Sony: No PlayStation 3 announcement at CES 2006?

[ihamoitc2005]

Headphone

He's hardly alone. Cost conscious buyers should look elsewhere.

I have $20 Sony headphones unit and it is good. I think depends on buyer needs. For small MP3 player, maybe Samsung is better value, for super quality DV video camera, Sony is best. Super-quality Sony digital camera is also very good but speakers for home theatre is maybe not so great. But for customer who wants very good home theatre that is easy and has nice look and doesnt need "best in the world" with different components maybe Sony is good. But for super home theatre fan who wants only best and has knowledge to setup components no problem and doesnt care for matching parts, then many super-hifi brands available. So it depends on need of consumer.

 

[speng]

I buy all Sony . I trust their quality and their products.

I would not buy a Sony speaker system though, there are better companies.

I make my choices on their strength and what's in my price range compared to the other products, and the hope of easy integration and use.

Sony Camera, Camcorder and TV...

Speng.

 

[eDoshin]

Recently got one of those mobilBLU cubes .. really nice. Also have one of those Samsung players that you can use the usb flash cards with. MP3s are all over the map .. gotta hand it to Apple for their success with iPod. Got sucked into it myself.

 

[MrWibble]

My Sony CRT TV (which I no longer use, but I lent to a friend) was/is top notch - Sony used to be highly rated for their displays, and with good reason.

These days not a lot of things under my TV (or indeed the TV itself) are Sony products. My amp is, but that needs replacing. It was well regarded when it came out but newer models went the route of being cost-reduced rather than improved. I bought a CD/HDD player but it's quite honestly not very good and I barely ever use it.

I also used to use a Sony DVD player, which was considered more or less a reference player in its day (and many people seek them out now, even though they don't do progressive and have a couple of bugs). That's relegated to the bedroom now that I have an SDI capable player (SDI modding the Sony wasn't an attractive option). Again however the newer models weren't really better, unless I wanted to pay a lot more for their super-designer models, and I just wasn't convinced.

Recently I think they've fallen victim to the desire for form over function - they make stuff that's really nice to look at when it's turned off, but doesn't really live up to the promise when it's on. You pay for a display that looks like a bit of designer furniture, but get something distinctly average in performance.

That said - this was all pre-Stringer. That's why I'm interested to hear what he's got to say at CES, and what stuff they're going to show. I really hope they're going to demonstrate or at least announce some solid products again, or at least acknowledge that they've lost their way a little and will be getting back on track. And thats why I actually hope there isn't a lot of PS3 stuff talked about - that would indicate that they really haven't changed their ways at all and don't have anything else to sell.

 

[Bad_Boy]

Not trying to be a jerk or anything, but this doesnt really have much to do with PS3 and CES. Does anybody know if Sony/Stringer's show is tommorrow?

 

[AlphaWolf]

I have $20 Sony headphones unit and it is good. I think depends on buyer needs. For small MP3 player, maybe Samsung is better value, for super quality DV video camera, Sony is best. Super-quality Sony digital camera is also very good but speakers for home theatre is maybe not so great. But for customer who wants very good home theatre that is easy and has nice look and doesnt need "best in the world" with different components maybe Sony is good. But for super home theatre fan who wants only best and has knowledge to setup components no problem and doesnt care for matching parts, then many super-hifi brands available. So it depends on need of consumer.

It's hardly that simple. Sony camera's are ok (but nikon, olympus, canon are often better for less money), Sony video cameras are pretty good, but for the money you might want to look at panasonic or canon. For TVs there really isn't a Sony worth its price point, you will often find them outperformed by Panasonic, Pioneer, Samsung and/or quite a bit less money. If you are happy with your Sony products that's great, but it has been a long time since Sony was undisputed king of the hill as far as CE is concerned.

 

[eDoshin]

I buy all Sony . I trust their quality and their products.

I would not buy a Sony speaker system though, there are better companies.

I make my choices on their strength and what's in my price range compared to the other products, and the hope of easy integration and use.

Sony Camera, Camcorder and TV...

Speng.

Thought I was the only one who really likes their cameras. I originally selected Sony because the picture quality compare favorably to much higher priced digital cameras (this was back when 5 megapixels first started coming out). The response time was also much shorter and the optical zoom was good. I have not been disappointed. I also had a reliable Sony DV camera, but bought a Canon recently because I wanted something that was more compact.

I've had a Sony VCR die on me, and a walkman .. but I've also gone thru a whole bunch of other manufacturers for such products. Guess there are too many moving parts and nobody ever got it right.

 

[Synergy34]

For the money, I actually have found Sony to be pretty good price wise, when comparing available features. My first HDTV was a Zenith. HD Pic quality was no different than the Sony I was comparing it to. But price was 200 cheaper, i got the Zenith. So i get my new set home, plug everything and gear up for a night of SOCOM running 480p, NOPE. Despite the Zenith having 2 compontent inputs, only one is labled for progressive sources.

I brought it back and paid the extra 200 for the Sony, with the 2 fully functional compontent inputs. My buddy has had the Samsung 30inch widescreen for a year now, not the Slim Fit, and he can't make it skip over input sources. So when he goes from Cable to DVD he has to scroll throug like 8 different selections to get back to his Cable input. My Sony is almost 5 years old now and I can do that.

You get what you play for IMO. Sony usually has more bells and whistles than other products.

 

[MrWibble]

Not trying to be a jerk or anything, but this doesnt really have much to do with PS3 and CES. Does anybody know if Sony/Stringer's show is tommorrow?

