Audio Video News

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Audio Video News
Added to the Archives This Week
 |  Oct 27, 2003

In theory, says Peter Putnam, the <A HREF="/accessories/1003zenith">Zenith HD230 HDTV receiver-DVR</A> should be one step ahead of the competition. PP explains why, and more when he reviews the latest tapeless tuner/hard-disk recorder that offers some unique features, but omits others.

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Audio Video News
New AV Marketplace
 |  Oct 27, 2003

New this month, <I>Guide to Home Theater</I> brings to you the internet's largest community of qualified audio and video buyers and sellers, powered by industry leaders Videogon. Visitors to guidetohometheater.com will find a new "<A HREF="http://marketplace.guidetohometheater.com">AV Marketplace</A>" link that connects directly to the most robust venue for buying and selling used and new Audio and Video equipment on the web. Services also include an online Bluebook for quick evaluation of used equipment prices, online used equipment forums, member product reviews, information on manufacturers, and a member feedback system.

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Audio Video News
HD Events in November
 |  Oct 27, 2003

The Los Angeles area will be a hotbed of high-definition activity in November, with an HD camcorder and editing workshop early in the month to be followed by the HDTV Forum confab a week later.

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Audio Video News
B&W Flat Panel Speakers
HT Staff  |  Oct 21, 2003
Quick, can you name an obvious accessory for sleek, flat-panel displays? Sleek, flat-panel loudspeakers, of course.
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Audio Video News
Coming Attractions
HT Staff  |  Oct 20, 2003
ELAN
ELAN's new VIA!2 wireless touchpanel is perfect for controlling wholehouse audio, home theater, security, temperature, lighting, drapes, and just about any other wireless solution you could ask for. (Now, if only it could load and unload the dishwasher...) It uses an 802.11b wireless transmission method and comes with both the VIA!2 server and docking station. The 7.8-inch LCD touchscreen and large, easy-to-read buttons and user screens make the VIA!2 both intuitive and user-friendly. Using ELAN's VIA!TOOLS Windows-based software, you can complete the setup process in hours using simple point-and-click methods. ELAN says that the VIA!2 will last for 670 hours in hibernate mode, 24 hours in standby mode, or 6 hours in operation mode. The $3,500 price tag also gets you the Server Station, which can turn the unit's commands into IR or RS-232 commands for controlling other home devices. Look for this handy device in the first quarter of 2004.
ELAN Home Systems
(859) 269-7760
www.elanhomesystems.com
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Audio Video News
Software Reviews
HT Staff  |  Oct 20, 2003
DVD: Hollywood Homicide—Columbia TriStar
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 2
Hollywood Homicide is the kind of film that probably looked much better in concept than it did on the scripted page—and far better than it does on screen. Two Hollywood detectives—one a real estate broker on the side, the other an aspiring actor—try to wedge in a murder investigation between their second lives. All of the buddy picture elements are here, notably the grizzled veteran (Harrison Ford) teamed with a green, slightly bumbling rookie (Josh Hartnett), but the screenplay by director Ron Shelton bumbles its own way through the story, creating zero believable chemistry between the two. Ford has never looked older or more dour as the long-timer who's more anxious to unload a turkey of a property than solve the case.
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Audio Video News
Added to the Archives This Week
 |  Oct 20, 2003

Thomas J. Norton encircles himself with the <A HREF="/speakersystems/903BW">B&W DM 602 Series 3 surround speaker system</A>, noting that "the model designation 'DM' might not sound like anything special, but it has a long history with B&W." And, as TJN discovers, what counts is how that tradition is put to use.

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Audio Video News
CEA Survey: HDTV Rising
 |  Oct 20, 2003

HDTV is a hot technology, as any home theater fan will attest. That enthusiasm is shared by as many as nine million households, likely to purchase high-definition television (HDTV) products over the next 18 months, according to a recent <A HREF="http://www.ce.org">Consumer Electronics Association</A> (CEA) survey, titled <I>HDTV Consumer Awareness Update</I>. An additional 30 million consumers may buy into HDTV within the next three years, the trade group asserts.

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Audio Video News
MPAA to Soften Screener Ban?
Barry Willis  |  Oct 20, 2003

Movie studios, producers, writers, actors, and distributors are seeking a work- around of an edict issued only a couple of weeks ago by the <A HREF="http://www.mpaa.org">Motion Picture Association of America</A> (MPAA) that would ban free screening copies of Academy Award-nominated movies.

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Audio Video News
Cablevision Launches Voom
HT Staff  |  Oct 20, 2003
HDTV fans suddenly have more to choose from. On October 16, New York-based Cablevision Systems made good on its promise to deliver high-definition programming from the sky, with the launch of its Rainbow DBS (direct broadcast satellite) service.
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Audio Video News
DirecTV's HDTV Push
Barry Willis  |  Oct 13, 2003

High-definition television (HDTV) and digital video recorders (DVRs) are moving quickly from elitist technologies to mainstream entertainment.

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Audio Video News
New Product Announcements
 |  Oct 13, 2003

Autumn's annual CEDIA Expo is increasingly the launch pad for new video and home theater products. It also leads into many new offerings to be delivered during the winter holiday season.

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Audio Video News
Cablevision Goes High-Def
 |  Oct 13, 2003

<A HREF="http://www.cablevision.com">Cablevision Systems Corporation</A> is the latest television provider to jump on the HDTV bandwagon. The twist here? Cablevision will deliver HD from a geosynchonous orbit.

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Audio Video News
Added to the Archives This Week
 |  Oct 13, 2003

Pete Putman reveals that, at first, he paid the <A HREF="http://www.guidetohometheater.com/showarchives.cgi?159">Optoma H56 DLP front projector</A> little attention. And then he set one up for the 2003 Super Bowl, which lead to a complete review of the sub-$5k projector.

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Audio Video News
Coming Attractions
HT Staff  |  Oct 06, 2003
Theta Digital
Here's looking at you, Theta Digital; or, more specifically, your new Casablanca III Music and Cinema Controller. (Come on, that joke was just too easy.) The Casablanca III features Theta's Open Architecture, which consists of a motherboard for signal routing and several daughter boards for various function-specific circuitries. The company says that the Casablanca III takes customization to a new level, offering hundreds of crossover options like Linkwitz-Riley and phase-perfect. Dolby Pro Logic II and DTS ES (in both Matrix and Discrete 6.1 versions) are standard. Prices range from $9,000 to $20,000, depending upon configuration. The Casablanca III will definitely have you asking Sam to play it again. (Sorry, we couldn't resist.)
Theta Digital
(818) 597-9195
www.thetadigital.com
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