Sharp Unveils Industry's Largest Liquid Crystal TV Line; Cutting-Edge Consumer Electronics Products

29-Jan-04

ìWith flat-panel TV choices that simply cannot be matched by any competitor, Sharp intends to be the leading global manufacturer of LCD TVs for years to come,î said Bob Scaglione, Vice President of Marketing, Consumer Electronics Group, Sharp. ìWhen our new 100 billion yen factory in Kameyana, Japan opens, we will be able to build four times as many larger screen LC-TVs with unmatched picture quality.î At the recent 2004 CES in Las Vegas, Sharp highlighted the following key products in their line:AQUOS GD4U Series (models LC-45GD4U, LC-37GD4U, LC-32GD4U and LC-26GD4U): Sharp is introducing the first widescreen 45-inch Liquid Crystal HDTV, one of the first models produced at the companyís new state-of-the-art factory in Kameyana, Japan. Joining the LC-45GD4U are widescreen 37-, 32- and 26-inch HDTVs with Digital Cable Ready specifications. The GD4U series will be available in the early summer of 2004. Pricing will be announced at a future date. In addition, AQUOS TVs are currently available in 13- to 37-inch screen sizes in traditional 1.33:1 and 1.78:1 aspect ratios. Open AQUOS (models LC-20PX1U and LC-15PX1U): The 20-inch LC-20PX1U and 15-inch LC-15PX1U are the first TVs that let consumers easily record, pause, and playback their favorite shows at a touch of the remote using the productís basic Personal Video Recorder (PVR) functionality. Open AQUOS TVs have dual PC Card slots, which can offer wireless PC connectivity and the ability to show digital still images. The 20-inch LC-20PX1U will be available in April for a Manufacturerís Suggested Retail Price of $1,899.95. The 15-inch LC-15PX1U will be available in May for a MSRP of $1,399.95. Advanced HDTV AVC System (model TU-GD1U): Consumers who purchase 2004 models of HDTV-compatible widescreen AQUOS Liquid Crystal televisions can now easily receive HDTV programs by upgrading the Audio Video Computer (AVC) system. The TU-GD1U has a built-in DTV Decoder with Digital Cable Ready specifications. The AVC System will be available in the second quarter of 2004. Pricing will be announced at a future date. Wireless AQUOS (model LC-15L1U-S): Sharp makes wireless entertainment a reality by bringing high-quality TV, video, and DVD content to virtually any room in the house. Consumers simply connect the supplied transmitter to a video source and the system will transmit digital wireless signals to the 15-inch television. The Wireless AQUOS TV will be available in February for a Manufacturerís Suggested Retail Price of $1,799.95. High-Definition DLP Front Projector (model XV-Z12000): For those who love home theater at its biggest and best, Sharp has introduced the SharpVision XV-Z12000 high definition Digital Light Processing front projector. This sleek-bodied and whisper-quiet projector offers unprecedented contrast ratios and brightness levels for a more realistic-looking picture. The XV-Z12000 is available for an MSRP of $11,999.95. Portable DLP Front Projectors (models XV-Z200U and DT-300): Weighing just over nine pounds each, these portable DLP projectors are easily moved from room to room for instant home theater. The first truly widescreen portable projectors, they feature Texas Instrumentsí Matterhorn DMD chip set for EDTV video quality. The XV-Z200U and DT-300 will be available in January for MSRPs of $4,499.95 and $4,299.95, respectively. 1-Bit Audio Systems (models SD-HX500/600 and SD-PX2): High-fidelity home theater sound finds a perfect match with flat-panel TVs with Sharp's exciting new HX and PX series 1-Bit audio systems. The SD-HX600, SD-HX500, and SD-PX2 will be available in early 2004 for MSRPs of $1,499.95, $1,199.95, and $599.95, respectively. Recordable DVD with Hard Disc Drive (model DV-HR300U): The new DV-HR300U with i.Link input and VCR Plus+ programming combines a large 80 Gigabyte Hard Disc Drive (HDD) and a fast, flexible DVD-R/RW recorder. It also plays back DVD+R and DVD+RW media. The DV-HR300U will be available in April for an MSRP of $799.95. In addition, Sharp is announcing the new DV-SR3U DVD recorder. It records in ìdash RWî and low-cost ìdash Rî formats and also plays ìplus RWî disks. The DV-SR3U will be available in April for a MSRP of $499.95.

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