Sony Seeking to Beat Apple in Revolutionizing Television

[thenerdal]

That's setting the bar pretty low for revolutions if you ask me, but that aside. You can't really consider this revolutionary until it's actually changed the market. Unless this gains significant traction, it's just another off the wall idea that goes nowhere. The history of CE is littered with them, quite a few of them Sony's. The iPod was a revolution because it shifted the entire dynamic of the market. The AppleTV as an example, is not a revolution. See also CDTV/CDi/Newton/Laser Disc/Polavision ....

The definition of revolutionary is: radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure

Sony's Playstation TV is New and innovative since no one has done it before, I presume. Nothing of Apple's is revolutionary since it's been done before. Apple only popularized things.

 

[nerdo]

Beating Apple to the punch? No idea they where all cuing for punch, pretty sure Apple only drinks alcohol free soy punch anyway.

 

[apolloa]

You can throw rocks at Apple's quality, but while it is excellent, the expectation level is almost unrealistic...still Apple goes the extra mile to meet that expectation. The difference between Apple customer service and Sony customer service is as wide as the Pacific.

If, as the Sony CEO says, they are losing money with every sale, then I don't expect them to suddenly spend the money for a first class customer service center.

If you consider no finger prints behind the glass on the front of the screen as an unrealistic expectation on a $3000 plus laptop or an alarm function on a $800 phone to actually go off when you set it to as unrealistic then I seriously pity you!! Thankfully I do not consider them unrealistic at all! Sony doesn't seem to have problems with these basic functions at it's price level?

As for first class customer service? Well I've experienced first hand an Apple store Genius Bar taking a laptop apart only to damage it! Yeah, I have seen Apples 'first class' customer service.
Apple has issues with this as much as anyone else, they have their horror story's, your a fool if you think otherwise. The machines on the whole are reliable yes, but quality control severely lacks at basic level, I mean finger prints behind the glass screen??? Come on, utterly basic stuff. And a call centre is a call centre, it always depends on the person you speak to and their experience if you get help or not.

 

[adbe]

The definition of revolutionary is: radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure

That all depends on which dictionary you read, and how much of the definition you leave unquoted.

Another definition: "involving or causing a complete or dramatic change."
The word came from political revolutions. Have a look at your history books, you'll notice all revolutions have one thing in common: they involve an actual revolution. Those that don't, if history recalls them at all, are called very different names.

Sony's Playstation TV is New and innovative since no one has done it before, I presume.

People were trying out concepts like that in the early 90s.

 

[SandynJosh]

The definition of revolutionary is: radically new or innovative; outside or beyond established procedure

Sony's Playstation TV is New and innovative since no one has done it before, I presume. Nothing of Apple's is revolutionary since it's been done before. Apple only popularized things.

Sony's "revolutionary" is pretty "incremental" to me. Furthermore, it's kind of hard to be "revolutionary" if the product doesn't sell well in the market.

 

[thenerdal]

Sony's "revolutionary" is pretty "incremental" to me. Furthermore, it's kind of hard to be "revolutionary" if the product doesn't sell well in the market.

Let's use a better term. Innovative. Innovative doesn't have anything to do with sales.

 

[something3153]

What a self-serving, egotistical statement from a CEO. You represent a COMPANY, don't make it about YOU vs. Steve Jobs. It's Sony vs. Apple. Check your personal conquests at the door.

Like Steve's personal vendetta against Android?

 

[SandynJosh]

If you consider no finger prints behind the glass on the front of the screen as an unrealistic expectation on a $3000 plus laptop or an alarm function on a $800 phone to actually go off when you set it to as unrealistic then I seriously pity you!! Thankfully I do not consider them unrealistic at all! Sony doesn't seem to have problems with these basic functions at it's price level?

You either can't understand English or choose to misunderstand what I wrote. Apple doesn't expect you to keep a defective product any more then they expect people to put up with a product that doesn't perform as it was intended. The phone alarm problem was fixed at no charge... in fact all of the phones Apple has sold ended up with functions that didn't exist when they were first sold. Your old two examples are old as well as exaggerated.

As for first class customer service? Well I've experienced first hand an Apple store Genius Bar taking a laptop apart only to damage it! Yeah, I have seen Apples 'first class' customer service.
Apple has issues with this as much as anyone else, they have their horror story's, your a fool if you think otherwise. The machines on the whole are reliable yes, but quality control severely lacks at basic level, I mean finger prints behind the glass screen??? Come on, utterly basic stuff. And a call centre is a call centre, it always depends on the person you speak to and their experience if you get help or not.

I don't care what you think of Apple's customer service; you wouldn't be happy if Steve Jobs came back from the dead to give you a free laptop. It must really suck to be you. However the rest of the world considers Apple's customer service to be the top rated for several years in a row.

