CES 2018: Trends to Watch
https://www.consumerreports.org/lcd-led-oled-...watch-for/
6. Chinese Brands Gain Momentum
Chinese TV manufacturers have been on the rise globally for several years now. According to IHS Markit, both Hisense and TCL are now among the world's top 10 LCD TV brands.
Of the two, Hisense, which also controls the Sharp TV brand in the U.S., has been the more aggressive from a technology standpoint, utilizing quantum dots in its flagship "ULED" TVs.
But TCL, an early adopter and strong proponent of Roku TVs, has been more successful in terms of sales, which is why you may see more of them in stores—or in your friends' homes.
"Both companies have become much more aggressive in the U.S. market over the past year," Gap's Kennedy says. "But TCL in particular has been able to greatly increase its presence at large national retailers in 2017, in large part due to its arrival in Best Buy stores for the first time, and doubling its presence at Target and Walmart."
Hisense, she adds, has also significantly increased its retail placements over the past two years, though not as much as TCL.
Both companies tend to have middle-of-the-pack scores in CR's ratings. But we have seen some of the better sets from each brand rise in our ratings over the past two years.
"But it's not just about placement. TCL has done well with consumers by adding the popular Roku smart TV operating system to its TVs and expanding its 4K assortment, with several tiers to choose from," she says. "Hisense lags behind TCL in terms of retail placements and TV features, but has slick branding and marketing plans, coupled with low prices, that appeal to consumers."
Both companies have major press conferences at CES this year , so we're looking forward to hearing their plans for 2018. Even better, we'll be testing new sets from these, and other brands, this year to see how well they perform.
https://www.consumerreports.org/lcd-led-oled-...watch-for/
6. Chinese Brands Gain Momentum
Chinese TV manufacturers have been on the rise globally for several years now. According to IHS Markit, both Hisense and TCL are now among the world's top 10 LCD TV brands.
Of the two, Hisense, which also controls the Sharp TV brand in the U.S., has been the more aggressive from a technology standpoint, utilizing quantum dots in its flagship "ULED" TVs.
But TCL, an early adopter and strong proponent of Roku TVs, has been more successful in terms of sales, which is why you may see more of them in stores—or in your friends' homes.
"Both companies have become much more aggressive in the U.S. market over the past year," Gap's Kennedy says. "But TCL in particular has been able to greatly increase its presence at large national retailers in 2017, in large part due to its arrival in Best Buy stores for the first time, and doubling its presence at Target and Walmart."
Hisense, she adds, has also significantly increased its retail placements over the past two years, though not as much as TCL.
Both companies tend to have middle-of-the-pack scores in CR's ratings. But we have seen some of the better sets from each brand rise in our ratings over the past two years.
"But it's not just about placement. TCL has done well with consumers by adding the popular Roku smart TV operating system to its TVs and expanding its 4K assortment, with several tiers to choose from," she says. "Hisense lags behind TCL in terms of retail placements and TV features, but has slick branding and marketing plans, coupled with low prices, that appeal to consumers."
Both companies have major press conferences at CES this year , so we're looking forward to hearing their plans for 2018. Even better, we'll be testing new sets from these, and other brands, this year to see how well they perform.
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