Reality has added an even larger LCD to its range, a 46 inch (117 cm) it’s selling for $4000.
Reality’s Andrew Wymer said the 46 incher features Samsung’s current seventh-generation A-Grade panel. “The panels we use are the latest generation Samsung panels. The same ones they use. Samsung Korea doesn’t hold back its latest generation panels for itself,” he said.
Displaying a DVD source being up-scaled to 1080i, the 46 inch LCD was demonstrated to SmartHouse in full daylight and with strong overhead fluorescent lighting. We must say, the unit is impressive. It had strong, yet balanced colour and excellent brightness. Depth-of-field and detail was fantastic.
The size of the set is impressive, but not imposing. Does Reality find there is any corresponding drop off in quality compared with the 40 inch model? “No. Quality hasn’t diminished compared with the 40 inch. It’s easy to see that the 46 inch is a great screen, even when viewing non-high-def’ material. We’re really happy with its quality.
Native resolution is 1366 x 768, which Reality says is “True 16:9 aspect ratio”. Other specs include a claimed 1000:1 contrast ratio and 500 cd/m2 dynamic contrast ratio. Pixel response time is a claimed 8 milliseconds.
So what’s next in the wings for Reality? Can they move even further into the larger screen sizes traditionally dominated by plasma? “Well, we’re looking at a 55 inch model, but we haven’t had a sample to test yet,” says Wymer. “We’re hoping that will happen in July. We’re not able to confirm a price at this stage but we hope to be able to sell it for $5000.” And will is sport any new features over the current range? “Yes, they next 40 and 46 inch models will feature an automatic brightness function. Ostensibly, a light sensor at the front of the screen will detect the ambient light in the room and automatically adjust the brightness of the screen to suit, which is also great for power saving.”