Name: Date: reading (10 marks) 1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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WRITING TASK 9 MODEL ANSWER

The graphs show the retail price and annual sales of two different types of television. 

Describe both graphs and explain the data.

The data shows the retail price of television sets (TVs) between 2000 and 2010, and how many TVs were 

sold during that period.

The first graph shows how the price of both traditional cathode ray tube (CRT) TVs and the more 

modern liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs fell dramatically over the decade. The average LCD TV retailed 

at approximately £1,000 at the turn of the century, but ten years later this had dropped to roughly £200. 

In contrast, CRT TVs sold for over £300 in 2000, but had fallen to just over £100 by 2010. From 2005 the 

prices of both types of TV fell dramatically. 

The second graph gives information about unit sales of both CRT and LCD TVs. As with graph 1, 

2005 was a key date and saw the beginning of a sharp rise in the sales of LCD TVs. By 2010, sales had 

increased from a little over a million in 2000 to ten times that figure. This is in stark contrast to the 

dramatic fall in sales the of CRT TVs, from roughly five million in 2000 to less than half a million by 

the end of the decade. In 2007, LCD TVs finally became more popular than CRT TVs following a brief 

period of roughly equal sales.

Overall, it seems clear that the decrease in the price of LCD TVs in 2005 brought about a huge increase 

in sales, while a similar decrease in CRT prices did not result in increased sales. The two graphs show 

how new technology at the right price can quickly replace a previously successful product.

ADDITIONAL WRITING TASK 9

Use the Internet to research global sales of laptop and desktop computers over the past 

ten years. Draw a graph based on your research and write an explanation of the data.