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Plasma TVs

Market Trends & Analysis Plasma TVs Blu-ray

A Tale Of Two Companies, Revisited

Japan's fiscal year 2014 results reveal a striking contrast between two CE giants. Panasonic's aggressive restructuring - including its painful exit from plasma TV manufacturing - delivered a stunning $1.18 billion net profit, reversing a $7 billion loss. Sony, meanwhile, faces a 67% drop in operating income, battered by its PC exit costs and a faster-than-expected collapse in Blu-ray disc sales. The full Sony numbers arrive soon, and they promise to tell an even sharper story.

Pete Putman •
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Plasma TVs Manufacturing Standards

HDTV Expert - It's "Fade To Black" for Plasma and Projectors in Japan

Panasonic's exit from plasma TV production by March 2014 marks a broader collapse for Japanese display manufacturing, as plasma held only 5.7% global market share in FY2012 compared to LCD's dominant 87.3%. Chinese manufacturers are accelerating the pressure, with CSOT's 110-inch 4K panels and sub-$40-per-diagonal-inch LCD pricing reshaping both consumer and commercial AV markets. Mitsubishi Electric Visual Solutions has already withdrawn from the projector market entirely, and Sharp faces similar pressure, signaling that front projection and niche display technologies are losing ground to large-format LCD screens.

Pete Putman •
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Home Theater Buying Guides Plasma TVs

HDTV and Home Theater Podcast - Podcast #584: Plasma vs LED

Plasma TVs deliver superior black levels, contrast ratios, and color saturation compared to LED LCD displays, with edge-lit LED panels frequently exhibiting backlight uniformity defects such as clouding, halo, and flashlight effects that are absent in plasma panels. Plasma's per-pixel brightness and hue control produces richer, more saturated color that mid-tier plasma sets match against higher-cost LED competitors, while In-Plane Switching (IPS) LEDs improve viewing angles only at the cost of contrast. For buyers prioritizing picture quality in a controlled-light environment under 65 inches, plasma remains the stronger value proposition despite its weight and image retention considerations.

The HT Guys •
Podcasts
HDTV Expert - Panasonic Shows Best Plasma TV Set the World has ever Seen
Home Theater Plasma TVs

HDTV Expert - Panasonic Shows Best Plasma TV Set the World has ever Seen

Panasonic's 2013 ZT Series plasma HDTV introduces a 3000Hz focused field drive, up from last year's 2500Hz, and a new subfield technology capable of expressing 30,720 gray levels compared to the 6,144 levels found in conventional PDPs. A redesigned red phosphor and front-surface filter enable a color gamut covering 122% of the ITU standard and 98% of the DCI standard, while a gapless laminated panel filter reduces reflections in ambient light. Side-by-side testing against the legendary Pioneer Kuro revealed the ZT's clear superiority in motion handling and shadow detail, making it a compelling reference-grade display for serious home theater buyers.

Ken Werner •
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3DTV Plasma TVs Smart TVs

Panasonic Unveils Enhanced 2013 Smart VIERA Plasma HDTV Lineup

Panasonic's 2013 Smart VIERA Plasma HDTV lineup spans 16 models from 42-inch to 65-inch class, with flagship ZT60 and VT60 series featuring a Dual Core Hexa Processing Engine, 3000 Focused-field Drive producing 1080 lines of image resolution, and a Studio Master Panel rated for up to 100,000 hours of panel longevity. The ZT60 achieves DCI 98% Color Space via a newly developed pure red phosphor and eliminates the air gap between front glass and plasma panel to reduce crosstalk and double images. Buyers evaluating premium plasma sets will find THX-certified 2D and 3D modes, ISFccc calibration support, built-in Wireless LAN, DLNA, Bluetooth, and the new Swipe and Share 2.0 feature for seamless Android and iOS content transfer across the full ZT60, VT60, and ST60 tiers.

HDTV News •
Bulletins
OLED TVs Plasma TVs 4K Ultra HD

Plasma Totters; OLED Delayed

Plasma display panel (PDP) technology is in steep decline, with market share in the mid-single digits and manufacturers including Panasonic reportedly considering exiting PDP production by March 2013 in favor of OLED and tablet panel technologies. Large OLED TV development faces serious obstacles, with total manufacturing yield below 30% even after repairs and glass frit encapsulation causing lifetime degradation in large panels, prompting Samsung and LG to reprioritize 4Kx2K (Ultra HD) LCD for volume production in 2013. Consumers eyeing next-generation displays should expect 4Kx2K OLED TVs to remain demonstration-only through 2013, with volume production not targeted until 2014.

Ken Werner •
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Buying Guides LCD TVs Plasma TVs

HDTV Expert - Frequently Asked Questions - by Pete Putman

Pete Putman addresses recurring consumer questions about TV purchasing, calibration, and display technology in this late-2012 roundup, noting that 42-inch 1080p plasma TVs had dropped to under $400 while plasma held only 5.5% of global TV shipments in Q2 2012. Plasma's decline is attributed to consumer preference for large, inexpensive LCD panels over superior black levels and viewing angles, while streaming services like Netflix and Amazon are eroding Blu-ray disc sales despite lower picture quality. For practical guidance, Putman recommends enabling a cinema or movie preset and manually setting sharpness to zero and color temperature to warm as a cost-free alternative to professional calibration.

