Thomas J. Norton evaluates the <A HREF="/accessories/704avia">Avia Pro multi-disc test suite</A>, remarking, "it wouldn't surprise me to see more than one enthusiast invest in the package—especially after seeing just how much it offers."
The annual CEDIA convention is only three weeks away, and equipment makers are generating plenty of pre-show excitement with new product announcements.
Thomas J. Norton evaluates the <A HREF="/directviewandptvtelevisions/704sony">Sony Grand Wega KF-50 WE610 LCD rear-projection television</A>, noting that the CRT is pretty much dead as new technologies take its place. TJN checks to see how this one measures up.
Thomas J. Norton warms up the <A HREF="/directviewandptvtelevisions/704rca">RCA Scenium HDLP50W151 DLP rear-projection television</A> and settles in for an appraisal, noting, "After a brief flirtation with LCoS, Thomson has chosen TI's DLP for their high-end RCA Scenium line."
DirecTV in the north: On August 13, DirecTV Group Inc. has received clearance from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to move one of its satellites into an orbital slot controlled by Telesat Canada, a move that will expand DirecTV's reach to an additional 24 markets. The El Sugundo, CA–based satellite service should soon be serving as many as 130 markets, and could add as many as 7 million new customers to its existing base of 13 million. The company's new Canadian service should be in full operation by early October.
You wouldn't know it to talk to most home theater purists, but there's a market for simplified, easy-to-implement surround sound systems: college students in cramped dorms, for example, or vacationers in summer homes.
Thomas J. Norton reviews the follow-up to last year's Editor's Choice Gold Award, the <A HREF="/videoprojectors/604nec">NEC HT1100 DLP video projector</A>. Norton reports that the latest model is more of a good thing.
The annual Custom Electronics Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) Expo is increasingly <I>the</I> debut venue for manufacturers of home theater equipment.
Steven Stone reviews the <A HREF="/accessories/604camelot">Camelot Technology Dragon 5.1 Plus DVD/CD jitter-reduction device</A>, explaining that "it promises to do for DVD players what the Audio Alchemy box did for CD players: make them sound a lot better."