Survey shows more consumers to buy bigger TVs

Source: Consumer Reports National Research Center Holiday Poll 2009

It may sound trite, but it’s true: TV buyers are embracing the concept that bigger really is better. About 57% of the consumers planning to buy a TV intend to get one with a 40-inch or larger screen, and many of those buyers (22%) have their sights set on a 50-inch or larger TV.

That’s what we discovered in our latest holiday survey, in which 21% of the 1,000 consumers surveyed said they’d be buying a TV during or after the holidays. Last year, shoppers had more modest aspirations—only 47% were looking at 40-inch and bigger TVs. The steady drop in big-screen prices over the past year could well be the reason more viewers aspire to live larger.

Screen size isn’t the only thing driving purchases, though. Better picture quality with high-def resolution was the biggest reason buyers are willing to spring for a new TV, cited by 77% of those planning to buy a TV. The appearance of the TV also comes into play: 71% want a set that takes up less space than the one they have now or that can be wall-mounted, and just over half said they were looking for a more attractive design.

Where will these new TVs fit into the household? About 70% of buyers are replacing an older TV that is not a flat panel, 36% are buying an additional flat screen for another room, and 20% are upgrading an older flat-panel set.

In some cases, envy is the motivating factor: 37% of the respondents said they want a new TV because their family or friends have one. (The men surveyed were more likely than the women to keep up with the Joneses, 42% vs. 32%. Gee, that’s a surprise.) There was even more of a gender gap in another case: 38% of men polled want a new TV for a sporting event such as the SuperBowl, while only 24% of women voiced the same sentiment.

The scary side of "free" TV

The ability to watch TV programs on the Web for free, to download cheap or free programming to your iPod, and to stream video as part of your Netflix subscription is great news—or is it?

That’s the question raised by a thought-provoking article in the New York Times this week. The author, Nicholas Carr, says: “The more I play movies and TV shows from the Web, the less I use my cable TV service.” He’s cut down on pay-per-view movies, canceled Showtime because he can stream movies and programs like Dexter through Nextflix, download programs from Apple’s iTunes store, and watch full TV episodes on sites like Hulu, CNN.com, PBS.org and more.

What’s not to like? Carr and viewers like him can obviously save a bundle while still enjoying lots of TV shows and movies.

The problem, says Carr, is that this is eating into revenues for the companies that produce the programs we love to watch (especially when they’re free). He observes: “If the changes in our viewing habits stanch the flow of money back to studios, producing [the smartest, most creative] programs may no longer be possible. In their place, we’ll get more junk: dopey reality shows, cookie-cutter police dramas, inane gab fests. The vast wasteland will become even vaster. Even ‘free’ has a price.”

I love free as much as anyone and have taken some of these steps to trim my own entertainment costs. We’ve also talked here at Consumer Reports about the notion that consumers might want to ditch their pay-TV service, get free off-air HD, and use these other venues to get premium programming for much less than they’re paying now.

Still, I see Carr’s point, and friends of mine in the TV business are very worried about the future. Which worries me.

What’s your take? —Eileen McCooey

Some surprises as California adopts new TV power standards

The controversial regulations by the California Energy Commission (CEC), requiring all TVs sold in the state to meet new energy-efficiency standards, have mostly drawn the expected reactions, with energy-conservation advocates generally lining up behind the proposal and manufacturers opposing it. But the measure has also drawn some reactions that aren't necessarily predictable, and may point to an interesting and nuanced debate to come as the impact of the regulations, for California and the country, are assessed.

The CEC estimates the new energy-consumption threshold, set to go in effect in 2011, will save $8.1 million over 10 years.“The real winners of these new TV energy efficiencies are California consumers who will be saving billions of dollars and conserving energy while preserving their choice to buy any size or type of TV. Californians buy four million televisions each year and they deserve the most energy efficient models available," said Energy Commission Chairman Karen Douglas.”

On the whole, as expected, the Consumer Electronics Association, one of several industry groups which opposed the regulatory proposals, criticized the CEC’s actions:

Share your experiences with TV, Internet, and phone bundles

We’d like your help as we prepare our annual report, on bundled telecom services—those packages of television, Internet and telephone service sold by cable, phone, and satellite-TV companies.

