Haier America is taking a wait-and-see approach before entering...

January 11, 2011 by Rebecca Day|Miscellaneous

Haier America is taking a wait-and-see approach before entering the 3D fray in the U.S., Kenji Higa, product specialist in the company’s digital products group told us at CES last week. “It’s dicey right now because of lack of content,” Higa said. Still, the company showed both passive and active-shutter prototypes of 3D TVs in a back room at its booth, including a 46-inch LED TV that’s selling in China, and a 47-inch passive 3D model paired with polarized glasses that will ship in the Chinese market this year. There are no plans to bring the 3D set to the U.S., Higa said. Haier also unveiled its first connected TVs for the U.S. market. Called Net Connect, the TV’s tap into the Internet through the Yahoo Connected TV platform, using on-board Wi-Fi. Additional apps are said to include Netflix, Blockbuster on Demand, Film Fresh, and Pandora. The edge-lit, 1080p LED LCD connected TVs are due in second half 2011 at $1,699 (55-inch), $1,199 (46-inch), and $899 (42-inch), the company said. A built-in ambient light sensor is said to detect room light and automatically increase or decrease the TV’s backlight to adjust for low-light and bright-light conditions. The company also debuted its first sound bars at CES. The Haier 5.1-channel 40-inch 3D Sound Bar packs “3D sound technology” from Switzerland-based Sonic Emotion said to use wave field synthesis to expand the “sweet spot” throughout a room to reach more listeners, regardless where they're sitting. The sound bar bundles an iPod dock with charger. The SVEV40-3D is due in stores in April at $399 list. Also from Haier is an EV series 2.1-channel sound bar, without Sonic Emotion technology, that’s said to deliver 2.1-channel surround-sound from an enclosure measuring 1.1-inch deep. Higa said the slim design is geared to consumers’ desire for flat electronics. The separate powered wireless subwoofer is rated at 40 watts per channel. The 40-inch sound bar’s price is $299, he said, and the product will be available in April or May.