HDTV Prices Dropping Ahead of 4K TV Onslaught

Over the next few weeks, you’re going to see some great deals on HDTVs. The reason? No, it’s not the lead up to SuperBowl XLIX! It’s because the next generation of 4K TVs are getting ready to dominate the retail space.

I’ve seen the onslaught of 4K TVs at CES 2015 (The International Consumer Electronics Show) and it’s truly amazing. These TVs offer 4 times the resolution of your current HDTV!

The retailers and manufacturers know there’s a sea change  happening too. So anybody with traditional flatscreen HDTVs in the pipeline is going to be heavily discounting them before they become yesterday’s news.

The good news on TV prices

I’ve been watching prices on traditional HDTVs and we’re back to Black Friday prices in January! Those prices will go down over the next 6 weeks so retailers and makers don’t get caught with too much unloved inventory on their hands.

So wait the next few weeks to get a real steal of a deal. And the bigger the screen, the bigger the deal will be because big screen sizes will be among the first to transition to 4K.

On the question of 4K TV programming, the reality is there’s not a lot of programming yet. Some movies are in 4K and both Netflix and Amazon Prime send out some programming in 4K already. But it will come sooner rather than later.

If you do buy a 4K TV this year, buy an off brand. Do not buy a high-end set. Because in 2 years, that TV will probably take a less prominent place in your home as the technology improves even further.

Here at CES, I’m seeing some “white label” TVs (Chinese no-name brands) for $500 with fantastic picture quality. You’ve never heard of the manufacturer, but the picture is so neat.

If you want to hold out with your current HDTV, I recommend you wait until 2017 to go all in on 4K TVs. That’s when the early adopters will have helped work out all the kinks.