Audio Video News

Just imagine if you could have this for your home theater system: <A HREF="www.ibm.com">IBM</A> announced last week the T220, which the company is calling the world's highest-resolution flat panel monitor. Unfortunately for us, IBM says that the new display will enable "photograph-quality" imaging for science, banking, engineering, publishing, medicine, and business-critical visualization tasks, and is not likely to appear in consumer living rooms anytime soon.

The high-resolution benefits of digital television could reach millions of consumers within a year or two, thanks to a new module from electronics giant <A HREF="http://www.motorola.com/">Motorola</A>. On October 4, the company announced its MCT5100 M-DTV module, an integrated device combining the functions of Motorola's 8-VSB demodulator, the MCT2100, with an MPEG decoder and controller. Installed in an appropriate monitor, the module will "implement a complete Advanced Television Standards Committee (ATSC) digital television," according to advance publicity.

Many home theater enthusiasts grumble about the slow pace of the development of digital television without considering the cost of the transition for broadcasters&mdash;approximately $2 million per studio. The great change isn't occurring only in our viewing rooms, but also in studios throughout North America.