Specifically, we’d like to know your experiences with, and some details about, your home telecom service. We’ve prepared a questionnaire that asks about how you get these services, whether they're bundled, and how easy or hard it was to sign up for them. The 20 questions—any or all of which you can answer—include queries about how you selected providers and whether you negotiated with them over prices.

Begin the quiz by clicking here. After you’re done, you’ll be taken to the results page, where you’ll get an early look at what other readers have reported.

Black Friday specials: Bundles of joy, or retail sales trick?

One way retailers can bump up their average sales ticket while still offering savings for their customers is through bundling, or offering savings when you buy several items—say, a TV bundled with a Blu-ray player or sound system—as an assembled package.

Based on what we’ve seen so far, this is a tactic Walmart and some other retailers, such as Best Buy, will be using as part of their Black Friday strategies. This week, for example, Walmart’s pre-Black Friday sales include several TV-based bundles. One $698 package combines a 40-inch 1080p LCD TV, a BD-Live Blu-ray player, and a 2.1-channel sound bar, all from a brand called Viore, which is sold primarily through Walmart (although we’ve also seen it at the company’s Sam’s Club warehouse outlets).

If you’re more comfortable with a better-known TV brand and can live with a standard upconverting DVD player, there are two Vizio bundles, each of which provides a choice of TVs in two screen sizes. One package combines either a 37- or 42-inch 1080p Eco-series (VO370M, VO420M) LCD TV, at a price of $677 or $767, with an RCA-brand DVD home theater system and an HDMI cable. These TVs are selling separately on the Walmart website for for $547 and $648, respectively.

A different bundle packages the RCA DVD home theater system with either a 42-inch 1080p LCD (model SV420M, $888) or 47-inch 1080p (model SV470M, $1,074) and an HDMI cable. Both of these TVs have 120Hz technology to help reduce motion blur, plus the HDMI cable. Vizio sells these TVs separately for $797 and $997, respectively.

TV power usage on trial in California

How much juice can your big-screen TV suck up? California will become the first state to tackle that issue this week if the state’s energy commission approves a proposal to limit the amount of energy TVs can use. Given the Golden State’s track record as a trendsetter, the impact could eventually be felt far beyond its borders. Not surprisingly, the proposal has sparked heated controversy, particularly about plasma TVs, which have been painted as power hogs. Opponents argue that the measure would mean less choice and higher prices for consumers, effectively banning the sales of hundreds of big-screen models.

California’s proposal would require a 33 percent improvement in average efficiency for TVs with screens up to 58 inches sold in California in 2011 and a 49 percent improvement in 2013. By the state’s reckoning, more than 1,000 TVs, including several dozen plasma TVs, already meet the 2011 standard, and about 300 LCD sets—but no plasmas—already qualify for the tougher 2013 rules.

Manufacturers, retailers, and other industry groups have sharply criticized the measure. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) argues that California hasn’t factored in recent advances in TV efficiency, instead relying on data from years back, when many TVs—especially plasma sets—were more power-hungry. The group points out that the energy efficiency of Energy Star-compliant TVs has improved by 41 percent over the past two years, and points out that many Energy-Star-compliant sets would not meet California’s 2013 guidelines.

A holiday gift to all: Recycle your old electronics (and get cash back)

With early Black-Friday deals abounding, maybe you're planning on getting some sleek, new electronic item to replace an old clunker. And you’re probably planning on heaving that old computer, TV, printer, or whatever to the curb, right? Do us all a favor and recycle it.

"Cell phones can be loaded with toxic metals, such as arsenic, cadmium, and mercury," says Urvashi Rangan, the director of technical policy at Consumers Union. "Old televisions and computer monitors can contain up to eight pounds of lead. When they break in a landfill, then can pose an environmental and a neurological hazard."

Unfortunately, our recent survey of green behavior found that only 12 percent of consumers are recycling large electronics and 17 percent recycle small electronics.

You don’t even have to be a complete altruist. Sears is offering cash (in the form of a Sears gift card, of course) for your old electronics. Value is based on the quality of the trade-in.

So, please, keep us neurologically sound. GreenerChoices.org offers help in finding places to recycle computers, cell phones, TVs, and more. A number of manufacturers and retailers (like Best Buy, Staples, and Office Depot) also offer recycling services. For more, check out our video: “Getting Rid of Old Electronics." —Nick K. Mandle

Buzzword: Are "derivative" TV models a good buy?

