OTHER TECH

McIntosh MDLP1 1080p front projector

Escient added two new FireBall servers and launched the MX Series medias controllers. The FP-1 Music Manager is an iPod dock that integrates music stored on an iPod into a multizone networked environment, so music stored on an iPod can be sent to any room of the house. The FP-1 also streams music from any FireBall music server or computer running the company's music-server software. Models in the new MX series can control digital audio housed on media servers and PCs, plus they'll work with high-capacity DVD/CD changers. Three models are offered: The entry-level MX-111 (retailing for $1,999) has a 160-GB internal hard drive and support for up to 400 changer-based discs; the mid-tier MX-531 ($3,999) comes with a 500-GB hard drive and support for up to 1,200 discs; and the top-of-the-line MX-752 ($5,999) boasts a whopping 750-GB hard drive, 2,000-disc support, and two independent video outputs, so when it's used in conjunction with a FireBall MP-200 Media Player you can watch either the same or different movies in two separate rooms.

In its first CEDIA, Savant exhibited an open-architecture, programmable multiroom control system called Rosie, which includes a suite of products that range from plasma TVs with integrated cameras to home theater and multizone amplifiers, a main controller/preamplifier, wired, wireless and in-wall touchpanels, and single-handed remote controls. There's even a "concierge" service, but we weren't able to determine if it could get us tickets to the sold-out Black Crowes concert that night.

Video and HDTV Notes

Mitsubishi showed its HD1000U DLP front projector, along with new 57- and 65-inch 1080p DLP rear-projection sets. Kaleidescape demonstrated a lower- (but not low-) priced version of its movie-management system, which will sell for $10,000. JVC has a new three-chip D-ILA 1080p projector, the DLA-HD10K, which comes with a choice of two video processors. Runco rolled out seven new projectors, all of which are offered with the company's CineWide or CineWide with AutoScope technology as an option. Among the new models are two 1080p Reflection Series single-chip DLP projectors, the RS-1100 and RS-1100 Ultra. McIntosh's first-ever video products debuted at CEDIA, including its MDLP1 front projector, a 1080p single-chip DLP model, and its VP1000 video processor, a two-zone scaler. Both can be controlled by a UEI HR057 dedicated remote.

SpeakerCraft AIM Wide in-ceiling speaker

Among Samsung's DLP HDTVs was the HL-S5679W with a multi-LED light source dubbed PhatLight, said to be longer-lived and cooler-running than conventional lamps. The company says it produces smooth, natural colors without a color wheel and, because the need for fan cooling is diminished, lower noise. The 1080p set has two HDMI inputs, comes in a glossy black finish, and carries a $4,199 price tag. Epson highlighted its 720p Cinema 400 LCD front projector ($1,599). Other items on display included the new 854 x 480 MovieMate projectors with a built-in DVD players and speakers, at $999 and $1,199, and the PowerLite Pro Cinema 800 HQV ($6,999), a 720p LCD projector that incorporates Silicon Optix HQV TX3 video processing. Sharp added a 42-inch LCD panel (LC-42D62U) to the two models it announced a week or so ago, all at very aggressive prices for a well-known brand. The 52-inch LC-52D62U is $4,799, the 46-inch LC-46D62U $3,499, and the LC-42D62U $2,499. The company also showed off a curvy new 1080p DLP front projector, the Z20000, with two HDMI ports and a $12,000 price tag.

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