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With "Cash For Clunker’s" End, Lower GPS Prices
Electronics | Oct 27, 09
In the wake of the conclusion of the government’s “Cash for Clunker’s” auto purchase subsidy program, it appears GPS prices are starting to buckle.
We’ve seen a 7.5% decline in the value of our Automotive GPS – Voice Recognition Index (see our press release). This contrasts with only a 1% decline for the entire month of September. Without federal stimulus, overall demand for vehicles may be reduced, and it’s not unreasonable to hypothesize that this softening may filter through to auto accessories, including GPS.
To be sure, even the recent period of GPS price stability followed dramatic declines earlier in the year. Consider for example the Gamin Nuvi 855, currently the most popular such unit with speech recognition on PriceSCAN. The lowest vendor offered price for this item has fallen some 50%, from about $460 back in mid-February to less than $230 today.
Time Period: 2/16/2009 through 10/19/2009
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
Moving into the holidays, one factor that could be at least somewhat supportive of GPS pricing is higher gasoline prices. If the recent rally in petroleum prices translates into higher gas prices for consumers, the value of GPS may be supported by the devices’ ability to save drivers the fuel that would otherwise be wasted by taking inefficient routes.
At any rate, it’s worth remembering that the higher pump prices go, the more the gift of GPS (and thus of not driving around lost) should be appreciated by those on your shopping list.
Posted by jeffrey.trester at 9:21 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
A Blu-ray Of Light At End Of Price Decline Tunnel?
Electronics | Oct 22, 09
Blu-ray player prices are accelerating the pace of their decline as we approach the holiday shopping season, and there seems to be no end in sight.
The PriceSCAN Blu-ray index fell some six percent in the first week of October, by the end of which the total fourth quarter decline came to 12.8% (see our press release). Certainly this is not indicative of a sharp revival of the retail electronics consumer. But as noted here earlier, the prospect of the release of new 3D-capable Blu-ray technology in 2010 may also be depressing demand for the current technology, motivating price cuts by retailers and manufacturers, both for Blu-ray itself (“Getting Them 3-D, Blu-ray Blues”) and for the current generation of television sets (“Mid-Sized LCDs Take Autumnal Equinox As Cue For Price Drop”, “Lower Prices For Smaller Screens”).
To see just how dramatic the decline in Blu-ray pricing has been this year one need look no further than the LG BD390 Network Blu-ray Disc Player, currently the most popular such device on PriceSCAN. Back in late April the lowest vendor price for this item listed on our site was about $400; it’s now offered for less than $280.
Time Period: 4/20/2009 through 10/19/2009
Each tick mark represents one week
Red = High Price, Blue = Average Price, Green = Low Price
With heightening anticipation of new 3D Blu-ray devices the price deterioration in current models may continue through the rest of the year. As such, for those who seek HD but feel 3D is a novelty for which it’s not worth waiting (or paying), some truly striking bargains may come into high definition view, just in time for the holidays.
Posted by jeffrey.trester at 6:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Mid-Sized LCDs Take Autumnal Equinox As Cue For Price Drop
Electronics | Oct 8, 09
The week following that of the astronomical start of autumn apparently inspired LCD prices to take action in tribute to the new season and, well, fall.
As noted in our recent press release, last week saw a two percent decline in PriceSCAN’s 46 inch LCD TV-1080p Index, equal to the slide over the prior three weeks of September and just 1% shy of the drop for all of August. We’ve taken note of other recent declines in our flat screen indices (“Lower Prices For Smaller Screens”) and this acceleration in discounting is likely driven by vendors and electronics firms fearful of a second weak holiday shopping season. The coming of more advanced technology in 2010 may also be motivating a markdown in current production and inventory (see “Getting Them 3-D, Blu-ray Blues”)
Interestingly, it seems popularity is moderating price cuts for some models. Consider Sony’s KDL-46XBR9 BRAVIA 1080p, currently not only the most sought-after 46-inch LCD television on PriceSCAN but the most popular television on our site overall. It saw its lowest vendor price on PriceSCAN rise from around $1,500 to just under $1,700 in the first week of October, almost wiping out its September price drop (to be sure, that lowest price is still off about $700 since the beginning of June).
Time Period: 6/1/2009 through 10/5/2009
Each tick mark represents one week
It remains to be seen just how strong a retail season we’ll get in the fourth quarter. But if flat-screen television prices are any indication, it looks like sellers are starting to slash prices in anticipation of purchases they expect to be, shall we say, less than robust.
Posted by jeffrey.trester at 11:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
