No, sir. Hindi ganun yon. Any plasma panel can correctly display a 16:9 or 2.35:1 widescreen image without stretching. Ang internal scaler ng TV ang bahalang gumawa ng tamang image.
In a 1024 x 768 native resolution panel, if the signal received by the panel is not exactly 1024 x 768, the image cannot be displayed. Thus, the panel's internal scaler always has to convert the incoming resolution to exactly 1024 x 768.
For example, a standard DVD has a resolution of 720 x 480 (for NTSC format). An upscaling DVD player can convert the signal to 720p (1280 x 720). After conversion to 720p, can the TV display the signal? Not yet, because the signal still does not exactly match the panel's native resolution. The TV must further convert the 720p signal via its own internal scaler to 1024 x 768 so that the image can be displayed.
Even if the native resolution of 1024 x 768 is actually a 4:3 ratio, the panel's internal scalers are correctly programmed to display a widescreen image without stretching.
Take the Hitachi plasma as an extreme example. The new Hitachi plasmas have a native resolution of 1024 x 1080. Note that there are less horizontal than vertical pixels, yet the panel still displays a widescreen image without stretching.
... Im wondering why most 42" plasma have 1024x768 resolution. ...
Ginaya kasi ng LCD & plasma ang 1024 x768 na XGA video standard for computers.
The high-res XGA standard is 1024 × 768 pixels, intially with a palette of 256 colors. Later, XGA-2 added high color support for 1024 x 768.