Editing Consumer electronics (section)

==Products==
{{see also|List of electronics brands|Category:Consumer electronics|Electronics industry}}
[[File:CoCo3system.jpg|thumb|A typical [[TRS-80 Color Computer#Color Computer 3 (1986–1991)|CoCo 3]] computer system, from the 1980s]]
Consumer electronics devices include those used for <ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.hoovers.com/industry-facts.consumer-electronics-manufacturing.1171.html | title=Consumer Electronics Manufacturing Industry Overview | publisher=[[Hoover's]] | access-date=9 September 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140720152108/http://www.hoovers.com/industry-facts.consumer-electronics-manufacturing.1171.html | archive-date=20 July 2014 | url-status=live | df=dmy-all }}</ref>
* [[Entertainment]] ([[Flatscreen]] TVs, [[television set]]s, [[MP3 player]]s, [[digital video recorder|video recorders]], [[DVD player]]s, [[radio receiver]]s, etc.)
* [[Communication]]s ([[telephone]]s, [[mobile phone]]s, [[email]]-capable [[personal computer]]s, [[desktop computer]]s, [[laptop]]s, [[printer (computing)|printer]]s, [[paper shredder]]s, etc.)
* [[Recreation]] ([[digital camera]]s, [[camcorder]]s, [[video game console]]s, [[ROM cartridge]]s, [[radio-controlled car]]s, [[robot kit]]s, etc.).

Consumer electronics products such as the [[digital distribution of video games]] have become increasingly based on the internet and digital technologies. The consumer electronics industry has primarily merged with the [[software industry]] in what is increasingly referred to as the [[consumerization]] of [[information technology]].

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of top consumer electronics products by number of shipments
|-
! [[Electronic device]]
! data-sort-type="number" | Shipments
(est.billion)
! Production years included
! class="unsortable" | {{Abbr|Ref|Reference(s)}}
|-
| [[Compact disc]] (CD)
| align="right" | 200
| 1982–2007
| <ref>{{cite news |title=Compact disc hits 25th birthday |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6950845.stm |access-date=15 October 2019 |work=[[BBC News]] |agency=[[BBC]] |date=17 August 2007 |archive-date=5 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090305145806/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6950845.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Cassette tape]]
| align="right" | 30
| 1963–2019
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Stock Video of Angled view of Compact cassette tape in use playing back in a deck player |url=https://stock.adobe.com/hk/video/angled-view-of-compact-cassette-tape-in-use-playing-back-in-a-deck-player-tapes-are-the-most-popular-analogue-audio-format-ever-created-with-over-30-billion-blank-or-pre-recorded-cassettes-produced-t/285566495 |website=[[Adobe Stock]] |publisher=[[Adobe Inc.]] |access-date=25 October 2019 |archive-date=25 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025234040/https://stock.adobe.com/hk/video/angled-view-of-compact-cassette-tape-in-use-playing-back-in-a-deck-player-tapes-are-the-most-popular-analogue-audio-format-ever-created-with-over-30-billion-blank-or-pre-recorded-cassettes-produced-t/285566495 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Digital versatile disc]] (DVD)
| align="right" | 20
| 1996–2012
| <ref>{{cite news |last1=Pan |first1=Joann |title=Warner Bros. Offers In-Store DVD-to-Cloud Service [VIDEO] |url=https://mashable.com/2012/03/07/warner-bros-disc-to-digital/ |access-date=15 October 2019 |work=[[Mashable]] |date=March 7, 2012 |archive-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015075304/https://mashable.com/2012/03/07/warner-bros-disc-to-digital/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Mobile phone]]
| align="right" | 19.4
| 1994–2018
| {{efn|[[Mobile phone]]:
* 1994{{ndash}}2010 – 10{{nbsp}}billion<ref>{{cite news |title=Over 5 billion mobiles worldwide |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10569081 |access-date=15 October 2019 |work=[[BBC News]] |agency=[[BBC]] |date=9 July 2010 |archive-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015074906/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10569081 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Smartphone]] (2011–2018) – 9.401{{nbsp}}billion{{efn|name=Smartphone}}
}}
|-
| [[Smartphone]]
| align="right" | 10.1
| 2007{{ndash}}2018
| {{efn|name=Smartphone|[[Smartphone]]:
* 2007–2010 – {{#expr:122.32+139.29+172.38+296.65 round 0}}{{nbsp}}million<ref name="smartphone">{{cite web |title=Cell phone sales worldwide 2007-2018 |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/263437/global-smartphone-sales-to-end-users-since-2007/ |website=[[Statista]] |access-date=15 October 2019 |archive-date=25 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025142511/https://www.statista.com/statistics/263437/global-smartphone-sales-to-end-users-since-2007/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* 2011–2013 – {{#expr:(472+680.11+969.72)/1000 round 3}}{{nbsp}}billion<ref name="smartphone"/>
* 2014–2015 – {{#expr:1.26+1.43}}{{nbsp}}billion<ref>{{cite news |title=7 of the Top 10 Smartphone Suppliers Headquartered in China |url=http://www.icinsights.com/news/bulletins/7-Of-The-Top-10-Smartphone-Suppliers-Headquartered-In-China/ |access-date=25 October 2019 |work=IC Insights |date=June 15, 2017 |archive-date=25 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025190457/http://www.icinsights.com/news/bulletins/7-Of-The-Top-10-Smartphone-Suppliers-Headquartered-In-China/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* 2016–2018 – {{#expr:(1495.96+1536.54+1556.27)/1000 round 3}}{{nbsp}}billion<ref name="smartphone"/>
}}
|-
| [[VHS|Video cassette]]
| align="right" | 10
| 1976–2000
| <ref>{{cite web |last1=Schildgen |first1=Bob |title=What Do I Do With Old VCR Tapes? |url=https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/what-do-i-do-old-vcr-tapes |website=[[Sierra Club]] |access-date=15 October 2019 |date=17 August 2018 |archive-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015071313/https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/what-do-i-do-old-vcr-tapes |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Lyman |first1=Peter |last2=Varian |first2=Hal R. |last3=Dunn |first3=James |last4=Strygin |first4=Aleksey |last5=Swearingen |first5=Kirsten |title=Magnetic |url=http://groups.ischool.berkeley.edu/archive/how-much-info/magnetic.html |website=How Much Information? 2000 |publisher=[[University of California, Berkeley School of Information]] |date=October 18, 2000 |access-date=15 October 2019 |archive-date=5 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605072010/http://groups.ischool.berkeley.edu/archive/how-much-info/magnetic.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|}

