Audio Video News

Runco International has begun shipping two new widescreen plasma display panels (PDPs) incorporating the company’s "Vivix" video-scaling technology. The 43"-diagonal CW-43MC and the 50" CW-50MC feature inboard processing cards with Runco's highly regarded scaling and image processing capabilities. The CW-43MC sells for $9995 and the CW-50MC for $13,995.

Vivix circuitry performs "orthogonal line processing and deinterlacing" to improve color saturation, detail, gray scale linearity, brightness and contrast, without "many of the visible artifacts of other panels on the market," according to a July press release. Vivix processing improves source regardless of their source, either film or video, Runco claims.

The company's proprietary "Active Grayscale Rendering" is said to "maintain smooth, progressive transitions within darker to lighter picture areas, producing depth of textures and shadow detail."

At a depth of only 4.5", both PDPs offer very good resolution. The CW-43MC is rated at 1024 x 768, and the CW-50MC at 1280 x 768. Both displays can handle all HDTV formats, via component inputs or a DVI-HDCP jack for use with 480p sources. An RS-232 port permits control via computer or integrated system controller. IR remote control is standard, of course. The new models lend themselves easily to custom installation, according to Runco.