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Props to the HD Beat Flickr folks
Wow, when we made a call out for our new HD Beat Flickr group, we had no idea what kind of gear you had! There are some killer setups that putting our own high-def set-ups to shame; just look at illmatic's up above! Let's keep adding to the photo pool: just snap a pic and add it the HD Beat group on Flickr. We love how folks are adding notes to each individual component too; one of the most often asked questions we get from pics are "What model number is that?" If you haven't seen the photos yet, you have to check out some of these true home-theaters. We especially love mnjames's dedicated theater room with ceiling-mounted InFocus projector, blended-in speakers, a mega-big screen and individual comfy chairs! mn, if we promise to bring our Xbox 360 and Windows Media Center PC, can we swing by? We'll even supply the WiFi for streaming!
Dec. 28: What's on HDTV today
What we're watching: Is it just us or is good high-def programming hard to come by at the tail end of the year? Although the movie was so-so, we're going to tune in to 1996's "Twister" on TNT-HD at 10 p.m. tonight. The special effects actually look solid in HD and there's a little nostalgia involved also. While the industry bickers over the next high-def DVD format, "Twister" gets a nod as one of the very first movies ever available on DVD. After the jump is our traditional listing of HD programs throughout the night.
LG declares flat-panel war
"To arms, to arms!" is what the CEO of LG Electronics is calling for. S.S. Kim recently stated his intent for LG to be the top dog in global market share for displays and we're ready to hunker down in the trenches. So what's the battle strategy? We weren't in with all of the generals but our clandestine operative indicates the following: Increased promotion of the first-in-Korea LCoS set Integrated PVRs in all sets 37-inches or larger Further development of the Large Display line (like the 71-incher) Favor LCoS sets to replace DLP sets Read
How not to buy a Plasma
Some folks found this one out the hard way, but we'll recap it for you so you don't become a PDP victim. A restaurant owner was phoned from one of his establishment's suppliers; the caller indicated that he had a good deal on some 50-inch Pioneer plasmas. A few phone calls later yielded a rock-bottom price of five-grand for three sets. The caller scammer then suggested they meet at Sears where the sets were overstocked. Five g's were handed over for a Sears receipt, only it wasn't (you guessed it) legit.When the restaurant owner went inside to get the goods, the scammer fled the scene as did the dough. Right off the bat, if I owned a restaurant, I would have questioned why Sears was supplying me with anything, but that's just me. Secondly, who has overstocks on hot flat-panel HDTV sets with demand going through the roof?
CES debut of new Syntax-Brillian LCDs
You'd think that electronics manufacturers would wait for CES to announce new products, but there's a growing pre-announcement trend. This approach sort of reduces the impact of the actual announcement, but who are we to nit-pick?Syntax-Brillian is the latest to jump on the proactive bandwagon with news on their new 20- to 47-inch LCDs. No less than nine new models are due out and you might recognize the Olevia brand in this mix. The new Olevia Signature models are in the larger sizes and sport 1080p resolution, dual ATSC and NTSC tuners, two HDMI inputs and mountable speakers. So what's left to announce?
Dec. 27: What's on HDTV today
What we're watching: Nothing new on primetime, but you can catch up on some good high-def episodes if you missed them the first time around. Catch a high-def Easter Egg on "My Name is Earl" at 9 p.m if you didn't see it last month. The 1080i broadcast is on NBC and is the episode where Earl's father (Beau Bridges) runs for Mayor. If you can't be bothered looking for Easter Eggs, maybe the guest stars on "Boston Legal" will get you all hot and bothered. A two-hour repeat episode kicks off at 9 p.m. on ABC in 720p. Tune it to catch Heather Locklear and Rupert Everett in this rebroadcast. If you absolutely must have something new-ish to watch, we're recommending HDNet's "World Report: Best of 2005". Ok, that's really a summary of repeats, but it should still be excellent. Tune in at 8 p.m. for the three-hour episode in 1080i. After the jump is our traditional listing of HD programs throughout the night.
EFF says buy a DTV tuner card NOW!
