LATEST ADDITIONS

Media Server Reviews
Dual-Core Is Hard-Core!
Chris Chiarella  |  Feb 28, 2006  |  0 comments
Dual-core and other Intel technologies are a boon to heavy users of multimedia PCs.

One wife, two kids, and one cat later, it hit me: There are just not enough hours in the day. My leisure hours, like work, have become a matter of multitasking—watching a DVD in one window as I write a review in the other, downloading photos, and sending e-mails. I can no longer use the "I'm already busy" excuse since, frankly, I'm expected to walk and chew gum at the same time around here. And what of my poor PC, which is charged with performing all of the above and more? At least I know I'm not alone, here at wit's end, as the fundamental usage model has evolved and one-thing-at-a-timers have gone the way of the Timex Sinclair.

Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Blu-ray Coming Your Way
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Feb 28, 2006  |  0 comments
In an effort to take the wind out of the sales of the HD DVD promotional armada heading to retail stores this month, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (SPHE), MGM Home Entertainment, and Lionsgate announced they're targeting May 23rd of this year to deliver the first batch of Blu-ray Disc (BD) titles at retail.
Continue Reading »
Ears On
TiVo Mulls Free Hardware
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 28, 2006  |  2 comments
TiVo may soon lower its hardware pricing to every consumer's favorite number: zero. The news came when CEO Tom Rogers addressed a Reuters technology summit on Monday. The free hardware would begin as a test. In exchange, service plans may extend longer and cost more. Why this, why now? TiVo is a publicly traded company under constant pressure from Wall Street. Once its main competition was RePlayTV but now it's up against proprietary offerings from cable and satellite companies as well as mainstream manufacturers. An especially hard blow was DirecTV's announcement last year that it would de-emphasize TiVo in favor of its own product. Smooth-talking Rogers is determined to defend and increase his subscriber base of four million: "We feel that the notion that TiVo has hit some kind of distribution wall and is no longer a growth animal is not the case." Coincidentally, he is the former CEO of Primedia, publisher of Home Theater.
Continue Reading »
Ears On
Battle of the Batteries
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 27, 2006  |  0 comments
Digital camera pooping out on you? Duracell says its new PowerPix can power twice as many pictures as an ordinary alkaline battery. The PowerPix uses a new NiOx technology—that's nickel-oxy-hydroxide for those of you majoring in chemistry. Meanwhile, Panasonic makes the same claim for its new Oxyride batteries, compared to its own Alkaline Plus, adding that a new version will deliver three times as many pictures around the time the swallows return to Capistrano. Finally, Energizer says its e2 Lithium lasts seven times as long as competing alkalines and that e2s have replaced all the alkaline batteries aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery. Any of them should keep your remotes under control for years.
Continue Reading »
Other Tech
S&V Q&A — February/March 2006
Ian G. Masters  |  Feb 26, 2006  |  0 comments

TOO-LOUD TV

Q. Why does the volume jump 20 dB whenever I switch from CBS to Fox News on my cable box? Shouldn't there be a standard broadcast volume to prevent us from blowing out our $2,000 speakers? William B. Fankboner Indio, CA

Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
PlayStation3 Delayed?
 |  Feb 26, 2006  |  0 comments

It's incredibly common for Hollywood blockbusters to come in way late and over budget, so perhaps we shouldn't be surprised since Sony owns its own movie studio. An industry analysis by Merrill Lynch predicts that Sony's PlayStation3 could not only be delayed 6-12 months, putting off its US launch until late 2006 or early 2007, but also estimates that the gaming consoles are going to cost Sony nearly $900 per unit to build. These predictions started a firestorm across broad segments of the industry, as such delays would not only hurt Sony in the gaming space, but also would undoubtedly cost Blu-ray Disc some critical momentum in the next-gen disc format war. HD DVD players and discs are currently on schedule to hit retail stores next month.

Continue Reading »
Projector Reviews
DWIN TransVision 4 DLP Projection System
Fred Manteghian  |  Feb 25, 2006  |  0 comments

My wife always wanted twins. I got her the next best thing: DWINs. Hanging on the ceiling is my DWIN HDP-500 CRT projector (wow, has it really been seven years already?), while on a table below and slightly behind it is the new DWIN TransVision 4 DLP projector. Actually, the new DWIN, like the old DWIN, is not just a projector, but a full projection <i>system</i> that manages all your critical video switching and processing needs. Seven years. I feel the itch.

Continue Reading »
Maxent MX-50X3 Plasma Monitor
Peter Putman  |  Feb 25, 2006  |  0 comments

As retail prices for plasma displays continue to decline, there appear to be some really good deals coming to market &ndash; mainly, plasma monitors sold under unfamiliar brands in big box stores and wholesale clubs. In particular, plasma monitors are of interest to buyers who already own a cable, satellite, or terrestrial DTV set-top box and don't particularly need an integrated tuner or CableCARD slot.

Continue Reading »
Fred Manteghian Blog
Tales from the Front Lines
Fred Manteghian  |  Feb 24, 2006  |  5 comments

The fog of war settles sullenly on our psyches. We're just behind the front lines, but close enough that every incoming mortar round feels like it has your name on it. My notebook is so covered in mud and dried blood, I'm tempted to use a bayonet to carve out my words instead of a pen. How did this madness begin?

Continue Reading »
Ears On
264 Free Digital Audio Channels Debut
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 24, 2006  |  1 comments
Cool headline, eh? You probably assumed that some online or satellite service is offering a cornucopia of freebies. And these 264 new digital audio channels are indeed both free and ad-free—but they're available over the air. You've heard of HD Radio, the digital terrestrial broadcast format sneaking onto the airwaves alongside analog signals of 700 stations nationwide, but perhaps you hadn't heard that the HD Digital Radio Alliance is also rolling out hundreds of totally new HD-2 Multicast channels in 29 markets. There's a variety of music and talk formats with names like Extreme Hip Hop, Future Country, Classical Alternative, and Chick Rock. And you can hear 'em with a variety of HD Radio products including the HD Radio version of the Boston Acoustics Receptor Radio (pictured) and other products from ADA, Alpine, Day Sequerra, Eclipse, JVC, Kenwood, Panasonic, Polk, Rotel, and Yamaha. HD Radio can be a table radio, a car radio, a surround-receiver feature, or a multi-zone multi-tuner. Someone please send me one.
Continue Reading »

Pages

X