Sharp Rolls Out 20 New Aquos LCD TVs

Sharp doesn’t seem to believe in updating its LCD line with any subtlety: today the company announced a whopping 20 new Aquos LCD televisions models, making up new E series, D series, and X-series—the latter of which lay claim to being the world’s thinnest LCD televisions. However, for now, the new units will be available only in Japan.

The thirteen new D-series LCD televisions range from 20 through 36 inches and offer a a series of green, beige, white, black, and red colored casings to better match users’ decor. All the 32-inch and 26-inch models feature a side-port bass reflex speaker, and all models are compatible with Sharp’s Aquos Familink technology to easily coordinate operation of Sharp Aquos gear. The units offer 1,500:1 contrast ratios, 450 nits of brightness, 176° viewing angles, along with integrated TV analog and digital tuners, 3 HDMI inputs, Ethernet, and front-panel four-pin FireWire. They should hit Japanese retailers in early February, but Sharp is only saying the retail prices are "open," so expect retailers to compete with each other…or try to keep you from learning what the other guy is asking.

The four new E-series LCD TVs get larger, ranging from 37 to 52 inches, and claim a 15,000:1 contrast ratio, 120 Hz refresh rates, and smooth color display from Sharp’s proprietary Bit Depth Expansion (BDE) circuitry. The units feature integrated analog and digital TV tuners, a 1 bit digital sound amplifier, and a spate of inputs including three HDMI ports, analog RGB input, Ethernet, digital audio out, front-panel four-pin FireWire. Again, Sharp is leaving pricing open to retailers, but they should start hitting the streets in March.

Finally, Sharp has also unveiled its new X-series of LCD televisions, which the company has slimmed down to just 3.44 cm (under 1.5 inches) at their thinnest—about half the thickness of sets in the D and E series. The X-series will ship in 37-, 42-, and 46-inch screen sizes, offer HDMI connectivity, and also boast an optional wireless transmitter for pushing video to the screen. Based on a Sharp proprietary 5 GHz technology, the transmitter can push an uncompressed HDMI signal up to 20 meters, although it can’t go through walls. The wireless option will make for neater wall-mounted installations, since users will only have to worry about getting power to their TV, not video cables as well. The X-series claim the same 15,000:1 contrast ratio, 12-bit BDE processing, and 120 Hz refresh rates of the E series, and also boast a thin profile 3-way 8-speaker audio system. The X-series will run from ¥350,000 to ¥480,000 (about $3,250 to $4,250), and should be on sale March 1. The optional wireless video transmitter will run an additional ¥90,000 (abut $835).