The high-definition sets unveiled Tuesday evening in New York will have LCD screens ranging from 24 inches to 46 inches, with recommended retail prices from $600 to $1,400. Sony will begin selling the new sets in its online store Saturday, and they should be available in Best Buy Co.'s U.S. stores by early next week. Pre-orders are currently being taken at both Sony's and Best Buy's websites.
Sony's price for its Google TV sets is $200 to $400 higher than comparable TVs without the highly touted software, a differential that threatens to dampen sales at a time the still-shaky economy is causing more households to pinch their pennies.
The strong sales of Apple Inc.'s iPhone and iPad have demonstrated that people are still willing to open their wallets to buy breakthrough gadgets, but persuading them usually requires a snazzy marketing campaign that shows why the products are worth the extra money.
Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey isn't convinced that Sony and Google will be able to make a compelling enough case to turn this new generation of TVs into a must-have item, even though he is impressed with the technology inside the sets.
'Price is going to be important,' he said. 'Google TV is a powerful experience, but most people aren't going to understand it unless they can see it in action. And Google isn't known for its consumer marketing experience. I think they have the right concept here, but I am not sure about the execution yet.'
Sony is planning a marketing blitz to promote its Google TV sets through the holiday shopping season, although the company isn't saying how much it will spend on the campaign.
Google traditionally has refrained from buying TV ads, relying instead on its ubiquity on the Internet and the marketing acumen of its partners.
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