Greg Tarr On Jan 28 2013 - 1:00am

On Corp. Unveils RCA Value LED TVs

LAS VEGAS — On Corp., the licensee of the RCA brand for home-based television products, showed at International CES a value-centric LCD TV lineup, which is planned to transition over to 100 percent LED direct and edge-lit products by the end of 2013.

The 2013 RCA TV series offers three model classes including those 32 inches and larger, those smaller than 32 inches and DVD/LCD TV combo products.

Unlike many other TV makers at the show, On Corp. is taking a different approach to LED integration in its LCD lineup. This year, models 32-inches and over will transition over to direct-LED back lighting, while smaller screen sizes will feature edge-lit LED approaches.

The direction will allow RCA TVs to offer a value-centric product portfolio, designed to address the growing consumer demand for TVs that are less-featured, offer large screen sizes and affordable price points.

But the rules aren’t hard and fast, because, as Jonathan Zupnik, On Corp. executive VP, told TWICE, the company will customize product lines for key accounts in its growing and diverse dealer base.

The company has relationships with RCA, Kmart, Wal-Mart.com and Best Buy, to name a few, and is now looking to expand to the regional and local level with distributors and buying groups.

For introduction later in the year, the company is also showed an RCA-branded 60-inch IPTV enabled set powered by the Technicolor and DreamWorks-developed M-Go service.

M-Go directs the viewer to a chosen movie in the M-Go VOD store, or suggests another service if the movie isn’t available. M-Go has licensing deals with five of the six major Hollywood studios.

On Corp. has also employed a cabinet design that gives the sets the appearance of having ultra-thin bezel and panel depths, like those in edge-lit models, by moving the D-LED array that requires slightly more depth to the center of the back plane.

“While some consumers are looking for all the bells and whistles, we are focused on reaching the customer who wants a beautiful television that delivers great images at an affordable price,” said Zupnik. “In today’s tough economic times, we are committed to serving the mass market. Consumers have embraced our current line of televisions, and our retail partners reported strong sales in 2012. We are confident that these new HDTV sets will be an attractive option as consumers continue to look for great value.”

At the show, On Corp. displayed five new sets in screen sizes ranging from 32-inches to 55-inches. All feature two HDMI inputs for easy connection to a PC or videogame console.

A highlight of the line is the 55-inch FullHD 1080p RCA LED55C55R120Q, that will ship this month with an $850 suggested retail price. It features a 120Hz refresh rate, 6.5ms response time and a 5,000:1 contrast ratio.

The 52-inch FullHD RCA LED52B45Q, which is shipping now at a $700 suggested retail, features a 60Hz refresh rate, 6.0ms response time, and a 3,000:1 contrast ratio.

The 46-inch FullHD RCA LED46C45Q, which is shipping now at a $600 suggested retail, offers a 60Hz refresh rate, 4.5ms response time, and a 4,000:1 contrast ratio.

The 42-inch FullHD RCA LED42C45RQ, which is shipping now at a $500 suggested retail, offers a 60Hz refresh rate, 6.5ms response time, and a 4,000:1 contrast ratio.

The 32-inch LED32B30RQ, which is shipping now at a $300 suggested retail, features a 60Hz refresh rate, 1360-by-768 resolution, a 6.5ms response time, and 3,500:1 contrast ratio.