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Report: 3DTV sales to more than double in 2011

The adoption of 3DTVs is expected to spike next year.

Futuresource Consulting predicts that 4 million 3DTVs will be sold worldwide by the end of this year. The figure could at least double next year to 5 million 3DTVs in the U.S. and 3 million in Western Europe, the market researcher said today. Futuresource added that so far, "year-one adoption of 3DTV is running at a far quicker rate in most territories than it did for high-definition."

According to Futuresource, vendors are seeing value in delivering 3D in their sets and "manufacturers are now able to … Read more

Vizio, Samsung battle for control of TV market

Vizio has nabbed the top spot in the U.S. LCD television market, but Samsung still reigns supreme in overall TV shipments, research firm iSuppli is reporting.

During the third quarter, Vizio shipped more than 1.6 million televisions, capturing 19.9 percent of the U.S. LCD market. It was a sizable gain over its third quarter in 2009, when it had 15.3 percent market share. The company also gained compared with its second-quarter market share of 18.7 percent.

Last quarter, Samsung was the top LCD maker in the U.S. But with Vizio's success during … Read more

Quick Take: Vizio E320VL and E370VL

Although we didn't review the 32- or 37-inch members of Vizio's E0VL series of LCD TVs--the E320VL and E370VL--we did review the 47-inch E470VL, and believe that review will provide some indication of how these smaller models will perform.

The spec sheets of two smaller models differ from the larger, respectively, in terms of native resolution (the smaller models are 1,366x768 pixels, or 720p, and the larger are 1,920x1,080 pixels, or 1080p) response time (5ms vs. 8ms), refresh rate (60Hz vs. 120Hz), and associated dejudder processing. Among these differences, we suspect that only refresh rate … Read more

Panasonic, Vizio TVs win CNET's Editors' Choice

It's been a while since I've awarded CNET's Editors' Choice to a TV, but today that changes. Based on TV reviews this year, I'm giving the EC to the Panasonic TC-PVT20/25 and the Vizio XVT3SV. Here's why.

Panasonic TC-PVT20/25 series: It's Panasonic's best TV ever, and in terms of picture quality, it's the second-best HDTV of any brand or technology I've ever reviewed (the best still being the Pioneer Elite Kuro from 2008). The VT25 is the only TV to receive a "9" out of 10 score in our Performance subcategory in 2010, with the deepest black levels of any plasma this year and a superb showing in other performance areas, including 3D. At this point I don't expect any 2010 TV to equal or beat that score. The runner-up is Samsung's PNC8000, which came closer than any other, but overall didn't quite measure up. In my opinion the difference in price between the two--the 50-inch Panasonic is about $700 more expensive at Best Buy--is worth paying, but price does make a strong argument in the Samsung's favor.

The other factor working against Panasonic is black-level loss, which we confirmed in our long-term test of the VT25. The extent of that loss is still yet to be determined, although Panasonic's reps claim the sample we tested will stabilize soon. Even after the loss, the black levels of the VT25 are still significantly deeper than those of the Samsung and other 2010 plasmas. Perhaps Panasonic is lying and they'll fade more over time. And perhaps the Samsung's will, too--I just don't know. Even knowing about the loss, however, if I were shopping for a TV today I'd still buy a Panasonic TC-PVT25.

Read the full review of the Panasonic TC-PVT20/25 series.

Vizio XVT3SV series: It's Vizio's best TV ever, with the most extensive 3D-free feature set on the market including a QWERTY Bluetooth remote, built-in Wi-Fi, and our favorite implementation of Apps-on-TV so far. But picture quality is what earned the XVT3SV our award. Highlights include color fidelity, the ability to handle bright rooms well, and black levels deep enough to stand among the best. Its LED local dimming technology didn't suffer the kind of uniformity issues we saw on edge-lit models like the Samsung UNC8000, and also avoided some of the problems we saw on its closest full-array competitors, including the LG LX9500 and runner-up LE8500, along with Sony's XBR-HX909. The Vizio scored an "8" in Performance, the same as many 2010 plasma TVs and LG's best LCD models, and manages to do so for less than any of its flagship competition. That said, if money were no object and I had to choose an LCD TV for myself, it would be the Vizio XVT3SV series.

Read the full review of the Vizio XVT3SV series.… Read more

Get a 26-inch HDTV for $229.99

Is 26 the new 24? I'm talking about TV sizes, of course. As time goes on, bigger screens inevitably get lower prices.

Case in point: CompUSA has the refurbished Vizio VA26LHDTV10LT 26-inch HDTV for $229.99 (plus about $11 for shipping). If memory serves, that's the lowest price I've seen on a 26-incher. (Indeed, over at Wal-Mart, it sells new for $288 plus tax.)

The Vizio has fairly typical specs for a TV of this size: 1,366 by 768 resolution (i.e., 720p), 10-watt stereo speakers, a pair of HDMI inputs, one component-video input, and a … Read more

Cheap Vizio LCD gives 120Hz, decent picture

Like most TV makers, Vizio offers a wide variety of features at different price points. The E0VL series reviewed here lacks the Internet and LED backlight options of the company's flagship XVT3 series, but its spec sheet and price tag hold the real appeal--it's one of the least expensive TVs on the market with 120Hz processing. On the other hand, the Vizio's downsides, namely lighter black levels and less-impressive performance when viewed from off-angle, give us some pause when comparing it with other non-LED-based 120Hz LCDs. But if you want this feature set and don't mind … Read more