Yesterday we posted an article stating that due to patent infringement there would be a ban on Sharp LCD’s being imported into the U.S. Well today Engadget spoke to Sharp’s representatives regarding the ban, as you can imagine they were not to pleased with the ruling, however they did manage to clear up some important information.

The first thing to mention is that Aquos TV’s and Sharp professional LCD’s that are currently on sale are fine to be sold, more importantly new displays that should be hitting the shelves soon have been modified so that they no longer infringe Samsung’s patent.

Sharp were keen to add that this does not change the the TV’s specs in anyway. The new TV’s model number can be distinguished easily as they are the same as before, but they have a ‘N’ at the end. Check out Engadget for the full report.

According to the Los Angeles Times a huge blow has been dealt to Sharp Corp, they have recently lost a U.S Trade Commission ruling stating that they infringe a patent held by Samsung. According to Engadget and The Los Angeles Times this has resulted in a ban on Sharp importing LCD’s into the U.S, for this ban to become effective it will have to be scrutinised by President Obama.

The infringement is said to have occurred with some of Sharp’s LCD’s (Liquid Crystal Displays) and some computer monitors, this wasn’t the only patent which Samsung felt was infringed however the U.S Trade Commission overturned the other accusation.

Samsung are already the worlds biggest manufacturer of LCD’s and this will be another chance for Samsung to expand their ever growing dominance in the market.

It is also said that Samsung infringe four of Sharp’s patents, and earlier this month a judge recommended that Samsung TVs should also be banned from the U.S, however this was only a recommendation and has yet to materialise.

You can tell that Vizio are proud of their VF551XVT 55-inch LED-backlit TV, so much so that they have put it head-to-head with a Samsung TV set. The price is a little more expensive now; you will now have to find another $200, bringing the total price up to $2199 when the TV goes on sale in the summer, late August or early September.

What makes the Vizio VF551XVT so special is how it uses 960 white LEDs in 80 clusters to produce its backlighting, Gizmodo are interested to see how well this 55-inch inch TV performs against other more affordable local-dimming TVs, which also use white LEDs, although this TV set is around $200 cheaper than its rivals.

Gizmodo advices us that we should wait until December, as the same Vizio VF551XVT 55-inch LED-backlit TV will come with its version of Yahoo’s widget platform. This will give you a host of new widgets, such as Rhapsody and Twitter.

Over the time we haven’t reported much on 3D TV, the most recent news were in mid 2008 when sky were thinking of using 3D TV to show the 2012 Olympics and when Phillips were testing their 1080p 52 inch 3D HDTV which you don’t need glasses to wear.

LG let out some big news this morning as they have revealed their all new 3D LCD TV with glasses, LG are so confident that this is going to be a big hit all around the world they are going to make 30 million units which they plan to sell by 2012 just before the Olympics.

As you already know sky are thinking about making 3D TV possible for us because of how amazing the last opening ceremony was. They said that there will be a good chance that we will see the next Olympics in 3D as they are doing the live coverage of the 2012 Olympics.

Sky have been showing their demo of the 3D TV to the head office over in west London.

Phillips and Telefonica have teamed up to also try and make a 3D TV and will be testing it in Sao Paolo in Brazil, the only problem with the TV they are going to be making is the cost which is going to be $26,000 US. They are expecting for their 3D TV to be around in about 3-4 years time.

Whats your opinion on the idea of 3D TV leave them in the comments below.

When it comes to TV displays there are only two that are in the mainstream market, LCD and Plasma. However, there is a new technology in town called OLED or Organic Light Emitting Diode. This technology is set to take over both LCD and Plasma, but we are way off at the moment.

IT Pro Portal explains that the price of OLED is expected to fall within the next few years, so should just be in time for the Olympic Games in London in 2012. The only OLED screen currently available is the Sony Bravia XEL-1, which only has a screen size of 21-inches.

Reuters are reporting that we could see a 40-inch Panasonic OLED TV by 2010, but surly that will come at a huge price. OLED Info are reporting that Samsung are all ready to build a 31-inch OLED TV, there are no details on a release date or pricing.

Not content with taking over our lives on our computers, Twitter is about to make its way onto our TV screens as well. Twitter will be available on Samsung LED / LCD TVs, on its Internet@TV service, giving the couch potato the chance to microblog.

There are times when there is nothing decent to watch on TV, yes even with hundreds of channels, so what better way to pass the time than to log on to Twitter while laying back on your sofa. It seems logical to add Twitter to a TV, as we normally sit there and watch the same program with millions.

Tech Digest raises a great point, there will now be mass slaggings while we are watching one of those annoying reality TV shows. The Twitter service will be made available on the following Samsung TV’s, the Samsung LED 6000, 7000 and 8000 as well as the LCD and 6 and 7 series TVs.

There have been some bold claims made that the Samsung 23-inch OLED TV will have a release date some time in 2010, but given just how long we have seen prototypes at trade shows; we have to be a little skeptical about these claims.

