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Sony XS Series KDE-37XS955 37" Widescreen HDTV-Ready Flat-Panel Plasma TV

Sony XS Series KDE-37XS955 37" Widescreen HDTV-Ready Flat-Panel Plasma TV

List Price: $5,499.99
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Product Info Reviews

Features:
  • 37-inch widescreen WEGA gas-plasma television; 41.4 x 26.8 x 14.3 inches (W x H x D) with stand
  • Built-in ATSC/QAM tuner brings you all the glory of off-air high-definition programming--no external set-top box required
  • CableCARD compatibility means you can enjoy digital cable reception without a separate set-top box
  • CineMotion Reverse 3:2 pulldown technology lets you watch progressive-scan movies in their native 24-frame format
  • Stereo speakers with hefty 25 watts per channel and separate 50-watt subwoofer


Description:

Housed in a floating-glass design with transparent top and bottom elements, Sony's 37-inch digital-cable-ready KDE-37XS955 plasma television is a treat for the eyes whether it's on or off. The set offers analog and digital high-definition inputs, great audio features, and a suite of picture-enhancing technologies.

The set's integrated ATSC/QAM/NTSC tuner grants access to both over-air digital high-definition broadcasts and digital cable programming. Using its CableCARD port, the set will receive digital cable television systems services directly from a cable operator without requiring a bulky, external cable box. A Memory Stick media slot with JPEG, MPEG-1, and MP3 compatibility simplifies playback of digital media files, including still pictures from compatible cameras.

With a plasma screen you get vivid colors like you've never seen before, extremely wide viewing angles (wider, even, than those of most LCD screens), and easy placement due to a plasma monitor's slim profile, perfect for desk or wall mounting. You do, however, need to be cautious of image burn-in (permanent ghosting from longstanding stationary images).

Sony's 2004 WEGA Engine maximizes picture performance from virtually any video source. Multi Image Driver (MID X) circuitry, part of the WEGA Engine system, scales all incoming signals--SD or HD--to the configuration of the panel without degrading the signal. It also provides unique picture-and-picture features once impossible for fixed-pixel devices.

Working in tandem with the WEGA Engine are 3 other key technologies: V2 Digital Reality Creation MultiFunction circuitry (which digitally maps any NTSC source to create finely detailed pictures that rival high-definition images); a new Panel Driver LSI (providing more realistic colors then earlier drivers); and IFP (Image Format Processor, whose wideband Digital Texture Enhancer optimizes contrast while reducing signal noise and maintaining image sharpness).

DRC--Digital Reality Creation MultiFunction circuitry--upconverts standard interlaced (480i) video sources to 960i or progressive-scan 480p, while inputs up to 720p (720 lines, progressively scanned) are upsampled to full 1080i. DRC processes video signals in real time, creating images with 4 times the density of the original signals. Progressive scanning, referred to as 480p and 720p for the number of horizontal lines that compose the video image, creates a picture using twice the scan lines of a conventional images, giving you higher resolution and sharper images while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts.

The KDE-37XS955 also employs CineMotion reverse 3:2 pulldown technology (often called 3:2 pulldown), a handy feature for watching progressive-scan movies in their native 24-frame format. Digital video mastering introduces a common distortion when adjusting 24 frames-per-second movies to 30 fps video; 3:2 pulldown digitally corrects this distortion, removing the redundant information to display a film-frame-accurate picture.

Favorite Channel gives you 1-button access to the last 8 channels you've tuned (Auto) or 8 favorites that you've preset (Manual). These channels appear in the PIP inset, while your current program continues as the main picture.

Two high-definition component-video inputs grant optimum connection with a DTV decoder and progressive-scan DVD player, while standard composite- and S-video inputs accommodate all DVD players. The set's HDMI interface provides a digital connection with your DTV receiver. HDMI supports standard-definition (SD), enhanced definition (ED), or high-definition (HD) video, plus multichannel digital audio--all using a single cable. Choose between rear A/V inputs and a set of side AV inputs for extra convenience.

Improved proprietary audio capabilities include an S-Master digital amplifier LSI, along with a detachable 50-watt subwoofer that can be inconspicuously mounted to a wall bracket or a table-top stand, as well as two 25-watt left/right front speakers to create a complete 2.1 channel system. The set's S-Master digital audio amplifier processes clear dialog and reproduces the original sound quality while minimizing sound fragmentation or time-based distortion (jitter).

The KDE-37XS955 can also serve as a center-channel speaker in a 5.1-channel home theater, saving shelf space required for bulky stand-alone center speakers. If you don't have Dolby Pro Logic processing or a surround speaker system, the TV's SRS TruSurround will simulate surround sound through any 2 speakers.

What's in the Box
TV, a remote control (RM-Y1004), 2 AA batteries, a cleaning cloth, an AC power cord, an AC plug holder, an AC cord clamp, a cable band, a cable-band screw, a quick-start guide, a user's manual, and warranty information.

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