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Tech NewsThe Tech in a Pioneer’s Kuro Plasma in About 50 Words
A concise and elegant description of the tech that makes Pioneer’s Kuro blacker, from Pop Sci this month: “Each tiny cell in the [plasma] screen must be primed with an electric charge so it’s ready to fire up quickly, and that charge turns blacks slightly gray. Pioneer designed cells that require far less charge…Then it … Continued
By Brian Lam -
Tech NewsGadgets
1080p TVs Never Deliver 1080p Motion, But Some Do Better Than Others
It’s a fact of life: when you buy a 1080p set, you never see true 1080p resolution when things are in motion. Gary Merson (of Home Theater Mag and HDGuru.com) looked at 19 TVs listed as 1080p, and found that while their “static” resolution ranged from true 1080 down to a miserable 400, the “motion” … Continued
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Tech News
Runco Weatherproof Plasma Is For Rich People Who Like Pina Coladas…
…and getting caught in the rain. The $9,000 Runco Climate Portfolio WP-42HD outdoor plasma is built to withstand “adverse environmental conditions including temperature, exposure to moisture, dust, oils and intermittent direct water spray.” It has a sealed aluminum housing and internal ventilation, along with jacks that adhere to international weatherproof standards. It even has optimized … Continued
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Tech News
Home Theater Mag Calls Pioneer Elite Kuro 110-FD Plasma “Greatest Flat Panel Ever”
Home Theater Magazine‘s Geoff Morrison is calling the Pioneer Elite Kuro 110-FD plasma TV the “greatest flat panel ever.” Here are the highlights: • Black level is “lower than any other flat panel we’ve ever measured.” • “Full-on/full-off contrast ratio…is nearly double that of the next best flat panel.” • Watching Pirates of the Caribbean, … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgets
Samsung’s still the world leader in TV sets. iSuppli reports they’re doing 12.4% of the market, globally, in the April to June quarter. LG and Philips are next wtih 11.4 and 7.1%. For some perspective: Cathode ray TVs are projected to still have 38% of shipments in 2009. Crazy, I know. [Yahoo!]
By Brian Lam -
Tech News
Panasonic Announces “Affordable” 1080p Plasma TVs
Panasonic just announced a “more affordable” 1080p 42″ plasma for $1,799, and a 50-incher for $2,799. It’s good news for the plasma camp, since 1080p has been where LCD makers have been hitting the price war hardest. The new Panasonic TH-42PZ77 is just $200 more than Westinghouse’s notoriously well-priced 1080p 42-incher, while the Panasonic TH-50PZ77 … Continued
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Tech News
Giz Plays With Tests the 103-Inch Panasonic Plasma (Verdict: Duuuuuhhhh)
Click to viewYou can read about it all you want, but to be in its presence is another thing altogether. And no, I’m not talking about Frucci. We gave you a sugary lick of its sweetness last Friday on site, but now here are some of the technical details and a nerdier gallery of our … Continued
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Tech News
LCD Burn-in Exists, And It Isn’t Pretty
Despite what the floor salesmen at Best Buy tell you about Plasmas vs. LCDs, LCD TVs actually do get burn-in. Sure, it takes longer to make that “Fox News” logo locked into your TV even when you’re watching, say, The Venture Bros., but it’ll get there. As you can see in this 22-inch Sharp LCD … Continued
By Jason Chen -
Tech News
Sharp Aquos R Series Gets THX Video Certification
Remember when we told you about the first THX-certified flat panel, a $20,000 Vidikron plasma? Well, it’s about to get company, from the likes of Sharp, no less. According to Electronista, Sharp has unveiled the Aquos R series, the first LCD certified by THX for theater-grade image quality, with a THX Movie Mode to make … Continued
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Tech News
Hitachi, Prince of Plasma, Adds Four 1080p LCDs To Its Mostly Plasma Lineup
Hitachi has long been a respected member of the plasma posse, so it was pretty wild to learn today that it was adding some high-quality Korean-built LCDs to its lineup. (Does this mean the end of plasma is nigh?) All told, Hitachi added three new series of flat panels. The funny thing was, the LCDs … Continued
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Tech News
Panasonic’s 103-inch Plasma Reviewed: Grandstanding Performance
We’re not sure how they got their hands on it, but the guys at Trusted Reviews were lucky enough to test out Panasonic’s 103-inch plasma TV. The monster TV, which weighs in at 771 pounds with the massive stand, took about 3 hours to install (and that’s with the help of professional installers). So how’d … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgets
Waterfall Plasma Brings a Bit of the Outdoors Inside
I’m still not sure why someone would need a waterfall with their plasma, but if you’re looking for a way to trump your neighbor’s 1080p set, this sucker will definitely do. The plasma comes in sizes ranging from 42 to 60 inches. It doesn’t look like Astute Advances includes a tuner, but with a waterfall … Continued
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Tech News
HP Giving 50-inch Plasma to Quirkiest YouTube Video
Need a new TV? The gang at HP has a 50-inch plasma they’re itching to give away, and all you gotta do to win it is create a “quirky” YouTube video (aren’t they all) explaining to the world why you need a new TV. Sounds easy enough. Hit the link for the contest rules (you … Continued
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Tech News
Spring ’07 HDTV Cheat Sheet
Hoping to upgrade to a new HDTV this spring? The folks at CNET have put together a handy little cheat sheet previewing this spring’s newest models. If you’re tight on cash, their advice is to save a few bucks and buy a slightly older model. If you’re lucky, you can score a sweet deal on … Continued
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io9Television
Panasonic’s 42-inch Plasma is 1080p: Can You Tell The Difference?
Panasonic’s plasma TVs consistently get some of the highest ratings in the business. And that trend will continue with the company’s 2007 line, which was unveiled today in NYC. All the basics were announced during CES, but now we have more info, including release dates and pricing. The highlight, and also the most controversial entry, … Continued
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Tech News
Pioneer’s First 50-inch, 1080p Professional Plasma Destroys All Others
Pioneer’s consumer plasmas tend to be near perfect, so we can’t imagine the kind of image clarity you’ll get from this TV, their first 50-inch, 1080p professional model. The display comes with both HDMI and DVI inputs (the latter with HDCP support), but because it’s pro series, it packs some extra features you won’t typically … Continued
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io9Television
Synchronized at CES: Panasonic’s Eight 103-inch Plasma HDTVs
While strolling through the pre-birth of the CES machine, we happened upon the most amazing thing ever: No less than eight of Panasonic’s 103-inch Plasma HDTVs set on a stage, with independent, but synced 1080p content on each. And they were on pivoting mounts, that rotated to the content of an attractive couple dancing provocatively. … Continued
By Brian Lam -
Tech News
Flat-Panel For Those With a Flat-Budget
ByDsign is releasing a budget priced flat-panel plasma display. The 50-inch plasma display features a 1366×768 resolution, 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 1,000cd/m2 brightness, stereo speakers with SRS, and two HDMI ports. ByDsign has also integrated the “DCDi” microchip, which enhances image quality by reducing those rotten jaggy edges. ByDsign’s 50-inch plasma display is on the market … Continued