Plasma
January 18, 2010
Panasonic outs VIERA G2 plasmas with 5, 000, 000:1 contrast ratio
Panasonic has announced the VIERA G2 and S2 plasma series in Japan today. The G2 family includes 3 42-inch plasma displays with brown, silver and black bezels, plus 46- and 50-inch displays. With Panasonic's new PDP Black panel, the VIERA G2 series manages a 5, 000, 000:1 dynamic contrast ratio with 1080p resolution. It also includes an ambient light sensor and motion sensors that automatically adjust screen brightness in order to both improve picture quality and save energy.
Connection options include 3 HDMI, 3 composites, an S-video, VGA and D4 input, and 4 RCA slots and an Ethernet port. All the sets also have an SD card slot for playing back AVCHD camcorder video and JPEG photos and are capable of streaming web video content from the acTVila service. Shipping February 5 in Japan, the VIERA G2 series ranges in price from $2400 for the 42-inch display to $3530 for the 50-inch model.
The Viera S2 series includes 42- and 46-inch displays that have similar features to the G2 family but scrap both the VGA connection and the PDP Black display which reduces the S2's contrast ratio to 2, 000, 000:1.
Read
January 6, 2010
Samsung shows 8000, 7000 and 6500 Series plasma HDTVs at CES 2010
While Samsung is a formidable world competitor in the LCD HDTV industry, it still hasn't given up plasma like so many of its colleague companies. At CES 2010 today, Samsung announced the 8000, 7000 and 6500 Series plasma HDTVs.
Each includes Internet@TV, compliance with Energy Star 4.0 standards, and both the 7000 and 8000 Series are capable of 3D processing.
The Samsung 8000 Series has a brushed titanium bezel and a variety of proprietary picture-enhancing technologies such as Real Black Filter, Motion Judder Canceller and CinemaSmooth.
The Samsung 7000 Series has a brushed black bezel and its 58-inch variant won the "Innovations Honoree" award at CES 2010.
Finally, the Samsung 6500 Series is the entry-level family that includes Touch of Color design.
Read--2010 Samsung LCD HDTVs
September 28, 2009
Panasonic debuts 50-inch 3D plasma TV prototype
3D HDTV is all the rage right now despite the fact that the entire home theater industry niche consists of prototypes. But Panasonic says it is well on its way to developing a 50-inch 3D plasma HDTV as part of a "full HD 3D system" that will consist of a line of 3D-capable Blu-ray players as well. The electronics maker believes that the 50-inch display size will become the most popular in living rooms around the globe, and the 3D plasma set could be released in North America, Europe, and Japan as early as 2010. The set will also be on display as a prototype at CEATEC in Japan on October 6.
Panasonic's 3D technology uses "crosstalk reduction technology" which minimizes on-screen ghosting, in addition to active-shutter glasses which alternate left and right eye images in sequence and in line with the system's refresh rate. Active-shutter technology enables viewers to see 1080p resolution in both eyes, while most other 3D glass technologies split the resolution equally between each eye.
Read
September 18, 2009
54-inch Panasonic TC-P54G10 VieraCast plasma gets reviewed
Panasonic introduced an interesting screen this year in its G10 series--54-inches--occupying a middle-ground between the typical 50-inch and 56-58 inch screen sizes. CNET recently reviewed the 54-inch TC-P54G10 and (no surprise here really) it performed quite well, netting an overall 4/5 score. On the good side, the P54G10 showed "superb black-level performance with excellent shadow detail," accurate primary colors and grayscale in THX mode, great color saturation, VieraCast internet connectivity, and excellent energy efficiency. On the not-so-good side, inaccurate secondary magenta and cyan coloring, poor lighting in THX mode, a lack of picture controls, and more power-consuming than comparably sized LCD HDTVs. Overall though, it appears that the 54-inch TC-P54G10 is a solid buy. You can grab it for $1558 here. It comes with a $20 Amazon Video on Demand credit if you make the purchase by September 30, 2009.
