Hitachi to ship $2200 1080p LCD TV in November

High definition appears to be arriving for those of us not willing to spend $5000 or more for a TV that is capable of displaying the highest resolutions provided by HD DVD and Blu-ray media later this year. Hitachi today said that it will be shipping a new 1080p generation of 32" and 37" LCD HDTVs just in time for the 2006 holiday season.

Probably the most interesting news is that the "Ultravision" will be considerably cheaper than today’s 1080p TVs. According to Hitachi, four new models will be available for suggested retail prices ranging from $2200 on the low-end to $3000 - which is only half of what consumers typically have to spend on a 1080p display today.

All new Ultravision TVs will integrate a display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and includes the manufacturer’s proprietary "black frame insertion technology" that, according to the manufacturer, improves picture quality. The product series will be divided into the "HLT79" family that will be available for $2200 (32") and $2700 (37") as well as the "HLX99 Director’s" series which offer some added functionality such as film quality image tuning, black and white color temperatures and custom color temperatures and an adjustable color decoder. The HLX units will retail for $2500 (32") and $3000 (37").

Update : What appears to be a 1080p TV, may actually not be a 1080p TV