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Electronista: Samsung recently announced some specs of what looks like the 8-series plasma HDTV first shown at CES. The 50-inch 850 PAVV is just 1.14 inches (29mm) thick and houses the tuner.

Samsung says it’s also 40 percent more energy efficient and, at about 57lbs, 20 percent lighter than the corresponding previous-generation model.

The TV has 1080p resolution and has DLNA support. Along with the necessary software and USB 2.0 ports, this allows users to watch DivX videos, view photos or play MP3 audio files from external drives or flash memory sticks.

These features are expected to carry over to a 58-inch plasma model Samsung is also readying, though no specifics other than that it is 50 percent slimmer than the previous-generation TV and weighs about 80lbs.

Pricing or a release date for either model is likewise unknown. Samsung does not currently offer any 8-series plasma HDTVs in North America, and it is unknown if these set will be the first to come to the market.

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TGDaily: Plasma TVs look set to enter the history books and perhaps remain as a footnote to the chequered history of displays, starting with the cathode ray tube (CRT).

Market research firm Displaysearch said that panel shipments fell for the second straight quarter year on year, even though units grew strongly during 2008.

Plasma sales fell 28 percent in the first quarter of 2009, and 22 percent compared to the same quarter last year. Worryingly for the plasma players, it was not just smaller panels that declined but the great big things such as 42-inch and 50-inch 720p models.

Pioneer is getting out of the market this year, but here are the top five plasma players right now, courtesy of Displaysearch.

Needless to say, some of these players have a foot in both the plasma and LCD TV camps, because this is one of those two horse races which it’s a near certainty that the LCD sector will win.

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DigiTimes: Global PDP module shipments decreased 19% on year to 2.86 million units with revenues of US$1.014 billion, down 34% on year in the first quarter of 2009, according to Displaybank.

Japan-based Pioneer already stopped shipping PDPs in the first quarter, the research firm noted. Hitachi has also announced its exit from the PDP market.

With the withdrawal of Pioneer and Hitachi, only three makers from Japan and Korea are expected to continue the PDP business in the second quarter of 2009, but the number will increase to four in the second half of 2009 when China-based COC kicks off PDP production, Displaybank noted.

PDP module shipments are expected to increase in the second quarter, the research firm said. Panasonic plans to increase shipments of its Neo PDP, while Samsung SDI and LG Electronics are also planning to increase shipments in the second quarter.

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HDTV News: According to shopping site Reevoo-com, the plasma TV sector lost 50% of its market share at the end of last year, falling from 22% in October to 8% in December.

The fact that some manufacturers are pulling out of plasma will do nothing for consumers’ confidence, but Reevoo.com’s research pinpoints a number of other factors in the technology’ decline.

Flat screen TVs have been a success story, and are now found in most UK homes. Many people aren’t ready to replace their main TV just yet, but an increasing number are purchasing LCD TVs, which are available in smaller sizes than plasma, as a second set, for a bedroom, or even a caravan.

The recession is another factor in pushing people towards cheaper LCD TVs in preference to the more expensive plasma option. TV buffs were willing to pay a bit more for a plasma set when the quality gap was bigger, but there is now little difference in the picture quality provided by LCD TVs and plasma.

Sam Bostock, category manager for televisions at Reevoo.com said: “This shift to LCD is inevitable given the relative flexibility in the production process. “LCD panels now exist in a huge range of electrical products and with that versatility they were always likely to out-do plasma,” he said. “Customer reviews prove that LCDs perform just as well as plasmas, and the great thing is they’re more environmentally friendly too,” Bostock added.

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Ubergizmo: Pioneer says its goodbye to the world of TVs today by presenting its final launch of four Kuro models in Japan.

No idea on who would actually purchase these TVs if they know the company will already cease production of TVs due to the unprofitable venture though.

Two of the models from the latest Kuro range, the KRP-500A and KRP-600A, come equipped with an external tuner. As for both of those alongside the all-in-one equivalents, the KRP-500M and KRP-600M, are able to churn out 1080p images at 50″ and 60″ inches respectively.

