Vizio at CES 2014: affordable 4K, updated PCs, and speakers that run Android

Vizio announced its first lineup of 4K TVs yesterday, but there was no word on price. Surprisingly enough, the company has already broken its silence on the matter — its consumer-grade P series lineup of 4K TVs will start at only $999.99 for a 50-inch model. The top-end, 70-inch model will go for $2,599.99, making Vizio's series the most affordable we've seen yet. While Polaroid announced a $999 4K TV, its quality leaves a lot to be desired — but that's not the case with Vizio's models. We had a chance to check them out for ourselves and you're definitely looking at a high-quality picture.

Of course, getting 4K content remains a challenge, but Vizio has also formally announced that Netflix's 4K content would be available on its new TVs. That's no big surprise, as Netflix was involved in announcements with a number of other huge hardware makers yesterday (including LG, Samsung, and Sony). It's still good news for anyone looking to get into 4K — now there's a quality, affordable option and the promise of content to come throughout the year.

Vizio has dabbled in Android before, but the Android-based product that the company’s showing off at CES 2014 was certainly a bit of an oddity — the company’s new "Smart Audio" bluetooth speakers embed a full display that will run Android 4.4 Kit Kat when they launch. Vizio’s offering two options — there’s a smaller version with a 4.7-inch, 1280 x 720 screen and a larger model with a 7-inch, 1280 x 800 display.

It was hard to judge the performance, as these early demo models aren’t running finished software, but Vizio told us they would have hardware comparable to high-end smartphones. However, we did get to hear both speakers and they each offer a surprising amount of power for their relatively small size. The design is also typical of Vizio — the speakers are understated and classy but have some fun design notes — particularly the larger model, which includes a built-in handle for easy transport and comes in several different color schemes.

It’s now been exactly two years since Vizio announced it was making the bold move of entering the PC marketplace with its Thin + Light laptops and all-in-one desktop computers. While its first round of laptops didn’t quite live up to our expectations, that hasn’t stopped the company from continuing to tweak and refine the basic concept introduced back at CES 2012. Today, Vizio’s pulling back the cover on a new 15.6-inch Thin + Light laptop and a new 24-inch all-in-one that don’t change Vizio’s basic formula but still should offer improved performance for those who appreciate the company’s simple approach to the PC market.

When going back to the drawing board this year, Vizio decided to simplify its lineup — gone is the smaller 14-inch Thin + Light model as well as the larger, non-touchscreen 15.6-inch notebook that the company offered. Instead, there’s just a single 15.6-inch Thin + Light model that’s essentially identical from a physical standpoint to last year’s model. Vizio’s also decided to get rid of the 27-inch all-in-one and only offer the 24-inch model; the company told us in both cases that the remaining two computers it is offering make up the vast majority of sales.