AQUOS Gets a Playmate: Sharp Unveils AQUOS branded Blu-ray Player at CEDIA

It’s been three decades since Sharp first placed primitive liquid crystal displays in calculators and introduced LCD technology to the American market, but Sharp Electronics marketing president Mike Troetti says he still believes “the age of LCD is just beginning.” Speaking at a CEDIA press conference Wednesday evening, Troetti said the company plans to invest heavily in new series and styles of LCDs for many years to come. Part of that investment is the construction of an LCD panel plant in Sakai City, Japan, that will focus on production (including assembly) of 40-, 50-, and 60-inch flatscreens. Sharp will break groung on the new manufacturing complex this November, with a goal of starting operations there by March of 2010.

Meanwhile, the company is unveiling a new series of more lightweight AQUOS 1080p LCDs, the D64U series, which it’s marketing as a “space saving design.” The new 42-inch and up sets will be, they say, the “thinnest large screen flat panel television[s] in the industry.”

Bob Scaglione, a Sharp Electronics senior vice president, says Sharp will discontinue production of CRT’s for the American market after this year. Scaglione also announced Sharp’s first Blu-ray player for the U.S. market, branded the AQUOS model BD-HP20U, available at retail this month for a MSRP of $549.99.