Field Emission Technologies, a Japanese R&D firm spun out of Sony in 2006, announced that it is poised to mass produce 26-inch field-emission display (FED) panels by the end of 2009. Compared with other flat-panel technologies such as LCDs and plasma displays, FEDs have long been known for their superior performance, including higher contrast ratio, lower power consumption and wider viewing angle. Charles Spindt at SRI International developed the principles for FED technology in 1968.

Matsushita Electric will begin test production of next-generation displays for TVs next year with plans for commercial output as early as 2011, Japan's top business newspaper reported Tuesday.

Almost all the battery-powered televisions stashed in drawers, closets and garages in case of emergency will be rendered useless when broadcasters switch to digital-only signals....nobody manufactures a battery-powered converter box. And the few battery-powered digital TV models on the market start at about US$200 –a costly option for replacing portable sets that have become increasingly inexpensive in recent years.

Matsushita -which owns the Panasonic name brand- indicated to a Japanese business daily newspaper that it plans to beat competitors to the punch, by mass producing a 37-inch organic light-emitting diode (OLED) television within the next three years.