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Q: How long do plasma televisions last? |
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A: The life of a plasma television varies depending on the viewing conditions (the image settings and visual material played) and the viewing environment. Plasma televisions are generally designed to have a long life in the range of 60,000~100,000 hours, so you can enjoy many hours of high-resolution video images while conserving resources. (“Life” expresses the number of hours until the panel dims to half its original brightness.) |
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Q: Explain the power consumption figures for a plasma television. |
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A: Two types of power consumption figures are often quoted: the rated power consumption and the yearly power consumption. The first value is usually expressed in W (watts) and the second in kWh/year (kilowatt-hours per year). The rated power is the maximum power the television uses when on. Plasma televisions consume the most electricity when displaying a completely white screen. The yearly power consumption is calculated based on the typical family’s average viewing time per day (4.5 hours) and is a benchmark figure of the power a television uses over a year.
It is possible to roughly estimate how much your television will cost to run per year using the new electricity rate of ¥22/kWh (including tax). Note that the panel brightness of a plasma television varies with the projected image and thus the images you watch will affect the amount of power used. Since the average power your television actually uses may be much less than the rated power consumption, please estimate your electricity costs based on the yearly power consumption figure. |
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Q: How big will plasma televisions be in the future? |
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A: The development of the plasma display panel was the original breakthrough leading to thin large-screen televisions. Today, panels as large as 65 vertical (V) inches are sold in Japan. Research into expanding panel sizes is progressing, and many expect panels from 80 (V) inches to 100 (V) inches and larger to appear. Another related development is the availability of new higher definition full-spec HD panels that can display Hi-Vision (high definition) video at its fullest quality. |
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Q: Will plasma televisions become more affordable? |
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A: Since the construction of a plasma panel itself is quite simple, prices are likely to fall further as parts and materials become cheaper and manufacturing processes evolve. If the worldwide demand for plasma televisions rises dramatically as expected, the resulting expanded production scales are also likely to drive prices lower. The day is not far off when people in homes around the world can enjoy the excitement and beauty of plasma televisions. |
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Q: What companies produce panels for plasma displays? |
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A: There are three producers (Panasonic of Japan, and Samsung and LG of South Korea). Other television makers purchase panels from these firms to manufacture and sell their own plasma televisions. |
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Q: What is the optimal position for watching plasma televisions? |
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A: It is possible to watch Hi-Vision broadcasts on plasma televisions from very close range without discomfort because these high-definition broadcasts have more than twice the scan lines of conventional broadcasts. The optimal viewing distance, however, is generally about three times the height of the screen. For example, the height of a 50-inch television is about 60 centimeters, so the best viewing distance would be 180 centimeters from the screen. |
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Q: Are plasma televisions affected by air pressure? |
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A: There is no vacuum present inside a PDP. Instead, a PDP is filled with neon or xenon gas under low pressure and then sealed. If a PDP is placed in a low air pressure environment, the internal pressure will cause the panel to swell outwards, leading to unstable discharges and possible damage to the display. |
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Q: What is full HD? |
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A: Full HD (also called full Hi-Vision and full-spec Hi-Vision) is a display with enough pixels to display 1080i (1,920 horizontal and 1,080 vertical pixel) broadcast signals without scaling. 1080i is the Hi-Vision signal standard. To realize the full potential of Full HD, a television must also offer excellent color reproduction, tonality, motion adaptation, and viewing angle performance. With advances in flat displays and the growth of digital Hi-Vision broadcasts, even more attractive high-quality, big-screen television will become available for people’s viewing enjoyment. |
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Q: What kind of television is a plasma television? |
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A: A plasma television is a superb display device capable of outputting high-quality images from a large, thin screen. The chief difference between PDP and CRT televisions lies in the display mechanism. In a CRT, a single electron beam progressively scans the screen, while a PDP lights each pixel (the discharge element) independently. Because of this fundamental difference in construction, a CRT cabinet depth is proportional to its screen size: the larger the screen, the deeper it gets. Other problems with CRTs are out-of-focus pixels and distortion at screen edges due to electron-beam spreading. PDPs have the advantage of being slim and displaying images consistently from the center to the edges of the screen with no focusing or distortion concerns, since all pixels are completely independent. |
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Q: I’m worried about screen burn. |
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A: Screen burn was an issue with first-generation PDPs. The screen-burn resistance of PDPs today, however, is already equivalent to or better than that of cathode ray tubes thanks to advances in technology and the development of long-life phosphors and other materials. Therefore, PDPs do not suffer from screen burn in normal use. |
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