Hitachi to Unveil New Line of Ultra Thin LCDs at CES

Fri Jan 4, 2008 5:29pm EST

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Available in 2008, Hitachi's Sleek New HDTV Monitors and
Televisions Will Be the First Ultra Thin Displays to Hit the Market
LAS VEGAS--(Business Wire)--As the advertising around Las Vegas have been hinting for days,
"1.5 Is Coming..." and, after much anticipation, it's now here. For
the first time in the U.S., Hitachi is officially unveiling its new
line of Ultra Thin LCDs. Having already received overwhelmingly
favorable response in sneak previews to overseas audiences last Fall,
the new line called "1.5" - in reference to its 1.5-inch depth - is
now expected to be among the hottest items being announced and
displayed at this year's International CES.

These slim, stylish LCDs from Hitachi represent an important new
category of product that is being called Ultra Thin Displays. The
Hitachi Ultra Thin 1.5 series have been available in Japan since
December of last year and will be available for U.S. consumers in
early 2008.

Initially offered in three screen sizes (32-inch, 37-inch and
42-inch), the 1.5 displays are engineered to provide consumers with a
new range of placement options throughout the home. In-depth focus
group research shows consumers perceive Hitachi's Ultra Thin Displays
to be modern and sleek, and the displays will create a positive design
and technology statement for living rooms, bedrooms and offices. The
new 1.5 line is further differentiated by its appealing design that,
importantly, extends a complete 360 degrees around. So whether the
displays are seen from the front, a side angle or from the back, the
elegant lines and distinctive aesthetics demonstrate an attention to
detail that make the displays the ideal complement to a luxury
lifestyle.

"The buzz and excitement about our new '1.5' line has been
building around the world for months, so we are thrilled and proud to
now introduce and demonstrate the products to a U.S. audience," said
Daniel Lee, vice president of marketing for Hitachi America, Ltd.,
Ubiquitous Platform Systems Division. "We expect this new category of
Ultra Thin Display being led by Hitachi to be a real standout at CES
and for that momentum to carry forward into 2008 as we begin
delivering the displays to consumers. We intend to invest heavily in
marketing, advertising and sales to drive this important new segment
of our business. In fact, evidence of that is already visible all
around Las Vegas from our initial product launch ad campaign. This
Ultra Thin achievement is a huge milestone for Hitachi and we are
extremely optimistic about the potential for our new line and the
category overall."

This new type of display is designed for a highly affluent and
refined segment of consumers who seek luxury, style and prestige. This
extremely discerning audience also demands a set of features,
technologies and design aesthetics that are separate and very distinct
from those found in today's traditional Flat Panel Displays.

Ultra Thin and Feature Rich

"When consumers shop for their next generation TV, they want the
latest technology in both design and performance. Hitachi's
engineering and manufacturing power has delivered a unique product to
the marketplace," said Bill Whalen director of product development for
Hitachi. "Our Ultra Thin Displays pack style and performance into a
sleek, compact form factor that makes absolutely no compromises when
it comes to innovative design and state-of-the-art image quality."

Highly Refined Award Winning Design

The Ultra Thin 1.5 design is a high technology statement, with
Hitachi's translucent "crystal frame" surrounding the picture. A
complimentary inner radius is visible through the semi-transparent
frame, enhancing the impression of precision and feather lightweight.
The frame has a subtle bevel to present the picture as if it were a
work of art. The world-class design is a sleek and modern addition to
any living environment.

Ultra Thin Light Weight Display - The thinness and lightness of
the displays was achieved through Hitachi's proprietary and
breakthrough technologies for micro-lens light diffusion, electronic
component miniaturization and a proprietary silent cooling system.
These technologies, combined with In Plane Switching (IPS) LCD
technology and External Electrode Fluorescent Lamp (EEFL)
technologies, create a display that offers greater power efficiency,
better and more flexible color accuracy and a longer overall life
span. The 32" HDTV Monitor weighs just over 24 lbs.

High Performance Image Features: Full HD Resolution (1920x1080p),
Deep color, Wide Viewing Angle - By implementing IPS, Hitachi has
achieved the sharpest, clearest LCD possible, regardless of the angle
at which the viewer is seated. A vertical and horizontal viewing angle
of 178 degrees maintains natural colors and brightness, making it
ideal for watching TV with the whole family and friends. Advanced
capabilities include Deep Color with HDMI.

Hitachi's Proprietary "Anti-Judder" Reel120(TM) Technique
(1920x1080p 120Hz Models) - Movies provide the illusion of motion by
showing a series of still images over time. In fact, all Hollywood
movies flash 24 individual images each second. However, Hollywood's 24
frames-per-second do not match our television systems, which transmit
60 images each second. A conversion technique called "2:3 pull-down"
is used to make the 24 frames of film fit the television's faster 60
frames. As this conversion is done, the viewer can often observe a
jerky, troublesome visual effect that is called "judder." It appears
as if the image is jittery or stuttering and is especially noticeable
when the picture pans or makes sweeping, side-to-side movements. In
its new Ultra Thin line, Hitachi has implemented proprietary
technology which accurately and automatically eliminates the jerky
"judder" motion. It does so by creating interpolated frames based on
the original film images and displays them at 120Hz. It smoothes out
the movement and correctly matches the motion of the original movie.
For video content, motion interpolation and Flexible Black Data
Insertion are utilized to display 120 images per second.

