In these pages, you’ll see small speakers referred to as monitors, stand-mounts, or—if they’re small enough—satellites. But rarely as bookshelf speakers. As I’ve often said, a bookshelf is a terrible place for a speaker. Unless it’s designed specifically for in- or on-wall use, a speaker belongs a few feet out from the wall to minimize undesirable acoustic interaction with the wall. So don’t refer to the Epos M12i as a bookshelf speaker. They’d never forgive you for it. They have an artistic sensibility, and that extends to the M8i center-channel speaker and M SUB subwoofer.
The movie industry's longtime claims of home piracy may have some basis in fact. According to a study by Futuresource Consulting, one out of three American and British consumers surveyed admitted to copying DVDs. The news comes as revenues from DVD sales have moved from a long period of steady increase to the start of a decline.
Now that energy savings are as prominent on consumer radar screens as flat-panel TVs, a set combining both concerns has become inevitable. This week, at a Japanese trade event, Sharp showed the first solar-powered LCD TV. Nope, no U.S. details yet.
Field Emission Display technology, developed by Sony and Motorola, will make its debut in 2009. While its initial use will be in the broadcast and medical arenas, the FED may also put ultra-flat tubes on the longterm wish lists of consumers.
Two-thirds of consumer electronic products returned to retailers are in working order. Another 27 percent are returned due to buyer's remorse. Only five percent are actually defective. This giant disconnect between expectation and reality emerged in a report by the research firm Accenture, in a study entitled Big Trouble with "No Trouble Found" Returns.
The description in the headline above is Klipsch's, not mine. I usually refer to this kind of product as earbuds. But Klipsch is allergic to that term for arcane technical reasons explained in this FAQ. So headphones these wispy transducers are.
Here's the number of CableCARDs in circulation: about 6.6 million. Hooray! Now here's the number of CableCARDs operating in digital cable ready TVs: 372,000. Huh? Wha?!