Luce Bows Integrated Flat-Panel HDTVs

Indianapolis— S Squared Technologies, of Sunrise, Fla., will highlight at CEDIA Expo one of the industry's first full lines of fully integrated flat-panel HDTV sets under its Luce brand.

The line, which was originally scheduled for summer delivery, is now scheduled to arrive in October and November. Additionally, the company has adjusted model numbers and pricing from its earlier announcement.

The adjusted line of fully integrated displays now includes a 30W-inch LCD TV (model LCTV-30HDA), which is slated for a November shipment at a price to be announced, and a pair of plasma displays in the 42W-inch (model PDTV-42HAD, $7,499.95 suggested retail) and 50W-inch (model PDTV-50HAD, $11,999.95 suggested retail) screen sizes. Both plasma sets are now expected in September.

All will incorporate ATSC HDTV, QAM digital cable and analog NTSC tuners. This means consumers will not have to purchase separate outboard set-top boxes to receive digital or analog TV broadcasts.

The sets will also include advanced scaler engines that can adapt any incoming signal to the native pixel count of the display.

The 30W-inch LCD TV offers full 1,280 by 768 pixel resolution, qualifying as a true HDTV set.

Luce said the technology also offers a "super high-speed response time LCD module" that does not present visible lag and tearing in images. The panel also offers a 160-degree viewing angle, both horizontally and vertically.

The plasma sets use new high-contrast and high-brightness substrates that enable highly accurate colors and deeper black levels than previous models. Pixel resolution is rated at 1,024 by 768 for the 42W-inch model and 1,366 by 768 for the 50W-inch model.

All sets feature contemporary European styling including brushed aluminum cabinetry, with a rugged chassis that is said to be useful in marine, aviation or other mobile environments.