TMCnet News
4K TVs have become affordable now, retailers say [Gulf News (United Arab Emirates)](Gulf News (United Arab Emirates) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Dubai: Sales of ultra high-definition (UHD), also known as 4K, TVs are soaring as prices get aggressive and affordable for consumers. The 4K TVs boast a pixel format of 3840 x 2160 pixels, four times that of current 1920 x 1080p Full HD TVs, and have great clarity and depth. "Our sales have been very good as Samsung has been reworking on the pricing but I cannot give you the details. Even yesterday we changed the pricing, especially in bigger screen sizes," Niranjan Gidwani, Deputy CEO of Eros Group, main distributor for Samsung and TCL TVs in the UAE. "We have two categories now very clearly positioned. One is the top three brands and the challenger brands. Some disturbances are coming from "Hisense and Haier." He said that there are also two different types of buyers in the market — one with high income group and the other low to middle income group. Retailers have reported that 55- and 65-inch TV sizes as the fast moving models. Samsung controls more than 41 per cent of the TV market share in the UAE while LG holds close to 25 per cent and Sony holds 12 per cent. Brands are counting on 4K sets to rejuvenate sales as they are going to grow at a faster pace than the normal Full HD TVs this year. Nadeem Khanzadah, head of retail at Jumbo Electronics, said that the demand for 4K TVs are excellent. "We and other vendors have planned in such a way and it is selling according to our expectations. The price has come down significantly and it is affordable now. Of course, the price will come down further. It has come down to a level where mainstream buyers can afford it," he said. Khanzadah said that Hisense is becoming more acceptable as a brand and the quality is pretty good but Samsung is still the leader in volume, followed by LG and Sony. Competition Currently, 4K sales contribute around 40 per cent in unit terms and more than 50 per cent in value terms to Jumbo's total sales. Cut-throat competition in TV pricing are taking place at the stands apart from the bundled offers. Comparing the 65-inch flat TV prices, Samsung is at Dh13,999, LG at Dh9,999, Sony at Dh14,999, Hisense at Dh7,999, TCL at Dh7,999 and Skyworth at Dh6,999. Comparing the 65-inch curved TV prices, Samsung is at Dh16,999 while LG is at Dh14,999 and Hisense at Dh15,999. "The onslaught of the new players coming into the market, specially the Chinese ones and Hisense being one of them, are driving the entry-level 4K prices down and the big brands are forced to reduce the prices down to stay competitive," Neelesh Bhatnagar, Chief Executive Officer, Emax Electronics Earlier, the prices of 4K TVs were "unrealistic but now it has become realistic". Samsung launched its 85-inchTV for Dh150,000 in 2013 and it has come down to Dh49,999 now. These are the real prices, Bhatnagar said. When investing in a TV, Nilesh Khalkho, CEO of Sharaf DG, said that consumers should invest in a future technology. Definitely the future will be 4K even though 4K content is not available now. "The industry can move forward when vendors bring new technology. Many of the people are migrating from LCD to bigger screen sizes. Now 50-inch and above has become a standard size compared to 32-inch two years ago," he said. Now different brands at "different price segments" are available depending on consumer's choice and spending power. There is a segment which prefers the big-budget brands and there is also a segment for low-budget brands. "You cannot put a product with a price and try to sell. People are very clever now. It is not an impulse purchase. They buy any product before studying the company, product details and the pricing on the internet," Khalkho said. (c) 2014 Al Nisr Publishing LLC . All rights reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info). |