Editing Consumer electronics (section)

===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.