Xumo Partners with Pioneer for New Smart TV Line Coming to Best Buy
The new line of TVs will be available in November, and will be exclusive to Best Buy.
If you’re looking ahead to your holiday gift lists and notice some of your friends or family are in need of a new smart TV, you may want to wait until November to get that crossed off the list. That’s the month that a new line of Xumo-branded smart TVs manufactured by Pioneer will be available for purchase.
The new TV sets will be exclusively available to purchase at Best Buy. Each will support Ultra-High-Definition 4K video, and the line will come in sizes of 43”, 50”, 55” and 65”. Best Buy already offers 55” and 65” Xumo smart TVs manufactured by Hisense, but the Pioneer line will offer users more sizes to better fit their budgets —though there was no official word on how much the sets will cost.
“Our partnership with Best Buy represents a great step forward for consumer choice. Soon, consumers looking for an affordable and innovative smart TV will have a compelling new option in Pioneer Xumo TVs,” Xumo SVP Stephanie Cassi said. “We’re focused on removing the complexity that’s come with the rise of streaming, enabling consumers to get back to enjoying their TV experience.”
Pioneer Xumo TVs will all come with a voice-powered remote, so it’s easy to find a new show or movie to stream just by asking. The sets will also offer a “My List” feature that allows users to make a personalized playlist of titles from multiple streaming platforms and access it right from their home screen. That screen also keeps recently viewed apps, services, content, HDMI inputs, and over-the-air channels on the first row so customers can access the programming they watch frequently with ease. Top streaming apps like Disney+, Prime Video, Max, and Netflix are preloaded onto the sets, so users can get to viewing as soon as they get their sets plugged in.
It’s been a busy year for Xumo in regards to launching smart TV lines. The streamer also partnered with Element to release a line of smart TVs this summer, perhaps signifying it’s spreading its wings and may be preparing to launch some major new updates to its software to go along with all the new hardware.
Xumo is a joint streaming venture created by Comcast and Charter, the two largest cable providers in the United States. As of now the Xumo platform is used primarily to offer free ad-supported TV channels, but executives have promised that in the future it will be used for much more, including offering live TV streaming and subscriptions to Peacock.
Peacock
Peacock is a subscription video streaming service from NBCUniversal that includes original shows, blockbuster movies, and classic television series. Peacock is home to “Yellowstone,” and “The Office,” as well as original hits like “Poker Face” and “Bel-Air.” You can also watch live sports including NFL, MLB, WWE, Olympics, Premier League, NASCAR, French Open, College Football and Basketball, and PGA Tour. Premium Plus subscribers can stream their local NBC feed in all 210 markets.