Internet-enabled televisions are set to become a reality in SA as early as next year, as Chinese manufacturer Hisense gears up for a launch at the beginning of 2013.
The Chinese manufacturer has also inked a deal with Google, allowing it to offer Google TV, which will launch locally early next year.
Hisense, which has been in the country for about 16 years, is not the first to develop the products, which will come with a built-in USB port.
Go surf
Hisense SA GM Jerry Liu says the company will unveil Internet-enabled televisions in the local market at the beginning of next year. He adds that Hisense is targeting the mid-market segment and the offering, which will add about 30% to the cost of a set, will be available on 32-inch and up boxes.
Liu adds that Hisense, which has a licence to manufacture Google TV, will launch Google TV locally in the first quarter of next year. He explains that the Android-based offering allows viewers to download applications and connects to the Internet through WiFi.
Internet-enabled televisions will be accessed through a keyboard that connects wirelessly, but browsing is also enabled through the remote, which Hisense has redesigned, says Liu. "The smart time is coming to SA."
Liu says the reworked remote works like a pad, but consumers will also have the option of using their smartphones to control the television. He adds that, in the future, Internet televisions will become standard.
Hisense, which was founded in China in 1969, unveiled Google TV globally at the end of August. The offering works through a decoder and offers TV-optimised versions of Google services such as Chrome, Google Play, as well as YouTube.
Connecting up
Globally, Panasonic and several other manufacturers have introduced Internet-enabled sets. However, ITWeb's queries to popular manufacturers as to availability of these sets in SA were not answered.
SA's largest cellular provider, Vodacom, has also launched the WebBox, which provides Internet access using the customer's existing television set. The WebBox, a Vodafone innovation, was developed specifically for customers in emerging markets, where technology and cost barriers exclude many from enjoying affordable and easy Internet access.
In addition, the Department of Communications has decided that subsidised decoders, for the poorest of the poor needed to convert digital TV signal for viewing on analogue sets, will have built-in USB or network access points.
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