Kevin C. Tofel

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Stories By Kevin C. Tofel

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDBeat Poll: Planning a next-gen DVD player purchase?

    Aside from the setbacks, DRM challenges and lack of titles, we should see a successful launch of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray in the very near future. Ok, maybe "successful" is overly optimistic. "Very near future" leaves some wiggle room too, doesn't it? Maybe we should start over. We should eventually see two new next-generation DVD launches. (That better?) We've seen comments on which format will "win" and we've openly picked sides on the HDBeat Podcast. Now we want to see what you think, since you're the target market for high-definition DVDs. Planning to buy a next-gen DVD player? Planning to buy HD-DVD or Blu-Ray? Blu-Ray for me HD-DVD will be mine Neither, I'm boycotting Undecided on format I need both for my addiction view results

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDBeat Podcast 005 - 03.17.06

    Since Ben and Kevin were too busy drinking on St. Patrick's Day to do the podcast in a Irish Pub, the show came on a Sunday. Plenty of news, both good and bad, on the HD-DVD front as well as the big Sony Playstation 3 debacle announcement. And what about that MovieBeam unit we keep bashing? Ben has had one so that tells you what you need to know, but we've got the details in the show. Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the HD Beat Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). Hosts Ben Drawbaugh and Kevin C. Tofel Producer Ben Drawbaugh Format 48:35, 22 MB, MP3 Program Playstation 3 delay is official Playstation 3: Coming to North America (and the world) in 2006 Sony Pictures isn't the only one that won't down-rez Ultra-Multi to end the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray war HD-DVD will launch with more of a whimper than a bang HD-DVD might not be ready, but Netflix is Sony Blu-Ray available for pre-order HD Tivo - Series 3 release date? MCE and DIRECTV Viiv in the works Toshiba's new et20 HD projector What is so difficult about LCoS? Panasonic: HDMI control interface Shopping for $900 LCD's NBC gears up for NFL and "Today" show in HD MovieBeam Review LISTEN (MP3)

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 16, 2006

    What we're watching: March Madness has begun and it's one of the best displays of high-definition television there is. Tune in for tip-offs tonight at 8 p.m. on CBS in 1080i where you'll see games from Greensboro, Jacksonville, Salt Lake City and San Diego. Since we're so early in the tourney, here's your chance to not only catch the first round in high-def, but to make your Final Four predictions in our comments!Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 15, 2006

    What we're watching: Tonight is sort of up in the air; there's nothing really grabbing our interest. We could really go out on a limb and catch "Tour de Gorge: World Meatball Eating Championship" at 8 p.m. on INHD in 1080i, but that's a bit extreme. "American Idol" loses one of the dozen tonight at 9 p.m. on Fox in 720p, but we're growing weary of the seemingly never ending competition. Several other shows like "Criminal Minds", "CSI: NY", "Lost", and "Law & Order" are repeats. Maybe it's time to pop a DVD into the upconverter?Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 14, 2006

    What we're watching: Was is just us or did "The Unit" kick some major terrorist tookas last week in the pilot episode? Actually, TVSquad isn't impressed just yet, so let's all give it another chance; tune in to CBS at 9 p.m. to see these characters exude confidence in 1080i. Just so we don't play faves with the government-action-suspense-thrillers, you can watch the other thriller tonight at 8 p.m. We don't mean NCIS (which is actually a good show as well), we're talking about tonight's Stevie Wonder theme on "American Idol" in 720p on Fox. While we're still voting for "The Unit", we can spare a few minutes to vote for some of the Idol talent too.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    Streaming
    Streaming By Kevin C. Tofel

    IPTV overview - ArsTechnica

    Don't know your IPTV from your AACS or your MPEG-4? No worries; ArsTechnica does the IPTV 101 thing so you can drop high-def acronyms to all of your SD neighbors. Considering that one content provider in China snagged over a half a million IPTV subscribers in Hong Kong alone, you probably want to brush on that which is IPTV. Ars gives you the up-and-up on how IPTV works and even explains why we won't actually tune in to content with IPTV; we'll just let our set-top routers do the talking and add us to a new multicast group, assuming we're authorized to "tune in" of course. IPTV is definitely in the mix for DTV from cable and telcos, so why not join the rest of the class and learn what all this fuss is about? Did we forget to mention that BellSouth was planning IPTV trials this year? We'll bet AT&T remembered.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    Ultra-Multi to end the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray war

