PDP and Liquid Crystal TVs at Forefront Digital Revolution

摘要

Digital convergence is upon us. Technology long asso-ciated with information processing is increasingly a part of many people's home entertainment experience. Video recorders are being replaced by DVD recorders, The rollout of digital broadcasting in Japan is accelerating global digitization. And the traditional CRT TV is being supplanted by a new generation of digital friendly flat panel TVs, including liquid crystal and PDP models. The popularity of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) is surging, with year-over-year shipments of LCD TVs (panels with integrated tuners) up 162 percent, according to a report from DisplaySearch, a market research firm. Through the first 12 months of 2003, total reached 831,000 units. The organization predicts rapid growth for the technology, with a projection of a 45 percent in- crease in sales in the fourth quarter of 2003, for a total of 1.2 million units. The 15 inch-diagonal XGA overtook the 20-inch VGA to become the single most popular product. While 15-inch XGA was most popular in North America and Europe, 20-inchV GA was the most popular format in Japan, the report notes. VGA is also the most popular level of video resolution, with a 37 percent lead over other formats. Wide aspect-ration formats now have 29 percent of market share and are ex-pected to overtake 4:3 aspect ratio products by the middle of 2004. Half of the LCD TVs shipped in 2003 included RGB or VGA inputs, with 13 percent featuring DVI inpts.