Pete Putman •
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OLED TVs Plasma TVs Manufacturing

Buy a Plasma TV While You Can

Plasma display panel (PDP) technology delivers measurable image-quality advantages over LCD, including higher refresh rates that produce cleaner 3D images, yet its market share is in terminal decline as manufacturers like Panasonic, Samsung, and LG halt new fab investment while significant new LCD capacity comes online. Panasonic's $370 million pilot OLED line at its Himeji plant, combined with Samsung Display's formal merger of its LCD and OLED operations, signals an industry-wide pivot toward OLED as the next high-margin display technology. Consumers who prefer plasma have roughly three to four years to make a final purchase before production becomes economically unviable.

Ken Werner •
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Plasma TVs

HDTV Almanac - Panasonic Dozen-Foot Diagonal Display

Panasonic, in collaboration with NHK, has demonstrated a 145-inch diagonal plasma display with a resolution of 7,680 by 4,320 pixels, equivalent to sixteen 1080p panels tiled together. The panel achieves a pixel pitch of 60 ppi, smaller than a typical 42-inch plasma, which limits per-pixel light output due to reduced phosphor surface area, while a novel multi-line scanning technique addresses the challenge of refreshing 4,320 lines without flicker. Panasonic cites an optimal viewing distance of just 1.6 meters, reinforcing the case for larger screens at closer seating distances than most viewers currently use.

Alfred Poor •
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3DTV Plasma TVs LCD TVs

HDTV Expert - Panasonic's 2012 Home Entertainment Media Briefing - Pete Putman

Panasonic's 2012 TV lineup spans plasma models up to 65 inches and LED-backlit LCD TVs up to 55 inches, with the flagship ST50 plasma series featuring a dual-core processor, 2500 FFD, built-in WiFi, and Bluetooth alongside a full suite of smart TV functions. The company simultaneously supports active shutter and passive FPR 3D across different product tiers, a contradictory stance given that 3D-driven TV purchases represented only about 7% of North American sales in Q3 2011. With plasma holding just 13.5% of the worldwide TV market and Panasonic facing a $9.7 billion fiscal loss, the breadth of this lineup raises serious questions about long-term product strategy viability.

Pete Putman •
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Market Trends & Analysis LCD TVs Plasma TVs

HDTV Expert - The Rout Is On - by Pete Putman

Samsung captured a record 26.3% worldwide TV market share in Q4 2011, an 18% growth rate in a flat market, while LCD flat screens reached 86.5% of all TVs sold globally. Plasma slipped to a 6.9% niche, CRTs still clung to 6.4%, and RPTVs were nearly extinct at 0.0004%. For consumers, this consolidation signals rising dominance of Korean and Chinese brands as Japanese manufacturers like Sony, Sharp, and Panasonic struggle with unsustainable margins on TVs now selling at $10-$15 per diagonal inch.

Pete Putman •
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3DTV Plasma TVs IPTV

Panasonic's 2012 Smart VIERA Plasma HDTV Model Line-Up Builds Upon Its Award Winning Tradition

Panasonic's 2012 Smart VIERA Plasma HDTV lineup spans 17 models from 42 to 65 inches, anchored by NeoPlasma Black 2500 technology with 24,576 steps of gradation and 6,220,800 pixel cells of full local dimming on flagship VT50 and GT50 series. New 27-gram Bluetooth rechargeable 3D glasses, cloud-based VIERA Connect IPTV with unlimited apps, built-in Wi-Fi, and THX certification in both 2D and 3D modes round out the platform. Buyers gain a genuinely expanded smart TV ecosystem alongside measurably improved contrast and eco-friendly mercury- and lead-free panels rated for 100,000 hours.

HDTV News •
Bulletins
Home Theater LCD TVs Plasma TVs

HDTV and Home Theater Podcast - Podcast #507: HDTV Buying Guide

This HDTV buying guide covers options across multiple price tiers, from a $149 Magnavox 19-inch 720p LCD to a $4,680 Mitsubishi 92-inch 1080p DLP projection TV, with standout picks including a 42-inch LG 1080p 120Hz LED-LCD for under $500 and a Panasonic 65-inch VT30 plasma featuring Infinite Black Pro 2 panel technology derived from Pioneer. Passive 3D, local dimming, TruMotion 120Hz, and energy efficiency are recurring differentiators across the recommended sets. Buyers can use these price-to-performance comparisons to identify where diminishing returns set in and where genuine value exists.

The HT Guys •
Podcasts
LCD TVs Plasma TVs Standards

HDTV Expert - Ho-Ho-Ho! Is Turning Into Uh-Oh-Oh!

Sony projects a $2.2 billion loss in TV operations for its current fiscal year, its eighth consecutive year of losses, while Panasonic faces up to $5.4 billion in losses and is cutting plasma TV production capacity by 48%. Both manufacturers are restructuring aggressively, with Panasonic closing two Japanese plants and Sony reportedly reconsidering its S-LCD partnership with Samsung. For consumers, these financial pressures translate into significant discounts on large-screen LCD and plasma TVs around Black Friday, with a useful baseline of $10-$12 per diagonal inch for sets up to 55 inches.

Pete Putman •
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Calibration Plasma TVs OTA HD & Antennas

HDTV Expert - Sneak Peek: Panasonic's TH-42BT300U Reference-Grade Plasma Monitor

Panasonic's TH-42BT300U is a 42-inch reference-grade plasma monitor targeting post-production and critical imaging applications, delivering calibrated peak white levels of 75-80 nits in Cinema mode with ANSI contrast of 771:1 and a maximum color temperature shift of just 76 degrees Kelvin across a full 100 IRE screen. The monitor introduces multiple labeled memory presets, a BT.709 color gamut adjustment with custom x,y primary coordinates, and gamma presets from 1.8 to 2.6 that measure accurately in practice. Priced under $5,000, it offers post houses a credible alternative to costly CRT and LCD reference monitors without sacrificing calibration precision.

Pete Putman •
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