It's been said a couple of times, but it's easy to find:

http://www.cesweb.org/attendees/conferences/keynotes.asp

Now back to our regularly scheduled off-topic moaning!


(actually I figure discussing what Sony should/might/will show at CES instead of PS3 is kind of relevant - it all pertains to the general health and direction of the company and the expectations for the show)

 

[eDoshin]

There's not much concrete info to discuss .. so just killing time.

 

[MrWibble]

It's hardly that simple. Sony camera's are ok (but nikon, olympus, canon are often better for less money), Sony video cameras are pretty good, but for the money you might want to look at panasonic or canon. For TVs there really isn't a Sony worth its price point, you will often find them outperformed by Panasonic, Pioneer, Samsung and/or quite a bit less money. If you are happy with your Sony products that's great, but it has been a long time since Sony was undisputed king of the hill as far as CE is concerned.

If you want a tiny camera to stick in your pocket, but also one that's well made and.. well... nice looking, Sony make some attractive models.

Personally I wanted a camera with good optics and lens options, (i.e. I care more about the picture than the convenience/design) so I bought a Nikon.

I agree Sony TVs are currently overpriced on quality, but some of them are very nicely styled (of course that's not worth the money for most folks, but others will pay extra for that). They used to be world class though, and with their CE division not doing so well maybe they'll go back to making quality gear at affordable prices.

 

[ihamoitc2005]

Tv

I agree Sony TVs are currently overpriced on quality, but some of them are very nicely styled (of course that's not worth the money for most folks, but others will pay extra for that). They used to be world class though, and with their CE division not doing so well maybe they'll go back to making quality gear at affordable prices.

Sony TV screen is made by other companies but Sony only gets first quality units and this is very expensive. But I think maybe manufacturing technology is better now so even second and third quality which is for other manufacturers is not so different from first quality level.

 

[Carl B]

I think right now their plan is to make quality gear for premium prices. Their LCD TV's right now are almost without contention cosndiered to be some of the best, of not the best flat-out. But there's a big price-premium there. Their digital camera and camcorders also get generally high marks across the board, and the camcorders tend to out-feature the competetion as well. Digital cameras are a little trickier to decide where Sony places, but a lot of companies besides themselves use their sensors, and it depends on whether you're talking about SLR or non as well.

I think in general they're on the up and up; after the show we can re-assess.

I also like their new 'Bean' MP3 player. I don't need one myself, but a three minute charge giving you three hours of playback? I mean that's just cool.

 

[thatdude90210]

I'm trying to think of what I have that's made by Sony and the only thing is a pair of Sony headphones that I use for my laptop... plus a 20' tv and an old receiver that I hardly use anymore.

I used to have lots of Sony stuff: Sony tv's, receivers, monitor, telephone, VCR, and walkman. But when those broke down, I replaced them with other brands. I don't think Sony's stuff got worst, just that other companies caught up.

 

[c0_re]

Just realize that you are in the minority with those statments.

Minority? Where? Every audio video site message board on the internet or anywhere for that fact says the exact same thing.

Sony=Overprices and Underperforms period.

As far as LCD TV's to this day I've never seen one I've been impressed with so I can't really comment on that.

 

[c0_re]

Yes. But c0_re is acting like everything Sony related (excluding Playstation) is over priced and not worthy. That's my beef with the statement.

AND their small electronics(but those seriously lack features)


How is this untrue this is a known across the entire industry, the only reason Sony is still in business(besides the HUGE company saving success of the Playstation) is because there’s millions of clueless yuppies with money to throw around that assume just because Sony was king back in 1990 just because it says Sony on it that makes it good when in fact the opposite is true for the bigger part of the time.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

My Sony CRT TV (which I no longer use, but I lent to a friend) was/is top notch - Sony used to be highly rated for their displays, and with good reason.

Sony Trinitron CRTs were the standard. You couldn't go to any TV studio of any sort and not find a Sony monitor. Don't know if that's still the case. My 14" CRT still gives excellent service and image quality.

Back in the 70s and 80s Sony were a quality brand. You knew, like buying a Toyota car nowadays, you'd get something very functional and reliable. Some of that image has carried over, but it's not as strong as it was it seems, because they no longer seem on the cutting edge. Perhaps because there's so many innovations these days Sony no longer stand out?

 

[MrWibble]

Sony Trinitron CRTs were the standard. You couldn't go to any TV studio of any sort and not find a Sony monitor. Don't know if that's still the case. My 14" CRT still gives excellent service and image quality.

Back in the 70s and 80s Sony were a quality brand. You knew, like buying a Toyota car nowadays, you'd get something very functional and reliable. Some of that image has carried over, but it's not as strong as it was it seems, because they no longer seem on the cutting edge. Perhaps because there's so many innovations these days Sony no longer stand out?

And as someone else pointed out, their recent screens have been someone elses display panel with Sony electronics/design. They need to get back to developing their own stuff, because they used to be the best in town.

 

[Carl B]

And as someone else pointed out, their recent screens have been someone elses display panel with Sony electronics/design. They need to get back to developing their own stuff, because they used to be the best in town.

Well their high-end LCD panels are out of their own joint plant with Samsung, so I think they're getting back to it. Supposedly when they go OLED, that will also be their own plants.

 

[Nicked]

Minority? Where? Every audio video site message board on the internet or anywhere for that fact says the exact same thing.

Sony=Overprices and Underperforms period.

Most would tell you that Sony's stuff is actually top-notch but not worth the extra cash. But it definitely is all very high-quality, especially their latest stuff.