CE Week 2013's first official major product release came this morning courtesy of the folks at Sharp. Now, the 70-inch LC-70UD1U does look rather spectacular in the flesh, but we're still not sure how quickly the buying public is going to take to Ultra HD 4K with zero content at the moment.
With Robin Thicke playing in the background, Sharp unveiled its new flagship Ultra HD 4K LED HDTV, which will be available for purchase by the beginning of July for only $8,000. The asking price is certainly high, but far lower than industry analysts expected, considering the astronomical prices Samsung and LG are charging for their 84-inch Ultra HD 4K models.
The LC-70UD1U features a dual-core processor for improved processing and upscaling. That will allow the HDTV to upscale analog and digital content to its native 3840-by-2160 resolution.
Sharp's set has a rather striking metallic bezel and curved base that will not look out of place in any home. We were rather impressed with the aesthetic design of the set, which is a step up for Sharp, when compared to some of its other AQUOS HDTVs.
The LC-70UD1U has four HDMI 1.4 inputs, an SD card reader, two USB 2.0 inputs, and one of the slickest looking interfaces we've seen so far on any smart TV.
Sharp has also developed a new six-driver speaker system, which includes the company's own DuoBass subwoofer system. However, we're puzzled why manufacturers continue to do so considering the popularity of soundbars, which offer far superior audio playback to any of the audio systems in most HDTVs.
One really neat feature that Sharp has built into the LC-70UD1U is a "Wallpaper Mode" that actually operates with the television turned off; well, at least in a very low power mode. If you've ever wanted to display gorgeous 4K quality artwork in your living room, you can now do so without significantly shortening the lifespan of the panel. Sharp will be including pre-installed artwork with each set.
For More Information:
