Shipping in April the TX-42F430S (42-inch $2,000) and the TX-47F430S (47-inch $2500) have a subtle but classy black and gray metal aesthetic. They also sport 4 HDMI inputs (capable of 1080p), integrated tuners, and a claimed 5000:1 contrast ratio.
Sony revealed the KDL-70XBR3. It’s 1080p, has LED backlighting, and has what Sony calls “x.v. Color.” This means it is capable of the xvYCC color space, a first. To let you take advantage of that, Sony also released four new HD video cameras that are also xvYCC capable. The TV will be available in February at the low, low bargain price of $33,000.
Video: 5
Audio: 5
Extras: 3
Tim Burton spins a tale of love and marriage in the worlds of the barely living and the hardly dead. Using stop-motion animation, Burton creates a world that is visually stunning and unlike anything else out there (except for his other creations). The voice acting, from the likes of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, and Tracey Ullman, is excellent.
Video: 5
Audio: 5
Extras: 5
It was with some trepidation that I watched this movie. After all, Joel Schumacher and Akiva Goldsman did their incompetent best to ruin the franchise for anyone who can sound out the word h-a-c-k-s. I shouldn’t have worried. Christopher Nolan knows his stuff and made a movie that is the equal to if not (dare I say it) better than Tim Burton’s classic. Unlike Brian Singer’s passable rebirth/continuation of the Superman franchise, Nolan starts fresh and does as the title says, showing the beginnings of Batman.
Everyone wants a matched system, so how about some speakers to match your plasma? That’s right, plasma speakers. These puppies will really wow the neighbors. They’re not common, and the seller buries the most important sentence in the middle of the posting “Measurable amounts of O2 (ozone) are produced during operation.” Let’s not nitpick that ozone is actually O3. The next sentence is even better “Some people claim they are sensitive to this in the room, others find it fresh smelling or don’t notice it!” Yeah, until it kills you. Leave a door open, turn out the lights, and marvel at the pretty tweeters that make sound with "light."
Get 'em while they're hot (literally).
As I'm sure you've noticed by now, nearly every piece of electronic equipment you own creates heat. Some, like projectors, create a lot. Others, like DVD players, don't create very much at all. Depending on how you have your gear set up, though, any heat can create a problem. What's worse, you may not even know there's a problem until it's too late. There are solutions, though, and they vary depending on how you store your gear.
As I’ve talked about before, console games have to be written for a specific resolution (unlike computer games). Nearly every Xbox 360 game, for example, is 720p. The console then converts that up or down depending on how you set up the console. Those with older TVs drop it to 480i, those with HD sets can choose 720p or 1080i (and occasionally 1080p).
The most frequently asked questions I've received this year have been about the difference between 1080i and 1080p. Many people felt—or others erroneously told them—that their brand-new 1080p TVs were actually 1080i, as that was the highest resolution they could accept on any input. I did a blog post on this topic and received excellent questions, which I followed up on. It is an important enough question—and one that creates a significant amount of confusion—that I felt I should address it here, as well.
At midnight last night, the very first PlayStation 3s were sold. To herald the even, there were huge launch parties in New York and San Francisco. A few of us journalist types were brought up to check it all out.