 

[apolloa]

You either can't understand English or choose to misunderstand what I wrote. Apple doesn't expect you to keep a defective product any more then they expect people to put up with a product that doesn't perform as it was intended. The phone alarm problem was fixed at no charge... in fact all of the phones Apple has sold ended up with functions that didn't exist when they were first sold. Your old two examples are old as well as exaggerated.



I don't care what you think of Apple's customer service; you wouldn't be happy if Steve Jobs came back from the dead to give you a free laptop. It must really suck to be you. However the rest of the world considers Apple's customer service to be the top rated for several years in a row.

First off don't change your tune, I stated how through my OWN experiences, not what I read on a Mac fan site, what Apple's quality control is like, like I stated your a fool if you think Apple has no horror story's.

And as for it's customer services, I don't care what you think, again I have proven you wrong through my OWN experiences, what's Jobs coming back from the dead got to do with it? I don't want a free laptop, and I also stated my experience was with the first gen Unibody. Others also had the same issue.

No matter what you try to preach to me, my own personal experiences tell a different story, one based on fact!

 

[AlterEg0]

Never say never. Look at what happened to Nokia... and RIM... and Microsoft Phone...

That was then, this is now. Give the competitors 6 months and they will copy and improve on anything apple can do. Android with its crappy OS has blown past iOS, Windows Phone 7 will blow past RIM and then android, and apple will be relegated to a niche customer base that is willing to get ripped-off for sub-standard hardware and software. Paying $700 in data costs over two years.. sheesh.

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Sony's "revolutionary" is pretty "incremental" to me. Furthermore, it's kind of hard to be "revolutionary" if the product doesn't sell well in the market.

Sirii is what I call incremental. Is that all you got Mac fanbois after visiting this site day after day for a year.. ROFLMAO.

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With Cable TV, the media houses hold all the cards, as we found out with poor Netflix. Why would they want to share any of that with apple. I can't believe Apple TV customers pay per-episode!! No wonder most US customers live paycheck to paycheck and ATV was a big flop.

 

[me.2]

Sony, KDL-XBR6-49a8972bv6KTP99z58v

Always keeping their numbers easy and simple to remember.

That last part is a model number, kind of equivalent to Apple's part number's (e.g. MC603X/A for the iPhone 4). It's not like they advertise it under that name, so it doesn't really need to be easy to remember.

I guess XBR6 still isn't a great name, though.

EDIT: that's not even a model number. For the XBR6 it's KDL-52XBR6 (or slightly different depending on the screen size). Where did you get that number from?

 

[steveOooo]

but sony do make great pro broadcast cameras / gear and are pretty much top in that market, good job they have a few other fingers in other pies, cos the consumer one, they aint doing too good.

Now we just need apple to make a separate pro division (like panasonic too), making broadcast cameras etc.. would be interesting,

 

[vladi]

Samsung TV's> Sony
Apple iPod> Sony
Canon & Nikon DSLR's> Sony
Apple MacBook Air's/Pro's/iMac> Sony
Nintendo> Sony
VHS> Sony Beta

Son'y new banner should be "Following the leaders"

You fanbois don't even try. At least make some valid points so we can engadge into good discussion, this is just pure waste of forum space.

 

[bwillwall]

I agree. PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They're not going to just walk in.

um lol, where the hell have you people been the last 30 years, apple just walks into every market!!! Smartphone, mp3, definitely tablet, computer sort of, and tv will be even bigger because its the one major market apple hasn't covered that many big companies have.

 

[Dbrown]

LOL at people thinking that apple can make a better tv than sony. Apple hasn't invested anything into display technology so will be relegated to a panel rebrander like vizio.

Of course you will have your dedicated apple nerds out there who will buy anything apple regardless of quality, so I'm sure an apple branded TV will sell well.

 

[alansky]

He's kidding, right?

Mr. Stringer would have to be a complete idiot to believe his own statements. Nobody else is going to believe him, that's for sure!

 

[vanguy79]

It'll be interesting to see what Sony and potentially Apple has to offer. What Sony does NOT have however is the content providers on their side and a very effective, efficient closed ecosystem that Apple does. It will take Sony a lot of adverstising, PR and promotional campaigns to get people to buy different components for their new TV systems whereas Apple does not need to persuade anyone to switch sides.

 

[E.Lizardo]

Yeah, Sony, a company producing TV's for over 30 years will surely lose to Apple Television sales that are just starting out.

Two words.
Nokia
Blackberry
And by the way,how many portable music players had Sony made when the iPod came out?

 

[AlterEg0]

Here is the deal. I will pull the trigger on Sony's top-of-the-line 55' HX929 or the 65' by Christmas time. If Apple could make a television of identical or better picture quality with a better menu system or a replacement for the guide that provided by the Cable company, I would buy it provided the price was within a couple 100 bucks of the Sony price. I dont think that will happen, now or in the next few years.

