Are you a fan of big displays, and maybe 3D? And do you happen to have $100,000 to spare? Then the TH-P103MT2 might be something for you, a 103-inch plasma screen Panasonic announced [JP] today for the Japanese market (yes, that’s the retail price). It’s based on a 103-inch TV showed back in 2008 (the TH-103PZ800), but this new model comes with 3D on board.

The monster screen features full HD resolution, a contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1 (native), and four HDMI ports, but do not expect speakers or a tuner here. It’s sized at 2,412×871×1,748mm and weighs a whopping 321kg.

In Japan, Panasonic will start accepting orders from tomorrow (no word on international availability at this point). Oh, and you have to add transportation and set up costs to the $100,000 price tag, Panasonic says (they throw in one pair of 3D glasses though).

And yet another 3D news item from Japan. This time, it’s Panasonic, which today announced [JP] two new 3D plasma TVs, the 42-inch TH-P42VT2, and the 46-inch TH-P46VT2. Both VIERAs require active shutter glasses to view images in 3D and both feature full HD resolution.

Spec-wise, buyers can expect a native contrast ratio of 5,000,000:1, DLNA support, Skype compatibility, video-on-demand support, 16×4cm×2 full range speakers, Ethernet, an SD/SDXC slot, and four HDMI interfaces.

Panasonic plans to start rolling out the 3D TVs on the Japanese market on July 30. Prices:$3,300 for the 42-inch model, and $3,800 for the 46-inch VIERA (one pair of glasses is included in these prices).

Last week it was Sony, and today it was Hitachi announcing [JP] a flood of new flat-screen TVs for the Japanese market. Hitachi does sell TVs outside this country, too, so chances are the four plasmas and seven LCDs find their way into other markets as well. (Some models will be offered in different colors, which is why you see more than 11 TVs in the picture above.)

The company has divided their new line-up of Woo TVs into three series (XP05, HP05 and H05).

XP05

The flagship XP05 series consists of three plasma TVs, namely a 42- ($2,650), a 46- ($3,100) and a 50-inch model (P50-XP05 for $3,650, pictured above). All of these devices are full HD, support DLNA, feature 4 HDMI ports and come with a 320GB internal HDD. The two LCD TVs in this series, a 32- ($1,900) and a 37-inch model ($2,200), just have a resolution of 1,366×768 (IPSα panel). But a 320GB internal HDD and DLNA support are on board as well.

HP05

The HP05 series includes just two TVs, a plasma (the P42-HP05 with 42 inches for $2,200 is pictured above) and an LCD model (32 inches, $1,600). Buyers will get a resolution of 1,024×768 for the plasma and 1,366×768 for the LCD. Both TVs offer DLNA support and a 250GB internal HDD.

H05

The four LCD TVs of the H05 series are entry-level devices with 1,366×768 resolution. Hitachi offers a 19- ($770), a 22- ($880), a 26- ($990) and a 32-inch model (the L32-H05 for $1,100 is pictured). All of these TVs have an IPS panel (just the 32-incher has an IPSα panel), support DLNA (client only) but lack an internal HDD.

The TVs of all three series will hit Japanese stores on April 17.

The New York Times highlights the development of a new type of hand sanitizer, primarily developed for hospitals, that uses plasma to zap your hands clean. It’s cheap, too, costing around $100 to build, so maybe they’ll find their way into the crippled U.S. health-care system one day?

The device was developed in Germany at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics. It uses plasma—heated gas, essentially—to clean your hands all over, including underneath your nails. It’s quick: your hands will be clean as a whistle (?) in only four seconds.

Why stop at hospitals? If these things end up being that inexpensive at $100, we should install them in elementary school bathrooms and teach those walking disease bags—young children—how to properly wash their hands. Install it at restaurants, too, so you can be certain that your chef at TGI Fridays has exquisitely clean hands. The food may be rubbish, but at least it’s been handled properly.

The benefits are huge. The drill is not only loud, but it’s extremely invasive and damaging, and can actually cause more problems then it solves. Researchers have discovered a way to make something called “cold plasma” which will actually sterilize a tooth instead of grinding out the damaged tissue. To be honest, researchers aren’t entirely sure exactly how the plasma works to destroy the bacteria, but they are able to determine that a burst of about 12-18 seconds will completely eliminate the problem. It would also be painless, so to a wuss like me it sounds like a great solution.

