PVRBlog (via Ole Eichhorn) cites Rooters and agrees with them that it would be a good year to wait to make your flat-screen TV buy. From my perch on the board of a flat panel technology company, I agree with them. The LCD market in particular seems to have settled into a roughly 18 months over/undersupply cycle, rather similar to the DRAM pattern. Right now, we're on the undersupply side, but within twelve months there will be significant new fab capacity coming on line, so price/performance should show marked improvements by next holiday season.

Personally, I've been on a jihad (internal struggle only) against CRTs since I invested in that same company. Backing the home team to be sure, but who really needs the over-weight, desk-hogging, lead-in-landfill, century-old-technology things anyway? So I began a deathwatch on my own CRT collection. A 17" Sony monitor and an ancient Apple-branded one obliged by giving up the ghost soon thereafter, and I made two donations to Samsung's LCD fab. The 15" backup clunker went to a cash-short friend whose own screen fried. Now I'm down to sitting vigil on the household TVs - another Sony tube and a rather old Phillips back projection TV. Both are now surrounded by satellite tuner, newly updated surround electronics and speakers, and are just serving as dumb displays. So I will utter a small prayer to the gods of aging CRT heater filaments that they hang on a few months more, and then expire conveniently at the appropriate phase of the LCD supply cycle.
1:38:43 PM    

Iraqi bloggers are on the spot, with dozens of photos as well. Meanwhile, the bigs appear to be completely missing the story - the blogfather is watching for pick-ups. Any wonder these guys are in trouble?

Update: Fox News is on it. Donald Sensing has screen grabs. The juxtaposed news trailers at bottom of screen are amusingly surreal.

Update 2: Zeyad and I are blog-siblings. Dad's proud of him, and so am I. You can change a civilization with this stuff!
12:20:04 PM