    Ah, there's nothing like CeBit rumors, unless you don't speak German, that is. Thankfully, some folks are ever-so-helpful by sharing the juicy (yet ambiguous) news bits with us. This vague rumor may actually have some merit, however. It wasn't too long ago that LG allegedly scrapped plans for their BD199 Blu-Ray player in favor of a combo player for both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray by the fall. Now we're hearing reports of "Ultra-Multi", which could use a name change, but may render the entire HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray battle moot. The premise behind the "I go both ways" player is similar to what several of the Hollywood studios have done: play both sides of the fence until details on a victor start to emerge. At this point, Ultra-Multi could be a trade name, a manufacturers actual device (perhaps LG's?) or just something to stir up the rumor mill. I predicted that the long term winner will be HD-DVD in show number three of our weekly podcast, while Ben is betting on Blu-Ray. We're both all-in on this bet, so if hybrid players outsell single format units should we just call this one a tie?

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    DISH HD locals in MPEG-4 arrive in Kansas City

    Echostar continues the DISH Network rollout of high-def locals by adding ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC in HD to Kansas City. Over twenty-two counties fall within the limits of the new offering, which we weren't expecting since DIRECTV is "it" in the continuing game of HD Locals Tag. Looks like Echostar is aggressively pursuing their year-end goal to provide over 50% of the US households with high-definition locals. Thanks for the tip, Dave!

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 13, 2006

    What we're watching: She'll always be Elaine Bennis Benes to us, but tonight Julia Louis-Dreyfus stars as the old new character on "The New Adventures of the Old Christine". The CBS premiere fires up at 8:30 p.m. with a new follow-up episode at 9:30 p.m. in 1080i. Actually, the premiere has to be stellar for us to catch ep number two, since it conflicts with "24" on Fox at 9 p.m. in 720p. You really don't expect us to record "24", do you?Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 12, 2006

    What we're watching: Yo buddy. Whatsamatta you? You been missin' "The Sopranos", ain't ya? Whaddya mean, what's "The Sopranos"? Don't gimme that dumb look or I might have to tell Big Tony you just said that. You just do yourself a favor and sit yourself down at 9 p.m. tonight, you know what I'm sayin'? That's right, the show is back in 1080i on HBO-HD and you don't want to miss the sixth season, got it? You miss this one and you'll wake up the bottom of the Hudson, see? If you think you can record the show and watch it later, don't. We're on to that DVR thing and we know if you watch the show live, so make sure you do wiseguy. Any questions? Nah, we thought not.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 10, 2006

    What we're watching: It's Friday night movie night with at least two good choices. "Saving Private Ryan" fires off at 8 p.m. on TNT-HD in 1080i. For those that missed "Caddyshack" in 1080i a week ago, you all get a second chance tonight at 10:15 on HDNet Movies. Last but not leaked least is "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie" also in 1080i on Showtime-HD at 7:30 p.m. Take your pick!Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    Reviews
    Reviews By Kevin C. Tofel

    Sharp's AQUOS LC-37GE1E

    CeBit is great for product announcements, but this one is slightly underwhelming. While the big boys are building 100-inch LCD screens, Sharp adds to their AQUOS line with the LC-37GE1E, a 37-incher. The big claim to fame for the new AQUOS is full 1920 x 1080 resolution in a progressive format, not to mention a backlight with a fourth color: crimson-red. There's a built tuner, 1200:1 contrast and a 6 ms response time along with dual HDCP-compliant interfaces (we're guessing HDMI). No price or availability as of yet.[via Engadget]

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 9, 2006

    What we're watching: It's a bizarre twist on CSI tonight as there's a dose of reality television in the mix. Tune in at 9 p.m. on CBS as the crew tracks down a rapist who posed as a fireman to sadly put out his own sexual fire unlawfully. Here's the twist in 1080i: the CSI crew is followed by a reality TV crew for a completely different perspective on the show. Are we really running out of reality show ideas and now incorporating them into exceptionally good programming?Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    TiVo goes with subscription model, what about Series 3?

    Yesterday's TiVo conference call shared some interesting details but kept others in hiding. Lifetime service goes away as an option and TiVo is going with a subscription-based model on the Series 2 boxes. Depending on your commitment of one, two or three years, your monthly TiVo service and the hardware will set you back $19.95, $18.95, or $16.95 a month so you can TiVo to your hearts content. What's that? Don't want a monthly fee? No prob, but that will cost you $224, $369 or $469 for the box and service, again based on the length of your subscription.Series 3 pricing is still unknown, but we should see the new HDTV boxes after mid-year. Our take is that we're really looking at the fourth quarter, but that's pure speculation.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 8, 2006