If you’re on the hunt for a discounted TV during the holiday shopping season, you may come across some model numbers you haven’t seen in our TV Ratings (available to subscribers) or anywhere else, even from major brands. These TVs are known as "derivatives," and they generally differ from the standard models in a manufacturer's line. Because the derivative sets are lower-priced, they typically have lower specs and lack some features found on standard models.

There are several reasons why manufacturers offer these sets. One is that it allows them to hit specific retail price points during promotional shopping periods, something they couldn’t do with standard models. This lets bigger-name companies compete on price with lesser-known secondary or tertiary TV brands without disrupting pricing for their standard models. A company may also use derivative models to get their brand into a new channel of distribution—say, a mass merchant such as Walmart or a warehouse club like Costco—without upsetting their more mainstream retail partners. Since the model numbers, and usually, specifications, are different, shoppers can’t directly compare the models sold in these different types of retail outlets.

As we mentioned in a previous post, we’re already seeing some derivative LCD models from Samsung—LN-B400- and B500-series sets —and Sony (KDL-L504- and S504-series sets). Last year, Panasonic also offered a few derivative models that were sold only during the holidays.

Plasma or LCD TV? I vote for plasma

“No one would buy a plasma TV anymore, would they?” Financial journalist Joe Kernen posed that question to a tech-stock analyst on CNBC’s Squawk Box program Monday morning. The analyst didn’t answer Joe directly, but instead started touting LED TVs—a marketing term for LCD sets that use LED backlighting—as the wave of the future. (The exchange happens around minute 3:30 of the CNBC video clip, embedded below.)

Well, I’d like to answer Joe’s question about plasmas directly, with a resounding YES! Many consumers (including me and a number of the experts who test TVs for Consumer Reports) have bought plasma TVs. I, for one, will vote with my pocketbook once again. I plan to buy a second plasma TV with a bigger screen (my current set is 42 inches, and my room is big enough for a 50-incher). As our tests show month in and out, the best plasma TVs have excellent picture quality, certainly as good as any LCD set’s and perhaps even better. In our judgment, and that of other experts in the field, plasma TVs can display depth and richness that result in a more dimensional, cinematic look than on most LCD TVs, including those pricey new LED-backlit models.

Plasma TVs also have advantages that no LCD can match. Perhaps the most significant is their unlimited viewing angle, which means everyone in the room can enjoy the same great picture quality from any viewing position. With almost all LCD TVs, the picture quality can be great from head on, but it deteriorates as you move away from dead center, so the screen can look washed out or dim, or colors can shift, sometimes dramatically. (For more, see "Viewing angle still the Achilles heel for most LCD TVs."

HDTV deals: Watch for doorbuster specials and “derivative” models

We’re always excited in the weeks leading up to Black Friday, the traditional three-day shopping period right after Thanksgiving. It's become almost a sport seeing how low prices on TVs will go—and what "doorbuster" deals we'll miss out on when we decide that it’s just not worth getting up before dawn to try for one of the limited-quantity offers.

Although it’s still early in the deal-hunting season, several Black Friday sites, such as BlackFridayInfo and GottaDeal, have already posted what they claim are Sears’ and Kmart's Black Friday ads. Walmart also jumped the gun with a series of weekly specials leading up to Black Friday. Amazon's now also doing something similar (in its Gold Box), apparently matching some of Walmart's deals.

A quick review of the promoted models we've seen so far doesn’t reveal any “gotta have” deals. But we have noticed some nice price cuts on several major-brand models, which this year dominate the Sears ad, for example.

Even Samsung’s 6000-series LED-backlit LCD TVs are making an appearance in Black Friday ads.

For example, a 42-inch 1080p Panasonic plasma, the TC-P42S1, s listed in the Sears ad at $650, or $150 less than in our plasma TV Ratings. An LCD set,  Samsung's LN46B650, which is priced at $1,450 in our Ratings, will be on sale for $1,310. An LED-backlit model, the Samsung UN40B6000, which is listed at $1,500 in our Ratings, is sale-priced at $1,400 in the ad. We're all about saving a hundred dollars or more, but it’s not the kind of savings that would drag us out of a warm bed on a cold morning—especially knowing that everyday TV prices seldom rebound to pre-Black Friday levels once those sales are over.

In fact, Kmart's ad has Panasonic' s TC-P42C1 set, a 720p model, listed at $550. That's the same price I saw the TV this weekend at Target as part of a "pre-holiday" sale.