Philips has provided us with details of a new range of integrated digital flat panel TVs lovingly crafted from LCD and Plasma technology. Of the range only one model is not HD Ready (the 42PF5520 plasma) and all feature S-Video and twin Scart inputs plus a handy DVI-Input that lets you double up your telly as a PC monitor. A “trio of picture enhancing technologies” Digital Crystal Clear, Active Control and Light Sensor systems are also standard in each model and sound is improved using Virtual Dolby Surround.
The cheapest of the range are the PF5520D LCD screens, available in 26, 32 and 37” sizes. These feature XGA 1,366 x 768 resolution, but for the price drop you lose the Pixel Plus image processing and the Pulse Killer Chips found in the flagship 32” and 42” PF7520D LCDs. Pixel Plus enhances the clarity of the images as you can imagine, but the Pulse Killer Chip is a little more interesting as it serves to reduce interference and impulse noise caused by domestic appliances and passing cars. The 32PF7520 is capable of 1,366 x 768 resolution, the 42” can achieve 1,024 x 768 using XGA technology. These LCDs are available now for prices ranging from £999 for the 26PF5520, £1,399 for the 32PF5520D and £1,699 for the 37PF5520. The enhanced 32 and 42” PF7520s cost £1,599 and £1,899 respectively but the 42PF7520 won’t be out until August.
Moving on to the Plasma range, apart from the 42PF5520 - the only non-HD model, which is laughably described as “entry-level”, the two other plasmas feature all the goodies one could want for a living room. The ALiS 1,024 x 1,024 pixel 42PF9967D and XGA 1,366 x 768 pixel 50PF9967D plasma TVs each sport Pixel Plus 2 technology as well as the unique Philips Ambilight system. For those unfamiliar with Ambilight, it is a device that makes your TV produce a warm soothing glow that is proven to reduce eyestrain and can lull you into a comatose state normally only achieved through prescription medication abuse and will ensure that as you lay zombified on the couch the ordinary worries of modern life can no longer interfere with your viewing experience. Well, perhaps that’s an exaggeration, but apparently it will create “a unique lighting effect which enhances the décor of any room” unless you’re a goth I guess. Finally Philips has introduced Digital Natural Motion, which applies motion compensation to moving images to dramatically reduce the effects of judder, image lag and blurring, which can occur as a result of the large resolutions of these tellys. The plasmas weigh in at £2,999 and £3,999 for the 42 and 50” PF9967D models and these beauties are available now.
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