Sony

Connected TV App Continues Expansion in Growing Market

January 18, 2012--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AOL today announced the AOL HD app is available for download on Sony Internet-enabled devices. The announcement continues the momentum from AOL HD’s launch on connected devices including Samsung, Google TV, Roku, Boxee, DivX TV and Yahoo! Connected TV.

"Today's announcement signals AOL HD's commitment to creating an interactive and engaging environment that takes our incredible video from the Web to the living room," said Robert Delacruz, General Manager for AOL HD. "Sony is one of the premier consumer electronics brands innovating the way content is delivered to your living room. So extending AOL HD across their product lineup allows us to meet the growing consumer demand for free HD video content via their connected TV devices – and we've made discovering new content as easy as the click of a remote."

AOL HD features high-definition technology, lifestyle, celebrity and entertainment content updated daily from properties across the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, including Engadget, TechCrunch, Translogic, Moviefone and Huffington Post Celebrity.

AOL HD is available on Sony Internet-enabled devices including Bravia Internet TVs, Blu-ray and Home Theater in a Box systems.

SOURCE AOL

We're just back from the consumer electronics extravaganza in Las Vegas where we saw some amazing new gadgets and gear including new TVs, tablets, smartphones and new high tech automobiles. Much of the technology we saw may not be available for some time (if at all) but we did see some trends that will sooner or later make many of your high tech possessions obsolete.

Future TVs Will Be Sharper

A year ago at CES 2011 we saw just a few 4K resolution HDTVs but at this year's show we saw lots more. Full HD is defined as 1920 x 1080 but he next generation standard will double that to 3840 x 2160 which they are calling 4K (4K x 2K). Just as everyone who saw HD when it first came out could see a big difference between its higher resolution and older standard definition TVs, once you see 4K TVs you'll want one. Yes, it will take new production equipment, new distribution methods and present all kinds of challenges but isn't that what the industry thrives on?Read more

LAS VEGAS (CES BOOTH #14200), Jan. 10, 2012 – Building on its heritage as an innovator in home audio entertainment, Sony today debuted its SS-AR2 Loudspeaker, furthering the line established last year with the introduction of its award winning and critically acclaimed predecessor, the SS-AR1.

"Sony has been committed to high resolution music since its inception," noted Charles Speidel, vice president of Sony Electronics Home Audio Video business, "The R-series of loudspeakers are designed to recreate music as faithfully as possible, delivering an unparalleled listening experience for those devotees who truly care about music."

Signature sound starts with source materials

The key to the R-series’ superb sound reproduction is the precise control of the inevitable vibrations created by sound waves. Created through exhaustive processes testing countless samples and configurations, the AR1 and AR2 loudspeakers feature a final front cabinet baffle laminated to a thickness of 50 mm and 40 mm respectively from hand-selected maple cultivated from Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, whose cold climate produces maple of a tight grain, contributing markedly to the R’s beautiful sound. The front baffle couples with Nordic birch, another cold climate wood with an extremely tight grain, to project the most ideal sound reverberation properties.Read more

Electronics, Content and Network Services Combine to Deliver Immersive, Quality Entertainment, "Anytime, Anywhere"

January 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- (CES Booth #14200) – Connectivity, superb picture and sound quality, and a unique mix of electronics, content and network services are just some of the features that distinguish Sony's dazzling array of technology at CES 2012 (www.sony.com/CES).

Sony is introducing consumers to a new world of connected products, from TVs, Blu-ray players, and home A/V receivers to tablets, smartphones, and PCs to camcorders, mobile audio devices and more. Combined with a broad range of online services for movies, TV shows, and games, as well as a cloud-based music service, Sony is giving consumers more access to more content whenever and however they want it. Through this convergence of hardware, content and network services, Sony is offering a new user experience.

"Sony is committed to designing technologies for every aspect of consumer entertainment – in or out of the home, on the go, in the air, at work, at play, or wherever life takes you," said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. "When these products are combined with Sony Entertainment Network (SEN) which offers innovative services like Music Unlimited and Video Unlimited, as well as PlayStation Network, the user experience is truly unmatched and only made possible by a company like Sony."Read more

This year's CES should bring out the latest HDTV sets from all the big names including Samsung, Sony, LG, Panasonic, Sharp, Toshiba and more. We expect to see more connected TVs with more iPads and other tablets controlling them. A challenge they will all be facing is how to make their TVs stand out from the pack. With little differentiation between one, high refresh rate, LED backlit big screen HDTV set, and another, TV manufacturers are going to have to differentiate in order to make their TVs more appealing than others. One differentiation we may see is added TV "smarts" either built into the TV itself or provided in a companion device like a tablet. TVs with more smarts will help but with rumors of an Apple TV coming in 2012, we wonder if any of the major TV brands will be able to compete with Apple in the battle for the living room.

TV Brands Used to Be Enough of a Differentiator
Unfortunately, throwing pixels on a screen is not enough to sustain a TV manufacturer's market share. HDTVs like laptop computers are becoming something of a commodity; there is little to differentiate one brand from another. Even Sony who has been able to command a price premium in the past now has TVs that are priced similarly to Vizio TVs. Of course there will always be new technology advances like Ultra High Definition (UHDTV), quantum dots, and big screen AMOLED TVs but these won't come for some time and once one vendor gets one of these features, they all will.Read more