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When Too Big Isn’t Big Enough

When Too Big Isn

We all know there are some people who can’t get enough television…but, really, maybe they just haven’t checked out Panasonic’s latest offerings. At this year’s Consumer Electronics Show the company rolled out a mammoth 150-inch plasma display. Although displays of this size are intended more for business and commercial theater installations rather than in-home setups…we imagine just the rumors of such a device had some people wondering if it could be used to replace a load-bearing wall.

Sporting a 4,096 by 2,160 native resolution—that’s almost nine million pixels—the prototype display measures 150 inches diagonally, equivalent to about nine 50-inch plasma displays. The display follows up on Panasonic’s 103-inch plasma shown last year, and which has proven a surprising success amongst industrial and public facilities customers. (We’ve even heard about a few in-home installs.) The 150-inch unit will no doubt appeal to, um, an even bigger niche. The displays feature new phosphors, new circuit designs, and new cell designs that offer brighter, thinner displays with lower power consumption: Panasonic wants customers to know plasma technology is still in its infancy, and its expects many significant advances ahead.

So…next year. Any bets on a 200-inch set?

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
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