The researchers working on this technology expect that it could be available in a general dentistry application in about 3-5 years. I know I can’t wait.

[via Slashdot]

Panasonic still believes in plasma. The company, which owns the biggest plasma panel plant in the world and is the global leader in this segment, today announced [JP] the VIERA G2 series, which consists of a total of three new plasma TVs. And as Panasonic sells these devices in the US, too, chances are the new line-up will find its way outside Japan in the future as well.

The main selling point of the G2 TVs is the native contrast ratio, which stands at an impressive 5,000,000:1, the highest for a plasma TV so far (according to Panasonic). By way of comparison: The $6,000 Panasonic Z1 only had a contrast ratio of 40,000:1.

Buyers will be able to choose between three sizes: 42, 46 and 50-inches. Needless to say, all TVs are full HD, and Panasonic claims they reduced power consumption by 30% (compared to the G1 series introduced last year). To be more concrete, power consumption stands at 398W for the biggest model, at 365W for the 46-incher and at 335W for the 42-inch VIERA.

The new TVs will hit Japanese stores next month. Prices: $2,400 for the 42-inch model, $2,700 for the 46-inch model and $3,500 for the 50-incher.

There is a clear trend in Japan, where all the relevant new TVs come from, and that’s building devices to store programs into the hardware itself, i.e. HDDs or Blu-ray recorders. Mitsubishi appears to be especially radical in this respect, announcing a TV with both a built-in Blu-ray recorder and HDD just last week. And today Hitachi followed up by adding a total of two new LCDs and three plasmas [JP] to their Wooo TV series, with all models featuring a built-in 500GB HDD.

The three plasma TVs will be available as 42/46 and 50-inchers (prices: $3,000/$3,500 and $4,000 – the picture above shows the biggest model). The two LCDs will be available in 37-inch and 42-inch versions (prices: $2,500 and $3,000). All of these TVs have the 500GB HDD on board, are full HD, can handle DLNA and have an iVDR slot. The plasma models boast a contrast ratio of 40,000:1.

Hitachi plans to ship the plasma TVs to Japanese stores starting September 10, while the LCDs (see the smaller model above) are scheduled for release in October. International sales plans haven’t been announced yet.

Even though LCD is clearly the dominant technology in the TV market, Panasonic still believes in the merits of plasma displays. The company currently showcases a new 85-inch monster plasma TV [JP] at the InfoComm in Orlando, Florida (the screen size is equal to that of four 42-inchers combined).

Made for professional use, the display is second in size to Panasonic own’s 103-inch PDP model. And the 85-inch plasma has some great specs: full HD resolution, 40,000:1 contrast ratio (2,000,000:1 max.), 99mm thickness, and 100,000 hours life span.

Panasonic plans to start selling this TV both in Japan and the US this fall, but the company hasn’t announced pricing plans yet.

Panasonic launched the VIERA R Series today in Japan [JP], consisting of a total of seven new plasma and LCD TVs. The first TVs of the series will be available over here starting July 1, with Panasonic not yet saying anything about sales in overseas markets.

The R series includes three plasma TVs, which are all full HD and sized at 42 ($2,900), 46 ($3,500) and 50 ($4,200) inches. They feature a contrast ratio of 4,000:1, a built-in 500GB HDD, two 16×4cm speakers and three HDMI ports.

The other four VIERA TVs of the new R series are LCDs sized at 17 ($1,300), 20 ($1,400), 32 ($1,900) and 37 ($2,500) inches. The only full HD model is the 37-incher, which also features an IPSα panel (120Hz speed). The 32-inch TV also has this panel but only achieves a resolution of 1,366×768 (just like the 17- and 20-inchers). All four LCDs come with a 250GB HDD.

Japan-based Shinoda Plasma [JP] has developed a plasma TV that’s 2 meters tall and 3 meters wide (145 inches), which is quite obviously able to show life-size images of (most) people. The spectacular display will be sold as part of digital signage or teleconference systems.

