More than 70% of DVR owners say that they cannot live without their DVR, according to NDS. Asked to rank the relative importance of a variety of household appliances, DVR owners ranked the DVR as the third most indispensable item after the washing machine and the microwave oven. 89% of Americans, 81% of British, 80% of Australians and 78% of Italians all reported that the DVR has improved how much they enjoy watching television.

Q2 2008 North American flat panel TV sales jumped 26% when compared to the Q1 2008 and 28% when compared to Q1 2007, according to DisplaySearch. 9.3 mln units were shipped in Q2 2008. LCD and Plasma TV technologies both posted strong sequential quarterly gains, rising 30% and 35%, respectively. The top selling brand was Samsung with total TV shipment share surging to a record 19.1% of all TV unit shipments in North America during the quarter.

TV-based Internet video receivers and connected consumer electronics platforms will drive transactional revenues for premium Internet video services past $6 bln. U.S. consumers will spend over $6 bln for Internet video services by 2013, with direct-to-TV videos accounting for 75% of that revenue, according to Parks Associates.

Survey from ABI Research has revealed a widespread reluctance to commit to a Blu-ray player in the near future: over half of the 1000 respondents, citing other priorities, say they have no plans to purchase one; a further 23% are likely to buy, but not until sometime in 2009. While half of the respondents to our survey rated Blu-ray’s quality as much better than standard DVD, another 40% termed it only somewhat better, and most are very satisfied with the performance of their current DVD players.

The Canon EOS Digital SLR, Canon PowerShot G, Fujifilm Finepix S, Lumix (Panasonic) DMC-TZ, Nikon D and Sony Cyber-shot T series rank highest in customer satisfaction with digital cameras in their respective segments, according to the J.D. Power and Associates. The Fujifilm Finepix S series ranks highest in the point and shoot segment with an index score of 757 on a 1,000-point scale, performing particularly well in picture quality, performance and ease of operation. Kodak model series also perform well in the segment and follow the Fujifilm Finepix S in the rankings with the Kodak V series (739), Kodak Z series (731) and Kodak M Series (727).

Among premium point and shoot cameras, the Canon PowerShot G series and the Lumix (Panasonic) DMC-TZ series tie to rank highest, each receiving a score of 773. The Canon PowerShot, in particular, performs well in the picture quality and ease of operation factors. The Lumix (Panasonic) DMC-FZ series follows in the segment with a score of 766, receiving high ratings from customers in the performance factor. In the ultra slim segment, the Sony Cyber-shot T series leads with 794, performing particularly well in all four factors driving customer satisfaction. The Casio Exilim Zoom series (766) ranks second and the Fujifilm FinePix Z series closely follows to rank third with 761.

The Canon EOS Digital SLR and Nikon D series both rank highest in a tie among DSLR cameras, each receiving a score of 823. The Canon EOS Digital SLR receives notably high ratings from customers in picture quality, while the Nikon D series—which ranks highest for a second consecutive year—performs particularly well in ease of operation, performance, and appearance and styling. The study finds that among features that owners want in their next camera, weatherproofing is mentioned most frequently by owners in both the point and shoot (67%), and premium point and shoot (68%) segments, while ultra slim owners desire 4 GB internal memory capacity and DSLR owners desire waterproofing (63%).

According to IDC, the volume of shipments of multifunctional peripherals (MFPs) in 2008 in Romania reached almost 250,000 units, which represents 24% YTY growth.

40% of US gamers are women, Entertainment Software Association says. 65% of American households play computer and video games. 38% of American homes have a video game console. The average game player is 35 years old. One out of four gamers are over age 50. Women age 18 or older represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (33%) than boys age 17 or younger (18%). 41% of Americans expect to purchase one or more games 2008. 94% of parents are present when games are purchased or rented. 88% of parents report always or sometimes monitoring the games their children play. 63% of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives.

At a rate of more than three to one, retail electronics salespersons are recommending liquid crystal display (LCD) flat screen TVs instead of sets using plasma technology to shoppers who are seeking to purchase big screen televisions (sets with screens measuring 40 inches or larger), according to the J.D.Power and Associates. High proportion of recommendations of LCD sets is primarily due to retail salespersons’ lack of knowledge regarding recent improvements in plasma technology. For example, more than one-third (38%) of salespersons told their customers that LCD sets last longer. Also, 37% of salespersons warned their customers that images may be permanently burned onto the screens of plasma TVs.

During Q2 2008, among LCD TV brands, Samsung and Sony were recommended by salespersons 35% and 28% of the time, respectively. Vizio sets were recommended approximately 7% of the time. No other LCD brand received a recommendation rate of more than 2%. Among plasma television brands, Panasonic was recommended by
salespersons 37% of the time, while Samsung and Pioneer were recommended 14% and 12% of the time, respectively.

