Vizio Announces Pricing for P-Series 4K TV Lineup

This morning, Vizio announced the full pricing and availability of its much anticipated P-Series 4K TV lineup.

The P-Series is available now for pre-order in 50-inch ($999), 55-inch ($1,399), 60-inch ($1,699), 65-inch ($2,199), and 70-inch ($2,499) iterations. Expect to see them at retailers like Best Buy, Amazon, and Wal-Mart in the next few months.

Each of the P-Series TVs features full 4K (3,840 x 2,160) resolution and Vizio's VIA+ (Vizio Internet Apps Plus) smart platform. The most exciting feature here, however, is the full-array local dimming on each model.

Full-array local dimming (FALD) is a backlight technology usually only available in very high-priced televisions. FALD-equipped TVs turn individual backlight LEDs on and off in time with content, creating more shadowy blacks alongside brighter highlights.

Vizio claims that the TVs will feature up to 72 local dimming zones, though that is likely only the largest sizes. Each P-Series TV is also compliant with the latest 4K standards, including HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2.

Check back throughout the week to read about our hands-on experience with the P-Series in NYC during today's press event.

Source: Vizio

Irvine, CA — September 23, 2014 — VIZIO, America’s #1 Smart TV Company1, today launched its all-new P-Series Ultra HD Full-Array LED Smart TV collection to the U.S. market, offering a crystal-clear window into the 4K Ultra HD world, where unrivaled picture quality is everything. With advanced local dimming LED backlight technology, support for Ultra HD streaming and unparalleled performance, VIZIO’s P-Series Ultra HD Smart TV collection has been engineered to offer consumers best-in-class picture quality to deliver a comprehensive 4K Ultra HD solution. VIZIO P-Series Ultra HD Full-Array LED Smart TVs will start at $999.99 for the 50” class, with 55”, 60”, 65”and 70” class screen sizes also available.

Featuring the latest technologies, and four times the resolution of 1080p Full HD, the VIZIO P-Series Ultra HD line-up offers stunningly rich picture quality performance, delivering a premium home entertainment experience. Full-Array LED backlighting allows for unmatched light uniformity, offering up to 72 Active LED Zones and setting the new standard for picture quality. For a more vibrant, beautiful picture, each Active LED Zone dynamically adjusts to discretely control the backlight based on content on-screen, generating deeper black levels and higher contrast levels for a greatly enhanced picture compared to edge-lit LED sets.

Focused on bringing a well-thought-out 4K Ultra HD solution to market, VIZIO’s new P-Series Ultra HD Smart TV collection integrates key technologies that help ensure consumers can enjoy a beautifully simple Ultra HD experience supporting the wide array of content options demanded by consumers. A critical innovation VIZIO has been developing for over two years is its Spatial Scaling Engine, which accurately and beautifully transforms 1080p Full HD entertainment into spectacular near Ultra HD. As consumption of media through streaming services continues to grow, the P-Series Ultra HD Smart TVs have been fully designed to support 4K Ultra HD streaming from providers like Netflix and later this year, Amazon Instant Video and UltraFlix3. Amazon Instant Video customers will be able to purchase Ultra HD movies and TV episodes with select Ultra HD titles available at no extra charge to Amazon Prime members through Prime Instant Video.

“Our P-Series collection offers an outstanding Ultra HD picture and performance,” said Matt McRae, Chief Technology Officer, VIZIO. “The shift towards 4K has left consumers demanding new solutions that deliver the right innovations to enhance their viewing experience. The P-Series Ultra HD line-up is benefited by VIZIO’s #1 position in the Smart TV marketplace, equipped with HEVC H.265 codec and 802.11 ac dual-band WiFi for faster streaming and the latest HDCP 2.2 support for playback of protected Ultra HD content. This combination of technologies leaves consumers with the solutions that matter most in an Ultra HD set.”

On top of standout picture quality, P-Series Ultra HD Smart TV viewers interested in sports or quick moving content will appreciate VIZIO’s Clear Action Rate 960. With an effective refresh rate of 240 Hz, Clear Action Rate 960 ensures viewers enjoy a crisp, smooth picture with superior motion clarity when watching their favorite fast action scenes. Beautifully crisp images are further enhanced by Advanced Color Management and Active Pixel Tuning technologies. These critical innovations perfect color, contrast and picture detail accuracy for an outstanding viewing experience.

Committed to providing a multitude of entertainment options, P-Series Ultra HD Smart TVs support the latest standard in streaming thanks to VIZIO Internet Apps Plus®. VIZIO’s latest connected platform is equipped with support for the HEVC H.265 codec and 802.11ac dual-band WiFi for a better streaming experience that is up to 3x faster2. These advancements enable consumers to easily stream Ultra HD content through apps like Netflix and launching later this year, Amazon Instant Video and UltraFlix3, with HDCP 2.2 support built-in for playback of protected Ultra HD content. Support for the latest HDMI 2.0 standards helps ensure consumers continue to enjoy their P-series Ultra HD Smart TV into the future as more CE devices enter the market, enabling playback of 4K Ultra HD content at up to 60 fps.

According to Greg Peters, Chief Streaming and Partnerships Officer, Netflix, streaming is becoming the primary way for consumers to watch Ultra HD TV shows or movies. As the world's leading smart TV app, Netflix is at the forefront of delivering the 4K Ultra HD streaming experience to VIZIO P-Series consumers. Earning VIZIO the leadership role in the smart TV category, VIZIO Internet Apps Plus offers consumers an intuitive experience. Seamless second-screen interactivity through Netflix and YouTube allows users to search for content on the corresponding app on their Android and Apple iOS mobile devices. When the TV and device are on the same WiFi network, consumers can simply click to play the content on the big screen, controlling playback on the TV from their device. VIZIO Internet Apps Plus features a multitude of popular apps like YouTube, Hulu Plus, iHeartRadio, Spotify and Pandora, among others. Apps like Netflix and later this year, Amazon Instant Video and UltraFlix3, allow consumers to not only stream standard 1080p content, but 4K Ultra HD content as well.

To support the excellent picture quality and Ultra HD experience in the P-Series Ultra HD collection, VIZIO engineered the V6 six-core processor. Comprised of a quad-core GPU plus dual-core CPU, the V6 six-core processor delivers maximum speed and advanced graphics processing, enabling an even faster smart TV user experience. To ensure picture quality always remains king, VIZIO also enabled VM50, a dedicated motion and picture-processing engine that beautifully renders every image, including Ultra HD content, with incredible detail.

“The North America UHD TV market is forecast to grow to more than 800k units in 2014, with a substantial portion of that growth occurring in the second half of the year,” said Paul Gagnon, Director of Global TV Research for NPD DisplaySearch. “Even with the strong growth in 2014, the UHD market will more than quadruple in 2015 as prices become more accessible to mainstream consumers.”

With an established track record introducing new technologies – such as LCD, LED and Smart TV – VIZIO has positioned itself to offer consumers an 4K Ultra HD solution that raises the bar in terms of picture quality and enhances the home entertainment experience that allows consumers to become more fully immersed in the worlds created by Hollywood. P-Series carries the same beautifully simple pedigree of previous VIZIO offerings but delivers a new best-in-class Ultra HD entertainment experience.

Consumers can pre-order VIZIO’s P-Series Ultra HD Full-Array LED Smart TV collection today at VIZIO.com. The line-up will soon begin rolling out both in-store and online through key retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, Costco, Sam’s Club, Target and Walmart.