And I am definitely not going to pay Apple 99c for every episode, newscast, movie, documentary I watch.. Apple can go ... themselves if they what they expect from their Apple TV customers.

So then, what in the world do you think Apple would bring to the table that would convince a customer like me that is willing to put up 6K for a 65' Sony, that would persuade me to delay my purchase. No rumors please

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Two words.
Nokia
Blackberry
And by the way,how many portable music players had Sony made when the iPod came out?

We aren't talking about a 200$ walkman here which Apple could upstage with a device that costs 100% more. Here we are talking about a multi-thousand dollar television set. No one in their right mind, would pay Apple 10K for a 65' TV that Sony sells for 5K. Not happening. Even at 7K not happening. Not in 2007 and definitely not in this economy.

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It'll be interesting to see what Sony and potentially Apple has to offer. What Sony does NOT have however is the content providers on their side and a very effective, efficient closed ecosystem that Apple does. It will take Sony a lot of adverstising, PR and promotional campaigns to get people to buy different components for their new TV systems whereas Apple does not need to persuade anyone to switch sides.

I get very high quality FIOS tv with hundreds of channels, dozens of HD channels for a monthly flat rate of $50. Can you tell me what Apple would provide over at above this at that price that would convince me to switch ?

I'd love to know.

 

[SandynJosh]

Here is the deal. I will pull the trigger on Sony's top-of-the-line 55' HX929 or the 65' by Christmas time. If Apple could make a television of identical or better picture quality with a better menu system or a replacement for the guide that provided by the Cable company, I would buy it provided the price was within a couple 100 bucks of the Sony price. I dont think that will happen, now or in the next few years.

And I am definitely not going to pay Apple 99c for every episode, newscast, movie, documentary I watch.. Apple can go ... themselves if they what they expect from their Apple TV customers.

So then, what in the world do you think Apple would bring to the table that would convince a customer like me that is willing to put up 6K for a 65' Sony, that would persuade me to delay my purchase. No rumors please

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We aren't talking about a 200$ walkman here which Apple could upstage with a device that costs 100% more. Here we are talking about a multi-thousand dollar television set. No one in their right mind, would pay Apple 10K for a 65' TV that Sony sells for 5K. Not happening. Even at 7K not happening. Not in 2007 and definitely not in this economy.

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I get very high quality FIOS tv with hundreds of channels, dozens of HD channels for a monthly flat rate of $50. Can you tell me what Apple would provide over at above this at that price that would convince me to switch ?

I'd love to know.

IF Jobs really cracked the TV content problem I doubt it will involve the content display. Too many people have an investment in a decent flat panel display that is working very well at presenting a good picture. There is just no need to replace that part of the in-house system, and besides the display is the most expensive part of the cost of a TV.

I suspect Jobs sees the solution as a thin box that will mount behind the display, even if it is wall-mounted. If you want to play a DVD or CD, just put it in your Macbook and it is sent to the cloud and synched to your TV via the hidden box. All other content comes via the iCloud or iTunes or something like that.

 

[blackhand1001]

Yep Samsung TV's are to die for.

Apart from a PS3, would never own any Sony kit in my setup.
Think their TV's are way overpriced.

Hope you guys know that those S-PVA panels you find in both those samsung and sony lcd tv's are made by S-LCD (a samsung and sony joint venture). Many toshiba sets and cheaper sets also use these same panels.

 

[something3153]

Hope you guys know that those S-PVA panels you find in both those samsung and sony lcd tv's are made by S-LCD (a samsung and sony joint venture). Many toshiba sets and cheaper sets also use these same panels.

Hope you know that there's more to a TV than the panel.

I was aware of that, by the way. I have a Sony currently, and before that had a Samsung. I am very happy with both. Fantastic televisions.

 

[Fukui]

Yep Samsung TV's are to die for.

Sony’s LCDs are basically manufactured by samsung.....

 

[Dbrown]

Hope you guys know that those S-PVA panels you find in both those samsung and sony lcd tv's are made by S-LCD (a samsung and sony joint venture). Many toshiba sets and cheaper sets also use these same panels.

They may use S-PVA panels, but not made by S-LCD corp. One exception is surplus production. In fact not all Sony TVs use SLCD panels.

Sony’s LCDs are basically manufactured by samsung.....

No they aren't. The panel is made by SLCD corp which is owned 51% and fully operated by Samsung.

 

[Mr Bigs]

I can't wait for a tv that will cost twice as much, only suppots 720p and will not allow me to hook up a blu ray player, a xbox 360, or a ps3.

True indeed but now tha Steevo is gone thing might not be so typical Apple.