2003 Samsung plasma TV - any use for retro gaming?

tomcosgrave

Hi all,

I don't post here at all but do lurk from time to time.

I have a 2003 Samsung plasma TV that I got 20 years ago. It's been my TV that whole time but the internet has meant I barely use it now. It's in good working order last time I checked and I still have the wall bracket, though not sure about the screws.

I'm trying to figure out what to do with it - is it worth a lot or should I just give it away? It weights an absolute ton so even getting any takers might be an issue!

It has no HDMI, USB etc etc and TV broadcasting has really moved on since 2003, so the only thing I can see it having any use with is retro gaming of some sort.

I've never tried it with a console of any sort actually so I have no idea. I had a few consoles that I let go years ago, as I am more into retro gaming via emulation.

The user manual can be found online here - https://downloadcenter.samsung.com/content/UM/200311/20031111151011875_T19A_ENG_europe_0206.pdf

Any thoughts?

KeRbDoG

If it has the media station unit which is mentioned in the manual, might be useful to someone but a plasma tv of that age would also nearly act like a space heater :)

tomcosgrave

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121325920#Comment_121325920

I should have said that it has the media station. You may have a point about it being a space heater!

CiDeRmAn

Hi,

I would say that the contrast ratios on the plasmas is fantastic, and consoles that bridge the AV gap, after RF but before HDMI, could look pretty good, the PS2 for example, via component, which I assume that TV has, or an S-Video cable.

Another example would be the 360, which originally came with AV cables rather than HDMI, and there is a decent range of Shmups on that console that would look a treat on the display.

Another option would be to run a RPi, via it's analogue AV out, emulated console games would look pretty great, especially vector based stuff, like Star Wars.

windowcills

Big issue with plasma tellys was that they ate eletricity

Big problem nowadays is that eletricity is v expensive

CiDeRmAn

I have one in the gamesroom and it's a beauty, but it does use a ton of power to be sure.

But then, playing TxK (a port of Tempest 2000) on it would make a grown man cry, it looks breathtaking

Akrasia

I still miss my old Samsung 51 inch plasma. It was only 720p but games looked amazing on it at the time and the 600hz refresh rate made everything silky smooth

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-Widescreen-Television-discontinued-manufacturer/dp/B004SEOEFQ/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

MontgomeryClift

It's definitely worth using for old games. It should be able to handle older stuff without having to scale up like a modern TV would. It has an amazing range of inputs. But yes, it will consume about 300 Watts. Maybe more.

Maybe try connecting an emulation device to the VGA input.