There is no word on contrast ratios, but you will find a quartet of HDMI inputs, VGA, component and a USB port for connectivity options.

Don’t worry about your warranty though – Pioneer will continue to provide repairs on sets for up to 8 years, and keep your fingers crossed that there are enough replacement parts to go round till then.

Note: it would seem that all 4 models are already availabe in Europe.

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HDGuru: The Z1 is Panasonic’s most advanced HDTV, retailing at around $5999,95 (€4,700). Available only in the 54” screen the Z1 packs every advanced feature into a 1” thick Full HD 1080p plasma panel.

The Z1 has a native contrast ratio of 40,000:1, a low energy consuming Neo PDP panel technology, an included swivel table stand, Digital Cinema Color gamut, THX Certification, 1080 lines of motion resolution, 24 Hz Cinematic Playback and an HDMI wireless receiver.

The companion wireless transmitter tuner/switcher box has VIERA Link Internet connectivity and VIERA Link SD card reader for viewing still photos or AVCHD video playback.

Currently, the only thin competitor in this size range (an obese 2.25” at the thickest part) is the Sharp LC52XS1, an LCD HDTV with separate tuner box and speaker bar which retails for a whopping $12,000 plus the cost of the optional wireless box (when available).

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DigiTimes: Samsung Electronics, the second largest plasma TV vendor, is looking for additional suppliers of PDP filters, as the company aims to increase its plasma TV shipments to 4.5-5 million units in 2009 from three million units in 2008, according to market sources.

Despite its goal to increase plasma TV shipments, Samsung will not need to expand its PDP module capacity this year, as its existing capacity, including that from Samsung SDI, will be more than sufficient, the sources explained.

But its PDP filter supplier, Samsung Corning Precision Glass (SCP), may not have enough capacity to cater to Samsung’s increasing needs, the sources said. Samsung Corning, which also supplies PDP filters to Panasonic, the world’s number-one PDP TV vendor, has no plan to expand its PDP filter capacity because of the plasma market’s long-term outlook, the sources said. Shinan SNP, a Taiwan subsidiary of Korea-based SNP Lab, has reportedly started shipping PDP filters to Samsung in small volume, according to the sources.

Shinan, an indium tin oxide (ITO) glass supplier who has diversified into PDP filters, has revealed that it is also in the process of gaining certification to supply PDP filters to TV vendors in Japan, Taiwan and China. Shinan expects its new PDP filter business to contribute US$40 million in annual revenues, according to company president Sang-Myeon Lee.

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T3: Following the recent story about LG possibly pulling out of the Plasma TV market, T3 spoke to George Mead, the Marketing Manager for Digital Displays at LG Electronics UK – who exclusively told T3 that they have “no intention to withdraw from the Plasma TV market”.

We imagine there must be stiff conversations taking place at LG HQ, with their Vice President commenting this week that “if we cannot draw growth strategy, we would make the decision to withdraw within the year”.

According to George Mead, this isn’t the case. “We appreciate that the global market for Plasma TVs is undergoing some major changes which are, of course, being discussed at LG’s global headquarters. However, LG Electronics UK has no intention to withdraw from the Plasma TV market.”

Going on, he told T3 “we have recently implemented a bespoke strategy to promote and market Plasma TVs here in the UK. The development of new technologies including our THX certification is a strong indication of the growth opportunities for Plasma TVs in the UK market.”

Recent Plasma launches from LG include the LH9000, which features a wireless HDMI connection. It’s possible however that LG could pull out of the Plasma market in the US, whilst remaining in the UK and Europe – much like Philips did last year for both their LCD and Plasma divisions. Still, with so few Plasma manufacturers left (just Panasonic, Samsung and Hitachi), it would be disastrous for the format if LG decides to take the difficult decision to bow out of the market.

