Productopia | Plasma TV

In separate press events in New York this week, Samsung and Panasonic officially announced that 3D-capable TVs and Blu-ray players are now on sale, with even more models expected over the coming months.  Despite the hoopla and some rosy projections over how many sets will be sold this year and in years to come, there's still more than enough skepticism to go around. Some new bumps in the path to 3D have also surfaced, such as concerns that Samsung's first 3D Blu-ray players might not actually be able to show content in 3D. For now, at least, we have a clearer picture of what 3D will actually cost early adopters, and that's a mixed bag.

Though LCD has surpassed plasma as the HDTV technology of choice for most consumers, plasma TVs still draw their share of kudos from professional reviewers for their superb black levels. For the most cinematic picture quality, those deep blacks are essential. Among current plasma sets, experts say that the Panasonic plasma TVs deliver the inkiest blacks of all. Unfortunately, however, as a result of what increasingly appears to be a questionable design decision by Panasonic, owners of  the company's recent plasma TVs might not enjoy those excellent black levels for nearly as long as they expected.

If you've shopped for gear for a home theater, you've probably noticed that upconversion is a standard feature in lots of different types of equipment, including DVD players, Blu-ray players, LCD TVs, plasma TVs and even many home-theater receivers. For those unfamiliar with it, upconversion (also called upscaling) is the process used to transform standard-definition TV images to high-definition resolutions. One of our readers, Robert, recently wrote in to ask: "In a home theater, what component is best for performing upconversion, and is there any benefit in doing upconversion more than once?

In these tight times, everyone is interested in saving a little bit of cash where they can, even when putting together a home-theater system. As an example, one of our readers recently wrote to ask "If you are putting together a home theater system on a fixed budget, where can you get away with scrimping a bit and where does it pay to put performance first?"

Though some manufacturers have moved on to greener pastures, plasma TV fans still have a bunch of great sets to choose from. Panasonic plasma TVs in particular, such as the Panasonic Viera TC-P50V10, draw kudos for dark, cinematic blacks and terrific picture quality overall. Samsung and LG also come through with plasma TVs that get their fair share of admiration from critics. Our latest report on plasma TVs fills in the details on the sets that deliver the best picture quality, and the ones that satisfy by offering terrific value.

Not content to wait until the day after Thanksgiving, Wal-Mart is putting some home-theater electronics up for sale in their brick and mortar stores this Saturday. Scanning through things, we found some ho-ho-hum deals, but also two that could peak the interest of budget TV buyers.

Though an official vote won't come until early next month, regulators in California seem ready to pass new rules that will ban the sale of TVs in that state that don't meet strict energy guidelines. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), an industry trade group that strongly opposes the proposed regulations, claims that about 25 percent of current HDTVs and all plasma HDTVs larger than 60 inches could not be sold in California under the regulations. However, there's plenty of time for manufacturers to adapt -- and consumers to go out and buy a less-energy-efficient TV if they so wish -- as the law won't go into effect until 2011, and won't be fully phased in until 2013.

Only one manufacturer still makes them, but projection TVs still offer the most screen size for the buck.

The popularity of flat-panel plasma and LCD TVs has essentially relegated large-screen rear-projection TVs to the pages of TV history. In fact, only Mitsubishi still manufactures projection TVs at all.  But if you want a really big television, you can get a giant 72- or 82-inch Mitsubishi projection TV for less then $4,000. LCD and plasma TVs aren't even available in sizes this big, and even if they were, they'd sell for a lot more. Our projection TV update compares Mitsubishi projection TVs and weighs pros and cons of projection televisions in general.

If you've read our reports on LCD TVs and plasma TVs, you know that one of the keys to great picture quality is deep black levels. That's especially true if, like most, you watch television under relatively dim lighting.

But according to HDGuru.com, some retailers are throwing their customers a deliberate curve ball by cranking up store lighting to way beyond reasonable levels, making it hard to accurately judge picture quality on the showroom floor. The site backs up its claims with some light meter measurements in stores and homes, and the differences are startling -- with some stores having lighting levels that are as much as 50 times brighter at the extremes.

Is 3D the "next big thing" in home theater, and will it make all those shiny LCD and plasma sets on retailers shelves obsolete?

That's what some pundits, such as DVICE's Stewart Wolpin are speculating, though I'm not so sure.

Without a doubt, several manufacturers, most notably Panasonic, are taking 3D seriously The company recently announced a promotional partnership with movie maker James Cameron (of "Titanic" fame) for "AVATAR," a sci-fi film shot completely in 3D (using Panasonic equipment in part) and set to debut this December. In Panasonic's announcement, Cameron said "I believe 3D is how we will experience movies, gaming, and computing in the near future."