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Blu-ray, HD-DVD Prices Falling Like A Gentle Winter Snow (And In High-Def You Can Really See Those Flakes!)
Electronics | Dec 19, 07
Some early tech-fan enthusiasm for Blu-ray and HD-DVD was of the sort normally reserved for James Lipton's commentaries on the brilliance of filmmakers behind the likes of, say, "Beerfest."
However, the somewhat tepid response of consumers has motivated repeated rounds of price cuts, and Sony's inclusion of a Blu-ray player in the $399 40 GB PlayStation 3 may have, as predicted, introduced further downward price pressure (see "But Blu-ray's An Amazing Technology….OK, What If We Cut The Price, Let You Pretend To Shoot People And Throw In Spiderman 3?"). Now, in the home stretch of the holiday shopping season, introductory-level high-def players are available for less than the price of some iPods.
Consider the Samsung BD-P1400, the top Blu-ray player on PriceSCAN by popularity. Since the Blu-ray bearing PS 3's October introduction, this model has fallen from at least $400 to well under $300, a discount of over 25% to the Playstation 3 (after all, the Samsung doesn't play games).
Time Period: 9/3/2007 through 12/10/2007
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
With Toshiba's HD-DVD standard perhaps feeling the heat from Blu-ray, HD-DVD players are going for even less. The Toshiba HD-A3 HD-DVD player has fallen from $300 to under $215 in the last six weeks.
Time Period: 9/24/2007 through 12/10/2007
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
Then again, in the holiday spirit of peace, perhaps you'd like a player that can handle both high-def standards. Both the LG Electronics BH-200 Super Blu Player and the Samsung BD-UP5000 Blu-ray / HD-DVD Combo are being offered by well-known vendors for less than $800. But check availability, as, like peace itself , neither may be immediately obtained.
Oh, and as for Mr. Lipton, he's got a new book out called "Inside Inside", in which you can read about his life and interview subjects, each of the later being more gifted and talented than the last.
Posted by jeffrey.trester at 9:14 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Why Al Gore Should Want You To Buy A GPS
Electronics | Dec 13, 07
With a barrel of crude going for nearly a C-note and the earth warming to temperatures that would make a sauropod flip on an air conditioner, the least you can do for your planet is avoid driving around needlessly lost, spewing exhaust and wasting gas.
Fortunately, GPS prices have moderated significantly this year. Consider for example the Garmin Nuvi 650 Personal Travel Assistant, currently the most popular automotive GPS on this site. Back in April this unit would have cost you at least $500; today merchants are offering it for well under $400.
Time Period: 4/30/2007 through 12/10/2007
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
An even more impressive drop has occurred in the price of the TomTom One XL, falling from a minimum of about $400 to under $250 today.
Time Period: 4/30/2007 through 12/10/2007
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
These and many other GPS units have seen price declines in the days since Thanksgiving, but the magnitude of these reductions may be limited by margin-shrinking price cuts earlier in the year (we could be seeing a similar phenomenon in the flat-screen television market – see "Saving Green on Flat-Screens, After Black Friday"). Following twenty or thirty percent drops over the last eight months, you have to wonder how much lower prices can go this holiday season.
In any case, this is an excellent time to combat rising fuel costs with a newly inexpensive GPS. Then, the next time your environmentally conscious friends start talking about drowning polar bears and barren penguin rookeries while wearily eyeing that Panzer sitting in your driveway, you can point out that you get from point A to point B with all the twelve mile per gallon efficiency modern global positioning technology will allow.
Posted by jeffrey.trester at 11:33 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
