plasma

Pioneer picks Panasonic to make plasmas

Panasonic has been tapped to pinch-hit for Pioneer.

The two television makers said Wednesday they had come to an agreement in which Panasonic will produce the panels for Pioneer's plasma televisions.

The news comes a month after reports surfaced that Pioneer was pulling out of the plasma business. When Pioneer confirmed it would be finding someone who could make the panels more inexpensively than it could, there was a sense of dismay and disappointment among fans of its Kuro technology. Pioneer plasma TVs are generally regarded by experts--including CNET Reviews' David Katzmaier--as having the blackest black levels … Read more

Don't expect new HDTV technologies anytime soon

Even though news sites are touting the eventual release of new HDTV technologies and calling them the saviors we've been waiting for, the simple fact is they're not anywhere close. And to make matters worse, many of these are nothing more than proofs of concept that have no marketability. In other words, don't start trashing your plasmas and LCDs just yet because they'll be around for quite a while.

On Monday, I had the opportunity to interview Bob Perry, Panasonic's senior vice president for its display division, for the next episode of my CNET Digital Home podcast. During the interview, I asked him what the future of the HDTV market looks like and what we should expect.

Much to my chagrin and certainly some of those who will listen to the interview, he said that the chances of a new HDTV technology hitting store shelves anytime soon are slim. According to Perry, we're still at least a decade away from the next real HDTV technology that could actually supplant LCDs and to a lesser extent, plasmas.

Suffice it to say, it's a sad day for those of us who want to see the next big thing.… Read more

Panasonic aims to protect TVs from flying Wiimotes

Wii aficionados are having a smashing good time these days--at their TVs' expense.

Gamers need to get a grip, literally. It seems quite a few virtual golfers are turning their Wiimotes into Wii projectiles, damaging their beloved plasma and LCD TV screens in the process. Now, Panasonic engineers are coming to the rescue.

The company is working on reinforcing the screens by applying old-style TV tube-making technology, says New Scientist.

In a demonstration, Panasonic hung a steel ball on the end of a cord and let it swing against a screen to simulate an impact equivalent to the Wii remote … Read more

Down the line: 2008 Panasonic plasma HDTVs

(Updated 08-28-2008) Panasonic's plasma HDTV lineup for 2008 includes five total series, each with multiple screen sizes but identical features within the series. In case you're wondering, we have reviewed four models so far, the TH-46PZ85U, TH-42PX80U, TH-50PZ800U and TH-50PZ850U. Most models detailed below are available now, although the larger 58- and 65-inch models in the 800U and 850U series (the other series max out at 50 inches) will ship in September.… Read more

Report: Pioneer ending production of plasma panels

Pioneer plans to let someone else make its plasma TV panels, according to several reports.

Reuters reported Tuesday that the company will cease production of its own plasma panels because that portion of its business continues to lose money. The company will still sell plasma sets, but plans to get its plasma panels from Matsushita, parent company of Panasonic, the Nikkei business daily reported. Panasonic is the biggest plasma TV vendor in the world, shipping nearly 40 percent of all plasma displays, while Pioneer ranks fifth, shipping just over 6 percent of plasmas worldwide in the fourth quarter of 2007, … Read more

Samsung, EA unveil 3D plasmas in Asia

Samsung is back trying to reinvent the wheel once again, this time with a pair of 3D plasma TVs in 42- and 50-inch screen sizes. The results of a collaboration with Electronics Arts, these new panels are designed to deliver a high-end gaming experience with a staggering 1,000,000:1 contrast, according to Akihabara News--a level claimed by only one other set, Sony's petite OLED TV. Hype aside, these will ship with the usual icings such as HDMI 1.3 and USB terminals, as well as Samsung's proprietary DNIE+ video-processing engine.

(Source: Crave Asia)

Samsung's health-conscious air conditioners

Here in the tropics of Singapore where it's perpetually summer, air conditioners are big business all year long. We're happy campers as long as they just do their job, but Samsung is on a crusade to improve our health as well with two new bacteria-killing models.

Using Samsung's proprietary Micro Plasma Ion technology, the Vivace Shadow Mirror pictured here and Neo-Forte pack enough firepower to zap all manner of germs. According to company representatives, MPI is capable of effectively eliminating 78 percent of fungus and 58 percent of bacteria in a 30-minute time frame, within an enclosed … Read more

Panasonic upgrades its petite 103-inch plasma

Panasonic may have wowed CES last month with its 150-inch plasma, but that doesn't mean it's given up on its diminutive 103-inch siblings.

The company is upgrading the smaller line, if it can be called that, with a new "10 series" that includes "better wall mount configuration, improved video processing technology, anti-Reflective coating, enhanced wireless presentation capabilities, more versatile media card readability, and a dual HDMI board came as a standard feature," according to SlashGear. There don't appear to be any major changes to the screens themselves, however, which is a little surprising … Read more

Wii-proofing Panasonic's plasma TVs

At its 2008 product showcase in Valencia, Panasonic revealed that every year some people manage to hurl their Wii controllers at their expensive flat-panel TVs. Anyone who reads gadget sites will have read these tales of woe and possibly even seen the photos. The good news is that Panasonic has created a Wii-proof TV. Well, it's Wii-proof as long as you don't have the lobbing arm of a caber thrower.

You might think it seems daft to go to all that effort, but Panasonic didn't really have to change very much at all. Generally, plasma TVs do … Read more