LATEST ADDITIONS

SmartStream
Hands On: D-Link Shareport Go III Portable Router
Barb Gonzalez  |  Apr 09, 2014
D-Link's newest portable router is easy to use and finally makes it easy to stream to a Chromecast dongle, Roku HDMI, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV or other media player. It also secures your connection to Wi-Fi.
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Streaming Device Reviews
Amazon Fire TV Streaming Media Player
Barb Gonzalez  |  Apr 08, 2014

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $99

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Effective voice search function
Powerful quad-core processor
ASAP feature loads movies for instant playback
HDMI CEC functionality
Minus
Voice search and watchlists not functional for all services
Limited on-demand video apps

THE VERDICT
Fire TV is a solid performer, but it needs more content and services, and a global search option, to make it a hit.

Amazon surprised the world last week by announcing the details of its new standalone media player, the Amazon Fire TV, on the very same day it was released for sale. Priced at $99, Fire TV is positioned to compete with the top-selling Apple TV and Roku 3 box.

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A/V Veteran
A Revel Trifecta
Thomas J. Norton  |  Apr 08, 2014
Late last month I visited the Harman research facility to compare three Revel floor-standing speakers: the Performa3 F208 ($5000/pair), the Performa3 F206 ($3500/pair), and the more upscale Ultima2 Studio2 ($15,000/pair). The venue was Harman's Multichannel Listening Lab, or MLL.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
National Lampoon’s Vacation
Chris Chiarella  |  Apr 08, 2014
Picture
Sound
Extras
Interactivity
Now celebrating its 30th year, Vacation recalls a bygone era of station wagons, roof racks, sing-alongs, roadside attractions, whiny kids (they never go out of style) and a whole generation that drove everywhere for their summertime frolics. The late, great John Hughes adapted the memorable script from his earlier story in the pages of National Lampoon magazine, and director Harold Ramis scored a sophomore hit following his debut, Caddyshack. But the movie truly belongs to star Chevy Chase...
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Remotely Possible
April Showers Knock Out Power: Are Your Prepared for Natural Disaster?
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Apr 07, 2014
I spent a tense 30 minutes the other night huddled on the floor in the hallway outside my father’s hospital room. The National Weather Service had issued a tornado warning for the area, and the hospital had gone into “Weather Plan 2” mode. Everyone in the building—even the patients who couldn’t get out of bed—had to gather in the hallways. My father was one of those temporarily bed-ridden patients, and I’m sure that the mind-twisting aftereffects of anesthesia coupled with post-op morphine made the hurried, bumpy rush from his room to a hall full of two dozen other patients seem even more surreal than it was for me. It became even more surreal after all the patients were returned to their rooms following an “all clear” announcement when, within minutes, the whole process was repeated (albeit with significantly more grumbling from the patients and staff.)

As I was busily texting and tweeting about the collective predicament we were in (it’s actually not true that I caused a small riot when I ran through the hallway yelling “Morphine for all!”), the flickering of the hallway lights during the height of the storm started me thinking about how incredibly dependent we are on technology - technology that most of us take totally for granted until it doesn’t work anymore...

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Audio Video News
Klipsch Adds In-Ear Headphones to Reference Lineup
SV Staff  |  Apr 07, 2014
Klipsch has expanded its headphone lineup with the Reference R6 and Reference R6i in-ear monitors, featuring quarter-inch dual-magnet micro-speakers, tangle-resistant flat cabling, and patented oval ear tips, designed to fit the contours of the ear canal more naturally while providing noise-isolation and enhancing bass performance.
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Tech2
GPS Status & Toolbox App Review
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Apr 04, 2014
Despite the name, this app does a bunch of cool tricks, sort of a nerdy catch-all for a bunch of little things that you might have wanted your phone to do.

After all, it’s got all these sensors in it, why can’t you use them all?

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3D Projector ReviewsProjector Reviews
Epson 5030UBe 3D LCD Projector
Al Griffin  |  Apr 04, 2014

2D Performance
3D Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $2,899

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Excellent contrast and black level for LCD
Capable of powerful brightness
Good overall 2D and 3D performance
Minus
Wireless transmitter needs to be in same space as projector

THE VERDICT
Powerful light output and contrast combined with impressive 3D make the 5030UBe a great projector option at an affordable price.

When Sound & Vision reviewed the Epson 5030UBe’s predecessor, the 5020UBe, in 2013, we were impressed by its exceptional brightness and its ability to convey satisfying blacks. Clearly, LCD projection has come a long way in a short time. Home theater projectors like the 5020UBe tend to get reviewed in a cluster with models from companies like JVC and Sony, and while the Epson ultimately didn’t match its LCOS competition when it came to contrast (JVC) or color accuracy (Sony), overall it held up extremely well—especially considering that the Epson cost several hundred dollars less and offers significantly greater brightness than either of those options.

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Projection Screen Reviews
Seymour-Screen Excellence Reference Series Enlightor 4K Acoustically Transparent Projection Screen
Thomas J. Norton  |  Apr 04, 2014

Performance
Setup
Value
PRICE $2,773 (varies with size and configuration)

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Places center dialogue where it belongs
Good sound transparency
Minus
Light easily passes through it
Needs a bright projector to look its best

THE VERDICT
Acoustically transparent screens aren’t for everyone. None of them is totally transparent to sound, and all of them—this Seymour no less so than others—allow some light from the projector to pass through. But if your system demands such a screen, the Seymour is well worth a close look.

At the 2013 CEDIA Expo, many of the home theater demos used acoustically transparent screens. And a number of them—including those from Wisdom Audio, Datasat, and Digital Projection—used screens from Seymour-Screen Excellence.

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Ears On
Here Comes Blu Music
Mark Fleischmann  |  Apr 04, 2014
The Universal Music Group is taking a new kind of plunge into the Blu-ray disc format. Already the videophile's go-to format for movies and concert videos, Blu-ray now bids to conquer audiophiles. At least, that's the plan. Whether it goes anywhere is a different question.

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