Panasonic's latest 103-inch 1080p plasma: step aside oil barons, this one's headed home

Hard to believe but Panasonic just introduced its third generation 103-inch plasma just in time for IFA. Model TH-103PZ800 adds a few more HDMI (4x 1080/24p) jacks with Deep Color and x.v.Color support, a smattering of tuners, a 10,000:1 contrast, and VIERA Link compatibility to ease the connectivity of all your like-minded, Panny gear. In fact, this set looks primed for home-use, not just the businesses and trust-funders targeted by Panny's previous monster sets. Ready for order on August 26th (shipping in September for Japan) for ¥5.6 million or a bit more than $50k -- a steep, $20k price drop since February. But at 7-feet wide and nearly 6-feet tall you'll be paying a bit extra for professional installation to keep this 756-pound (343-kg) beast off your toes and out of your milkshake.

[Via Impress]

[Homeboy @ Aug 26th 2008 3:56AM]

Planning my first ever TV purchase I spent last week walking into department stores on Oxford Street to take a look at Samsung's 37 inch offerings. Stepping into John Lewis I went to the top floor where the Audio/Visual department was and to my surprise I stumbled on a 103 inch Panasonic plasma hanging on the wall. My jaw simply dropped and suddenly my potential Samsung 37 inch TV looked microscopic. I've you've seen a 50 inch TV and think a 103 inch one is just twice as big then you're wrong. The screen was the size of a bloody wall and I suspect you'd need a fork lift or 8 guys to get it inside a house, that is if it even fits inside your house.

[spinner @ Aug 26th 2008 4:08AM]

"I've you've seen a 50 inch TV and think a 103 inch one is just twice as big then you're wrong."

Well, of course you'd be wrong. A 100" screen is 4 times bigger than a 50".

[LondonConsultant @ Aug 26th 2008 6:14AM]

Lucky it wasn't back-projected, or it'd be 20 times bigger than a 50"...

[ShadowKain @ Aug 26th 2008 6:21PM]

Last time I* checked 50 * 2 is 100. What are you smoking.

[ShadowKain @ Aug 26th 2008 6:30PM]

last comment at spinner

[Joseph @ Aug 26th 2008 7:13PM]

Last time I checked, 50" vs. 103" is the diagonal measurement, making the measurements the hypotenuse of half the screen.

Therefore, a 15" screen is 1/4 the size of a 30" screen.

And you know what really pisses me off? When someone who has no clue what they're talking about tries to sound smart [which you didn't] and insult the person who actually does know what they're talking about. By the way, I'm in 11th grade.

If you don't know what you're talking about, and you try to learn, that's fine, but you if you act like a smart a, shut the heck up.

[Ladderless @ Aug 26th 2008 7:19PM]

I do agree that 50*2=100, but you have to remember that this is not a one dimensional line.

You need Four (Yes, count 'em, four) 50-inch TVs to equal the area of a 100-inch TV. Two across and two high.

I'd say that if you need 4 50" TVs to equal the viewing area of one 100" TV, then the 100-inch TV is, in fact, four times the size.

You owe Spinner an apology.

[kerr @ Aug 26th 2008 5:09AM]

Finally, a television that can take an entire family on the Daniel Day-Lewis moustache ride.

[EMaster @ Aug 26th 2008 4:19AM]

OMG *puts this TV on the "What to buy if I win the lottery" list

Imagine watching porn on that thing?

[Mustaine @ Aug 26th 2008 5:28AM]

You wouldn't need to. Surely you could invite a woman over to watch movies with you on this thing!

[Si @ Aug 26th 2008 6:48AM]

Oh Mustaine, such a sweet comment to make. I hope you get that date!

[Marq @ Aug 26th 2008 8:57AM]

I'm thinking porn would be disgusting on this thing. Hell, I think the first time I saw one of these "adult flicks" in HD, I almost threw up...and that was on a 42 inch plasma. A 103" screen would probably turn me asexual.

[Rafael Illan @ Aug 26th 2008 9:16PM]

Halo night,smash bro night or restince night anyone?

[CubeGuy @ Aug 26th 2008 4:26AM]

Out of my...milkshake? D=

[reverov @ Aug 26th 2008 7:54AM]

I DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URjeS5-NaXY

[MyPackage @ Aug 26th 2008 10:59AM]

I Drink It Up!

[xValentine @ Aug 26th 2008 4:34AM]

Now give me The Dark Knight blu-ray movie and a popcorn and I'm all set.

