14 DAY TRIAL // Yep, we've got some good news regarding the ever changing market of non-CRT TVs. And I bet you'll like reading this. First, let me point out the fact that LCD's are getting cheaper. Way cheaper than ever before. I think it has a lot to do with more and more products (some of them not so good) flooding the market. As a result, good brands also get cheaper to keep the trend. Another reason lies in the continuous development of LCD panels which translates into more pieces coming out of the same manufacturing capabilities.
Cutting the story short, the price for LCD television sets has dropped at least 35% in 2006 alone. Prices for 42" LCD TVs has dropped about 35% from last year and now averages $2180 per product. Cheaper LCD panels set the pace here with smaller ones selling with a price tag of only $640, which is an impressive 42.9% less than last year.
Both South Korean and Taiwanese panel manufacturers have upped the production lines by a large margin. This year alone the factories produced almost double the amount released in 2005. But there's a downside to that. In fact, the producers are closing to a limit mainly because television makers are now requesting lower panel prices. AU Optronics and CMO along with other LCD panel makers agreed to cut LCD panel production by almost 10% this month alone in an attempt keep the prices up.
As a result of LCD's price going down, the price for plasmas has also been cut a bit with a 42" model being priced at an average of $2107 which is roughly 20% less than last year. In case you want to buy an LCD or plasma now, I suggest you wait. The war is only beginning.