Read
September 3, 2009
Panasonic bows 58- and 65-inch NeoPDP V10 plasmas
Panasonic has updated its V10 plasma line this morning over at IFA. Added are the 58-inch TX-P58V10E and the 65-inch TX-P65V10E, the larger siblings to the 42- and 50-inch V10s already available. Spec-wise, Panasonic decided to remain consistent: NeoPDP 1080p panel, 2, 000, 000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 600 Hz sub-field drive technology, VIERA CAST internet content, and THX certification. Still waiting on pricing and availability.
Read
September 2, 2009
Panasonic to out massively priced, massive 85-inch plasma
$30, 000 for an HDTV? That's a little much for me, but if you want something the size of four 42-inch plasmas put together, you have to pay. Next month, Panasonic is debuting the 85-inch TH-85PF12U plasma, which the company says is the "industry's first 85-inch, full HD, 1080p panel." It employs Panasonic's fairly new NeoPDP picture enhancement technology which has had some good reviews so far, so hopefully this giant puts out a better picture than some of the mammoths we've come across before.
Read
August 25, 2009
Hitachi's five new Wooo HDTVs each have a built-in 500 GB hard drive
Hitachi this morning added five new HDTVs to its Wooo TV line, all packing an internal 500 GB hard drive for storing downloaded or recorded video content. The three plasmas, sized 42-, 46- and 50-inches and two LCDs, sized 37- and 42-inches, all feature 1080p resolution, automatic brightness control, DLNA media streaming, an iVDRS slot, and HD storage of up to 400 hours on the internal hard drive. The plasmas, in order mentioned above, will sport price tags of $3000, $3500, and $4000, with a shipping date of September 10 in Japan. The LCDs will cost $2500 and $3000 for the 37- and 42-inch models, respectively, with an expected shipping date in October. So far Hitachi hasn't mentioned plans to ship the five new Wooo HDTVs outside of Japan.
Read
August 15, 2009
720p plasma HDTVs prove popular in Q2 2009
I have to admit: the direction of the HDTV market is tough to predict. In the first quarter of 2009, HDTV sales grew despite the worst global economy in decades. Now, as the second quarter reports begin to appear, research firm Quixel Research says that plasma TV sales were the fastest-growing. This despite reports and predictions of the demise of plasma for a couple of years now.
This wasn't a small amount of growth either. Plasma TV sales in Q2 were up 31% in volume and 35% in value from Q1, just south of $1 billion in sales. The key takeaway from the report though was more significant. The real plasma growth was in the 42-inch 720p class of plasma HDTVs, more of a value proposition than newer, larger and higher-resolution models.
The growth in plasma does seem to stem from its relative value to LCD models in this quarter alone. Or maybe it has something to do with the 'load of crap' LCD specification revelation. In all seriousness, these plasma numbers may seem counterintuitive because they are. A dynamic of pricing in one quarter alone rather than an indication of a longer-term trend.
You can check out the report here (PDF).
July 13, 2009
LCD specifications are a load of crap, says study
DisplayMate Technologies, in collaboration with Insight Media, have just released the results of a new study revealing that LCD specifications are nothing but a load of crap. Really.
The study pitted top 2008 Sony, Samsung and Sharp LCD HDTVs against a Panasonic plasma, and not surprisingly the plasma set outperformed all LCDs. This is notable because plasma is looking to be on the way out. Most new HDTV buyers are opting for lower-cost LCD sets.
A couple of the most interesting test results have to do with viewing angles and contrast ratio. Pretty well all new HDTVs these days come with manufacturers claiming a 176 viewing angle. But the test results revealed that picture quality on LCD sets deteriorates at 10 degrees (roughly the width of a person from center) and falls all the way to 50% for a person sitting at a 45 degree angle. In essence, everyone watching the same LCD TV is seeing a very different picture. The Panasonic plasma, on the other hand, didn't have a distinguishable decrease in picture quality until a 45 degree viewing angle was reached.
