An article in Thursday’s Wall Street Journal discussed how flat-panel TV manufacturers are investing heavily in making and marketing “ultra-thin” flat-panel TVs.

Because TV makers must think that the current 3-inch flat-panels are way too big for consumers, companies from Samsung to Sony to Panasonic are working on LCD and plasma TVs that are less than one inch thick.

For example, Sony has a new 46-inch LCD that’s less than one-half inch thick. Price? A cool $3,500 — or about three times the cost of a same-size run-of-the-mill display. Panasonic just put out a 54-inch plasma, at under 1-inch thick, which retails for a whopping $7,400 in Japan.

The journal piece also stated that some of these new, thin TVs emphasize style at the expense of picture quality.

It’s another example of consumer electronics makers putting out products that try to solve problems that consumers don’t really have.

Why create these ultra-thin TVs?

The answer is obvious from a business perspective: new products equal new revenue.

But only if consumers are moved to pull the trigger.

Many consumers already have flat panels on TV stands or on their walls — do you think they’ll be compelled to upgrade to a much more expensive slightly thinner model that might have a lesser picture than their current TV?

What about moms and dads who are shopping for a flat-panel already? Think they’ll buy the $1,000 40-inch LCD or the $3,000 40-inch LCD? We know the answer.

The ultra-thin flat panels being developed are an example of what makes consumers leery of our industry. They’re new products for the sake of new products and new revenue, not new life improvement for customers.

These ultra-thin TVs, like a lot of product upgrades, make no sense.