Why are Plasma Screen TV's better than traditional TV screens?

A flat viewing surface is advantageous for several reasons. First, the image itself is more realistic. With a conventional tube TV the image is distorted by the curvature of the glass. With Flat TV the image is not distorted in this fashion at all. Second, the viewing angle is wide on most flat monitor surfaces. Flat TV's are viewable from anywhere in the room with a normal viewing angle of 160 degrees. This surface appears brighter and clearer to the viewer, especially from an angle. Finally, the flat surface minimizes the viewing interference of reflections from room lighting.

Plasma monitors do not come with built in tuners. An NTSC/ATSC television signal must be passed through a satellite box, cable box, HDTV receiver, VCR/VHS device, or an outboard tuning device. Most of these components offer an RF style cable input (what we think of as a cable connection). Signals are then passed to the plasma TV using the following connections:
From a satellite box an s-video cable is normally utilized.
From a cable box a composite RCA to RCA or RCA to BNC connection is used.
From an HDTV decoder box a 15 pin VGA to 15 pin VGA cable is normally used; though 3 cable component RCA to component RCA or BNC is also often an option.
From a VCR/VHS an RCA to RCA or BNC is normally used though S-video is better option if available on the VCR.
Optional decoders will have a mix of the above options.

There are only a handful of plasma TVs which include built in speakers, most manufacturers do however offer speakers as additional options which can be attached to the side of the plasma TV. You also have the option to connect the audio to a home theater system and avoiding the need for speakers attached to the plasma TV.

Absolutely not. Plasma TVs are ready for the future. Whether it be DVD, HDTV, Digital TV, or a digital satellite receiver, the Plasma TV is the perfect display companion. The dramatic, high-impact picture makes it not only compatible but a very wise choice of television viewing.

Burn-in is when an image becomes permanently etched onto the display panel. Burn-in usually occurs when a pixel, each of which contains a red, green and blue light source, is activated for long periods. When this happens, the pixel begins to age prematurely. This is due to the shorter life span of the blue phosphor gas which, as it ages, generates a yellowish tint. That tint creates the permeant “etched” image, or burn-in.

The resolution of your plasma screen should match the native resolution of your computer display, this will avoid image fuzziness that often comes from scaling one input format to a different output format.

An industry wide issue for plasma technology, shadowing is caused by still images - such as a computor graphic or static photo - which remain on the screen for an extended amount of time. This effect typically occurs when an imge previously displayed at a higher brightness level remains visable under subsequent lower brightness images. The result is a ghoast-like image, or shadow, that remains on the plasma screen. The so-called shadowing will eventually disapear after displaying motion video for a breif length of time.

Put simply, shadowing is temporary and burn-in is permanent. While similar to shadowing, burn-in is much more devastating to a plasma display.

While shadowing and burn-in are an issue for all plasma displays, there are some strategies that you can take to avoid these issues. These solutions include: Avoid displaying 100% static blue images. This helps offset the naturally shorter life span of the blue phosphor gas. Switch between a static image and a motion video frequently. This will limit the potential of an image shadowing and, ultimately, burning in. For example, for every 10 minutes of static image display, there should 30 to 50 minutes of motion video that follow, and so on. Display motion video three to five times longer than a data filled image. Doing so is a good rule of thumb. Again, displaying ane minute of non-moving data, it is a good idea to then display three to five minutes of full motion video. Rotate still data images continuously. Avoiding the use of the same data images for long periods of time helps reduce the possibility of image shadowing or burn-in. This can be achieved by rotating the image on the plasma display one pixel at a time in a circular every five minutes or so. Use a screen saver. Just like those used on most computers today, screen savers will help avoid displaying the same image for extended periods. Adjust the image brightness. Lowering the level of brightness intensity helps decrease the amount of time it takes for shadowing and burn-in to occur on the display.

As the panel's ambient temperature changes, the cabinet slightlly expands and shrinks. There is no need to be alarmed, this is not a serious problem.

If the plasma display unit's temperature becomes too hot, it may automatically switch itself off to prevent further damage. If power is suddenly turned off, it is probably because the air vents are blocked. Remove any objects blocking the vents and clean, before turning the unit on again

May be caused by radio waves mingling from TV station, FM station, amateur radios, public radios (simplified radios) etc., or a nearby personal computer, TV, or video / audio component.