You want to know what Sony has up its sleeve for us this year? Well, a lot. At the Consumer Electronics Show 2008, Sony's press conference was filled with new products, technological advancements, and more.

Check out the full article to know what the consumer electronics giant announced for its HDNA lines.

Sony Electronics President Stan Glasgow has dropped hints that the new 11-inch XEL-1 OLED TV from Sony could be making its way to North America before the year ends.

The XEL-1 OLED TV was officially launched in Japan last month, with a North American launch hinging on foreign demand and panel supply. Find out more at the full article.

Sony's looking all green as they launch their new recycling program. By next month Sony will be launching a new nationwide campaign where people will be able to dispose of their unwanted electronics in an environmentally safe manner.

The Sony Take Back Recycling Program will be putting up 75 "eCycling" centers throughout the US where people can drop off their electronics.

Once the program takes off, the program is expected to increase the number of eCycling centers to 150. The idea is to have an eCycling Center within 20 miles of 95% of the US.

The program was made in collaboration with WM Recycle America. Sony products will be recylced free of charge while other brands will include a recycling fee. Consumers can either drop if off personally or ship it in through specific WM Recycle America locations.

Stan Glasgow, president and chief operating officer of Sony Electronics, says about the service:

Providing the highest level of service and support doesn’t stop once a purchase is made. We believe it is Sony’s responsibility to provide customers with end-of-life solutions for all the products we manufacture. Through the Take Back Recycling Program, our customers will know that their Sony products will be recycled in an environmentally responsible manner.

Thanks to Surftycoon for the tip!

It seems that Blu-ray players will indeed be seeing substantial drops in prices this year. While most Blu-ray players are usually around the US$ 1000 price range (a very notable exception is the PS3), but Sony's announcement of the $US 599 BDP-S300 is likely to be first in a wave of inexpensive Blu-ray players.

Sony Electronics president Stan Glasgow had previously commented that the year will see substantial drops in Blu-ray player prices, but, according to IT Wire, a drop of 60 to 75 percent in around 18 months would be unusual. Previous experiences with home entertainment gadgets have proven, though, that there are critical prices - sweet spots, if you will - at which almost everyone will go out and buy the new device.

Although Sony has previously complained that DVD players became a commodity product too fast, perhaps this time the company has its sights set on Blu-ray movie sales. The same thing happened with DVD players. When the players became widely available and affordable, movie sales also skyrocketed.

Will this spell Blu-ray's ultimate victory? Leave a comment and let us know what you think.

 

Sony Corp has recently announced that it is set to make available a cheaper Blu-ray player early this summer. The BDP-S300 is set to cost around US$ 599, and will have the same capabilities as the more expensive US$ 999 BDP-S1.

Senior VP of the home products division of Sony Electronics, Randy Waynick has said to reporters: "Eighty percent of people who buy a PS3 also buy Blu-ray movies to go with it. ...The consumers have determined that that's the format they're choosing to go with." He goes on to cite retail data from the Nielsen VideoScan that showed Blu-ray discs outselling HD DVDs by three to one.

Stan Glasgow, president of Sony Electronics, told reporters that by Christmas, prices for Blu-ray players should be down below $500. He further predicts that Blu-ray players will soon follow the steps of DVD players in becoming a commodity product. He says: "Over time, I think it will be just like DVD ."

Amusing that Sony has previously complained that DVD players became a commodity product too soon, and that turning a profit in a market dominated by US$ 50 units was hard.