OTHER TECH

1080p Takes Over

HDTVs with full 1,920 x 1,080-pixel progressive-scan (1080p) resolution were the hot news at last year's CES. Predictably, TV makers spent 2005 prepping a full-scale 1080p rollout, with most companies introducing numerous models at this year's show.

PLASMA After a long wait, 1080p plasma HDTVs are finally coming! Pioneer's 50-inch Elite PureVision PRO-FHD1 ($10,000) will make a perfect mate for the company's Blu-ray Disc player when both arrive in stores this May. Panasonic's 65-inch 65PX500 - which is already on sale in Japan - was another head-turner at this year's CES. No price has been announced, but expect to pay upwards of ten grand when it materializes this fall. Other 1080p plasmas included Hitachi's 55-inch prototype and Samsung's 80-inch HP-R8082. Samsung claims that its behemoth 1080p flat panel will be on sale by the time you read this for a mere $150,000.

LCD Also making a strong showing were LCD sets with 1080p-rez screens, with new models from Sharp and Westinghouse - two companies that released 1080p LCDs in 2005. Sharp's 57-inch Aquos LC-57D90U (above left) will arrive in March for $16,000, while Westinghouse will start selling its 42-inch LVM-42w2 sometime this spring for a far more reasonable $2,799. Other 1080p LCD introductions included LG's 47LB1DRA, a 47-inch model with a built-in 160-GB hard-drive recorder (price to be determined, late spring), and a pair of 46-inchers from Sony and Samsung. Sony's $4,500 Bravia KDL-46S200 (above right) is slated to hit stores in May, with the $4,999 Samsung LN-S4696D arriving late summer.

HDTV Freak Show

My TV is bigger than yours! That implicit boast radiates from manufacturers' booths every year at CES, particularly from companies that make flat-panel TVs. While few of these jumbo screens ever arrive in stores, they make for a snazzy backdrop at press conferences as CEOs reveal their plans for world domination of the consumer-electronics market.

PECULIARLY LARGE PLASMAS Just when you thought plasma TVs couldn't get any bigger, Panasonic pulled a 103-inch screen (shown at right) out of the lab for CES. No price was mentioned, and I wouldn't expect to see this curiosity in stores anytime soon. Next to the Panasonic, Samsung's 102-inch plasma TV - another one-off prototype cranked out for the show - looked positively minuscule.

LCD ODDITIES Big LCDs are also part of the fun at CES, and Samsung proudly laid claim to the largest TV using the popular flat-panel technology. No price was given for the LN-S8281D, an 82-inch, 1080p-rez monster, but Samsung expects to have one ready to sell to Shaq by the end of 2006.