First conceived in July 1964 at the University of Illinois (USA), the first displays were nothing more than points of light created in laboratory experiments. From then on, the technology was developed and improved and by the late 60's, it had become advanced enough to allow the scientists to construct geometric shapes.

Further development was limited, scientists were restricted by the materials that were available, so screens were small, and image quality was low. Today the progression in high-speed digital processing, materials and advance manufacturing technology, has made full colour, bright plasma displays possible.

Once what was only thought of as Science Fiction is now available and ready to use in a host of new and exciting ways.

What makes plasma TVs different is that each sub pixel is individually controlled by "advanced electronics" to produce over 16 million colours. When an electrical current is applied to a pixel, the gas reacts to form plasma, which in turn produces UV light. The light reacts with the coloured phosphors and magically enhances the flat screen to produce higher-contrast ratios and a better, more realistic picture. Because all the pixels emit light at the same time, the viewer never sees a flickering screen.

Unlike with CRT screens, there's no back lighting or electron beam, so the resulting images are consistently richer, sharper, and brighter. All this from a TV that starts at just 79mm thick! Aside from offering a host of other benefits, like longer viewing life and universal display capability, plasma screens are lightweight, versatile, and, in our opinion, just plain sexy.