===Trends===
[[File:Samsung LE26R41BD and Yamada DVD player 20030624.jpg|right|thumb|A modern flat panel, [[high-definition television|HDTV]] [[television set]]]]

One overriding characteristic of consumer electronic products is the trend of ever-falling prices. This is driven by gains in manufacturing efficiency and [[automation]], lower [[Labour economics|labor]] costs as manufacturing has moved to lower-wage countries, and improvements in [[semiconductor]] design.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qualitydigest.com/inside/quality-insider-news/china-moves-automate-electronics-manufacturing.html|title=China Moves to Automate Electronics Manufacturing|author=Mike Deng|date=23 October 2012|publisher=Quality Digest|access-date=11 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130412182015/http://www.qualitydigest.com/inside/quality-insider-news/china-moves-automate-electronics-manufacturing.html|archive-date=12 April 2013|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Semiconductor components benefit from [[Moore's law]], an observed principle which states that, for a given price, semiconductor functionality doubles every two years.

While consumer electronics continues in its trend of [[Technological convergence|convergence]], combining elements of many products, consumers face different purchasing decisions. There is an ever-increasing need to keep product information updated and comparable for the consumer to make an informed choice. Style, price, specification, and performance are all relevant. There is a gradual shift towards [[e-commerce]] web-storefronts.

Many products include [[Internet access]] using technologies such as [[Wi-Fi]], [[Bluetooth]], [[EDGE (telecommunication)|EDGE]], or [[Ethernet]]. Products not traditionally associated with computer use (such as [[streaming television|TVs]] or [[Hi-fi]] equipment) now provide options to connect to the Internet or to a computer using a [[home network]] to provide access to digital content. The desire for [[High-definition television|high-definition (HD)]] content has led the industry to develop a number of technologies, such as [[WirelessHD]] or [[ITU-T]] [[G.hn]], which are optimized for distribution of HD content between consumer electronic devices in a home.

=== Business competition ===
The consumer electronics industry faces consumers with unpredictable tastes on the demand side, supplier-related delays or disruptions on the supply side, and production challenges occurring in the process. The high rate of technology evolution or revolution requires large investments without any guarantee of profitable returns. As a result, the big players rely on global markets to achieve economies of scale. Even these companies sometimes have to cooperate with each other, for instance on standards, to reduce the risk of their investments.<ref name=":12">{{Cite journal |last1=Sodhi |first1=M. S. |last2=Lee |first2=S. |date=2007 |title=An Analysis of Sources of Risk in the Consumer Electronics Industry |journal=The Journal of the Operational Research Society |volume=58 |issue=11 |pages=1430–1439 |doi=10.1057/palgrave.jors.2602410 |jstor=4622837 |pmid=32226176 |pmc=7099209 |issn=0160-5682}}</ref> In [[supply chain management]], there is much discussion on risks related to such aspects of supply chains as short product life cycles, high competition combined with cooperation, and globalization. The consumer electronics industry is the very embodiment of these aspects of supply chain management and related risks. While some of the supply and demand related risks are similar to such industries as the toy industry, the consumer electronics industry faces additional risks due to its [[vertically integrated]] supply chains.<ref name=":12" /> There are also numerous supply-chain-wide contextual risks that cut across the supply chain especially impacting companies with global supply chains. These include cultural differences in multinational operations, environmental risk, regulations risk, and exchange rate risk across multiple countries.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sodhi |first1=M. S. |last2=Lee |first2=S. |date=2007 |title=An Analysis of Sources of Risk in the Consumer Electronics Industry |journal=The Journal of the Operational Research Society |volume=58 |issue=11 |pages=1431 |doi=10.1057/palgrave.jors.2602410 |jstor=4622837 |pmid=32226176 |pmc=7099209 |issn=0160-5682}}</ref> Whether or not demand is comparable across countries affects the extent of the gains from international integration. In addition, consumer preferences change over time to disturb existing patterns of behavior. A feature of some industries is that demand for variety increases as the market moves from first-time buying to replacement demand.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Baden-Fuller |first1=Charles W. F. |last2=Stopford |first2=John M. |date=1991 |title=Globalization Frustrated: The Case of White Goods |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2486522 |journal=Strategic Management Journal |volume=12 |issue=7 |pages=495 |doi=10.1002/smj.4250120703 |jstor=2486522 |issn=0143-2095|url-access=subscription }}</ref> A resource to further understand this idea of consumer preferences can be observed through Lizabeth Cohen's book titled, "A Consumers' Republic", "Only if we have large demands can we expect large production".<ref>{{Cite journal |title=A Consumers' Republic: The Politics of Mass Consumption in Postwar America |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2468-1733_shafr_sim270040180 |access-date=2023-12-08 |website=The SHAFR Guide Online |page=116|doi=10.1163/2468-1733_shafr_sim270040180 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>