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EngadgetHD: Man, plasma’s headed downhill — and fast. Hot on the heels of both Pioneer and VIZIO tendering their resignation in the plasma market, LG’s vice president Lee Gyu-hong has reportedly stated that his company is currently pondering its own future in the sector.

Should LG pull out, just Panasonic and Hitachi will be left holding down the PDP fort. Purportedly, LG’s plasma business is deteriorating in terms of profitability, and the VP stated that future cost savings were practically impossible.

At this point (and after coming clean like this), it’d be sort of crazy for LG not to drop out, but what’s even crazier is going from five major plasma makers to two within the course of two months. Yikes.

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The Register: If you don’t mind running the risk of having your fingers sliced off while watching a film, then this portable DVD player (PDP) could be the ultimate concept design for you. Designer Yeon-Shin Seung has created a gadget with a roll-up display, but without a cover to protect users from the 1600rpm disc.

The unit is made up of two sliding plates. The top plate, Seung hopes, will contain a flexible organic electroluminescent display that looks to be about 10in and can be rolled away into the top plate. Once the top plate is slid open, a selection of standard DVD controls are revealed on one end of the bottom plate, in addition to a small speaker at the other end.

However, the PDP’s really unique feature is that the DVD sits on a spindle towards the rear of the bottom plate and does not have a cover over it, as a traditional DVD bay would. Obviously this makes the PDP more portable, but would you risk using it? Just imagine dropping it on your lap…

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DigiTimes: Japan-based Funai Electric recently said it is exiting the PDP (plasma display panel) TV market due to sharply-falling prices and rising competition from vendors such as Panasonic, according to the Japanese- language newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun.

Funai offers 42-inch PDP TVs in North America with panels sourcing from LG Electronics (LGE). The TVs are manufactured in Malaysia, the paper quoted sources as saying. Sales volume from its PDP TVs in North America were no more than 100,000 units in 2006, the paper noted.

In the future, the Japan-based company will focus on LCD TV business, added the paper.

During a recent announcement of its fiscal year of 2006 (the year ended March 2007) performance in May, Funai updated its LCD TV business strategy and highlighted the company is scheduling to launch a 42-inch full high-definition (HD) LCD TV in the US in mid-2007. The company will also have a full line up of LCD TVs, from 15- to 37-inch models with a DVD player, noted Funai.

The Japan-based player is also planning to seeking for more LCD TV OEM orders, stated the company. In addition to OEM business, Funai also has brand names of Sylvania, Symphonic, Funai and Emerson.

Meanwhile, Funai announced that its new LCD TV plant in Poland will commence operation next month with monthly capacity of 200,000 units. The new plant should help the company to shorten lead time, reduce the inventory level of finished goods and lower tariff, said the Japan-based company.

Funai shipped about 600,000 LCD TVs in fiscal year 2005, sources said, adding that Funai is aiming for LCD TV shipments of 1.8 million units worldwide in fiscal year 2006.

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CCTV.com: China has begun building its first plasma display panel production factory in the southwestern province of Sichuan. The total investment is more than two billion US dollars. The new factory promises to end the country’s long dependence on importing plasma displays. It’s also likely to impact on TV prices.

This factory in Mianyang city will start manufacturing plasma display panels from next July. Producing six million PDPs a year will set the newcomer to a rapid fourth in the business，behind Panasonic, LG and Samsung.

Wu Yingjian, deputy GM of Sichuan Changhong Electric Co., said “With our mastering of PDP production ability, plasma TVs made in China will be more competitive in the world market.”

Wang Ning, deputy director of China Electronic Chamber of Commerce, said “The final production of the factory will press the foreign TV makers to lower their prices, consumers will benefit from it.”

The plasma display panel accounts for more than seventy percent of the total cost of a flat-screen TV. Until now，no Chinese manufacturer has been able to produce this costly component， allowing foreign TV makers to monopolize the market. This new factory is likely to change the situation，with the benefits being passed on to consumers.

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