$200 Blu-ray players this year expected says Sigma Designs VP of Strategic Marketing

Sigma Designs' success was partly accidental. The company tried to win Toshiba's HD DVD business, said Ken Lowe, vice president of strategic marketing, but Toshiba went with Broadcom and, later, NEC.

"We went out there trying to capture as much high-definition player business as possible," he said. "Mainly it was Blu-ray business that was available."

Now, the company is the incumbent in a business that is about to blast ahead. Consumers bought 2.9 million blue laser DVD players last year but are expected to snap up 7.6 million this year and 13.6 million in 2009, Gartner estimates....

...An increase in the number of chip building for Blu-ray seems destined to speed up chip commoditization and price declines. And consumers will be the winners.

Sigma Design's Lowe said it's widely expected that new Blu-ray players from China and Taiwan will be in stores at prices near $200 in time for Christmas.

Originally Posted by SugarBowl

as long as they're profile 2.0 ready, or 2.0 complete.

Originally Posted by nick_rh

Not to be purposely argumentative, but I actually think it's best if the cheapest players stay at a $300 minimum for a while. Right now they're flying off the shelves at pretty much any price, so clearly there's no shortage of consumer demand (i.e., no worry of high prices alienating buyers).

Look at what no-holds-barred price-slashing did for HD-DVD: nothing. Partially it's because Toshiba was too little, too late, and too many people were on Blu-Ray's side to make a difference. But the other part is that people really do value things that are more expensive. They get more excited about buying them, they learn more about them before and after buying, and in Blu-Ray's case they're more likely to invest in the software.

Sure, you can argue that if a player costs $200 instead of $300, then that's 4-5 more discs the person can buy with the remaining money. But it also increases the likelihood that the player will sit on the shelf collecting dust or only get used for upconverting DVDs, whereas a player that costs more is more likely to inspire its buyer to invest in a library of titles so it doesn't go to waste.

And while we're on the subject of titles, let's remember that there still ain't that many out there. I, along with most others who read this forum, got into Blu-Ray as a (relatively) early adopter, knowing full well that the availability of movies was severely limited. But once you kick the players down to average-consumer-friendly prices, those average consumers are going to assume that all their favorite movies are ready to be bought on Blu-Ray. So if there isn't a significant -- and I mean HUGE -- spate of BD releases around the holiday season to go along with the player price cut, then the consumer backlash that results could really harm the future of the format. Right now, Blu-Ray releases are still coming in at a trickle. I own pretty much all the Blu-Ray discs that I think are worth having at the moment, and that number is less than ten. Believe me, I'm very much looking forward to seeing a change in this landscape, but it seems hard to believe that it could happen completely in the next several months.

Originally Posted by rlsmith

I am glad that I am not the only one who keeps making this point.

At this stage of the adoption cycle, there is nothing wrong at all with the prices we have seen for Blu-ray. Compare to the pricing for DVD, plasma TV's, even VHS/Beta if you like.

Of course, for mass adoption, the prices will need to be a lot less. But for the rest of this year, we are near the sweet spot of pricing.

Our perspective has been clouded by the format war, in which Toshiba's strategy was low pricing. It helped them, certainly, but it didn't work. [Frys Electronics has the HD-A3 for $79 right now, help yourselves.]

Right now, you can buy a Sony or Samsung for $299 street if you look. [Frys Electronics for example.] Prices will fall throughout this year, with entry-level at under $200 by Christmas, just as this article says.

We need to calm down on this pricing issue, it is not going to be a problem.

Prices will fall throughout this year, with entry-level at under $200 by Christmas, just as this article says.

We need to calm down on this pricing issue, it is not going to be a problem.

Originally Posted by mr. wally

i'll be on the sidelines until i can get a 2.0 br for $200.