Future Proofing Woes

SnaxMuppet

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Hi All,

About 5 or 6 years ago I decided to get a decent Home Cinema set up. Although others on this forum may consider it a starter system (!) I spent what I considered a small fortune on various bits of kit... one of which was a Fujitsu PDS-4222 Plasma.

It cost well over £5000 back then and was one of the few panels around capable of HD resolution (1024x1024 native handling 720p and 1080i). We thought that HD TV would be along quite soon and so opted for the getting a HD panel to "future proof". Oh how innocent we were!

The panel has served us very well to date. On standard resolution it is still a reasonable display and we are generally very happy with it. That was until we decided a few weeks ago to upgrade our TV package to Telewest's TVDrive. TVDrive is HD and as we have an HD plasma we will be able to watch in glorious HD right? WRONG! :eek: No HDMI...

So, off to Keene Electronics to get a clever little box to convert HDMI to component... that'll fix it... WRONG! :eek: Scrambled picture...

It appears that the 4222 panel is capable of HD resolutions but back then HD was very early days and it will only do 720p and 1080i at 60Hz. Ah...! TVDrive outputs 50Hz. No problem... we can get a clever box to convert right? WRONG! :eek: Well, sort of but certainly not cheaply anyway...

So, we spent nearly double the amount we could have spent on a plasma to "future proof "and in the 5 years since then the HD spec has changed so much (50/60Hz, HDMI, HDCP etc etc) that we can not use it for the very thing we paid all the extra dosh for.

Now, I would just like to make it clear that I am not really complaining! I sort of knew that this might happen and we took a chance. In this case it didn't pay off but it could of.

So why this post? Well, two reasons... firstly, it is a kind of therapy for me to help me get over the disappointment of needing to buy a new panel when I thought I would have a few years out of the old one still to come and secondly, to warn you all at getting too carried away with "future proofing". This is a fast-moving technology and what is top of the range now may not become mainstream in the years to come.

So I am not saying don't future-proof... like everyone else I too like having the latest bits of kit... but I am saying that if you want the latest technology remember that if that technology doesn't pan out the way you hope then you may never get to make the most of your extra expense.

But then again... you already knew that right...? :smashin:
 
another sad story , but atleast uve has a couple of years of happy viewing..:)
 
A salutary tale nicely told :)

That's exactly why I'm never an early adopter and why I've bought a PWD8. Remember all those Betamax owners lording it over the plebian VHS brigade ;) :rolleyes:

At least you can console yourself with some nice new kit :smashin:
 
it's in manufacturers general interests that 'future proofed' technology isn't sold, the best we punters can manage is 'near future proofing'
Another change in recent years has been the tendency for manufacturers to encourage the mind set that TVs etc are now throw away items, so there's no need for expensive support and repair services for them to run.
 
:hiya: You can enjoy a latest generation plasma for a fraction of the cost of your old plasma. I am sure it will comfortably out perform your old model. Good luck and happy viewing.
stasis
 
boksbox said:
it's in manufacturers general interests that 'future proofed' technology isn't sold, the best we punters can manage is 'near future proofing'
Another change in recent years has been the tendency for manufacturers to encourage the mind set that TVs etc are now throw away items, so there's no need for expensive support and repair services for them to run.

If one's plasma was to die an unwanted early death, how should one dispose of it?

Just a thought

Adrian
 
One of the other aspects of 'future proofing' is the costs involved.

With the ever decreasing prices of plasmas/lcd's it makes little sense to spend hundreds extra now for features that you won't be using for a couple of years because by then new screens of todays standard will be half the price they are now.
 
Well the decision is made... I am deserting Plasma for LCD! It is a Toshiba 42WLT66. proper 1080 res too... ah well, perhaps I shouldn't complain eh!!!

It arrives tomorrow. I will post on the LCD forum my thoughts.
 
"future proof "

:rotfl: :boring:

There is no such thing, it is a marketing term that people have taken as being important.

It doesn't actually mean anything, because it doesn't exist.

"Buying with the future in mind" is all you can do. And you put too much weight on it.

Unlucky :)

(no offense intended)
 
so thats two mistakes then.. good money after bad, don't do it! Plasma gives a better picture.

1080p is still an emerging consumer standard, ask yourself what 1080p sources you will have to put in your TV. Certainly not worth sacrificing picture quality moving to LCD for.

I am sure you will find some vey convincing1080p sets next year when the blue ray / hd dvd format is established. Between now and then if you have to scratch the HD itch now, (Sky HD I presume), maybe just get a panasonic HD panel, you can get one for £1500.

At the end of the day on a 42" set I understand the difference between 720p and 1080p would be hard to see at normal viewing distances anyway.

You could blow a stack of cash on a big, (50" or bigger) 1080p screen in 12 - 24 months.
 
Now you realise why the word "future proofing" normally has quotation marks round it...

I'm sure I heard on the AVforums podcast, that that LCD isn't truly 1080p at all?!!!!
 
Larok said:
so thats two mistakes then.. good money after bad, don't do it! Plasma gives a better picture.

1080p is still an emerging consumer standard, ask yourself what 1080p sources you will have to put in your TV. Certainly not worth sacrificing picture quality moving to LCD for.

I am sure you will find some vey convincing1080p sets next year when the blue ray / hd dvd format is established. Between now and then if you have to scratch the HD itch now, (Sky HD I presume), maybe just get a panasonic HD panel, you can get one for £1500.

At the end of the day on a 42" set I understand the difference between 720p and 1080p would be hard to see at normal viewing distances anyway.

You could blow a stack of cash on a big, (50" or bigger) 1080p screen in 12 - 24 months.

^ good advice!
 

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