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O.T Maybee - Wheres the push to digital

282 Views 5 Replies 6 Participants Last post by dokworm, Jan 20, 2004

alyle5864

Discussion Starter · Jan 18, 2004

While waiting for the football game to start I read through the Sunday paper and scanned the sale ads. Concidering my main hobbie is computers I always look through the Circuit City, Compusa, Goog Guys, etc looking for new equipment and deals. After reading all of the electronic ads I noticed that not one advertised a LCD or DLP projector.

Having myself only gotten into HT and crt projectors last January , I look for HT gear now also in the ads. I've progressed from a Sony 722, 1252, and currently have a 9PG. Seeing that none of the sale ads advertised digital projectors, I decided to drive to a couple of the stores and make some inquiries.

At three different stores I waited for a salesman to contact me as I was wondering around. I told them that I was interested in having a home theater but was not sure where to start. I said that I wanted the biggest screen I could get, wanted to watch HD and satelite. I was then shown various big screen tv's, some rp and some digital.

NOT one of the salesman showed me a LCD or DLp projector. There were several projectors on display in the stores, but not one salesman led me to them. They weren't even mentioned.

I know that the three biggest drawbacks to CRT's in HT are their size, weight, and cost. But digitals are billed as the alternative being small, light and less expensive.

I know I live on the left coast but I just thought that it was strange that considering the package digitals come in that there was no push by salesman sell these pj's for home theater. Particularly after I said I wanted the biggest screen I could get.

Have I missed something?? Is the HT market still based on the big box against the wall???

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Semisentient

· #2 · Jan 18, 2004

Interesting question.

I think there are at least a few reasons why the salespeople didn't push digital projectors.

1. Stores such as you mentioned don't often have the proper conditions to show off a projector.

2. Very few people have front projected home theatres. Chances are most of the salepeople haven't even seen a properly setup FP HT. Heck at the big box stores, the salespeople rarely know more than what's printed on the price tag.

3. These stores usually have projectors in their computer section. Most computer peripherals have a smaller profit margin than home electronics.

4. Most people shopping for HT will not have the proper light controlled room for a projector, so why try and sell them one knowing it will probably be returned.

Just a few thoughts off the top of my head.

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Curt Palme

· #3 · Jan 18, 2004

Amen to both posts. Several chain stores also have HT set ups here in Vancouver. There's no crowd around them and I agree, the sales people don't seem to push them, but I have seen some flyers that talk about LCD and DLP.

I think the impulse buyers will grab them regardless, even at Costco or Staples where they both have them for dirt cheap.

Then you have the people that do their research and inevitably come to the forum, even if not to the CRT one..

Then there's the looky-loos that waste the chain stores sales guy's time, who can't afford anything in the store except for a CD..

Curt

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PabloReiter

· #4 · Jan 18, 2004

it would be interesting to go into the same stores and tell them that you have to give a presentation to 10-20 customers and see that they show you...

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WanMan

· #5 · Jan 19, 2004

I've only bee to one chain store (HFB) that actually painted the walls and ceiling black, used black carpeting, and had solid doors. When the lights were out, only the AV equipment and the projector produced light.

Now, I bet there are a couple of hundred shops around Atlanta that would like to claim they sell HT stuff, but no one but this place actually went as far as I did in my own home. And with this in mind, I cannot imagine taking any demo seriously for a $8-12K projector when there is enough light in the room to make 30-IRE the basement for blacks.

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dokworm

· #6 · Jan 20, 2004

There is absolutely no shortage of ads here for projectors, but most of the ads are for plasma screens, they look sexier and are more George Jetson.

I guess the other problem is its hard to sell projectors as being something 'new'

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