In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult for users to buy an unsmart TV. According to statistics, the penetration rate of domestic smart TVs will reach 84.5% in 2015. The penetration rate in 2016 is estimated to exceed 95%, and the full coverage is basically completed. In terms of sales volume, it is estimated that it will reach 60 million units in 2016, which is an extremely large market.
From the perspective of products, from early ordinary LCD TVs with low-performance boxes to smart TVs with integrated TV boxes, from 1080P to 4K, and from flat to curved surfaces, smart TVs are constantly improving.
In the competition of smart TVs, there are mainly two groups, one is a home appliance group represented by traditional Haier, Hisense, TCL, and Skyworth, and the other is an internet manufacturer represented by Xiaomi, Leshi, and Xiaowei.
So, how will smart TVs develop in the future and what kind of products will win the future? Let's take a look.
First, the production of smart TV
In fact, long before the appearance of smart TVs, players began to try to do more things for television. The stuff that was played in the enthusiasts' circle was called HTPC.
Using a TV as a computer monitor to realize the entertainment functions of multimedia computers is the origin of smart TVs, that is, TV plus PC mode.
Later, with the advancement of technology, the PC has been simplified into a hard disk player, and the external hard disk is more enjoyable than the TV D1 resolution program when watching HD 1080P video.
Later, with the popularity of online video, time-consuming download methods were abandoned. There is a "box" that can play online video programs directly, and the "box" is integrated with the TV, which is the smart TV we see today.
So, in the final analysis, smart TVs are still used to "see". People upgrade from ordinary TVs step by step in order to see more and better content. The development of various technologies is to better "see" the experience.
Second, the content determines the outcome
Because smart TVs are downstream of the industry chain, there is no core technology, so the innovation of smart TVs will be quickly imitated, and in the hardware cost, the downstream manufacturers do not have much right to speak. The hardware that "sees" the demand is homogenous, and the competition goes to software.
Like smart phones, the smart TV UI is also part of the user experience, but the UI design is not too high, and will be homogenized after experiencing several generations of products. Just like today's mobile phone maker UI is like Apple, the smart TV UI It will be more and more like you can't see the difference.
In the end, the content is competitive, and users must “look†to see that the hardware is the same, the UI is similar, and the amount of content seen determines the sales of the product. At present, because the channels of different manufacturers are too different, the effect is not obvious. In the next few years, with the smart TVs of Internet companies gradually entering the line and entering the channels, this trend will emerge. Although smart TV is a terminal, it ultimately sells services.
Hardware advancement will be done by all smart vendors, and vendors with content and services will eventually win consumers.
Third, the TV PC will be a new road
In the fourth quarter of 2015, there was an interesting phenomenon in the tablet and notebook market. Flat panel sales fell, and laptop sales fell again, but sales of 2-in-1 flat-panel notebooks doubled.
The 2-in-1 tablet is a cross-border product. When it is separated, it can be used as a tablet, and the base is a full-featured laptop. So it replaces both the tablet and the laptop and becomes a new segmentation. The market has achieved rapid growth, and Huawei has also entered this market at this year's MWC.
In fact, this road is also achievable on smart TVs.
In the final analysis, smart TV is still a box + remote control + ordinary TV. Its function is limited, performance is not enough, and the best smart TV is only the configuration of the quad-core A17, which is far from the PC gap.
Now that Intel's processors already support dual systems of Windows and Android, using this stuff on smart TVs will have a very good experience.
For families, use 60-inch, 70-inch 4K TVs as display screens, or shop on Taobao, or browse family photos, or play high-quality 3D large-scale games, the experience will exceed the current smart TV With a traditional PC.
For business users, the PPT for Windows-enabled large-screen smart TVs is much more convenient than projectors and laptops.
So this segmented product has a huge market, and this will be a new road.