Plasma TV boosts Gateway picture - (42 " HDTV flat-panel display for $3,000)

When Richard Doherty learned that Gateway, the build-to-order computer maker, was introducing a 42-inch plasma television for the holidays, he thought, "Oh, that'll be a good adjunct to their stores."

When he found out the Poway company would sell the giant flat-panel display for $3,000, Doherty thought, "Oh my God. They're going to change everything."

Though precise sales numbers on the plasma TV haven't been released, it's apparent that the computer maker has scored a coup – at least with analysts like Doherty.

Perhaps more importantly, Gateway might now have a product with the potential for sales growth not seen since the mid-1990s, when runaway personal computer sales drove double-digit revenue growth for the company.

As new government standards for broadcasting digital TV signals go into effect in coming years, some analysts predict the demand for plasma TVs could grow by 70 percent a year through 2008.

"We are constantly looking at the type of new product categories that made us so successful in the PC business," said Gateway's Gui Kahl, a digital solutions manager who guided the plasma TV launch.

In terms of current sales, Kahl and other Gateway officials will say only that holiday sales of the new TV have been running "significantly ahead" of their own internal forecast, whatever that may be.

Yet market researchers like Doherty, who works for the Envisioneering Group of Seaford, N.Y., say they're impressed, and that's a yuletide blessing for Gateway, which has been struggling to shake off losses for the past two years.

"The $3,000, 42-inch plasma TV turned a lot of heads here at Aberdeen and in the marketplace," echoed Peter Kastner, who heads the Boston-based Aberdeen Group's digital consumer technology practice. "The reason is the price point, plain and simple."

With Gateway's plasma TV priced at $2,999, analysts said the company is underselling similar-sized products by 30 percent to 50 percent.

The new TV uses plasma – a mixture of gases – arrayed in tiny gas-filled cells sandwiched between two thin sheets of glass. Using advanced electronics, an electrical current stimulates each cell, or pixel, to produce light and color – creating a vivid, steady picture.

Gateway does not make the flat-panel TV – which is thin enough to hang on a wall – and some analysts believe the original supplier is Sampo of Taiwan. In any event, the timing of Gateway's entry was impeccable.

"Retailers are telling us the Gateway entry this fall has cut in half the sales of similar-sized plasma TVs on both coasts," Doherty said.

Doherty also was enthusiastic about the consistent approach Gateway takes in educating consumers about digital TV on its Web site and in the company's nationwide chain of 272 stores.

Unlike big box consumer electronics retailers, Gateway also ensures that the digital electronic products it sells will work together when consumers get home.

"The second-biggest problem for high-definition TV in America, after confusion over cable and broadcast standards, has been the horrible experiences at consumer electronics retail stores," Doherty said. "Gateway makes sure that everything plays together."

In the last three months of 2002, Doherty estimates, total sales of plasma TVs in the United States could reach 25,000 – equivalent to all previous plasma TV sales. Gateway "clearly stands a chance to get up to 20 percent of that," Doherty added.

Still, other analysts caution those are small numbers – even for a high-priced product.

"It is a 'wow' item, and as prices come down, they will become more popular," said Michelle Abraham, a multimedia analyst for In-Stat/MDR near Phoenix. "But I don't see where they ever move into the mainstream in the next 10 years. It's always going to be more expensive than a comparably sized TV."

Josh Bernoff of Boston-based Forrester Research agreed, saying, "Even at $2,999, there aren't very many people willing to buy" the product.

He also doubts that sales of plasma TVs will come anywhere close to 70 percent compounded annual growth.

Nevertheless, Bernoff conceded that Gateway's sales approach can be an advantage as consumers who want their own home theaters "get into that zone where it gets complicated to hook up."

Besides, Bernoff added, "one of the reason retailers have big, fancy expensive products is that it gets people into the store so they can see all the other neat, fancy equipment that's on sale."

In the end, Bernoff said, Gateway's tactic makes sense for a company that is heavily dependent on consumer sales.

"They're just looking for other stuff they can sell," he said. "Clearly anyone who only sells computers is going to have trouble right now, and diversification is the only solution."

First question, even if I have a LCD screen with an over-head projector, how do I get a HDTV receiver to display on the LCD screen? Is this something I plug into my computer?

The LCD screen is just a monitor -- it's an alternate form of "TV" technology.

There are various ways to produce an image on a screen for you to see, including CRT (this used to be the only type of TV screen), projection, LCD, and plasma.

If you have a projection system, you don't need an LCD screen, and vice versa (unless you want *two* screens to watch for some reason).

Once you have a screen (of whatever type) to watch, then you hook it up to some video source (DVD player, VCR, cable box, etc.) by just plugging it in to your "video out" cable from your DVD/VCR/etc.

It's really no more complicated than that. Don't let some people (*cough*) make it sound more complex than it is.

Although there are of course further considerations, like how to choose *which* technology to get based on your requirements and wallet, etc., and the wiring can get trickier if you're feeding multiple video sources into the same monitor, and what sort of audio you want, and so on.

And you don't need a computer involved at all unless you're trying to cut corners and use the computer to perform some portion of the activity so that you don't have to buy a dedicated component (like using the computer's DVD tray so you don't need to buy a standalone DVD player).

As for HDTV, if you have a standalone HDTV receiver, you'll need a monitor of some sort which can handle the higher resolution of the HDTV picture, or else it sort of defeats the purpose. Playing an HDTV signal on a monitor that has "regular" TV resolution will result in a picture pretty much like "regular" TV, if you can even get it to work at all.

THX is little more than a standard of quality that a piece of gear must attain to get their "seal of approval"....like Good Housekeeping.

ie. a sub must go down so low and so loud for so long a time at a certain level of distortion....

