Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 2
Hmm, a medical show featuring a lot of hot, young people...and that guy who played the geek in all of those '80s teen movies like Can't Buy Me Love and Loverboy as the heartthrob surgeon. Count me out. On the surface, Grey's Anatomy didn't seem to bring anything new to the already crowded table of TV medical dramedies. But the show's prime spot after Desperate Housewives on Sunday nights allowed it to occasionally make its presence known on my TV, and I found myself being reluctantly drawn in. The characters are engaging, the cast is talented, and the writing is surprisingly sap free. Now I'm hooked.
The final specs for HDMI version 1.3 are nearing completion and it's been announced that the first products incorporating the new HDMI standard will be released late this year. In somewhat related news, Sony has pushed the release of its BDP-S1 Blu-ray player back from August to October 25th. There isn't currently indication that the BDP-S1 will incorporate HDMI 1.3, but speculation is rampant all over the web that PlayStation3, due in November, will indeed incorporate the new spec.
<UL CLASS="square">
<LI>Price: $3,495</LI>
<LI>Output channels: 7.1-channels, single-ended and balanced</LI>
<LI>Decoding: DD, DD EX, ProLogic IIx, DTS, DTS-ES Discrete/Matrix/Neo:6</LI>
<LI>Ins and outs: Six coax and four toslink digital audio, two HDMI, three component, one MM phono input, RS-232, 12V triggers, Ethernet </LI>
<LI>Highlights: HDMI and component switching with transcoding of composite and S-Video to component video, 24/96 A-D and 24/192 D-A conversion, Sonic Holography DSP for enhanced surround sound, backlit programmable remote with LCD screen</LI>
</UL>
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/706sunfiretgp5.jpg" WIDTH=450 HEIGHT=170 BORDER=0>
<UL CLASS="square">
<LI>Price: $6,500</LI>
<LI>Output channels: 7.1-channels, single-ended and balanced</LI>
<LI>Decoding: DD, DD EX, ProLogic II, DTS, DTS-ES Discrete/Matrix/Neo:6/DTS 24/96</LI>
<LI>Ins and outs: Four coax and two toslink digital audio, one AES/EBU, one 7.1-channel analog, three component video, RS-232, two 12V triggers</LI>
<LI>Highlights: THX Ultra2, LCD touchscreen display, auto setup with included microphone, transcoding of composite and S-Video to component video, 24/96 A-D and D-A conversion.</LI>
</UL>
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/706classesp600.jpg" WIDTH=450 HEIGHT=220 BORDER=0>
The other day Federal Express summoned me to the front of my building. What delight awaited? It was Onkyo's HT-S990THX. Some would call it the first THX-certified home theater in a box though the Onkyo and THX people prefer the term "integrated THX HT system." HTIB or not, all 143 pounds of it were literally in a box, one box, only 14 inches shorter (and five inches wider) than my refrigerator. My building has elevators, but there are five steps between the ground floor and the sidewalk. The FedEx guy and I stood on the curb staring at one another in dawning horror.