MegaWhat.tv is the website who has made the claims of a 2010 release for the Samsung 23-inch OLED TV. The new technology will feature a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio as well as DVI / HDMI inputs, but the amazing thing is the fact that the unit will only be 1.6 centimeters thick.

The reduction in size is not the only benefit; the new OLED TV set will use 40 percent less energy when compared to a standard LCD TV. Things are not all good though, as you can expect to pay a hefty price for having the latest technology.

As you know earlier this month Sony revealed its $6,999 11” OLED display panel for the Australian market, which was more expensive than the $3,000 XEL -1 OLED model in the USA. It is now rumored that Sony will unveil its 21-inch OLED TV at the IFA 2009 show in Berlin in September.

Smarthouse tell us that this second-generation OLED screen will come in a choice of 21-inch or 27-inch, which Sony will call the XEL -2 OLED. Samsung are also producing their own version of these LED TVs, their sets use 40 percent less power than a standard TV.

Just last week Sony showed of a prototype 21-inch OLED at the FPD Expo in Tokyo. The TV has a resolution of 1366 x 758 and a contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1. This is almost similar to the XEL-1 that is currently on sale in Australia.

A few years ago, LCDs were dubbed to be the future of televisions, but now LED TVs have that job. Samsung are certainly leading the way when it comes to these energy saving TVs with their sexy slim looks and superb performance.

The first thing that you will notice with Samsung’s Series 6 and 7 LED TVs is its depth, just 1.2-inch thin. These televisions are made from just one single part rather than multiple parts. Unbeatable have described this new range of TVs as Elegant, thanks to its great TV body and unique crystal neck.

The frame is recyclable and contains no VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds) in the paint, the TV also uses 40 percent less power that an ultra low power consuming standby mode. The TV has a number of cool features, such as Mega Contrast Ratio, Wide Colour Enhancer Pro and 100Hz Motion Plus technology.

There are so many TV’s on the market, that it is often so hard to choose the right one. For those who love build quality and sleek design features, then the Bang & Olufsen (BO B) BeoVision 8 is the perfect choice. This reasonable priced TV is now available in a 40-inch version.

The 40-inch BeoVision 8 comes with Full HD along with a range of improved technologies. The new 40-inch version has advanced technology that improves your home cinema viewing experience; this is done by doubling the frame rate, also known as 100Hz.

Dynamic Contrast has also been included; this helps to improve the contrast ratio according to the picture content. As the BeoVision 8 is made from Bang & Olufsen, the sound performance sets a new standard for LCD TVs.

For more information visit: Bang & Olufsen

There have been a number of trade shows where companies have been showing off OLED TV sets, but as yet, they have not made it on to the market. With a recent report from industry experts, the OLED lighting market is set to boom in 2011, which could mean good news for OLED TV sets.

Manufacturers are now fighting to assemble large screen OLED TVs, the biggest hurdle is the cost, but they are doing all they can to brings those high costs down. As with all new technology we will have to put up with high prices for a year or so, then we should see more reasonable priced OLED TVs.

It will be interesting to see how OLED TVs will be received on the market against LCD. Plasma was the first flat panel TV, but once LCD came along the Plasma TV is slowly dying. The question is will OLED slowly kill of LCD?

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Philips decided to tease us some time back with their Philips 56-Inch Cinema 21×9 LCD TV; thankfully, the Dutch consumer electronics company has now given the new TV its release date, which will be in June. You will need some deep pockets, as the new TV will cost around £3500.

The new Philips 56-Inch Cinema 21×9 LCD TV is far more expensive than other LCD TV’s on the market, but this is the only true anamorphic screen ratio of 2.33:1, something that is worth paying a few extra pounds for.

Some electronics experts say that you will need high definition 21:9 content in order to take full advantage of the 21:9 Cinema TV; otherwise, you will have a very expensive TV with huge vertical borders, or stretched content that will not be that nice to view.

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Sony is about to take energy saving to the next level with their new range of Bravia V5 TVs. The new televisions will automatically switch off when they sense that there is no one in the room. The TVs are equipped with a tiny sensor underneath the display; this keeps an eye on the room to make sure that there is someone there.

If all people who are watching the TV leave the room, then the Bravia V5 TV cuts power to the LCD, it will then switch back on when someone returns to the room. The sound will continue to stay on, if no one enters the room after 30 minutes, then the TV will switch in to standby mode.

This energy saving system will reduce the energy consumption by at least 50 percent during the time the display is switched off. General use of the Sony BRAVIA V5 range consumes less power than their predecessors; the new 40-inch and 46-inch draw 129 watts and 153 watts of power respectively, compared to the older V1 models, 217 watts and 263 watts, respectively.

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When you bought your nice big screen TV was it a Plasma or LCD television? This question may be more important to you than you first think if the future of both formats have anything to do with it.

