Photo: Pioneer
LCD televisions have been gaining market share over plasma models during the past few years. This puzzles me because plasmas consistently look better in all but the brightest rooms.
Nonetheless, plasma’s woes have convinced Pioneer to abandon much of its own manufacturing and use Panasonic’s plasma panels. The partnership should cut plasma manufacturing costs for both companies. More importantly, cooperation between the research teams should lead to even better televisions.
Pioneers’s prototype plasma screens were easily the most impressive televisions on display at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. But Panasonic had some interesting models, too.
While Pioneer has developed incredible contrast ratios between the darkest and lightest parts of the screen, Panasonic has developed very rich colors and energy-saving technology. Panasonic has also built Internet connectivity into its newest line of high-end plasma televisions.
Add all those benefits up and you get televisions that will destroy anything the LCD camp has announced to date. The real competition for image quality may come from Laser TV or OLED, which I’ll be blogging about tomorrow.
Alas, the fruits of the Pioneer/Panasonic partnership won’t appear on shelves until late 2009 and they still might not be able to beat the LCD machine. LCD costs seem to be falling faster than plasma costs and apparently most Americans are too blind to appreciate differences in picture quality.
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