Audio Video News

There is no doubt in home theater enthusiasts' minds that high definition television (HDTV) offers far superior picture quality compared to standard definition television (SDTV). So, apart from movie studio piracy concerns, why is it taking so long to roll out more HD content? In a word, bandwidth. HDTV requires substantially more bandwidth than SDTV, which forces broadcasters to consider cutting back SDTV content to make room for high-def.

Plasma screens are among the most promising current video technologies. Most consumers who’ve seen them say they'll buy—when the prices drop.

Long noted for its non-participation in the rollout of digital television, the cable industry is now making conciliatory noises about supporting the new format. But even with its support, the changeover from analog is going to take a long time, according to recent statements from Robert Sachs, president of the <A HREF="http://www.ncta.com">National Cable Television Association</A> (NCTA).

<IMG SRC="/images/newsart/he2002.infocus.jpg" WIDTH=100 HEIGHT=63 BORDER=0 ALIGN=LEFT>A great demo can be a thing of beauty&mdash;and InFocus, NAD, and PSB put together one of the best we've ever seen here at HE 2002. They started with a great concept: $10,000 can purchase a complete home theater package that can give anybody all the magic of a true cinema showcase. The system starts with InFocus' new $5000 ScreenPlay 110 DLP projector, which is optimized for DVD with a dual-mode TI DLP chip capable of both 16 X 9 and 4 X 3 projection. The unit incorporates Faroudja DCDI processing and a six-element four-speed color wheel. It will accept high definition inputs (though downscales them to 480p), has component inputs, and is NTSC, PAL, and SECAM compatible. The system included NAD's 80Wpc multichannel 761 A/V Receiver and T531 DVD player ($1500). PSB contributed a pair of Image 5T loudspeakers ($799/pair), an Image 9C center channel speaker ($399/each), a pair of Image 10S ($649/pair), and an Image SubSonic 6 powered subwoofer ($649/each). Add a Dalite grayscale screen and you'll "have enough left over from $10,000 for a nice meal," as the presenter put it.