War Over: Samsung and Sharp end LCD patent battle

After three years of legal wranglings, court hearings, injunctions, etc, Sharp and Samsung have settled their LCD patent battle – finally, to the relief of both companies, we’re certain. Yes, their lawyers might not be as relieved, we know.

Although the terms of the agreement will be kept secret and under wraps, a Sharp spokesman stated that conditions that “will be in favor of Sharp” — the company that started the fuse burning in 2007. It seems Samsung has suffered a string of small legal defeats in various markets of late, so were left with little choice but to settle really.

The patent covered LCD filings in the US, Europe and Japan, among other hot spots. It’ll be interesting to see how this settled case affects both companies and their strategies going forward.

HDMI News: Version 1.4 + 3D = New public spec + Us scratching our heads

3D is here, it’s happening, and it won’t go away, regardless of whether we want it to or not — but the good news at least is there won’t be home 3D format wars or any stuff like that to muddy the water even further, such as the HD-DVD/Blu-Ray war that fractured HD home disc entertainment for too long.

Most manufacturers are using the active shutter glasses model, delivery will occur on cable, satellite, and 3-D Blu-ray, and now the HDMI group has made available the 3D part of the HDMI 1.4 spec so that all companies can make their gear fully compatible. At least that part of the equation they’ve gotten right; a format war would have further reduced the chance of 3D ever catching on in a home environment. And we already talked about how Samsung is getting in on the 3D action soon enough.

HDMI 1.4a is due to release later this year, but that also will be released publicly. How about it…any of our readers plan on getting in on the 3D “revolution”?

Sunday’s Super Bowl HDTV Deal-O-Rama

It’s Sunday, and the biggest NFL game of the year is on today! In celebration of this football fanatic’s dream day, here’s a few great HDTVs for your pleasure:

Walmart.com – We all know Wallie-Mart has great price, but this one is really good: a Coby TFTV3217 32” LCD HDTV for $298.00 – with free shipping as well? Now that’s value, folks.

BuyDig.com – Our readers are no doubt aware of our affinity for LG, and this one is pretty straight up an amazing deal: the monstrous LG 55LH40 55” 1080p LCD HDTV for $1295.00 (Use the ‘See price in cart’ feature) and with free shipping. Huge and tasty!

Thanks for reading, and happy Super Bowl Sunday to all of you.

Perspective: Is this the time to buy a HDTV?

Yes, there are several big events coming, including the Winter Olympics and the Super Bowl. Many think this would be the ideal time to buy or upgrade their HDTV, but some others in the industry disagree, thinking consumers may get fleeced because of the “rush” mentality.

Our opinion? You can get some really nice deals this time of year, you just have to be smart and shop around. Doing your due diligence is essential in getting the best price on anything, and that includes HDTVs. Or perhaps some have put forth the idea of waiting a few months for the 2009 model HDTVs to get low and the new 2010 models to arrive, which is a very viable strategy.

Feel free to let us know in the comments if you spot an amazing HDTV deal you want to let everyone know about.

Super Resolution: Super Bowl to be delivered in uncompressed HD via Level 3

It seems even the big stations prize picture quality for the big events, as the upcoming Super Bowl seems to indicate. Word is that the biggest game in the NFL will be delivered to your screen, sans compression. This (should?) will result in a sharper, clearer picture for all to enjoy, hopefully.

Vizio Talk: Not cheap, just smart

Well, Vizio has earned itself a decent reputation for quality with their HD units, but being present in Wal-Mart and other such stores also gets it seen as a “cheap” company that lower prices by using inferior parts. Not true, says the CEO of the company in a recent interview.

CEO William Wang’s interview with Nikkei Electronics Asia .pointed out some interesting fallacies about the company, countering the opinions of some that its TVs are made cheaply to enable them to price lower and states “You can’t make inexpensive TVs with cheap parts”. Well, actually you can if you try hard enough, but hopefully it appears that Vizio does not do so.

The interview is pretty much cheerleading for Vizio, but it might be worth a read if you think Vizios are equivalent to some cheap knock off brand.

3D Hits: Acer releases 23.6″ LCD HDTV in 3D (We’re all out of D’s)

3D is definitely a driving force in HDTV marketing techniques right at the moment, as many HD makers are scrambling to come up with new 3D technologies for the medium. You already have read here what some market experts think of 3D and its future. We don’t totally understand the forces at work here, but if you’re a new adopter that has to have everything…

Acer just released its GD235HZ 120Hz LCD, specially designed for working with NVIDIA’s 3D Vision active-shutter glasses system, also recently released. The 23.6″ widescreen HD display sells for $399 USD, and it’ll be pretty cool for 3D gaming and 3D Blu-ray movies that will begin entering the market shortly.

Now of course there are some caveats to this: The NVIDIA 3D Vision kit sells separately for $199, and you need a compatible NVIDIA card to view the 3D content properly as well, so it isn’t an inexpensive investment to say the least. Buy hey, immersion has its price, and for now its around $700 USD or so.

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