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Streaming Device ReviewsCustom Installation How-To
Digital Media Receiver Roundup
Geoffrey Morrison  |  May 09, 2011

DEFINING A NEW PRODUCT CATEGORY

I'm struggling with this: What do you call these things? Digital Media Streamers? Digital Media Receivers? How about media extenders, media streamers, or digital media adapters? Maybe Internet Streaming Devices? If you abbreviate that last one, it sounds a bit sinister. "Dude, I got an ISD." Annnnnnnd, you're on a list somewhere.

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Audio Video News
CEA Unveils Spectrum Crunch Clock
Mark Fleischmann  |  May 09, 2011
Should the spectrum allocated during the DTV transition be left alone? Or should some of it be reallocated to wireless broadband? The Consumer Electronics Association leans to the latter side and is dramatizing its position with the Spectrum Crunch Clock.

The SCC, as it explains itself, "tracks the lost opportunity costs to the U.S. economy and consumers with every minute we delay responsibly managing our nation's spectrum resources. The Spectrum Crunch Clock estimates that we have been losing $14,444 per minute since the clock started ticking on March 16, 2010, when the FCC introduced the National Broadband Plan."

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Vote
What Do You Think of 21:9 Flat Panels?
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 06, 2011
Recently, I've answered a couple of questions about 21:9 flat panels; you can read my comments about them here and here. These ultra-widescreen TVs display 2.35:1 movies without the annoying black bars above and below the image as on 16:9 sets, and they can display a 16:9 HDTV image on one side of the screen and online apps on the other without overlapping.

So far, Vizio is the only company to announce 21:9 flat panels for the US market, which will be available "sometime this year" in three screen sizes—50, 58, and 71 inches (diagonal)—though no pricing has yet been revealed. Philips has offered a 21:9 set in Europe for a couple of years, but it's not available in the US. Will other manufacturers follow suit? I suppose that depends on consumer demand.

Which leads me to this week's poll question: What do you think of 21:9 flat panels? Are you eager to get one, or do you think this just another gimmick designed to sell more TVs? Once you make your selection below, please leave a comment explaining your choice. Opinions seem to run hot on this topic, and I'd love to hear yours!

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

What Do You Think of 21:9 Flat Panels?
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Dilemma (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  May 06, 2011
Since college, confirmed bachelor Ronny (Vince Vaughn) and happily married Nick (Kevin James) have been through it all. Partners in an auto design firm, the pair are vying to land a dream project with Chrysler that will launch them into the big time, but when Ronny inadvertently sees Nick's wife kiss another man, he makes it his mission to get answers.

Off the top of my head, I can't think of a bad film Ron Howard has directed over his career, so I'm going to cut him some slack for this middling effort. While the two stars are supremely talented when it comes to comedy, the editing is this film is terrible and it really kills the pacing. Scenes drag on forever and there are certain subplots that could have been cut altogether (sorry Queen Latifah) that would have improved it immensely.

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Music ReviewsBlu-ray Movie Reviews
Blu-ray Review: Treme
Ken Korman  |  May 06, 2011

Consider the dense, multi-layered, centuries-old, and sometimes impenetrable culture of New Orleans — especially in the months just after Hurricane 

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Audio Video News
Cutting the Cord?
Michael Berk  |  May 06, 2011

Two recent surveys have come to different conclusions on whether or not American consumers are abandoning cable in favor of Web-based on-demand and streaming media.

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Ask S&V
Building a System
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 06, 2011
I'm building a 5.1 system with the following components:
  • Anthem MRX 700 receiver
  • Oppo BPD-93 universal player
  • Two pairs of Paradigm Reference Studio 20 speakers (front L/R and surround L/R)
  • Paradigm Reference Studio CC-490 center speaker
  • Velodyne Optimum 10 subwoofer
  • Transparent Audio Wave speaker cables
  • AudioQuest Vodka HDMI cables
I have a few questions about this system, which are listed below.

Marcelo Ferreira

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Ask S&V
The Best Streaming
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 06, 2011
I have a Denon AVR-5308CI receiver, Panasonic TC- P65VT25 TV, Oppo BDP-93 disc player, Xbox 360, and PS3. The TV, Oppo, Xbox, and PS3 all stream Netflix and other media, but I want to know if I need a extra box for media streaming to get the very best image.

Marcos Carvalho

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Thor: Hammer Time in IMAX 3D
Leslie Shapiro  |  May 06, 2011

When Stan Lee penned the first Thor comic book for what would become Marvel Comics, he probably couldn't have imagined that almost 50 years later, his Norse superhero (based on the mythological god of thunder) would hit the silver screen - in IMAX3D no less. The result is a big swinging hunk of modern movie myth-making.

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Audio Video News
Star Wars Saga Blus Coming in September
Mark Fleischmann  |  May 06, 2011
The Blu-ray release of Star Wars: The Complete Saga is coming September 16, 2011 in the U.S. and four days earlier internationally. LucasFilm made the announcement this week, on May 4, Star Wars Day.

The versions used will be the ones released theatrically in 1997 and restored for the 2004 DVD release, George Lucas told The New York Times. The press release does not list resolution but we're guessing it's 1080p. The audio codec is listed as "6.1 DTS Surround Sound." It is not known whether that's DTS-HD Master Audio or lossy DTS 5.1. However, Fox has supported Master Audio in many other BD releases.

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