The nation's first full test of the DTV transition has been 99 percent successful, says Kevin Martin, chair of the Federal Communications Commission. But he acknowledged that a few viewers lost signals and predicted that 15 percent of TV markets nationwide would see some shrinkage.

Sony and Amazon are joining forces in a joint video-on-demand effort. Amazon's VOD services will function through Sony's Bravia Internet Video Link.

Looking like a winner right out of the box.

Producing loudspeakers at mass-market prices is a thankless task. It takes the resources of a big company like Harman International to do it right. I’ve determined in one review after another that JBL has long been a budget-speaker champ. You could even call me a JBL fan. But I was still surprised when I took the ES20 loudspeaker out of its box. Its tapered non-rectangular form announced that this was no low-end junk-in-a-box speaker, even at $399 per pair. And the surprises didn’t end there. This is the first budget speaker I’ve reviewed that boasts a super-tweeter in addition to the usual tweeter and woofer.

I've been to CEDIA EXPOs in Dallas, New Orleans, a few in Indianapolis, and the last three in Denver. I'll never forget walking the mist-shrouded streets of the French Quarter, of course, and Indy is underrated. But by far the best venue has been Denver. The downtown area is set up with most major hotels within walking distance of both the convention center and amenities in and around the 16th Street Mall. For both work and play, Denver has been the ideal place to attend a convention, and I'm truly going to miss it. So...