Audio Video News

Best known for its no-compromise projectors, <A HREF="http://www.dwin.com">DWIN Electronics</A> isn't ignoring the market for high-definition plasma display panels (PDPs).

DVD: That's Entertainment: The Complete Collection—MGM/UA
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 2
A fully remastered picture and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio make this compilation leap off the screen. A tribute to the golden-era of movie musicals and the studio that essentially made the medium, these four discs are full of wholesome entertainment. There is something sweeping and epic about these clips and performances, the grand scale on which these were mounted interspersed with classic solo dances from Fred Astaire and many others. Seeing the full body in motion, fluid and in long takes without cuts is really the only way photographed dance should be seen. The beauty of the art form in all its striking color and sound is simply a joy. Plus, some non-dance sequences are here from the Marx Brothers, Abbott & Costello, and the like, highlighting the intricate choreography of physical comedy as well as classic verbal timing.

So you've got HD satellite receivers from VOOM, DIRECTV, and Dish Network plus an HD cable box from your local cable provider, not to mention the biggest, baddest terrestrial antenna sprouting from your roof so you can pick up every local, terrestrial HD broadcast, but you still can't get enough HD content to watch. Now what?

Sony estimates that there are 10 million or so HDTV owners who are chomping at the bit to get access to digital cable high definition content. For those folks, and for people who'd simply like to record local, terrestrial HD broadcasts, Sony is introducing two new HD digital video recorders, the DHG-HDD250 and DHG-HDD500.

CEATEC stands for Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies, and is the largest Asian exhibition for the communications, information, and imaging fields&mdash;roughly equivalent to a Japanese CES. I recently had the opportunity to visit CEATEC Japan 2004 courtesy of Panasonic, which flew journalists from all over the world to Japan not only to visit the show, but also to attend a kickoff meeting for the Blu-ray Disc Association (see the <A HREF="http://www.ultimateavmag.com/news/101804bda">accompanying story</A>), find out more about Panasonic's products and future plans, and tour some of their Japanese facilities.

The much-discussed convergence of computers and home entertainment took a big step toward fruition with an October 12 announcement by Microsoft Corporation. Touting new products, new software and a website, Windowsmarketplace.com, for those eager to learn about digital entertainment, Microsoft also launched its own online music store. The announcement included the debut of two new logos&mdash;"Designed for Windows" and "PlaysForSure"&mdash;that the company hopes will assuage any doubts about the reliability of the new products.

Texas Instruments continues to push the envelope of projector technology, and high-end manufacturers continue to adopt TI devices into ever-better projectors. TI's latest Digital Light Processing (DLP) devices are known as "DarkChips" for their improved contrast, a result of narrower gaps between mirror elements, smaller mirror hinges, higher reflectivity, and in a seeming paradox, better light absorption thanks to a new coating. DarkChips are said to offer better color uniformity and much lower dithering effects than their predecessors.