Laser TV

Mitsubishi Electric is going after the bigscreen HDTV market. “Bigger and thinner” televisions may be in vogue, but Mitsubishi has decided to go in an entirely different direction. Under the mantra of “Believing is Seeing,” Mitsubishi plans to unleash an entirely new line of HDTV in 2008 – Laser TV.

Benefits of Laser TV:

- Wider color gamut, capable of reproducing twice the colors of LCD and plasma displays.

- Increased longevity, as the laser engines will last the life of the television.

- Lower power consumption than bigscreen LCD and plasma displays.

- True black levels, high contrast ratios, and very large screen capabilities.

- Less bulk and cost than a traditional lamp based rear projection televisions.

Laser TV has been a concept for several decades. The same properties which enable lasers to cut through steel, make it aptly suited for display lighting. Laser light is monochromatic, extremely focused, and is the purest source of light available. Laser based display units have been used in flight simulators for years. However, the commercial application of laser displays have been too cost prohibitive, until now.

Mitsubishi Electric is among the world leaders in laser manufacturing and television innovation, thus allowing them to market the first commercial Laser TV. Although not official, the price is expected to be in the $5,000 range. Several firms are perfecting low-cost laser diodes, so we expect the price of Laser TV to quickly be competitive in the open market. There is no question the picture quality, longevity, and energy efficiency is superior to that of LCD and Plasma, so we anticipate more TV manufacturers will be announcing their own line of Laser TV.

Sony showcased its own laser powered SXRD model at the 2007 CES, but plans for commercializing it have not been announced. Novalux, vying to be the world leader in laser optics, has announced several pending deals with TV makers, including a venture with JVC for a laser based front projector. In Asia, China’s ZTE Corporation has teamed up with Novalux (now owned by Arasor) to ambitiously produce millions of laser handsets for cell phones. A North American fall release for Mitsubishi’s LaserTV is expected, however, the exact dates have not been announced.

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