Vizio recently unveiled its Black Tie LCD TV line and an accompanying home theatre system, as well as seven new plasma HDTVs. The Black Tie lineup consists of the 42-inch SV42LF, and 47-inch SV47LF; the two models are defined by a 1080p screen resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. Vizio’s Motion Estimation and Motion Compensation technology can upscale any video framerate to 120 frames-per-second to match the TV’s refresh rate. Four HDMI ports are available for use, with two located on the side for quick connection of HD game consoles or video cameras. The Black Tie series of LCD TVs will be available in July, the 42-inch model selling for $1500, and the 47-inch for $1900.
Both of the Black Tie TVs feature on-board Dolby 3.0 processing, and when combined with the Jive SV5.1 upgrade kit ($300), can put out 5.1 surround sound. The system integrates with the TV’s stereo speakers by adding the center, rear-left, and rear-right channels, as well as an included wireless subwoofer. Users can expect 560-watts peak power and 70-watts RMS; Jive SV5.1 will ship in July 2008.
Vizio’s 50-inch VP504F plasma TV ($1700) uses an integrated Silicon Optix REON HQV chip to remove noise and artifacts caused by signal compression. The chip is capable of processing up to two full channels of HD or SD content, so users can view a fully optimized picture-in-picture mode.
The 60-inch VP605F ($2900) is in the same lineup as the VP504F, but does not feature the Silicon Optix chip. Both models use a 30,000:1 contrast ratio, and include for HDMI ports with two on the side. The lineup also includes four-field motion adaptive de-interlacing, 10-bit diagonal interpolation, and 10-bit image processing, which can render more than a billion colors. The high-end plasmas will ship in June.
Vizio has updated the VP500 plasma ($1800) to include an integrated home theatre sound system, much like the system designed for the Black Tie LCD TVs. New to the product line, however, is the VP501; this model builds on the VP500 by offering a 1080p image resolution. Pricing and availability is not available for the VP501, while the VP500 will ship in June.
The VP324 ($700), VP422 and VP423 ($1000), and VP503 ($1400) are cost-effective plasma TVs that support a maximum image resolution of 720p. The first model features three HDMI inputs and a 15,000:1 contrast ratio, while the latter three can use two HDMI connectable devices. A 20,000:1 contrast ratio is available in the 42-inch VP422 and VP423, while the 50-inch VP503 uses a ratio of 30,000:1. Vizio will also be selling these models in June.
