SVI Magazine

It is a place where heroes and villains are cast, playing out their allotted roles on a truly global stage; where spontaneous moments of unsurpassed joy are juxtaposed with childlike, tearful outbursts, career paths are forged and broken, reputations are built or torn to pieces, legends are set in stone. I'm talking, of course, about the FIFA World Cup, not the Bristol Sound & Vision Show...

In June, you can guarantee everyone, from the slums of Sao Paulo to the mountain dwellers of Sumatra, will be glued to a TV set. Whether you are from Belize, are Togolese or Malaysian-Chinese, you'll tune in and cheer for someone. I've met Somalian refugees in Thailand and Indian villagers with an affection for Argentina, Canadian teachers in Japan who root for England. The world, dear friends, is all eyes...

There are, of course, exceptions. Despite a smattering of competent Premier League players, the US struggles to embrace a world tournament which allows other nations to compete and is free of under-dressed schoolgirls waving pompoms every break. Similarly, Japan's sporting priorities remain elsewhere, its enthusiasts yet to realise the most reasonable use of a baseball bat comes in settling disputes. While its 80,000, all-seater, 2002 World Cup Final venue, the Nissan Stadium, is seldom more than a quarter full, scores of baseball games sell out every week.

While baseball's World Series features nothing but American teams, the equivalent echelon of home electronics was long the preserve of the Japanese corporations. In World Cup terms, the three lions of England are Toshiba, the perennial also-rans, prone to dropping the odd clanger; the Dutch are Hitachi, undeniably stylish, always there or thereabouts, but never quite number one; and Panasonic pose as Germany, relatively successful and, following some recent organisational changes at the top, not to be ruled out. The abundance of good-looking models at their disposal makes Sharp Italy, whilst donning the blue and white stripes of Argentina is Sony, responsible for some of the finest handiwork we've seen in the past but struggling to live up to that in the present. But what of the favourites Spain? Well, with the balance of power shifting, today the real powerhouse with potential is to be found in Korea: Samsung. And Japan, themselves? Mosquito, manufacturers of the sorry gimmick, Age Prediction Machine: inept no-hopers, of zero interest to anyone outside of their own country. If they qualify for the second round, I'll eat my Yokohama Baystars baseball hat.

hope and glory
While much of the world will be crowded around and jostling for position in front of a solitary battered TV, grateful they have that, we privileged few are already working out how best to take in the action. And those without the holiday allowance to jet off to Johannesburg will not be struggling for options. The most eye-catching is 3D. Thanks to international broadcasting giants Sky and ESPN, we can now confirm that the 2010 World Cup will be as immersing as an IMAX Avatar showing. Thus, while electronics buffs may only amount to a few anorak clad, coffee cup-hugging, greasy-haired enthusiasts, discussing the merits of the Lasonic Nostalgia turntable, football fans are everywhere and come in all shapes and sizes. There is no more sizeable target market to pitch to and, thanks to South Africa 2010, they have to be considered our great white, and black, hope...

With Panasonic and Samsung already competing for their attention, it is Diego Maradona's unpredictable outfit, Sony, which is the latest to enter the fray. Having just revealed the details of an extra-dimensional batch, the plan is to go international by June 10th. Making its début with 40- and 46-inch models, bundled with two pairs of funky 3D glasses, Sony is to deliver a further six sets by the end of 2010. These include fully-featured 52- and 60-inch models, and four 3D-Ready options boasting the necessary circuitry without some key peripherals. Significant innovations incorporated into the range include a real-time 2D-to-3D converter, which takes a conventional 2D image and turns it into live 3D, and an integrated intelligent presence sensor, which can estimate the proximity of viewers to the screens. This allows a TV to warn children too close to the set and power down to save energy if no-one is watching. Sony is hoping to shift 2.5-million of these next-generation units this year, around 10% of its total TV sales target.

pass and move
Far from the corporation's only goals, like a team with Tevez and Messi at their disposal, expect the spectacular from Sony. The PlayStation Move, for example, due in the autumn, boasts PlayStation Eye and motion controller-based, Nintendo Wii-esque features billed as the most precise ever made. Taking on Apple on its home turf, a fully-featured portable device to take on the iPad is also in the works.

But everyone has an Achilles heal. Sony's David Beckham-esque weakness remains OLED. Having failed to deliver the long-mooted 27-inch successor to the XEL-1, a regulatory change has put paid to the original's success in Japan. Although it will remain available overseas, Sony has been blighted by production problems, including a high defect rate, which continue to stunt the development of the range. However, like Becks, we're sure to hear from it again...

Watch out for a look at how to convert World Cup fever into increased profits in May's SVI...