Samsung new plasmas do 3D much cheaper, maybe under$1000

[Silversurfer]

Looks like Samsung's 3D Blu-ray players aren't the only ones coming in cheaper versions, as it's unveiled the new 680 Series and 490 Series plasma HDTVs. Both were shown off in Korea yesterday, though the US website only features a product page for the 50-inch PN50C680 so far, showing off its 1080p specs and DLNA access. You will give up a few features from higher end plasmas, which add picture-in-picture, widgets, a higher contrast ratio and slimmer designs to the mix. The PN50C490's situation is a bit murkier, but FlatpanelsHD reports it will be the first 720p 3DTV of the current generation. With current series 4 plasmas retailing for around $720, it could also be the first flat 3D set to crack (or at least approach) the $1,000 barrier -- if you're willing to miss out on the extra pixels.

Update: A listing on ABC Warehouse shows the PN50C490 with a few specs plus $1,099 MSRP, but already up for preorder for just $989. Perfect for some PS3 gaming or ESPN3D watching, right? Of course, as a few commenters have mentioned, you can get a 60-inch 1080p projection 3D capable HDTV from Mitsubishi for even less, so that's hardly your only cheap 3D option. [Thanks, John Doe]




Engadget Korea
FlatpanelsHD

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[DmitryKo]

This is a good price point even for a 1024x768 plasma, hopefully this unit will be sold in Europe as well.

C680 looks more interesting though, since it should feature 1080p resolution, however the lack of any support for full-resolution 1080p60 gaming in current generation 3DTVs is just killing me.

[Addict3d]

Looks good for someone who's only going to play PS3D with the occasional 3D movie.

[tritosine5G]

Perhaps they noticed how subpar their older 3d vision plasma screens are with the 1366 * 768 * checkerboard ( duh) .

[Anthony1]

This is a good price point even for a 1024x768 plasma, hopefully this unit will be sold in Europe as well.

C680 looks more interesting though, since it should feature 1080p resolution, however the lack of any support for full-resolution 1080p60 gaming in current generation 3DTVs is just killing me.

I know that a lot of 42 inch plasmas have the 1024 x 768 resolution, but usually the 50 inchers have 1360 x 768. Are you saying that this new 50 incher is 1024 x 768? Isn't that a 4:3 resolution?

[DmitryKo]

I know that a lot of 42 inch plasmas have the 1024 x 768 resolution, but usually the 50 inchers have 1360 x 768. Are you saying that this new 50 incher is 1024 x 768?

You're probably right, 42" Samsung C430 and C450-series plasmas are 1024x768, however 50" C430 and C450-series are 1366x768, so 50" C490 is probably 1366x768 as well. I just presumed that the resolution should be the same across one series, however Samsung's marketing beat me to that.

Isn't that a 4:3 resolution?

No, it's an older wide-screen technology that uses non-square pixels; such resolutions were common in high-end plasmas 5-7 years ago until 1080p and square pixels caught up with them.