Are Plasmas a Doomed TV Technology?

No

As I see it, the only explanation for Plasma panels to take a back seat to LCD’s in sales is due to the lack of knowledge of salespeople in big box stores. The simple fact remains that most TV’s out of the box have their contrast and picture adjustments cranked so they appear brighter. Why? Because big box store salespeople put panels on display without any calibration or adjustments. Why? Because they are either too stupid to make fine adjustments,(I’m not asking or would expext ISF calibration),or too lazy to do so. Thus, when Plasma and LCD panels are displayed side by side, an LCD TV will always be brighter, and that’s what John Q. Public will purchase.

It’s no different than consumers that make speaker purchase decisions after a 1 minute comparison/demonstration between brands. The speakers that immediately have more bass and are louder/more efficient, will sell over a more refined and detailed product. If that was not the case, many brands such as JBL, (Junky But Loud), Klipsch, (give me 1 watt and you’ll be saying “what” because the horn tweeters just ruined you inner ear), would never have such a large market share.

Granted, both Plasma and LCD panels have their own strengths and weaknesses. However, anyone with a trained eye will always choose a plasma due to deep blacks, no motion lag, and off axis viewing.

It is truly a shame that Pioneer is leaving video behind because in my opinion, (and most reviewers agree), they make the finest flat panel money can buy.

Yet, there is still hope out there for Plasma sales to increase. As we watch more big box stores go out of business, the public will be forced to seek out true professionals and finally get the correct information. It’s time to “thin out the herd” with untrained salespeople.

What was the point of this “newsletter”.  I thought news was supposed to bring readers [new] information.

Kind of sad that one plasma maker with a small market share leaves and a website like this is yelling doom and that the world is going to end. lame

And no, plasmas will not go anywhere if the consumers decide they want plasmas.  I figured this was common sense, but some people in this world don’t have common sense. heh

Anyone with a “trained eye” won’t necessarily always choose plasma. A non-commissioned sales guy at a local store, who is a home theater buff, told me he preferred the picture of the Samsung A750 LCD over his Pioneer plasma. Each TV technology has it’s own strengths and weaknesses. Many people like the brighter, punchier (and often sharper, more detailed) look of an LCD TV versus a plasma. That look may not be “properly calibrated” but in the end, people like what they like; it’s subjective. Calibrating a set is about making the measurements of the light coming from the set conform to a particular set of standards. But judging beauty is subjective. Saying that there’s a “correct” set of tastes when it comes to judging a TV’s picture is pretty elitist.

And plasmas DON’T always have better black levels than LCDs. Yes, the very best plasma, Pioneer Elite Kuro, has better black levels than the best LCDs (as well all other plasmas). But some LCDs, such as the Samsung A650, A750, A850, and especially the LED-backlit A950, have better black levels than many plasmas, including some from Panasonic. And black level isn’t the end-all be-all of a good picture.

This is sort of a pointless question as all technology is eventually is doomed, simply the nature of the beast.  What’s the best for each individual depends largely on subjective opinion, but for me (and many) Pioneer Elite plasmas are still unmatched in so many important aspects that LCD doesn’t yet make sense (but it will in a year or two after they fix black levels and off—axis viewing)

I hope they don’t go away.  I used to be a plasma hater or LCD fanboy until I became educated on the benefits of plasma TVs and burn in issues are no longer an issue (provided you don’t abuse your TV). I was a Sony XBR (I own a 40” XBR1) fan until I had purchased an XBR4 and was shocked by how poor the viewing angle was.  The XBR1 has a much wider viewing angle.  I first thought I had a bad set and returned 3 of them before deciding a large size LCD would not cut it for me.  I of course heard great things about the Pioneer Kuro’s and decided to save up and get a plasma. I could not believe I was buying a plasma.  I have to say that I love my Kuro so much I have placed an order for a second after I heard the news about Pioneer exiting the industry.  I have become a firm believer in the plasma tech.  I guess OLED is the next up and coming tech, but affordable large sets are years down the road.

Funny thing is when I go to the Big Box stores to scope out the latest T.V.s I have never had a sales person “push” LCD on me. From my perspective the high end plasmas with their great picture is just to “high end” price wise for then average consumer to justify. Come on! 6k for a T.V.! LOL

To dave stevens:  I find your post offensive.  for you to imply that the people who work for bix box retailers are stupid, un-professional, or whatever else you may think really shows the kind of person you are sir.

The fact is dave, it just depends on who you talk to.  Doesn’t matter if it’s a bix box store or a small business, there will be people who are more knowledgable than others.  You should get your questions from more than one person or simply do your homework. 

Next time please don’t be so judgmental to others especially when it comes to work.

I wonder, if the only jobs on the market available were at a big box store if dave would work for one for a source on income?  Probably not because he thinks people who work there are stupid.  enough said.

BingO SteveO.  Not sure if any of you have visited a “big box” store lately, but plasma prices are just too high for the average TV consumer, and the market suggests that this will not change in the coming years, making the plasma a niche market.

