This is one of those times when the pictures just don't do justice to the project. The winner of the 2009 Windows Media Center Ultimate Install is Vision Audio from Lubbock, Texas. The Media Center Integrator Alliance (MCIA), together with Microsoft, announced the winner of the 2009 Windows Media Center Ultimate Install Contest during CEDIA in Atlanta, Georgia on September 13. This impressive system uses Windows Media Center at the core of the home's entertainment experience in an extensive whole-home installation.
We already know you are going to spend most of your week playing the new Halo game, but if you need to change things up a little next week why not grab a copy of Gears of War 2 for $29.99. More HD and gadget deals* after the jump.
Uncharted...
I've always loved <A href="http://www.tannoy.com">Tannoy</A> speakers—in fact, I've used a pair of NFM-8 near-field monitors in my home recording studio for many years. And I'm not alone—many pro studios, especially in England, use Tannoys as reference monitors. But the company also makes exceptional consumer speakers, including the new Definition line.
If you have $430 in your pocket, you can order your new Nikon S1000pj right now and expect it as fast as retailers can ship it. According to Engadget, Nikon's camera-plus-projector is now shipping from various online retailers like Ritz and Beach...
Price: $500 At A Glance: Advanced feature set at budget price • Menu’s context-sensitive help offers timely advice • As listenable as budget receivers ever get
The Cure for Feature Envy
The Pioneer VSX-1019AH has an exceptionally rich feature set at an affordable price. Its spec sheet is an epic document. But the feature that may matter most to a newbie would be the one that explains all the other features. I can sum it up in three self-explanatory words: context-sensitive help.
It’s a safe bet that all of us, at one time or another, have been tempted to indulge in a little chronological chauvinism, i.e., the belief that the age in which we live is the most advanced, the wisest, and clearly superior to all that came before. To thoroughly explode that notion with regard to the wisdom of our current age, one need only reflect for a second on the fact that Perez Hilton is allowed to roam free—at least for a while, until Congress takes up my Send Perez Hilton to the Moon initiative. Yet as far as technology is concerned, it’s almost inarguable. Advance after advance has bequeathed to our blessed generation many wonders: the crescent wrench, the George Foreman Grill, SmartWool socks, chewable vitamins, and of course, Pizzeria Pretzel Combos.
<I>I have heard you and Leo Laporte discuss the merits of 1080p versus 1080i signals. You both agreed that both methods are almost indistinguishable from each other, but neither of you seemed clear as to why they were so close. Well, I believe I may have the reason, but please correct me if I am wrong. The essential feature is their respective frame/field rates. 1080p is 30 true frames or complete pictures per second, whereas 1080i is 60 fields per second, but because it is interlaced, it also results in a true 30 frames per second. Thus, both formats generate the exact same number of true frames or pictures per second, which is why their ultimate picture qualities are identical.