MISCONCEPTION #4: OWNING A GOOD PLASMA TV IS COST-PROHIBITIVE
This is really two misconceptions rolled into one. The first has to do with the pricing structure of plasma displays. We all remember, some of us too well, the days in the mid-90s when plasma TVs started at $10,000 and had virtually no price ceiling. Well, things have changed. The growing demand for plasma displays, coupled with advancements in production efficiency ("yield rates"), have conspired to bring plasma TV prices back down to earth. You can get larger, better performing plasma TVs for a fraction of the price you might have just a couple years ago. (Nowadays, you can buy an 42" HDTV Plasma for less than $1000) This is partly because fully 9.8 sets in 10 come off the production line ready for sale, compared to just 5 in 10 in 1999 and fewer than 2 in 10 in the early 90s. Further suppressing prices is the fact that the defect rate of Japanese-made plasma TVs in the U.S. has fallen to less than 1% of the total product import.