The same goes for contrast ratios. These days we see incredible dynamic contrast ratios of 1, 000, 000:1 and even 2, 000, 000:1. The study revealed static contrast ratios of 1000:1 and 2000:1 for all of the tested LCD HDTVs. The plasma set reached 3842:1.
This is just one study of course. But it just goes to show that specs don't mean everything and despite its cost, plasma appears to still be the superior technology--unless you're watching TV in direct sunlight. LCD's higher brightness helps in that regard!
Read
June 18, 2009
Panasonic 85-inch plasma HDTV to ship in the United States this fall
We've seen some monster HDTVs over the past few years, mainly from Panasonic. The Japanese manufacturer was showing off an 85-inch plasma TV yesterday at InfoComm in Orlando, Florida. That's second in size to its 103-inch plasma. The 85-inch set, equivalent to four 42-inch sets combined, features 1080p resolution, 40,000:1 contrast ratio (2, 000, 000:1 dynamic contrast ratio), a 99 millimeter thickness and a 100, 000 battery life. While Panasonic hasn't announced pricing yet, the 85-inch plasma is expected to ship in the United States and Japan in the fall.
Read
June 10, 2009
Panasonic's 50-inch TC-PV10 plasma HDTV reviewed: one of the best ever
CNET has had the chance to review the Panasonic 50-inch TC-PV10 plasma HDTV and has nothing but great things to say. While it doesn't quite beat out the discontinued Pioneer PRO-111FD (the best HDTV ever), the TC-PV10 comes close with incredibly deep blacks, great shadow detail, color saturation and flicker-less 1080p/24 video playback. The 50- and 54-inch plasmas which feature identical specs also have a one-sheet-of-glass design bringing the glass over the bezel giving the sets a seamless, sleek look. As with any high quality plasma HDTV, Panasonic's 50-inch TC-PV10 is expensive--one of its few downsides. It's also not quite as energy efficient as LCD displays, though it performs better and is more efficient than the vast majority of same-sized plasmas. In the end, the VieraCast-compatible Panasonic TC-PV10 is so far the best HDTV tested by CNET this year, receiving a 4 out of 5 and an Editor's Choice pick.
Panasonic TC-50PV10--Ships from Amazon for $1880
Read
May 21, 2009
LG outs enigmatic 50- and 60-inch Time Machine plasma HDTVs
LG's pretty quiet at the moment regarding the details of its new Time Machine plasma HDTV line, but here's what we know. Consisting of two models, the 50-inch 50PS70 and the 60-inch 60PS70, the Time Machine line has a built-in DVR by way of an integrated 160 GB hard drive, 600 MHz dejudder processing and additional storage space on external drives connected via USB 2.0. As for all the other details, including pricing and availability, we're in the dark for the time being.
Read
May 8, 2009
Panasonic slashes price of 103-inch plasma HDTV
Panasonic has sliced the price of its giant 103-inch plasma HDTV by $20000. First released in December 2006 for $70000, the giant display now sits at a ever-so-slightly more affordable $50000. In all fairness, Panasonic targets the behemoth plasma at commercial markets rather than the living room so we can't complain about the price tag too much. And the company has sold over 6000 of the sets to places as diverse as New York City's City Hall and NBC's Sunday Night Football studio. In my opinion though, if you have the dough to buy a 103-inch plasma TV, I think it's best to go bigger--like 150-inches.
Read
May 7, 2009
Shinoda intros a 145-inch curved plasma display
A couple years ago Shinoda Plasma impressed everyone with a 43-inch curved plasma tube array display. Last year Shinoda blew its original feat away with a 125-inch display and now the company has rolled out a 145-inch display. The latest prototype consists of six plasma tube array panels, each with 960 x 720 pixels, seamed together to form a 2 meter by 3 meter single unit. Amazingly the massive curved display only weighs 7.2 kilograms or just under 16 pounds, but given each panel is only 1 millimeter thin it should be no surprise. Hopefully we'll see one these hit the assembly lines sometime in the near future.
Read
Steals & Deals
Mailing List
