42" plasmas can yield only 480 lines of horizontal resolution. It's a mathematical certainty, and no matter how much one tries to manipulate the resolution numbers and tries to convince you of their HD capability, even with the so-called "high definition" 42" models sold at higher pricing than the so-called "standard resolution" 42" models, all you will ever get for resolution out of that size monitor is 480 horizontal lines!

The vendors of the so-called "HD" 42" models state that those units will project a 1,024 X 768 resolution! That's an absolute hoax, because 1,024 X 768 is a 4:3 computer resolution that has absolutely NO application to High Definition! Are you purchasing a plasma to restrict your viewing to a 4:3 ratio that you would get on your computer desktop? What happens to the rest of the plasma? Is that wasted, non-usable viewing surface?

Broadcasts in High Definition are in a 16:9 widescreen format only. There is NO 4:3 HD format which will fit into a supposed HD 42" version. Don't be fooled. The numbers don't lie. You might get a nice picture on the right make, but a 42" plasma will NOT, repeat NOT do a full HD resolution! Period! End of story!

High definition is a minimum of 720 lines of horizontal resolution. Since a 42" has only 480 lines, you are losing 240 lines or a 50% reduction of the available resolution! So, while the size and price of a 42" might initially be impressive, you will be short-changed long-term by its purchase due to its inability to reproduce full HD.

The mathematics to substantiate the above is as follows: for a minimum HD resolution of 1,280 X 720 lines the total number of pixels is 921,600. For a plasma with a resolution of 1,366 X 768 lines the total number of pixels is 1,049,088. A 42" plasma with 852 X 480 lines has 408,960 total pixels. Therefore, how does a manufacture display HD resolution of 921,600 pixels onto a 42" surface that has only 409,440 pixels, and what happens to the remainder of the pixels? Remember, 1,280 X 720 is a minimum HD resolution! The answer is that the pixels have to "overlay" or "be crammed" into the reduced surface area which produces a greatly reduced image without detail and sharpness