end of this month, LCD TV prices will be about 5% lower than they were at the same time last year, according research firm DisplaySearch. But a tailspin will start in October: In the last three months of the year, the firm forecasts that prices will keep falling until they bottom out at 12% below 2009 levels.
On Black Friday, 32-inch LCD TVs will drop to an average price of between $249 and $299, with the best deals as low as $199, according to a prediction from research firm iSuppli. The 32-inch LCD TVs currently sell for $349 to $399, on average, with the cheapest model (Emerson's LC320EMX) selling for $300.
The forecasted price plunge stems from an enormous surplus of LCD panels that has accumulated over the first nine months of the year. Shipments of the panels rose to 52 million in the second quarter, but only 38.7 million TVs were actually shipped to retailers, according to iSuppli.
"Manufacturers were playing a game of chicken, hoping demand would be there and reluctant to be the first one to let prices fall," said Paul Gagnon, director of TV research at DisplaySearch. "Only recently did they come to the shocking realization that prices needed to fall. That will have a good impact on holiday sales."
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Deflation.
LLS
I might upgrade to a bigger lcd (I’m using a 22’ for my computer monitor/tv) if the price is low enough but I’m probably going to end up with an LED.
Anyone got any recommendations?
I am still working with convertor boxes that are not bullet proof.
Have to purchase anything with Soc Sec frozen money. I cannot afford to make a purchasing error.
Well, I may just have to upgrade now.
Will these price drops affect large computer monitors? We don’t do television.
Plunge!
There are other explanations, but hey, if the square peg fits . . . .
I have a Samsung monitor / TV. The quality of the image is better than the TV I paid five times as much for five years ago.
ping
5% is a plunge?
Geez. I’m getting old.
I’ll wait to get my 800 pound gorilla (sony) out a while longer, I guess.
I’m old (B&W as a kid, was 18 when we got MTV), I can ride out this tech wave, too, till it gets cheap and the norm.
It's not worth being trampled to death.
Darn that supply & demand thingy! The evil invisible hand, tweaking the free market at work; it’s a beautiful thing...
I see folks trying to get rid of those 52” rear projection TVs all the time now.
They paid 2.5k for it and they will say just haul it away.
HDTV ping
That is one of the things that has been making me hold off.
Viso LCDs are nice. My wife has 32” in her sewing room that is nice. Our den has a 50” panasonic Plasma that is very, very nice. LCD is less expensive.
Hey, I’ve had my 60” Mitsubishi for 16 years and it still works fine. When it dies, I’ll replace it.
Run and hide.
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