It’s no secret that the U.S. TV market is highly competitive. As of 2023, Samsung represents 33% of the market followed by LG (19%), Vizio (11%), Sony (7%), Hisense (5%), TCL (5%), and several others. Sharp barely represents 1% of the market.
Given these conditions, it is interesting that Sharp announced at CES 2023 that it was going to make a strategic move in the US market with high-end XLED TVs and OLED TVs.
Sharp does have a strategy to rebuild its TV brand domestically, but it would fair to say that it is a rather large hill to climb.
Sharp & Roku
Under their Aquos label, Sharp has teamed with Roku on a line of OLED TVs. What makes this interesting is that not only is this Sharp’s first foray into OLED in America, but it also marks the first OLED TVs from any brand that incorporates the Roku OS.
Tech Note #1: All OLED panels used by Sharp, as well as other TV brands, are made by the LG Display Company. An OLED TV uses Organic LEDs which are self-emitting (no blacklight or LCD display panel required).
Tech Note #2: The Sharp/Roku OLED TVs incorporate the latest Roku OS, which provides access to a wide range of streaming apps (Netflix, Disney+, Max, etc…) as well as other smart features. Roku works with Apple AirPlay, Apple Home, and Google Home. The Roku OS is upgradable via periodic firmware updates. This means that the Roku OS used in these TVs is the same as that used in all other Roku devices. Sharp also adds additional picture and audio settings according to their needs.
Our initial impressions of the TVs at CES were extremely positive; but will all of those features and excellent image quality be enough to catch up to brands like TCL and Hisense that have really upgraded their TVs and kept their prices extremely competitive? We remain skeptical.
The Sharp AQUOS OLED 4K TVs are being offered in two screen sizes, either 55-inches (model 4T-C55FS1UR) at $1,119 or 65-inches (model 4T-C65FS1UR) at $1,499.
Key Features
- Display Resolution: 4K UHD
- HDR: Dolby Vision (including IQ™), HDR10, Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG).
- Audio: 30W (15W+15W) Speaker System with Dolby Atmos support.
- Gaming Support: Native 120Hz panel, Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) across all 4 HDMI inputs, Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM).
- USB (ver 2.0): 2 (playback of compatible Photo, Music, and Video files)
- Analog AV Input: Yes, this means you can connect older analog video sources if necessary.
- Audio Connections: HDMI-ARC/eARC, Digital Optical and Headphone outputs
- Voice Remote: Works with RokuOS, Alexa, and Google
Tip: Bluetooth connectivity is listed as not being supported (this is interesting as the Roku OS generally supports Bluetooth).
From Jim Sanduski, President of Sharp Home Electronics Company of America: “We are pleased to be working with Roku to support our return to a US market as competitive as televisions,…“
From Tom McFarland, Vice President of Business Development at Roku: “We’re excited to be a part of Sharp’s return to the US television market at this pivotal time in the evolution of smart TV technology…“
Price and Avabibility
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