Fujitsu PDS-4209 42" Plasma Flat-Panel TV
Thinking Plasma?
I had actually planned to buy a rear projection tv (hdtv, 16:9, etc), but plasma screen prices have come down quite a bit lately making it competitive with rear projection....<br />Anyway, back to Fujitsu. The 4209 is a fairly good screen, although the technology is 2-3 years old.  And they are literally screens since they don't have a built in tuner or audio.  You need to supply an external tuner (cable or satellite box) and a home theatre system to get this up and running.  Something to consider.  <br />For those needing the tuner and audio, the PDS4229 is a better choice.  The 4209 is more of a corporate/trade show type monitor rather than a consumer home theatre monitor.  Also, while the 4209 is hdtv compatible, they don't have the 3:2 rollup feature, as in other later models, to down convert from 16:9 to the current 4:3 screen aspect ratio.  Another consideration point.  <br />Plasma screens can also have some setup work to properly distinguish the input source (dvd, sat, vcr, cable, pc) and display the proper color settings.  The majority of the time, the setup is automatic though.  <br />Finally, mostly all plasma screens have problems generating \\"a good black\\" color like for night time or space movie background scenes.  Instead, of displaying black, the plasma screens display more of a dark, dark, gray due to the plasma gas still being electrically charged.  Because of the constant charging of the plasma cells, the lifetime of the TV is estimated at 20,000-25,000 hours (at this point 50% of the plasma has been discharged).  If this bothers you, you might want to stick with direct view or projection.     <br />In conclusion, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  Plasma can offer one of the best, brightest pictures around, but there are some drawbacks as with anything.  And with anything in technology, the prices can only go lower over time.