The TV can be attached to curved walls and is supposedly more eco-friendly than conventional plasma displays that are on the market now (the power consumption varies between 800W and 1,200W). It features a resolution of 960×720.

Shinoda Plasma says it expects sales of up to $35 million in the next fiscal year. The company says that buyers should be ready to shell out $50,000 per sqm for their flagship TV.

It just recently showcased a plasma display boasting 1mm thickness. Shinoda-san, the man behind Shinoda Plasma, left Fujitsu in 2005 after that company stopped producing plasma displays.

Via IT Media [JP]

Yama hama, here’s a pretty sweet deal on a gigantic plasma TV. Vizio is selling its 50-inch P50 model for $799 with free shipping until April 15th (or until they sell out). It’s a 720p/1080i TV that weighs a whopping 144 pounds thanks to all that gooey plasma.

There are two of each input — HDMI, Component, Composite, and S-Video – plus a 10,000:1 contrast ratio, 1,000 cd/m2 brightness, and an integrated HDTV tuner.

VIZIO P50HDTV10A [Vizio.com via FatWallet]

If you have a lot of disposable income or you work for AIG and need a way to spend that sweet, sweet bonus check for all your hard work, might I suggest the 103-inch BeoVision 4-103 plasma TV from Bang & Olufsen at just under $140,000?

You’ll be able to pick one up this July although if you really can’t wait, it’s actually just a $70,000 Panasonic TH-103PF9 with a fancy aluminum frame. You’ll also get a motorized stand that can lift and tilt the screen, controlled straight from the remote control (which looks like a UFO). That remote can also be used to control various other components as well.

Here’s a video!

[via Wired]

From Tech-On!

Sales of Blu-ray Disc recorders, which sold as well as flat panel TVs, reached 1.34 million units, rapidly expanding from the preceding year’s 160,000 units. Compared with total sales of DVD players/recorders and Blu-ray Disc recorders, which edged down 0.1% YoY to 7.15 million units in 2008, the numbers reflect the fact that the DVD market is shifting to Blu-ray Disc.

LCD TV sales surged in particular, increasing 20% YoY to 9.06 million units or rising 8% YoY on a value basis. PDP TV sales climbed 8% YoY to 1.01 million units in 2008 although they slowed slightly in the second half. On a value basis, however, PDP TV [plasma] sales decreased 7% YoY due to the drop in the average selling price.

It’s hard to draw any accurate conclusion on these numbers without first seeing the same study here in America, but at least one thing is for sure. The Japanese’s are at least supporting their own economy with these purchases. That’s something we can’t say here.

The 1-inch thick plasma will hit retailers with an MSRP of $5,999 this coming June. Considering that the screen packs a 1080p picture and a native contrast ratio of 40,000:1, while being so damn thin, that price is good. Plus, you know that retailers will mark the TV down to a more affordable range so people can squeeze the TV on their already used credit card. HD Guru points out that the next compariable TV is the Sharp LC52XS1 which carries a price tag of $12,000. With this set leading plasma in the future, who said that plasma is dead? Oh, me.

Mead [probably] isn’t talking about the entire company here. There is a possibility that LG will only pull plasma out of certain markets where the display type is no longer profitable. Pioneer offered LCDs in Europe well before they were going to be available in the US. Philips pulled out of the US display market entirely last year so the move wouldn’t be unprecedented. Maybe plasma isn’t laying on its deathbed.

That would leave only Panasonic and Hitachi in making the flat screen. Could the two carry the torch alone? Both are gigantic corporations but somehow it’s doubtful they will continue if sales numbers continue the downward trend. But then again, there is something to be said about not having direct competition.

47news via AOLHD

Vizio, a long time favorite brand of bargain hunters and geeks alike, has stopped slapping their logo on plasma TVs. Plus, there is no plan to order more once the current inventory runs outs. The cut is, of course, due to plamsa’s poor sales in comparison to the companies LCD sales. Which is, of course, due to poor consumer information and as bright as the sun’s surface showrooms.

Don’t worry, consumers can still order Vizio plasmas on the website if the local store is sold out, but once those are gone, the Vizio plasma will simply be a memory. Just like Pioneer plasmas. So that leaves Panasonic, Samsung, and LG plasmas to choose from now. Got it.