Frustrating to demo Plasma

[mastiguy]

@Vishal:

I have found another link stated by Panasonic VP, that ZT 60 is the final version of them.

Panasonic Confirms That The ZT60 Will Be Their Last Plasma TV | Ubergizmo

 

[Swamy_HT]

LED may be the market champ, Show room may has less/no Plasma on display....etc

Any ordinary people will love the BRIGHTNESS & COLOR of LCD in the very bright lighting showroom. That is enough for them to take decision on buying.

IF YOU ARE A VIDEOPHILE, YOU WILL NEVER CHOOSE LCD TV. YOU WILL ALWAYS CHOOSE PLASMA.

IMO, VIDEOPHILES are minority group compared with overall population, which makes the LCD TV (I will never say it is LED TV) is the market champ..and sure the minority can not change the market.

 

[mastiguy]

Credit to Swarna Da who posted this in a separate thread just a while back ..

Panasonic buries rumors of plasma TV's death | Original Story | Taaza News

So, if this is indeed authentic it is time for Plasma lovers to cheer, back-slap each other and enjoy good PQ. However, let's be clear that Plasma will not survive unless it becomes financially viable to the manufacturers and us, the consumers.

Let us do our part to keep this tech alive. If you own one, talk to your friends/neighbors/family etc outside this forum making them aware about what Plasma is all about.
More importantly, put some pressure on your local dealer/retailer to stock more Plasma. Email/Write to Panny or Sammy to release more models and market the Plasma more. Get those retailers out of their lazy a**es and get them to stock a different product for a different consumer.

I'm not saying Plasma is better than LED - each has their own target audience but let both be served well.

@Vishal: The article which you have shared is of Apr 12th' 13. I have also found 2 more articles, in which they have mentioned that Display Vice President Kiyoshi Okamoto told The Verge his company is now focusing on OLED technology. The company considers OLED to be a 'key future product' and is trying to figure out how to make the tech profitable.

Please find the below reference links

Panasonic Officially Halts Plasma R&D | NextPowerUp

Panasonic stops plasma to focus on OLED | Advanced Television

I wish some one from the Top Mgmt puts an halt to all the rumors.

 

[just4kix]

Next year we may not see Panasonic plasma in India. Even Samsung plasma will be a question mark.

 

[Dirac]

Ah. That is a bad news.
My plans to get vt60 from Australia did not workout.
So I am again planning to get it from US.
Is it safe to get a 55 inch from US?
I mean will it land here in one piece?
It is 140 pounds I.e around 46 kg?
Will airliners accept such big package?
I know I have to pay 35 percent tax.

Thanks.

 

[Dhanan]

Very risky to carry Plasmas. Read somewhere that they have to be carried in an upright position only. Also cracking the internal glass is very possible which may not be immediately apparent but becomes visible later on.

 

[just4kix]

Ah. That is a bad news.
My plans to get vt60 from Australia did not workout.
So I am again planning to get it from US.
Is it safe to get a 55 inch from US?
I mean will it land here in one piece?
It is 140 pounds I.e around 46 kg?
Will airliners accept such big package?
I know I have to pay 35 percent tax.

Thanks.

Airlines will charge a bomb for transport. The frieght charges + customs will make the set too costly. Then again, the set will be NTSC/110V/60Hz. IMHO, it is not worth and I wouldn't import myself. But it is your decision.

 

[prosenjit]

imho some shops keep imported items which models are not officially avilabe here...
and provide seller warranty.
you must try these shops..

 

[Dirac]

imho some shops keep imported items which models are not officially avilabe here...
and provide seller warranty.
you must try these shops..

Can you please suggest some.
Thanks.

 

[prosenjit]

sorry no idea about hyderabad..you can use just dial..
btw in kolkata..from promises shop..a member bought VT series panasonic few years ago..

 

[audio_passionate]

I am in the market for a high-end HDTV (Plasma or SONY W) and it is really frustrating to find and demo the high-end plasma TV's especially Panasonic but even Samsung.

It seems Panny has really dropped the ball of retail marketing and distribution! I just cannot find any ST50, ST60 or other high end models to demo. Even the Croma and Vijay Sales have 1 or 2 old and poorly displayed Plasma models from Panny and Samsung. The moment you mention Plasma, they just lose interest in you. Even the F5500 Plasma is hard to find.

The Panny Brandshop in Mumbai are pathetic probably bcoz poor brand value of Panny and retail costs in Mumbai. I called up 2 of them and they barely have any ST50 or ST60 models. All they say is "i can arrange it if you pay".

There is no way I will pay 1 Lac or more without serious demo of the TV's. Panny should take a leaf out of Sony's book - I am amazed at SONY's marketing. Their W series is nicely laid out and easily available at most retailers plus SONY Center's are easily accessible and well staffed.

Really struggling to find good Plasma and might just decide to buy a Sony LED.

As far as my knowledge only 10 people out of 100 are audiophile. Only audiophile person can understand the importance of a good plasma. Most people are buying LCD/LED'S due to trend/ style/ space problem..generally (90%) they dont know what is black level. They just like brighter and colourful picture. I have seen lot of my known persons who have 40'' or 46'' or even 50" inches LED/LCD and they just watch normal cable TV or standard set box and picture quality in such case is pathetic. Its better to watch such type of content on a good 21" CRT. And market is run by Demand and supply rule. If there is very few few( almost nill) demand, who will dare to risk for different models of Plasma's. I went to a Panasonic Dealer in my city ( Karnal) and the Sales persons literally had any information regarding ST50/ ST60 plasma series. And second thing Panasonic is very poor in marketing and distribution. I think they should take some lesson from L.G and Samsung regarding the marketing strategies.