So you are asking yourself, "Self, why in the world would anyone in their right mind buy an $18,000 65-inch plasma HDTV, when 65-inch plasmas from very well known, very reputable high-tech video manufacturers cost easily $10,000 less? Is there a subculture of people who have read one too many issues of The Robb Report and/or their hedge fund has been buying oil futures all year while shorting bank stocks?" In reality, for wealthy people who want truly want the best of the best, Runco caters to their every video need. Runco makes THX-certified plasma HDTVs that, thanks to the external video processor, can clean up many of the maladies that make your average (and honestly quite expensive in their own right) plasmas look so lame in compared to the picture possible with a front video projector.

Additional Resources
• Read more plasma HDTV reviews from HomeTheaterReview.com's staff.
• Find a Blu-ray player to get the most out of the XP-65DHD.

The Runco PlasmaWall XP-65DHD is a massive set that pushes the limits of how large you might ever want a flat HDTV to be. Much beyond 65 inches, the cost-benefit analysis would push any rational person towards some solution that involved a front projector either with a drop-down screen or inverted and beamed onto something like Stewart Filmscreen's very cool Starglas material. First off, Runco is respectably a no-bullshit company that doesn't over-hype their statistics, which is to be absolutely commended.

They are also much more of a Mom and Pop shop in terms of customer service, despite the fact they recently got bought by a publicly-traded company last year. The customer service you will get from a Runco dealer today will be nothing short of topnotch. Runco trains their dealers year-long how to calibrate their sets (and projectors) to industry standards and beyond. Just from tweaking the knobs, they can make a plasma look better than anything you buy at Circuit City and Best Buy. Considering the price they charge, you should expect this type of hand-holding. The picture of the Runco XP-65DHD is simply superior to what you find at the mass-market level. Blacks are blacker. Noise, a big problem on everyone else's 65-inch plasmas, especially towards the edge of the sets, is not prevalent. Color saturation is better and more accurate. Runco's plasmas are set up correctly. Unlike HDTVs designed to look good under sodium lights at a warehouse store like Costco, Runco HDTVs last years and years longer.

Read about the high points and the low points of the XP-65DHD on Page 2.