Fred von Lohmann from the Electronic Frontier Foundation suggests a proactive approach to counteract the digital lockdown of devices in the future: buy a DTV tuner card now. Fred wants you to spend your money now, just in case the dreaded HDTV broadcast flag is raised up on the ugly flagpole again.We're all for snapping up a DTV tuner card; heck, we just did that last month for our WMCE machine. Is a proactive purchase really going to help us if the copyright standards are reviewed and implemented? Fred, we're not sure if you're a grandfather or not, but we don't think an early purchase will grandfather us under a broadcast flag ruling. If you're in the market for a DTV tuner, go for it, but trying to purchase technology to circumvent the future usually don't work. That's why we recently passed on a flux-capacitor purchase; it doesn't matter, we didn't have the DeLorean to go with it.
CRT production to cease in Taiwan
We weren't invited to the going away party, but it appears that CRTs are saying "sayonara" to Taiwan. All of the major CRT manufacturers, some you know and some you don't, are shutting down or moving production elsewhere. Taiwan Kolin Co., Proton Electronic Industrial Co., Sampo Corp., and Teco Electric & Machinery Co. have all decided to pull up stakes.Proton will keep their 29-inch production line going but is closing down all other sizes, including the 34-inch line, within the next six months. Most of the other companies are heading to greener pastures in the LCD market since 100,000 LCD units are expected to ship from Taiwan next year. We're expecting to see more of these "bon voyage" excursions from the folks that are still building CRTs. Not that we're manufacturing experts, but are any of these companies considering an SED retrofit of their CRT lines? The technology isn't that much different.Read
AVS Forums: have an immortal HD recording?
Since I've still got over 100GB of storage space on the HDTV-capable Windows Media Center, I'd like to know what I should be recording and saving forever. A reader over at AVS Forums asked the following: "What show or movie have you recorded that looks so amazing you can't bring yourself to erase it?...So far the best that I have seen and can't seem to erase is Sharktale...what are YOUR unerasable reference recordings?"That's a great question since not all of us have a terabyte of storage. If you have an HD-DVR or a WMCE PC with an HDTV tuner, what high-def programming have you recorded that's just too good to erase? I personally don't have anything that was that good, but I'm open to suggestions!
You do get HD, don't you?
Please tell us you're not a statistic. Apparently, the folks over at Scientific Atlanta did a little survey on HDTV programming and the results made us feel like we were watching CSI in standard-def (Disclaimer: viewing CSI in standard def is not recommended, nor do we take any responsibility for any damage to your eyes caused by watching CSI in SD).According to the survey, only a third of HDTV owners are actually watching high-definition programming. *gasp* Here's the even scarier fact (please be sure to sit down before reading any further): Another third of HDTV owners think they're watching high-def programming when they're actually not. In fairness, some folks just don't have access to HD signals either due to location or budget. We get that part, it's the "we thought we were watching HDTV" that we don't get. C'mon folks: can people really not tell the difference? We haven't met anyone yet whose eyes didn't pop during their first HDTV experience. Do you know anyone who can't tell the difference?
Dec. 26: What's on HDTV today
What we're watching: Sing it with me: "All I want for Chrismas is no more repeats, no more repeats, no more repeats..."; no Alvin, Simon and Theodore couldn't have sung it better. Unfortunately, it's a slow time of the year for new programming. We'll give you a choice, depending on your sports preferences. If you're into NHL Hockey, tune in to INHD at 8 p.m. for a 1080i presentation of the NHL on OLN (on INHD; don't ask). Tonight's game takes place in St. Louis where the Stars take on the Blues.If you prefer the NFL, you can catch ABC's last Monday Night Football game tonight at 9 p.m. The game between the Patriots and Jets is a real yawner; the better part of the broadcast is expected to be the various highlights over the last 36 years from MNF as it moves to EPSN next year. We take our helmets hats off to three-and-a-half decades of great Monday Night Football on ABC; the high-def presentations over the past several years were fantastic. After the jump is our traditional listing of HD programs throughout the night.