An amp must be able to generate a certain wattage into a certain load and still be stable etc.

There are electronics that exceed THX standards, but elect not to pay for the licensing of the sticker.

For the most part, THX is noting more than a cash producing machine for George Lucas.

Now THX speakers are another story as they have to conform to a certain dispersion pattern (with waves hitting neither the floor, nor the ceiling). While GREAT for movies, it is detrimental (for the most part) for music. That is one reason that the really serious (and well-heeled) audiophile will have TWO systems in his house. A Home Theater and a dedicated stereo.

With the advent of SACD (Super Audio Compact Disc) and/or DVD Audio with high resolution 5.1 recordings (along with future speakers that will have built-in microphones and high speed digital "equalizers" to "listen" to itself and adjust to room conditions) this will change.

BTW...the room that equipment is in determines 70% of how a system sounds. I can take a properly adjusted $2000 system in a 'good' room and blow away a $40,000 setup in a two story atrium family room.

OK then...what was your point? I guess you have problems either getting to the point or that you have problems being clear. Please... do make your point clearly...and it better be germane to the subject of the thread (and not ad hominem attacks on Confucius and Mohammad).

"Attacks on Confuscious and Mohammad"?? *sigh* Please, try to *read* what I wrote before attempting to critique it.

The amusing soap label I posted wasn't "attacking" either of those folks, it was actually honoring them (although admittedly pretty incoherently). But even as hard to read as it was, how could you mistake the phrase "Mohammed's wisdom" as an *attack* on Mohammed, especially when it was described as having "united all mankind"? That's no "attack".

Here's a post I was in the middle of composing in response to your post #164, wherein you again accused me of being "racist". I'll post it here instead since it answers your questions:

I have enough common sense to NOT post racist diatribe like your completely non germane garbage about Mohammad and Confucius..

Oooookay...

The moderators (correctly) removed your first accusation against me of "racism" when I punched the "abuse" button on you, since it was COMPLETELY unfounded. You're either suffering from extremely poor reading comprehension, or you're a fan of playing the "race card" when your feelings get hurt. Neither option inspires confidence.

However, in trying to keep the peace the moderators also removed my original comment to you since it triggered your temper tantrum -- obviously you're incapable of dealing with a little negative criticism without blowing a gasket.

Normally I'd be glad to end it there. But unfortunately you chose to repeat the disgusting charge of "racism", and now unlike before people are unable to look for themselves to determine whether it's justified, or whether you're being a loon. Since the original post was deleted, it would only make people wonder whether that was the reason it was deleted. It was not.

So to defend my reputation against your repeated slur, here again is my original post which sent you into orbit:

I agree with you. Bonesmcoy's communication skills is daunting. Many here are trying to figure out what he's trying to say.
Don't mistake "hard to read" for "must be over your head".
Bonesmcoy's posts are hard to read not because he's being technical, they're hard to read because he doesn't write properly and clearly. He writes like he's had a few too many gallons of coffee. In fact, his posts often remind me of the labels on Dr. Bronner's soaps:

There's nothing "racist" about that, son. Any "racism" you see there originates solely from your own mind. It's just someone being loopy (or writing while stoned, perhaps). Not only is it not "racist", but it doesn't really say much of *any* sort. It's like the sort of nonsense you get out of those "random rant" computer programs. That's what makes it so funny.

Clue for the clueless: I pointed out that you don't write "properly and clearly", and I stand by that statement. And I'm hardly the only one to comment on the turgidity of your prose this thread. I was moderately polite about it, although I understand that you may not appreciate hearing it -- but it's not like I was accusing you of cannibalism. If you can't deal with it, find a more constructive (and logically coherent) way of venting your rage than just accusing me of racism.

Clue for the clueless #2: I provided a piece (the original is *much* larger) from one of the Dr. Bronner's soap labels for:

1. Amusement. People have been giggling about these things for decades now. They're a pop-culture phenomenon, like "all your base are belong to us", and for much the same reason (e.g. funny incoherence). See, for example, here. Or check out the Dr. Bronner's website, they're pretty proud of their labels.

2. Comparison. Some of your posts really *do* remind me of the (in)famous Dr. Bronner's soap labels. Your choppy sentences, sudden shifts, and verbal shorthand often give the stylistic effect of Bronner's labels. Sorry if that freaks you out so much, but I got a chuckle out of it, I thought other people might too.

Is it Bronner's, or is it bonesmcoy? [excerpts]:

KISS HOLLYWIERDO'S GOOD BYE!
Citizen Vigilante Reporting teams are around the next fiscal year.
God bless MSFT and the GTW guys.
Bottom line is clear.
The display can be big. It's the camera that counts.
DV is the way to go. The Calif. Freepers are on top of it.
Picture image at night time is 14 diagonal projected on a big flat white wall.
Snuggle bunny with loved one (who puts up with your expensive habit) only to discover she converts your home theatre with one VCR input into a giant Home and Garden Channel display (AUUUUGHHHH!)
Alienware looks a little souped up for need.
Dude, here's more.
After the MSFT ad was on, I switched back to Tony Snow (THHHHPTTHHHTT! to the Eisner camp).
"Singin' in the Rain"

Exceptions eternally? Absolutely none!

Look, I'm not saying that you don't provide useful information, only that it's sometimes hard to read because it's written "shorthand", and that it amusingly reminds me of the wild Dr. Bronner's labels.

Grow up.

Get a sense of humor and switch to decaf.

[end of in-progress post]

I hope that clears things up.

As for being "germane to the subject of the thread", the subject of the readability of your posts already *was* one of the (several) subjects of the thread when I chimed in. I didn't make an issue of it out of the blue.

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