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Audio Video News
HD DVD Throws Spanner in DreamWorks
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 28, 2008
Don't look for Jerry Seinfeld's forthcoming Bee Movie on Blu-ray--at least, not for awhile. DreamWorks Animation can't release anything on Blu-ray yet, having been, ah, stung by an agreement signed with Toshiba. The 18-month exclusivity pact, which began last summer, obligates the studio to release on HD DVD in exchange for millions of promotional dollars.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Michael Clayton—Warner Bros. (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Feb 27, 2008
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 2/5
I really wanted to see this one during its theatrical run but missed the opportunity. After it was nominated for a bunch of awards this year, my interest peaked even more. I actually sat down to watch it while the Academy Awards was airing. I must say I'm surprised that this one was up for Best Picture. I thought it was a very good film, with really strong performances, but not quite Best Picture material. The film follows Michael Clayton, a big law firm bagman who does crisis management. This time around one of their top lawyers goes crazy during a meeting and jeopardizes a case involving a major agriculture company. The film never lost my interest and I was impressed with the level of suspense a legal thriller could sustain. While I might not agree with the Academy completely about the film, it is definitely worth a look for fans of the genre.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Appleseed Ex Machina—Warner Bros. (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Feb 27, 2008
Video: 3/5
Audio: 4/5
Extras: 2.5/5
In 2004 Appleseed was released as a groundbreaking CG animation feature. The CG animation style was cutting edge and the action of the film was a lot of fun. While I enjoyed that film I thought the overall story was a bit lacking. This follow up is a step up in almost every department. The new story is a lot better in my opinion, but the film does remind me of a video game at times. The scope is larger, but the way the action progresses and some of the dialogue make me feel like I'm watching cut scenes from a game more than a full length feature every once in awhile. The animation has been supercharged since the first release. The characters and animation in general is far more dimensional and the attention to detail is incredible. Fans of anime in general will definitely want to check this one out.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Shoot Em Up—New Line (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Feb 27, 2008
Video: 5/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 3.5/5
Check your brain at the door for this non-stop action ride. And I mean that literally. This is one of those films that almost makes spoofs look tame when it comes to unbelievable action. They've employed just about every "you've got to be kidding me" trick in the book and then some. The plot is paper thin and serves only to get you to the next shoot out. The film does have some style to it and I couldn't help but be entertained from time to time despite the udder ridiculousness of it. If you are looking for anything remotely resembling an intelligent action movie though, stay FAR away from this one!
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Audio Video News
Sony's 2008 Line Show
Thomas J. Norton  |  Feb 27, 2008
This year, as last, Sony held its annual line show at the Paris hotel in Las Vegas. While it is intended primarily for dealers—which explains the introduction of everything from televisions to digital voice recorders, computers, cameras, cell phones, and alarm clocks (in short, everything you'll see featured in Sony movies later this year)—the press was brought in to have the first look.
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Audio Video News
Sony Bows New Blus
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 27, 2008
Two new Blu-ray players were among the highlights of a major Sony product introduction yesterday in Las Vegas.
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Audio Video News
Sony Readies Budget Multi-room Audio System
SV Staff  |  Feb 26, 2008
Sony demoed its latest distributed audio solution at its 2008 Open House this week in Las Vegas. The affordable design brings multi-room capability to those on a budget, incorporating wireless RF transmission operating in the 2.4-GHz band. The...
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Surround Processor Reviews
Anthem AVM 40 Pre/Pro
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Feb 26, 2008
Hide your credit cards now before it's too late.

My son, Nick, recently attended an engineering weekend for high-school seniors at a nearby university. After splitting into teams, the attendees competed in several engineering challenges, one of which was to build a contraption made from a meager assortment of supplied materials (including an Alka-Seltzer tablet) that would move a small toy car across a pan of water.

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HDTV Tech
Flat Panel Display Lab
Mike Kahn  |  Feb 26, 2008  |  First Published: Jan 26, 2008
Your tax dollars at work.

Nestled deep within the corridors of the sprawling NIST (the National Institute of Standards) campus lives the Flat Panel Display Lab. This special facility is dedicated to the development and implementation of metrology, or the measuring methodology, for flat-panel displays. Founded in 1992 and located in Boulder, Colorado, the lab's scientists have created a comprehensive and robust set of measurement methods for accurately evaluating the quality and accuracy of displays.

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AV GlossaryHDTV Tech
Local Dimming LED
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Feb 26, 2008  |  First Published: Jan 26, 2008
The greatest thing to happen to LCD, ever.

The coolest demo I saw at CEDIA 2007 was a demo I saw at CEDIA 2006. The original demo was at the Planar suite. Dolby now owns the company that was working with Planar, BrightSide Technologies, and the technology shown in these demos has a name—Dolby Vision. The short version is this: Using LEDs, you can dim specific areas of the backlight to go along with what is happening with the video. In other words, you can dim certain areas of the screen, while keeping other areas bright. In the simplest form, picture a split screen with black on one side and white on the other. Local dimming would allow the LEDs on the black side to be off and the LEDs on the white side to be lit. The result is a fantastic, legitimate contrast ratio, along with possible energy savings and a host of other potential benefits. But first, we have to understand the problem before we can talk about this solution.

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