    What we're watching: Let the early symptoms of the disease known as "March Madness" begin! ESPN-HD has a Big East Basketball doubleheader in 720p starting at 7 p.m. tonight. First up: Rutgers vs. Seton Hall at Madison Round Garden. Tip number two is Louisville vs. Pittsburgh at 9 p.m. Don't forget, the winner of every conference makes it to the big dance starting soon. Personally, NCAA Basketball was one of the first (if not the first) high-definition programs I've ever seen. Sniff, sniff. I need a tissue after that tidbit of nostalgia.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    Accessories
    Accessories By Kevin C. Tofel

    SnapStream's FireFly Mini PC remote released

    Looking to control your PC with an infrared remote that's not the size of French baguette? Look no further because SnapStream Media just let their FireFly Mini remote out of the bag. We've had one of these in the HDBeat labs for our upcoming BeyondTV 4 review and we're quite impressed with the size and functionality of the remote. Compared to the XBox 360 Media Center remote the FireFly Mini is noticeably smaller; to the point where it could fit in a pocket. Don't try that with the Microsoft Media Center remote unless your pants pockets are a like a foot deep! Shipping for the $29.95 remote starts today and the remote controls your PC, Beyond TV and even WMCE via the included USB-IR dongle. Read on for the full press release.

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    Big Tech
    Big Tech By Kevin C. Tofel

    Sony BRAVIA line expands in UK with S, V and X-series

    Sony's highly popular BRAVIA line expands to three U.K. sub-lines right before CeBit. The S, V and X-lines don't have ship dates or prices yet, but this move makes sense considering Sony's master plan to increase their European market share by 20% this year. Each line has a built in tuner for DVB-T MPEG-2 reception as well as HDMI interfaces. The S-line comes in 26-, 32, 40- and 46- inches with support for 1080i and 720p signals, meaning the native res is likely 720p. The V-line dumps the 26-inch size but keeps the other three and adds a Wide Color Gamut CCFL (Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp) for an improved color spectrum. The top-o'-the-line X series builds on the features of the V-series and ups the resolution up to a full 1920 x 1080.

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    Samsung
    Samsung By Kevin C. Tofel

    Samsung's BD-P1000 Blu-Ray ship date

    Confirming a May 23rd date for Blu-Ray, Samsung indicates that their Blu-Ray entry, the BD-P1000 pictured above will hit the United States in a few short months on that very day. We thought it was just our poor Korean translation skills, but a double-check of the press release translation indicates nothin' new on price or detailed specs. We will give Samsung credit for on thing: at least the controls of the Blu-Ray player look blue. Read (Korean) [via Akihabara News]

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 7, 2006

    What we're watching: What a country! You can go from being the President of the United States to an Allstate front man to a U.S. Special Forces commander all in a single acting career. We're talking about Dennis Haysbert, who would actually get our vote if he really did run for President; what a decision-maker! Haysbert kicks off the premiere of "The Unit" tonight on CBS in 1080i at 9 p.m. This looks like another high-action thriller series but has the twist of also encompassing the wives of the Special Forces personnel. We'll call it "24 Desperate Housewives" for now. We're also intrigued by tonight's ep of "House" airing in 720p on Fox at the same time. If we interpreted the previews right, a dead woman must be cured of something so that her organs can be used to save someone needing an immediate transplant. Looks like we'll have to record one of the two shows, but which will it be?Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    Apps
    Apps By Kevin C. Tofel

    InterVideo Ulead's DVD Movie Factory 5 supports both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray

    InterVideo and partner Ulead are riding the next-gen DVD coattails at CeBit with the announcement of DVD Movie Factory 5. The $49.95 software hits the streets later this month; owners of versions 3 and 4 can upgrade for $39.95 directly through Ulead's website. The new version of DVD Movie Factory provides an ad-removal program called Ad-Zapper to delete commercials from your favorite recordings before dumping them onto DVD. Also in this version is "future" support for both the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray formats. Sorry China, no EVD support in this go-around.Do we have any readers burning their HD content to DVD? It would be interesting to see what folks are using and how it's working for them.

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    DISH rolls HD locals to seven more cities

    DISH Network was apparently 'it" in the game of "HD locals tag", so today was their turn. The second largest satellite provider lit up the locals in seven areas today and we've got them for you in alphabetical order for no good reason whatsoever. Albuquerque, Atlanta, Boston, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City and Washington, D.C. join the high-def local ranks previously occupied by only New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Denver and Nashville. The HDBeat labs are in the Philly area and sure enough, when we checked our local availability, we saw those magical two letters, "H" and "D". We're still opting for free OTA here in the labs, but the rest of you big spenders can have your HD locals delivered from space at a price of $5.99 a month. Oh, DIRECTV: you're it![via HDTV Magazine]

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    Computing
    Computing By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDBeat Poll: which resolutions are high-def?