The time is right for high-def DVDs
All of the high-def DVD format focus is on the war; will Blu-Ray be the victor or will HD-DVD make a comeback. What all of the involved parties need to do is step back and look at the big picture because I think they're missing it. HDTV sales are at an all-time high and growing. Here in the United States, we now have a hard-date for the DTV transition of February 17, 2009. Our daily programming posts generally indicate more and more high-def content available to the consumer. All of these signs point to a huge boon for high-def DVDs, but instead, both sides are bickering like it's Betamax vs. VHS all over again.Manufacturers and production studios: listen up: the time for some concessions is now. The longer you bicker, the more confusion you'll create to your potential customer base. These folks ulimately don't care which format is in their player or who has more storage. The public is simply mesmerized by the 1920 x 1980 1080 display and to a large extent, that's all they'll want, other than quality digital sound to supplement the picture. If the bickering continues, don't complain to us: we'll be watching IPTV catch up and pass you by as our broadband and home networking pipes make both of your discs obsolete!Read
Got HD for Christmas? Share on Flickr!
Here's your chance to share that high-def goodness you found under your tree! Grab your digital camera, snap a pic of your HDTV setup and upload that photo to the all new HD Beat Flickr group! I didn't have anything on my "HD Wish List", so I started the group off with a pic of my current setup. You'll see in the comments that I pointed out what all of the components are. Feel free to put exact model numbers if you don't mind sharing the "privates" of your gear, and tag your photos with "HDBeat".Start uploading those photos to the new HD Beat group and show us what you've got! Who knows, we might use these photos as entries in a random giveaway sometime. Don't wait, show your high-def gear now!
Happy HD Holidays
Our team of high-def bloggers want to sincerely thank you for your support, your feedback and the community spirit here at HD Beat. We hope that you enjoy the holiday season with your friends, your families and of course, your HDTV!
12 HD Days of Christmas: Day 10
"On the tenth day of Christmas..."So it's the end of 2005 and we still haven't resolved our DVD format wars. Heck the war seems to have just begun so we're not waiting around for the victor. A progressive scan DVD player is a must for any HDTV we have and what could be better than an upconverting DVD player? No, the quality might not be on par with an HD-DVD or a Blu-Ray disc, but at least we don't have to worry about which production studio is using one format or the other (or both!). The DVD upconverter we would most love to see under our your tree is....
HD Beat on the HTGuys podcast
We had the good fortune to be asked on the HTGuys podcast earlier this week and the show is now available. If you don't know the HTGuys, they are Ara Derderian and Braden Russell. Ara reached out to us after we demonstrated how to stream HDTV over WiFi and we were happy to talk shop. Ara and Braden really know their HDTV and it's nice to see hear a podcast on home theater. Let's show them some HD Beat support and give a listen.We had a great time chatting with them and we hope their listeners enjoy it too. We've actually been considering an HD Beat podcast for some time, so after you listen to their great show, be sure to come back and tell us if there is interest in a podcast here. We wouldn't go to all of the trouble of a show for just two or three listeners; four or more, however is a different matter, so chime in on the comments!
Large wall not included with Sony's 82-inch LCD
This picture is actually Samsung's mega-sized LCD because Sony isn't showing theirs off until next month's CES show. We'll be on-site in hopes of catching the great unveiling, but we can't see how we would miss it. C'mon, where the heck can you hide something that big? Sony's set won't have the extra bells and whistles that the Samsung has. After all, the Samsung girls think they're magically levitating the set with funky hand gestures. Take that, Sony!Sony's behemoth will have some super specs, however; the 1920 x 1080 display will handle 60 progressive frames per second, making it just perfect for those super, slow-mo's during March Madness. Rumor has it that the screen boasts an 8 ms response rate, so we're already trying to figure out how to sneak our Xbox 360 in to CES for a big-screen demo.Read [via Engadget]
My name is Earl in HD ROCKS
HDTV viewers of My Name is Earl (self included) got another treat tonight. During the episode Earl's brother Randy holds up the sign in the picture above reading "High Def Rocks!!!" which couldn't be viewed by people watching on non-high def TV's. While it was tongue in cheek, it was a great example of the extra detail you can notice with a wide screen picture and enhanced clarity. If you're not watching in HD, you're not seeing the whole show. And isn't that the rubberband man from the Staples commercials? [Thanks to HDBeat reader Paul for being quick with the camera and nabbing a pic] Check out the full picture as it appeared after the jump.