68% of people take to the owner’s manual to figure out the new device, according to Pew Internet Project. Some people will go further, especially if they meet a problem that they can’t address themselves. Here is what cell phone buyers said they did when they encountered problems with their cell phone: 23% visited a cell phone store; 18% called their phone carrier; 9% called the cell phone manufacturer; 7% (of internet users) went online for information or help; 4% discussed the cell phone in an online forum or community.

87% of PlayStation 3 owners have watched BluRay movies on PS3’s built-in BluRay player, Entertainment Merchants Association reported.

37% of consumers own an iPod or other brand of portable MP3 player, up from 30% in 2007 and more than two-and-a-half times the proportion in 2005 (14%). 73% of those ages 12-17 own a digital audio player, according to Edison Media Research.

Overall demand for small/medium displays, i.e. screens with diagonal dimensions of less than 10″, exceeded supply by a scant 0.8% in Q4 2007, down from 6.2% in Q3 2007, according to iSuppli.

The global Average Selling Price (ASP) of small/medium displays used for digital photo frames rose to $30 in the Q4 2007, up 20% from $25 in Q3 2007, according to iSuppli. The ASP for small/medium displays for tiny LCD televisions rose to $8.40 in Q4 2007, up 2.4% from $8.20 in Q3 2007. Although prices for digital photo frame displays will decline by 3.3% in Q1 2008, prices will increase slightly in other areas, including Portable Media Players (PMPs), mobile handsets, automotive applications, camcorders, cameras and industrial/financial applications, according to iSuppli. This will cause the overall ASP of small/medium displays to rise to $6.80 in Q1 2008, up 22% from $5.60 in Q4 2007

19% of Americans surveyed in February 2008 said they plan to spend on consumer electronics in the next 90 days, the lowest percentage since the company began measuring in 2002 and a 20% decrease from November 2007, ChangeWave said. Among consumers expecting to receive a tax rebate this spring, only 7% said they are likely to spend it on electronics. 33% plan to pay down debt, 23% will invest the rebate and 21% expect to save it. 30% of households owned one of the newer TVs in early March 2008, compared with 24.9% in early January 2008.

Overall demand for small/medium displays, i.e. screens with diagonal dimensions of less than 10 inches, exceeded supply by a scant 0.8% in Q4 2007 down from 6.2% in Q3 2007, according to iSuppli.

Shipments of graphics devices reached 31.64 mln units in Q4 2007. That represents 50.3% growth YTY, Jon Peddie Research reports.

Europeans have at least 362 bln worth euros of TVs, HiFis, speakers, video and DVD players, digital recorders and satellite boxes in their homes, with the true value probably being several blns more. In spite of this, in 24% of European households only one person knows how to control all the technology in their home. 49% of households have five or more remote controls and 87% have three or more. Yet one in four Europeans have a very untechnical solution to the problem: written instructions for their loved ones explaining how to control their system, Logitech found out.

47% of all consumer technology spending in 2007 was concentrated on five categories: notebook computers, LCD TVs, desktop computers, digital point-and-shoot cameras, and MP3 players. That’s up from 42% in 2006 and 36% in 2005, according to The NPD Group.

LCD TVs generated $1.7 bln in revenue from November 18 through December 29, 2007 making it the largest revenue producing category for that time period, a 50% increase over 2006, according to The NPD Group. Big screens were the big draw for consumers, with LCD TVS over 40 inches growing 135% in unit volume and accounting for 25% of all LCD sales. Mobile navigation devices found their way into the homes of many consumers. Unit sales skyrocketed five times over 2006 with more than 1.7 mln units sold during the holiday season. Revenue also increased 170 percent to $388 mln.

Europeans have at least 362 bln worth euros of TVs, HiFis, speakers, video and DVD players, digital recorders and satellite boxes in their homes, with the true value probably being several blns more. In spite of this, in 24% of European households only one person knows how to control all the technology in their home. 49% of households have five or more remote controls and 87% have three or more. Yet one in four Europeans have a very untechnical solution to the problem: written instructions for their loved ones explaining how to control their system, Logitech found out.

Consumer technology sales reached a record $129 bln in 2007, a healthy 6.5% increase over 2006, according to The NPD Group. However, sales growth for the second half of 2007, which accounted for 54% of the year’s revenue, only grew by 5%.

Not only did LCDs lead all the major categories in revenue growth, with a 74% increase in dollar sales over 2006 and an 83% increase in units, but they also accounted for 60% of total TV sales. Despite the enormous revenue gain for LCDs, overall TV unit volume declined 9%, according to NPD Group.