    We warned you the poll was coming and here it is. This poll allows for multiple choices, meaning you can "vote" for more than option here. Right off the bat, we better see everyone vote for the 1920 x 1080 resolution because we all see eye-to-eye on that one, right? Let's forget progressive and interlaced for a second and keep this simple: which of the resolutions listed in the poll do you consider to be high-definition? The voting is open now; let's keep the fight clean, OK? No rabbit punches or discussion of frames per second; just a pure vertical by horizontal show-down. Which resolutions are high-def? Which resolutions here are "high-def"? 1024 x 768 1280 x 720 1366 x 768 1920 x 1080 Other (list in post comments) view results

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 6, 2006

    What we're watching: We hate picking the same show every Monday, but let's get real: when you have back-to-back eps of "24" on Fox, how can you pass that up? The first episode must not be that violent for two reasons. First off, it's on at 8 p.m. and some of the kids haven't hit the sack yet. Second, the episode takes place between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., so there must be some time off for dinner, right? Seriously, when do these characters ever eat or hit the bathroom?If you haven't been sucked in to "24" on Monday nights, we'll offer up her Halle-ness at 9 p.m. in "Catwoman" on HBO-HD in 1080i, more for the visual effects than the plot. Regardless of what you watch in the early evening, we have to recommend "Return to Flight HD: The Inside Story" at either 8 p.m. or 11 p.m. on Discovery-HD. Walter Cronkite hosts this 1080i look at the Space Shuttle Discovery and STS-114.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    Definition of HDTV: here we go again

    So what IS the minimum resolution requirement for something to be called "high-definition"? We kicked this around last year (and then we got kicked around in the comments) when discussing "Truth in Advertising". On on hand folks believe that any display that can show 720 horizontal lines qualifies as high-def, meaning that XGA (or 1024 x 768) should be considered high-def. Our contention is that XGA is a computer resolution and that the more traditional 1280 x 720 (or higher) would be required for the HD moniker. We'll be running a poll on this one later today, but before we do, take a look at Henning's thoughts over at HDBlog for his insights on the subject.

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    News
    News By Kevin C. Tofel

    Blu-Ray, HD-DVD? Nah, how about EVD instead

    In a semi-snubbing move, some Asian companies plan to show off their red-laser based next generation DVD formats at CeBit this week, and why wouldn't they? China never really adopted the DVD standard; instead, they're using the Enhanced Versatile Disc (EVD) format. New Medium Enterprises claims that they can use the current EVD format but increase the number of 5 GB layers to ten layers per disk. Keep in mind that this format uses a red-laser, like today's DVD format, making the EVD a potential high-definition successor in China. New EVD players with this format are expect to provide support for 1980 x 1080 resolution and only retail for $150.

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    Academy Awards: HD or SD?

    So our usual sources are indicating that the 78th Annual Academy Awards are not in HDTV, but several of you are indicating that they are. What gives? We typically check TitanTV and even double-check on the network's own website; at this point, we don't see the show in high-def, but we're hoping that they are. ABC's own program schedule (shown above) does not show the telecast in HD, but we'll double-check at 8:00 on the nose. While we're checking, would you do us a favor and do the same? Check back in here and tell us if your local provider is showing the Oscars in HD and be sure to let us know roughly where you are as well. We didn't believe that ABC would muck this up with an SD broadcast, but  we can only go by what we see. Thanks to everyone who wrote in on this. If you've got time, be sure to check out the live-blog coverage over at Cinematical; they're covering the whole show regardless of the res!

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    TV & Movies
    TV & Movies By Kevin C. Tofel

    HDTV Listings for March 5, 2006

    What we're watching: If you were looking forward to the Oscars in high-def, we hate to disappoint you. Either Jon Stewart or the li'l gold guy didn't want their wrinkles to show in HD. ABC has an hour of Oscar countdown programming in 720p starting at 7 p.m., but once the big show starts, it's back to SDTV for Oscar. INHD2 will be covering the Red Carpet in 1080i at 5:30 p.m., so you can tune in early for more of Hollywood in HD. Most of the networks have repeats up against the Oscars, so give "Spanglish" an early consideration on HBO-HD. The 1080i movie starring Adam Sandler kicks off at 6:45 p.m. Another alternative if you're really in an HD hardship is "Bad Boys II" on Fox at 7:30 p.m. in 720p starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.

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