Special Report: Laser TV Here in a Year, Should You Care?

By Alice Hill
RealTechNews

Plasma was king until LCD got bigger and better. And just when you thought you could settle down in front of a huge LCD screen and enjoy some high-def peace of mind comes LaserTV. Developed by Novalux, LaserTV has this little calling card: it costs 50% less to produce, has double the color range, and uses 75% less power.

Technology has always been about faster and cheaper, and flat panel TVs have gone on nearly a death spiral of low pricing thanks to cheap manufacturing plants in Mexico and Asia and the ever-increasing leaps in component technology. Circuit City in fact just announced that it was cutting its higher-paid workforce due to razor-slim margins in big ticket electronics.

What Does This Mean?

So here is where LaserTV fits, in the big picture (so to speak.) LaserTV is a projection technology, so if you like micro-thin flat panels, this is not for you. The technology replaces the spinning UHP lamp in the back of projection DLP and LCD TVs with laser-beaming hardware. The lasers are faster and use less power, and they create a picture that side by side, has blown away the best plasma, projection and LCDs sets currently on the market.

Who Should Care?
Is your TV wall-mounted? Does it have to be? Consider this: I just purchased a DLP projection TV because the reviews on 50+ inch flat panel sets were mostly about problems. There was banding and clouding, and when I went to an actual store an looked at the 50 inch LCDs I could afford compared to the stunning Samsung 56 inch DLP set at nearly $900 less, I decided a slightly thicker TV set was not a deal breaker. (I keep my set on a stand, and the face looks like a flat panel from up front anyway.)

Will It Happen?
I am always wary of companies who do great demos but have no real takers to speak of. Novolux has been in talks with Sony and Mitsubishi and Sony has shown a LaserTV at trade shows, but to date, there is no formal announcement. The company claims is has signed some OEM deal and sets will be around in early 2008.

Bottom line: great technologies don’t always win, and this category is rapidly becoming a fight to the bottom, but man, to get my hands on a 72 inch unit with double the quality and a low price tag would not be a bad day. Source: DailyTech