Many technology companies are shifting from computers to consumer electronics, but Gateway was one of the first to make a big splash. In 1996, the company launched the Gateway Destination, a home entertainment computer system, and in the past year it has promoted large plasma displays in a big way. At $4,000 direct, the Gateway 42" HD Plasma TV is one of the least expensive displays we tested.

The 42-inch display has a native aspect ratio of 16:9 and a native resolution of 1,024 by 1,024 pixels, which means it does not have the square pixels of most displays (otherwise the aspect ratio would be 1:1). It can display up to 1,024-by-768 resolution or 720p HDTV without scaling down and losing detail. But it will have to scale up at these or any lower resolutions that use square pixels.

Beyond its competitive price, the display has some attractive features, including a remote control with separate buttons for different signal sources, so you don't have to cycle through a list to get the one you want. The Gateway has two sets of component video inputs, in addition to analog RGB for computers with pass-through, and a DVI digital connection with high-bandwidth digital content protection (HDCP) support. On the other hand, it has limited picture-in-picture (PIP) functions because it has only a single tuner; you need two separate tuners to get the most from PIP. The on-screen menu is a bit old-fashioned compared with some of the more graphical interfaces we saw.

On our tests, the display was slightly better than average on deinterlacing tasks; and we saw less breakup in fine patterns when using an interlaced signal. On the downside, color tracking was poor, as shades of gray looked tinted at different points in the spectrum. When we changed between different HD-resolution signals, the image was blanked by a blue screen, which was more jarring than the simple black blanking others used. The Gateway also had problems with brightness uniformity, showing noticeable horizontal bands of varying brightness. And images had a greenish tint overall at the factory settings.

There's nothing particularly wrong with the Gateway, and its price is appealing. But some competitors deliver a better picture—though you'll probably spend a little more.

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