PictureMaster Full HD -- Hitachi's enhanced high-resolution image
processing engine, Picture Master Full HD, analyzes and processes
images at a high speed, providing state-of-the-art high picture
quality. It achieves this in three ways:

-- Advanced Dynamic Contrast -- analyzes every picture that
appears on the screen and optimizes its contrast frame by
frame.

-- 3D Color Management -- adjusts the three constituent
components of color (hue, saturation, and brightness) pixel by
pixel using 3D data.

-- Advanced Dynamic Enhancer -- expresses images, which are
simultaneously detailed and dynamic, and controls detail
gradation and sharp edges. In addition, Hitachi added a
circuit which enhances the crispness in scenes to capture
subtle details, such as details in human skin or a
three-dimensional expression of a mountain range, which
reduces the grainy effect and pulls out the natural beauty.

High Audio Quality -- The digital amplifier produces exceptionally
clear sound. The speakers located at the left and right sides of the
bottom of the monitor are Hitachi's newly developed fully
enclosed-type speakers, which are high quality and slim enough to fit
the 1.5-inch depth of the display. The three sound modes allow
consumers to select the most suitable type of audio effect depending
on the contents - "clear voice" to pick up human voices clearly,
"surround" for natural, clear three-dimensional sound and "bass boost"
for the optimum bass sound depending on the input signal.

Energy Efficient Design

Not only are the new Ultra Thin Displays gorgeous in their
appearance, they are responsible and sustainable in their design, due
to Hitachi's energy-efficient features such as "auto power off," to
conserve energy. The UT series also feature a "video power save" which
switches to stand-by mode when there is no signal coming into the TV.

Models and Availability

The new Ultra Thin Displays will be available as HDTV Monitors in
the Director's Series(TM) and V Series, with 1 HDMI (1.3) and 1 RGB
D-Sub15 input with audio input. The S series will consist of the HDTV
Monitor plus a separate Audio Video Center that includes an ATSC/NTSC
tuner, 3HDMI(1.3) and 2 Component inputs. The Audio Video Center will
also be sold separately. Pricing will be announced at introduction.

Director's Series(TM) Models

-0-
*T
Model Screen 120Hz Audio Warranty
Size Reel120(TM) Video Resolution Availability
Center
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT42X902 42" Yes Optional 1920x1080p 2 years Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT37X902 37" Yes Optional 1920x1080p 2 years Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT32X802 32" - Optional 1366x768p 2 years Q1 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
*T

UltraVision - V Series Models

-0-
*T
Model Screen 120Hz Audio Warranty
Size Reel120(TM) Video Resolution Availability
Center
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT42V702 42" Yes Optional 1920x1080p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT37V702 37" Yes Optional 1920x1080p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT32V502 32" - Optional 1366x768p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
*T

UltraVision - S Series Models

-0-
*T
Model Screen 120Hz Audio Warranty
Size Reel120(TM) Video Resolution Availability
Center
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT42S402 42" Yes Included 1920x1080p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT37S602 37" Yes Included 1920x1080p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
UT32S602 32" - Included 1366x768p 1 year Q2 '08
---------------------------- -------- ---------- -------- ------------
*T

For more information about Hitachi's activities at the 2008
International CES, please visit av.hitachi.com/

About Hitachi America, Ltd.

Hitachi America, Ltd., Ubiquitous Platform Systems Division,
produces and markets a wide variety of digital products for business
and consumers. The division's Consumer Group markets high-definition
plasma televisions and monitors, Blu-ray and Hybrid DVD camcorders.
The division's Business Group markets LCD projectors, interactive
whiteboards and security and observation system products through value
added resellers, system integrators, distributors and OEM.

Hitachi has a unique position in the marketplace by manufacturing
and developing its own core technologies to provide consumers and
businesses with optimal product performance in each of Hitachi's
product categories. For consumer products, please visit
www.hitachi.us/tv. For business products, please visit
www.hitachi.us/digitalmedia. For more information about interactive
whiteboards and Starboard software, please visit Hitachi Software at
www.hitachi-soft.com.

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi, Ltd., (NYSE:HIT)(TOKYO:6501), headquartered in Tokyo,
Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately
384,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2006 (ended March 31, 2007)
consolidated revenues totaled 10,247 billion yen ($86.8 billion). The
company offers a wide range of systems, products and services in
market sectors including information systems, electronic devices,
power and industrial systems, consumer products, materials and
financial services. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the
company's website at www.hitachi.com.

Hitachi America, Ltd.
Tamara Deschryver, 619-591-5413
tamara.deschryver@hal.hitachi.com
or
Cecile Ashby, 816-920-7725
cdefilippis@currentlm.com