Holiday Hits: 'Must-Have' Products For The Fourth Quarter

By Staff -- TWICE, 7/21/2008

NEW YORK — While most Americans are focused on backyard barbecues and fun at the beach, CE dealers and distributors are already planning ahead for the holiday selling season. Here's a peek at some of their Christmas wish lists:

Mike Hench, president, Edge Distributors Group: High-definition video products such as Blu-ray Disc players and 1080p displays; A/V receivers; attachments like display wall-mounts, cables and other accessories.

Warren Chaiken, president/COO, Almo: Flat-panel TVs, Blu-ray players, GPS devices and high-end cameras.

Henry Chiarelli, president, DBL Distributing: Bluetooth devices, Blu-ray players, headphones, gaming and TV. Also, GPS devices, digital picture frames and personal electronics, which will "generate volume" albeit at a slower growth rate.

Rob Eby, purchasing VP, D&H Distributing: Flat-panel displays in 1080p and 720p resolutions; GPS devices for business travelers, fleet management, personal tracking, motorcycle use and active lifestyle monitoring; mobile computing, including ultra-mobile PCs; and USB video cameras.

Curt Hayes, president/CFO, Capitol Sales: LCD and plasma TVs in all sizes; video gaming systems like the Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit and Sony's PlayStation3 entertainment system, the latter for high-definition gaming, Blu-ray movie viewing and digital media storage.

Joel Blank, executive VP, ArchBrook Laguna: Portable personal products and related accessories; gaming and other entertainment-driven categories; portable products including fourth-quarter laptops with sleek new form factors, better specs and lower price points; and robots, which double as entertainment and personal devices.

In addition, Sears and Kmart touted their own top holiday picks during a recent fourth-quarter preview in New York. They include:

Blu-ray Disc players, including the Samsung BD-P1500;
Home theater systems enhanced with wireless options and "new media" connections, including the Panasonic SC-PT660 with Kelton subwoofer and up-converting five-disc DVD player, and Samsung's 2.1 channel HT-X810 with Bluetooth capability and USB functionality;
Flip flash-drive HD camcorders with easy Internet upload; and
Kodak's latest series of compact digital point-and-shoot cameras.