[ben @ Aug 26th 2008 4:39AM]

with a screen 103" big, you could easily see all 1080 horizontal rows of pixels, if you stood remotely close to it.
i can even see individual pixels without much effort when looking closely at a 40" plasma, but at something 2.5x the size those pixels will have heaps of room between them.
Even better would be to have the resolution of the super HD thing that Japan's creating at the moment on there, that would be truly …
but still, imagine playing PS3 on that beast, that would be so good!

[Homeboy @ Aug 26th 2008 5:57AM]

"with a screen 103" big, you could easily see all 1080 horizontal rows of pixels, if you stood remotely close to it."

Yeah, cause all customers buying this TV will be installing it in their crampe dorm room watching it from an arm lenght's distance.

[iSmoke,therefore emit death by breathing @ Aug 26th 2008 1:32PM]

if i get to play COD4 on that thing....my friends wouldn't recognize me after a week of non-stop gaming,it would be Epic!

[ShadowKain @ Aug 26th 2008 6:20PM]

Last time I* checked 50 * 2 is 100. What are you smoking.

[Mo @ Aug 26th 2008 4:43AM]

Oh man, the Dark Knight blu-ray and that tv...I have to go change

[Jaime Rivera @ Aug 26th 2008 4:59AM]

how far would you need to stand/sit to be able to watch this ginormous screen without hurting your neck or feeling dizzy? Obviously, if you can afford this, you have the room to place it and be able to watch it comfortably.

[Macro @ Aug 26th 2008 2:40PM]

You'd have to sit about 16 feet away from it. I'd still rather have a projector you can have like 300"

[lukasz @ Aug 26th 2008 5:14AM]

jesus. Youtube videos must look amazing on that thing :D

[Gordon Page @ Aug 26th 2008 5:40AM]

...... projector, save $45k.

[kal326 @ Aug 26th 2008 9:40AM]

@Gordon Page
No joke, for 50k you could set up one sweet ass home theater setup and still have probably a good 10k or more left over.

[Mr. Ford @ Aug 26th 2008 12:20PM]

No comparison. You have to see this thing to believe it. There isn't a projector on the market that can get close to this picture quality. Not to mention that you can watch this thing during the day without the vampire treatment on the windows.

[harveyhanson @ Aug 26th 2008 6:10AM]

Wonder what the chances are of getting on without a single dead pixel though :-(

[jacozza @ Aug 26th 2008 9:11AM]

PFF, at the size it is, they could probably make each pixel interchangeable.

[Robert @ Aug 26th 2008 7:21AM]

So Engadget, what's with the smoking advertisement here?

[iSmoke,therefore emit death by breathing @ Aug 26th 2008 1:34PM]

i called in a favor....sorry (^_^)

[dazepro @ Aug 26th 2008 8:09AM]

I could be wrong, but at 756lbs wouldn't one have to worry about the floors in their home. I am trying to think of any appliance or piece of furniture that weighs even 200lbs. I see this thing cracking tiles or warping the floorboards over time.

[dsgamer21 @ Aug 26th 2008 8:53AM]

Grand pianos often weigh that much or more, and their weight is only distributed on three legs. This would be put on a stand with at least four feet or wheels. Floors are usually built pretty sturdy.

[dazepro @ Aug 26th 2008 11:03PM]

Touché!

[NHAnimator @ Aug 26th 2008 8:12AM]

"this set looks primed for home-use...for...a bit more than $50k"

Engadget pays better than I thought.

[anthony @ Aug 26th 2008 8:16AM]

IFA? What about CEDIA next week?!

[Bill Jobs @ Aug 26th 2008 8:51AM]

If you order it, how do you fit it in the door?

[Marq @ Aug 26th 2008 8:59AM]

You lower it through the retractable dome in the roof of your home. Wait, you don't have one of those?

[Evan @ Aug 26th 2008 8:59AM]

Panasonic 103" Plasma
- $50k
- 756lbs
- 1450watts
- 1080p

Panasonic PT-AE2000 Projector & 106" screen
- $4k
- 15lbs
- 240watts
- 1080p

[DoomGaZer @ Aug 26th 2008 9:51AM]

Seriously! For that much money why wouldn't you just build yourself a theater room inside your house? That plus the projector surely costs the same if not less than this monster......

[Rogue_Genius @ Aug 26th 2008 9:47AM]

Your movie selection for the article picture = WIN! Fantastic movie. Weird, but fantastic!

[Dave @ Aug 26th 2008 10:14AM]

This thing + Marantz Blu-ray player means paradise!

[lough76 @ Aug 26th 2008 10:38AM]

Seen it. Barney had two of these shipped over on a tug boat like frickin King Kong.

[Dan @ Aug 26th 2008 11:15AM]

holy s#!t... i just spooged in my pants.