We all know technology is moving fast but people who bought Plasma TVs would not expect them to be fazed out just yet. If Brussels get their way it looks like there will be a Plasma TV ban in the UK and across the rest of the EU.

This action can be understood thanks to the amount of energy Plasma TVs use when compared to LCD TVs, the new legislation is expected to be agreed by the EU this spring. Plasma TVs use four times as much electricity as traditional cathode ray tube sets and this also means four times as much carbon dioxide.

It’s not just the EU that have this plan, even California has been looking at banning the Plasma TV. You can read more on that here. What’s your view on the energy LCD’s and Plasmas use?

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LG Electronics and Netflix have announced that LG will be launching a new range of TV sets that will feature Netflix movie viewing direct from the Internet, which means that you will not need a set top box. It seems that more devices are now going this way, like the Xbox 360.

It was only last year when LG launched external boxes to allow you to download Netflix movies, but having this system built-in to a TV is a much better idea. This means less clutter and less wires, that should keep the wife happy then.

The new HD TV’s from LG will be on show at CES 2009, which is in Las Vegas this week. 2009 looks all set to be a great year for Netflix, as they are working on partnerships with other consumer electronics makers, so expect to see more TV brands with the same kind of technology.

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Not long to go until CES 2009, and there have already been a number of articles about what we are likely to see at the Consumer Electronics Show. We can always count on Samsung to bring something sexy to the show, and their new range of 6.5mm LCD TV’s is no exception.

This new line of ultra-slim TV’s will shake the consumer world, and will range from 40 to 55-inch. The new range will feature Samsung’s Motion plus technology (240Hz), as well as their backlight technology, which improves your viewing enjoyment as well as saving energy.

As yet not much is known about the new range of televisions from Samsung, but once CES starts, we will then know more. Samsung have a new slogan for the Consumer Electronics Show “The New Species, Samsung LUXIA LED TV.”

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Black Friday is a day when many consumers save up all year so that they are able to purchase a new big screen LCD or Plasma TV, and Best Buy certainly have a few good deals on offer. Some of the savings are only small while others have huge savings of the normal selling price.

I have picked out three TV’s up for offer, the first is the Samsung LN52A580 52″ 1080p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV. This TV has a 52-inch LCD screen which comes with three HDMI inputs; this can be connected to a range of HD products. The price was $2,299.99, and is now only £1,499.99

Another Black Friday deal from Best Buy is this Panasonic TH-50PE8U 50″ Class 720p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV. This TV certainly delivers a remarkable image and sound quality, the normal selling price was $999.99, and the discount price is $899.99.

Finally we have the Dynex DX-LCD32-09 32″ Class 720p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV - Matte Black. This TV has an ultrafast 6.5 ms response time, offering fluid visuals. The normal selling price is $449.99, the Black Friday deal is just $399.99.

View these offers and more at Best Buy

Black Friday is fast approaching and Dell are showing the Sharp 42-inch LC42SB45U 1080p HDTV. The TV is on sale for $799, but this Full HDTV is only on sale until November 27. Why would they offer a Black Friday deal when the TV will not be for sale on that day.

There is one theory, the Sharp TV might be on offer for $799 until Thanksgiving Day, and could get a further price reduction on Black Friday. We will just have to wait and see one thing is certain; these TV’s will sell quickly at that price.

The RRP for the Sharp LC42SB45U is a $1,000, So Dell are offering the TV $200 of the ticket price. The TV has three HDMI ports as well as two component video inputs. The TV has a number of features, one being Sharp’s Spectral Contrast Engine ED, offering clear and crisp images.

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When it comes to top quality LCD TV’s, Philips is one of the big boys and they have a massive range of superb Full HD 1080p LCD’s. One that has caught our eye is the Philips 42TA648BX, which has a 42 Inch LCD panel.

The TV comes with a resolution of 1920×1080p, this is the highest resolution of HD sources available, and offers the best possible picture. The TV is at its best when watching Blu-ray movies, as well as playing the Xbox 360 and Sony PS3.

The Philips 42TA648BX 42 Inch 1080p LCD TV is not all about its picture quality, it is about sound as well and the 20 watts of sounds is great when watching movies. Woot currently have the Philips 42TA648BX as their deal of the day, and costs just $749.99.

Both Mitsubishi and Funai have been in talks to try and beat rivals into producing the first TV with a built-in Blu-ray player, but that is as far as it got. What is their loss is Sharp’s gain, as they are all set to launch the world’s first LCD TV with a built-in Blu-ray player.

The Sharp AQUOS DX LCD HDTV Series will have six models in the range; these are the LC-26DX1, LC-32DX1, LC-37DX1, LC-42DX1, LC-46DX1 and LC-52DX1. All six will come with an integrated HDTV tuner as well as bottom mounted speakers.

The only models to offer Full HD are the 37 inch LC-37DX1 and the 50 inch LC-52DX1. If you live in Japan, then you will only have to wait about a month before you see these TV’s in stores. For us in the rest of the world, Sharp have asked us to be patience.

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