Bang & Olufsen Readies Luxury Plasma HD

A brand perhaps known more widely in Europe for both high quality and high prices, Bang & Olufsen is gearing up to introduce its latest HD juggernaut—the 103-inch, 1080p BeoVision 4-103. How much? Don't ask.

Beyond the HD side of it, this model due out by the summer will almost literally bend over backwards to please its owner As the set is turned on, the huge screen elevates itself to the optimal viewing position (that can be preset, of course). Next, the BeoLab 10 center-speaker emerges from underneath the screen, moving forward until it achieves exact flushness with the screen's front frame.

The screen is both turnable and tiltable to the viewer's preferences. And if you ever find you actually want to shut the set off, the unit goes into standby mode and the whole process is repeated in reverse with the touch of a single button on the remote.

Bang & Olufsen said the set will automatically adjust for color and brightness and recalibrate itself after every 120 hours of viewing.

A brief demo of the BeoVision 4-103, which will become available in July, is available on YouTube.

The price is a cool $135,000.