Many people see LCD as the technology to have, I mean chances are they have a monitor on their computer that is LCD or a laptop.  Since they have that LCD monitor I’m sure they are happy with its performance as well.  Then you have the glare, weight and price difference of Plasmas compared to LCD’s and to some people these are big issues.  It’s obvious many consumers know little to nothing about these technologies because most of them go into both Big Box retailers and professional Home Audio and Video stores and ask questions.  They go into the stores and see multiple TV’s and they go for what they believe looks best and THEN they ask questions.  They believe a $90 cable is going to give them a better picture then a $20 cable and that the Upconvert DVD player they have will give them an HD picture.

LCD is cheaper to make, easier to market and is a technology that is everwhere (cell phones, car stereos, computers, ATM machines, Check out centers etc etc).  The real question is not “Is Plasma a Doomed TV” it’s “Is Plasma still competitive for the average consumer”.

Plasma manufactures tried to give the technology a push not that long ago because of the consumer trends towards LCD.  If Plasma manufactures can continue to lower prices you wont see articles such as this in the future.

I thouhght that there were just reports in the other week that Panasonic owned something like 78% of the 1080p market share in 2008.

It is not true that all large plasmas are priced too high.  That really is only the case for Pioneer.  I just bought a 46” Panny Plasma for ~$1000 (which IMO runs second best to Pioneer in the plasma market) and in order to get similar performance in an LCD….you have to pay $1500-$2000.

Pioneer does not spell the beginning on an end for plasma IMO. Pioneer video products were always marketed for a more select audience, at least the pricing would suggest that.
Perhaps, not at the level of a Runco, Vidikron, or Fujitsu Plasmavision, but certainly closer to those in performance.
This alone set Pioneer sales numbers well below the Panasonics, Samsungs, and others. I don’t see the direct connection. Pioneer could disappear tomorrow and every other plasma would continue to sell.
The top plasmas are looking very good indeed. Better black levels will come in time, and at a lower cost.
True, LCD has come a long way too. But the best put out by Sony & Samsung are not inexpensive compared to their plasma counterparts.
If anything knocks plasma off the grid, it will be LCD, not Pioneer missing from the scene. Pioneer is leaving because they are not structured to compete at the levels the other manufacturers who are turning out continually improving products at lower costs. Last year it was Fijitsu, the handwriting is on the wall.

Unfortunetely….in this economic thing were going through, not many could really afford a Plasma over an LCD. LCD are way cheaper out there and people just want a decent Flat Panel TV these days because they are nice and don’t take up much space. I myself just purchased a 50” Panasonic 85U and glad I did coming from an LCD, that is just my opinion.

Wow, lots of uninformed nonsense in both this article and in the comments.

1) The only plasma’s priced out of the reach of the general consumer are Pioneer! Yet if you go to the same level of LCD which is the Samsung 950 LED-LCD or Sony XBR8 LED-LCD you’ll find they’re MORE expensive than the Kuro plasma’s. Compare any other similarly featured LCD to a Samsung or Panasonic plasma and you’ll find the plasma’s are cheaper per inch for big screens. For any “cheap LCD” you can find you can find a plasma that’s just as cheap or cheaper - take the TH-42PX80U from Panasonic for example, usually at $600~$800.

2) Yes, it is a fact that the majority of big box store employees are clueless on matters of technology. We hear all the time how the $20 no-name HDMI cable “won’t give you all the audio” or “won’t do 120Hz” or some other misinformed nonsense.

3) Pioneer has 1% of the plasma market - 1%. How anyone can possibly deduce that plasma is on its last legs because they pulled out of their sub-million unit/year venture is bizarre. Oh but wait, the article states plasma shipments are down!! So….

4) Plasma shipments are actually up quarter over quarter and year over year. Here’s the proof that this article seemed to miss:

Q2 2008 vs. Q2 2007 plasma sales:
...for 1080p (Full HD) models…a very impress(ive) 54% increase when compared to the number of units sold in the second quarter of 2007

Display Search said global 1080p panel shipments saw a significant increase thanks to new 46” models and 1080p share gains in 42” and 50” size categories, leading to a an overall increase in 1080p volume of 89% in the quarter and 333% from a year earlier. Plasma 1080p panels now account for one in five (21%) PDP panels sold.

Year over year totals
Panasonic - 23% year over year growth
Samsung - 49% year over year growth
LG - 38% year over year growth

Display Search July-24-2008
Plasma display panel (PDP) shipment growth was quite strong in Q2’08, increasing 54% Y/Y to 3.5 million units, the third straight quarter of 50% Y/Y growth

Hdtv-news UK
5-Nov-2008
According to research firm, DisplaySearch, cost cutting on high definition Plasma TVs pushed sales up 37% in the third quarter to 4.2 million units.

Display Search
Nov-11-2008
LCD and plasma TV shipments were the strongest, rising 21% and 20% Y/Y respectively