We are not brand name shoppers for TVs anymore. Is that what it comes down to?
"We found that TVs are becoming very much commodities," said Andrew Eisner with the high-tech gadget website Retrevo.com. "TVs are very similar looking now. A lot of the TVs all have similar features. They all have 1080p, they're all flat screens [and] they're all high refresh rates." For many of us, gone are the days of bragging about the brand of our TV. In fact, now many of us can't even remember the brand. And even when we do, many times we don't care. "If it's a couple hundred dollars cheaper and does the same thing, I don't think people care," said Jay Sandfur of Concord. For now, but Retrevo sees changes down the road. "Smart TVs will get even smarter," said Eisner. "They'll have recommendation engines. They may even be watching you as you watch them and there will be connectivity to tablets. TVs will get smarter and that may be something to watch for." So shopping for price is always good thing, but look at picture and sound quality plus special features.