Sony’s Forgotten 100-Inch Flat TV From 1968

The Innovation That Predicted the Future of Screens

By the late 1960s, Sony was already making significant strides in television technology. From the introduction of the world’s first portable transistor TV, the TV8-301 in 1960, to the groundbreaking launch of the Trinitron in 1968, the company had a reputation for innovation. But that same year, a prototype emerged that could blow the minds of even the biggest tech enthusiasts: a 100-inch flat display that appeared to be straight out of a sci-fi movie.

This experimental model, known as the Sony 100-Inch Color Video Panel 25, was unveiled to the public at the Sony Building in Tokyo’s Ginza district. Standing at 1.5 meters tall, 2 meters wide, and just 25 centimeters deep, it was a big break from the bulky CRT TVs everyone was used to back then. Rather than using cathode-ray tubes, this display utilized 78,000 tiny light bulbs, each fitted with red, green, or blue filters, to produce its images. Crowds gathered to witness it, intrigued by this glimpse into a possible new era of televisio…