Good times roll again at Sony
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| The innovative Rolly robotic speaker system, which is not yet available, is emblematic of the company's improved fortunes. Image: Sony |
LAS VEGAS – After a rough couple of years, Sony is beginning to look like its old self.
It might be too soon to declare a total comeback, but the electronics giant finally seems to have momentum. Those quarterly losses that at times topped $500 million as Sony (SNE) struggled to turn around its core electronics business? They’re not quite a distant memory. But here at the Consumer Electronics Show, Sony does exude a confidence it hasn’t shown in a while.
At a dinner with journalists Monday night, Sony Electronics President Stan Glasgow was upbeat. Despite the slowing economy, consumers responded to Sony’s risky $100 million marketing campaign, and turned out in force to buy high-definition TVs, camcorders and other gear in November and December. The industry support for Sony’s Blu-ray format for high-definition video is also encouraging. “I think across the board we demonstrated we had a good holiday season,” Glasgow said. More
Warner: DVD format war hurt movie sales
LAS VEGAS – Why did Warner Bros. choose last week to exclusively back the Blu-ray format for high-definition DVDs and ditch HD DVD, a move that could end the bitterest battle in the electronics industry? More
Live-blogging CES: Sony announces super-thin TVs, and a dancing speaker system
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| Journalists prepare for the start of the Sony pre-CES press conference. Image: Jon Fortt |
LAS VEGAS – Fresh from its news that Warner has backed its Blu-ray format for high definition, Sony (SNE) is vying to show that it is still an electronics innovator, and isn't languishing in the shadow of iPod maker Apple (AAPL).
To that end, the electronics giant said it will immediately begin selling an 11-inch version of a super-slim TV in the United States. The TV uses OLED techonology, which allows devices to be thinner than today's LCDs and more power efficient. Sony also showed off new cell phones, cameras and the Rolly speaker system, a novel egg-shaped robotic speaker system that actually moves to the sound of the music it plays. Below, the way the Sony press conference unfolded: More
Shaw Wu's Macworld: Blu-ray, movie rentals, MacBook mini or slim
With less than two weeks to go before Steve Jobs' Jan. 15 keynote, analyst Shaw Wu of American Technology Research offers his best guess for what Apple's (AAPL) CEO might have up his sleeve at Macworld Expo 2008. In a note to clients issued this morning, Wu predicts:
- Blu-ray. Citing unnamed sources, Wu says that Apple will outline an HD strategy that backs Sony's Blu-ray format over the HD-DVD standard favored by Microsoft. (Although Wu hedges his bets and suggests that Apple might also use a combo Blu-ray/HD-DVD drive.)
- Subnotebook. Wu says Apple will re-enter the subnotebook space (nothing new there) but adds that Jobs may call the new machine the MacBook mini or MacBook slim. Any preferences?
- Movie rentals. Wu points out that the digital movie rental deals expected to be announced at Macworld are a departure driven by necessity, and represent a new business model for Apple. "Whether these movies expire based on time and/or usage is unclear to us," he writes, "But we do believe that rentals are a significant change in its philosophy."
- Speed bumps and external HDD: In the category of smaller announcements, Wu is picking up potential news related to speed bumps and or capacity bumps in current Macs and iPhones, and an external HDD storage/dock/streaming device for the Airport Extreme and the new MacBook mini/slim.
- Apple TV. Wu sees two big shortcomings in the current product: 1. no way to connect directly to the Internet for TV and movie content and 2. lack of a TV tuner. "Our sources indicate that AAPL is working on fixing these weaknesses to make Apple TV a much stronger product," he writes, later in 2008 or perhaps 2009, but not at Macworld 2008.
- 3G iPhone. Coming mid to second-half 2008 at a higher price point, Wu says, allowing Apple to reposition the current iPhone as a "more mainstream" product.
The end of the tech stock party
Despite the uncertainty, this much is clear: We won't soon see a run in tech stocks like the one that just petered out.
Break out the orange juice and aspirin: Wall Street's tech party is officially in hangover mode.
Investors don't have to look far to see the signs. Apple (AAPL) shares are down 14 percent from their high of $192 earlier this month. Google (GOOG) shares are down 15 percent, and Research in Motion (RIMM) 22 percent.
Of course, it's hard to feel too much pity for long-term holders of these feel-good stocks, since their recent tumbles have merely put them back at their September and October levels. But now is a good time to face a sobering truth: It will be many months before the markets throw another another tech party like the one that just ended — and holiday sales could be the best gauge of how bad things will get.
Sony sees big holiday season for electronics
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| Sony expects that products like this KDL-46XBR2 TV will be a hit this holiday season. Image: Sony |
Never mind the mortgage blues: Sony executives say signs already point to this being one of the best-ever holiday seasons for consumer electronics sales.
During an invitation-only press event Monday night in San Francisco, Sony Electronics President Stan Glasgow said that despite recent doom-and-gloom predictions about fallout from the subprime mortgage mess, he is confident that it will be a healthy holiday season for technology spending. Glasgow's gauge is based on orders from retailers such as Best Buy (BBY) and Circuit City (CC) and brisk business in Sony's (SNE) own stores.
Expect Blu-ray/HDTV bundles for the holidays
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| Samsung P-1400 Blu-ray player. Image: Samsung |
It's been quite a busy few days for the high-definition format war between Blu-ray and HD DVD. First, Wal-Mart (WMT) confirmed that it has begun selling the Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD player in stores for less than $200. The next day Amazon (AMZN) and Circuit City (CC) began offering the player online for a penny less.
Now there are reports that Wal-Mart today will sell the Toshiba player for less than $100 for a limited time; Best Buy (BBY) might follow suit.
So what's the Blu-ray camp thinking about all this?
Big retailers launch HD DVD price war
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| Toshiba HD-A2. Image: Toshiba |
A pre-holiday retail skirmish in high-definition DVD players has begun. Just days after Wal-Mart (WMT) slashed its in-store price on the Toshiba HD-A2 to $198, Circuit City (CC) and Amazon (AMZN) followed suit by offering the player online for $197.99.
Consumers seem eager to buy the HD-A2, which had been selling on Amazon for $230 and as much as $280 elsewhere. The Toshiba player, which had been one of several top-selling DVD players on Amazon before the price cut, has quickly become the favorite: On Monday morning it was the 24th most-purchased electronics item on Amazon's site. The next closest DVD player ranked 46.
HD DVD vs. Blu-ray: Wal-Mart offers Toshiba player for under $200
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| Toshiba HD-A2. Image: Toshiba |
The battle for the future of the high-definition DVD has taken an intriguing turn: For the first time, mega-retailer Wal-Mart (WMT) has begun selling a player for less than $200.
In various online forums, enthusiasts have reported seeing the Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD player available in stores for $198, significantly less than its common price of $230-$280.
