LATEST ADDITIONS

CES 2009
A Bold Statement
Shane Buettner  |  Jan 07, 2009
On the TV side, LG is pushing its LCD flat panel HDTV offerings with LED backlighting and local dimming with 240 zones. While we weren’t aware that LG had local dimming LCDs in 2008, the 2009 “Mega Conrast” models are at least twice as good- 240 dimming zones compared to last year’s paltry 128. In the numbers game, 2,000,000:1 contrast ratios are claimed. In reality local dimming is very real, and has driven the LCDs we’ve seen that employ it to blacks and contrastlevels that are astounding. They’re on our list for 2009 for sure.
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CES 2009
LG=Life Is Good
Shane Buettner  |  Jan 07, 2009
LG was in its customary and brutal 8am time slot (11am on the east coast LG’s John Taylor reminded us- thanks for that John!) and got the 2009 show off with a big bang. Rather than buy into forcing consumers to choose Blu-ray vs. streaming/downloads, its answer is to offer both. Its 2008 Internet connected BD300 Blu-ray player connects to Netflix and Netflix HD. Expanding on that, LG’s 2009 BD players and select HDTVs will offer Netcast, which is LG’s proprietary name for a feature set that delivers Internet derived content. Partners will include Netflix (and Netflix HD), YouTube, and CinemaNow with more content partners coming online later. Pictured here is one of LG's Blu-ray powered HTiBs.
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CES 2010
Baker 92309
Scott Wilkinson  |  Jan 06, 2009  |  First Published: Jan 07, 2009

Driving to Vegas, I always stop in Baker, California, gateway to Death Valley and home of the world's tallest thermometer—134 feet, representing the highest recorded temperature in the US of 134 degrees in 1913. In this night shot, the thermometer is reflected in the 2009 Lincoln MKS that THX loaned me for the trip to check out the THX-certified sound system therein. Unlike past systems, this one can play multichannel DVD-Audio and even DVD video on the in-dash screen (as long as the car parked). Just like past systems, however, this one is quite boomy in the bass, and the only EQ controls are bass and treble. I got it sounding pretty good, especially on Donald Fagen's <I>Nightfly</I> DVD-A, though road noise—even in a car as quiet as this—can wreak havoc on something with a wide dynamic range like Stravinsky's <I>Firebird</I>.

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CES 2009
I’ve Only Just Arrived and Already Home Looks so Far Away…
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 06, 2009  |  First Published: Jan 07, 2009
When you've come to CES as many times as I have, of course you've got baggage - serious mental baggage. At least, as a wonderful byproduct of my job, I can look like a happy idiot taking pictures of the baggage concourse sign in front of hundreds of other people who simply want to get their luggage and get away from me.
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Audio Video News
CES 2009: World's First Internet Car Radio
SV Staff  |  Jan 06, 2009
You have your favorite Internet radio stations, right? Listen to them whenever you're home, of course. Well, finally, you can listen on the road too - no other devices, no cords, nothing, except the new Blaupunkt radio. Blaupunkt is teaming...
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CES 2009
Create Your Own Harmony (without Joining a Barbershop Quartet)
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 06, 2009
Although I haven’t put my hands on one yet (which is a good thing, too, since they’re too greasy from the overpriced turkey club sandwich from room service that I just ate), Logitech’s new Harmony 1100 universal remote control looks like just the kind of remote I’d want in my home theater. It’s classy looking, simple-to-operate, easy-on-the-brain when it comes to programming, and – at $499.99 – it’s a lot less pricey than most of the other touchscreen universal remotes.
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Audio Video News
CES 2009: The Return of The Sharper Image
SV Staff  |  Jan 06, 2009
Today marks the return of your favorite gadget guys, The Sharper Image. They were at CES showing off the products that will be showing up shortly in stores near you. Their retail shops are long gone, but their products will be back - in...
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CES 2009
Streaming Las Vegas
Shane Buettner  |  Jan 06, 2009
I know what you’re thinking. Is that glass half empty or half full? Is it water or whiskey? Ok, that’s a trick question- the answer is obviously dependent on the answer to the first question. And what has the proverbial glass on my mind is CES 2009. I’m here in Vegas and the mood is indeed as subdued as many expected. So far it’s like low season at the hotels here. So, is our perspective on this glass half full? Or is it now a question empty or emptier? Where’s the news?
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CES 2009
Actual Size
Debbie Stampfli  |  Jan 06, 2009
If 2008 was the year of the iPhone, it only makes sense that 2009 is bringing in its own share of small consumer electronics products. Although you won’t be able to fit this in the palm of your hand, Energy’s 8-inch ESW-M6 mini subwoofer ($600) is still a worthy contender in its own category.
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CES 2009
Name Dropping
Debbie Stampfli  |  Jan 06, 2009
Definitive Technology is capitalizing on its already successful Mythos series with the Mythos Nine, an on-wall loudspeaker designed to bring out the best in your flat panel. Priced at $800, the company says that the new Mythos Nine has power well beyond its size. It incorporates two high-definition Balanced Double Surround System (BDSS) 4.5-inch drivers and two 4.5-inch by 8-inch planar medite low-bass radiators. This combination claims to pack a serious punch.
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