Hi. On altitude, thats why I said " Pseudo-myth". The issue does exist, like burn in for instance. These are factually correct possibilities, but with little practical impact in reality, as almost no one has problems with plasma and altitude, burn in, plasma lifespan etc.
You just get these huge emphasis in periodicals as these being some type of major negatives about Plasma, followed by the ole " Plasma is obsolete" and Plasma is dying" type comments.
On pricing, with decent 42 inch plasmas at 1500 and 50 inchers at 3000, they are becoming more in reach for more and more folks than a few years back.
My guess is the next step up will be to 55 inch true 1080P displays. I see 55 inch as the next standard.