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AV Receiver Reviews
Integra DTR-50.2 A/V Receiver
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 11, 2011

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
Price: $1,400 At A Glance: THX Select2 Plus certified for medium-size rooms • Audyssey MultEQ, DSX, Dynamic EQ, Dynamic Volume • Loaded with networked audio features

Like My Tattoo?

Once, tattoos were restricted to dock workers and people in dubious professions. Now they’re mainstream: You practically can’t be a musician, actor, or accountant without one. Why? Scientists are baffled. Maybe the bodyart lobby put something in the drinking water. In any case, the Integra DTR-50.2 is as tattooed as any rock star. I counted 11 logos on the front panel, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Just as many people add more tattoos on, um, intimate parts of the body, this AVR’s Webpage boasts a total of 27. True, some of them are small change: Do we really need logos for USB and Zone 3? But this AVR’s cornucopia is fairly bursting with meaningful logos from THX, Audyssey, and—my new favorite—Slacker.

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Vote
What Is Your Main Video Display?
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 11, 2011
I often wonder what components our readers have in their primary home-theater systems, so in the coming weeks, I'll be asking about yours. To start with, I'd like to know what your main video display is. The vote choices below let you specify the type of display, and I really hope you'll leave a comment with the make, model, and screen size, plus a note if it's 3D-capable. If you use a front projector, please share with us the make, material, and size of the screen as well. I look forward to learning what display you watch!

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

What Is Your Main Video Display?
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Audio Video News
Disney Gives Bambi 2nd Screen Treatment
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 11, 2011
Disney's latest video release of Bambi will use Second Screen technology to simultaneously display the movie and derivative features on multiple platforms, including TV, computer, or iPad.

Download the Disney Second Screen app and you'll be able to sync a broadband-connected computer or iPad to the movie as it plays on your primary video display. Then you can "dive deeper into the film by engaging with fun interactive elements like animated flipbooks, galleries, photos, trivia, and more," says the press release.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Love & Other Drugs (Blu-ray)
David Vaughn  |  Mar 11, 2011
Smooth-talking playboy Jamie Randall (Jake Gyllenhaal) is on the fast track to the top of the pharmaceutical-sales industry promoting a new miracle drug called Viagra. However, when he meets Maggie (Anne Hathaway) during one of his sales calls, he falls madly in love with her and is forced to choose between his career and the girl who captured his heart.

The trailers made this look like your typical romantic comedy, but it’s anything but. While it has its funny moments, it takes a very serious tone when tackling the subject of Parkinson’s disease and its effects on relationships. Hathaway and Gyllenhaal display great onscreen chemistry, but the supporting cast can be distracting, especially Gyllenhaal’s onscreen brother (Josh Gad), who’s quite annoying with his sophomoric behavior. If you find Hathaway attractive (I certainly do), then you’ll love the multiple sex scenes as she shows a lot of skin (and looks marvelous)!

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Sweepstakes
Digital Projection M-Vision Cine 230 Projector Sweepstakes
Jon Iverson  |  Mar 10, 2011  |  First Published: Mar 11, 2011
Register to win a M-Vision Cine 230 DLP projector from Digital Projection we are giving away, valued at $6995!

As readers of UltimateAVmag.com, HomeTheaterDesignMag.com and HomeTheater.com know, the ultimate home-theater experience can only be achieved with a front projector firing onto a screen, which can produce a much larger and more immersive image than any flat panel. Unfortunately, this is also the most expensive type of display system—that is, unless you're the winner of our latest sweepstakes!

[This sweepstakes is now closed.]

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Premiere Design
Mitsubishi WD-92840 DLP 3D RPTV
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 10, 2011
As I've said all along, you need a really big screen to get the most out of 3D video, and that usually means a front projector, which, in turn, means big bucks. But Mitsubishi will soon offer a more affordable alternative—the WD-92840, a DLP-based rear-projection 3D TV with a ginormous 92-inch screen for much less than most 3D front projectors and separate screens.
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Audio Video News
Panasonic Debuts New Blu-ray Players That Open With a Wave
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 10, 2011
Panasonic's name may evoke sound, but its reputation is built on video. Nevertheless, the company does produce audio products, though its U.S. offerings in that space differ from those of many Asian manufacturers. It has never been a major player here in AV receivers or stand-alone speaker systems, but instead puts most of its efforts into home theaters in a box (HTiBs), compact one-piece stereo systems, and related all-in-one packages. Panasonic's new 2011 introductions in these categories include a single sound bar (the fully-powered, $400 SC-HTB520, which includes a wireless subwoofer), four compact stereo systems, and three new Blu-ray HTiBs with 3D capability. Four new stand-alone Blu-ray players were also launched.
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Audio Video News
Sony Enhances iTunes Movie Downloads
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 10, 2011
Though disc releases are festooned with special features, movies sold as downloads tend to be unadorned. However, Sony Pictures is beginning to add features to movies sold as downloads through iTunes.

You'll be able to search for actors and dialogue, choose clips to share on social networking sites, and find songs embedded in soundtracks. Not surprisingly, the latter will be linked for purchase in the iTunes music store.

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Custom Installation How-ToHome Movie Theaters
Into the Mystic
Kim Wilson  |  Mar 09, 2011
This DIY theater is one homeowner’s journey toward their dream theater that includes a bar and lounge area for relaxing before and after watching a movie.
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Ask S&V
TV Resolution, Apps, 3D Compatibility
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 09, 2011
How much resolution am I actually seeing on my CRT RPTV? Is it better to have apps in the TV or Blu-ray player? Are there compatibility issues between 3D content and active or passive glasses?
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