Tom Norton

Every show we're fated to be teased with a product that isn't sold here in the U.S. These Onkyo D-312E two way stand-mounted speakers, auditioned with the new Onkyo amp and CD player discussed below, impressed me with their lively but not technicolored presentation, at least as heard from a location in the back of a crowed press conference. I hope to get another listen. But they are, as of now, available only in Japan and Europe. Rated at 200W power handling courtesy of a 65mm voice coil on its woofer. The ring tweeter appears to be the same unit used inb the D-TK10, below.

Optoma was producing a terrific picture on a big screen (estimated at about 12-feet wide) using an add-on Schneider anamorphic lens on the company's new HD81 1080p single-chip DLP projector. The projector goes for $7000, the lens is a $4000 option (lens available in November)

Optoma took two of their pro projectors and electronically stitched together this widescreen image. The seam is barely visible here, but a bit more visible in the flesh. Engineers playing games. The image was much sharper than this available light image suggests.

There weren't a lot of video projector demonstrations on the show floor at the convention center (booth prices are reportedly up significantly this year, and projector demos appear to gravitate increasingly to the custom install CEDIA EXPO in September). But one of the best demos was put on by Optoma. The projector was the HD81 LV (about $10,000, available late spring). A special version of the current HD81 1920x1080 projector, the new model is similar to the old, but uses a more powerful lamp, a different color wheel, and a different iris. It may also be equipped with an optional anamorphic lens ($12,999 for the HD81 LV projector with lens, $4000 for the lens if bought separately). The lens may also be used with the basic HD81. The HD image from <I>Phantom of the Opera</I>, from Blu-ray, with the anamorphic lens in the system, was stunning.