Audio Video News

A stalwart plasma brand is giving up on U.S. sales. Fujitsu will no longer sell plasma sets except in Japan.

Source Interlink Media today announced the promotion of Shane Buettner to Editor-in-Chief, Home Theater Magazine, replacing Maureen Jenson who left the company. Buettner began his career with Source Interlink Media's High Tech Group in 2005 as Buyer's Guide Editor for UltimateAVmag.com and HomeTheaterMag.com. He became online editor for those properties in January 2007 and directed their editorial strategy.

A majority of viewers who watch video outside traditional TV distribution prefer professionally generated content to amateur fodder, according to a recent survey. That, in a nutshell, is why the Writers Guild of America went on strike. They want compensation for the use of their work in new-media applications.

Universal Pictures and Vudu made high-definition history with The Bourne Ultimatum on December 11. The Matt Damon vehicle is the first major movie to be released at the same moment online, on DVD, and on HD DVD. The online version will be in high-def, placing it in direct competition with the HD DVD.

<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/UAV_POTY_250.jpg" WIDTH=250 HEIGHT=281 HSPACE=6 VSPACE=4 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Drum roll, please! This is more than an award feature, and more than a list of components. We get to experience the best components in the most controlled settings, in our own reference systems. And yes, we love our job! These are the top components in each product category we've reviewed this year. We're exprienced and we're hard to please, and this is a tough list to crack. The components that made the cut here are truly the best of the best.

Not all owners of analog television sets are planning to make the transition to digital broadcasting, according to a survey by the Consumer Electronics Association. Twenty-two of them plan to just let their TVs go dark and find something else to do.

The standalone Blu-ray Disc player has hit a significant milestone- Samsung's BD-P1400 is now available at $299 or less at several major retailers, including Best Buy, Amazon, and Circuit City. This makes for some fascinating comparisons with the other lower priced next-gen HD players out there. Let's take a look what your $300 or less will buy you.