The 2002 film version of Spider-Man was a success on many levels, but most of its magic can be attributed to director Sam Raimi (he of Evil Dead fame), who put his distinctive visual stamp on the production. Spider-Man is also perfectly cast, with Tobey Maguire playing a wide-eyed Peter Parker, Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane, and Willem Dafoe chewing up the screen as Spider-Man nemesis Green Goblin.
• Edge-lit LED backlight • 3D-capable (comes with two sets of active-shutter eyewear)t • 3D conversion of 2D content • Motionflow Pro 240 Hz display modes • Streaming options include Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand, YouTube, Pandora, Slacker, and Picasa
No longer content to be tethered to A/V systems alone, many new Bluray Disc players augment their basic BD-Live online capability with streaming services like Netflix, Pandora, Vudu, YouTube, and CinemaNow.
As an A/V connection standard, HDMI has its downsides: limited cable length, glitches, slow switching, and version upgrades that make new gear incompatible with old stuff — the list goes on. But a major upside is that one interconnect can handle the jobs previously carried out by a thick wad of cables. In its most current version, HDMI 1.4, a single link will convey high-def video/multichannel audio, link devices to a local network (HDMI Ethernet Channel), and route audio signals from a TV back out to an A/V receiver (Audio Return Channel). Sweet!
But any TV making the hook-up also needs to be plugged into a power socket. That means an additional wire, plus the logistical problem of locating a TV near an AC outlet — or, for a wall-mounted installation, of embedding one within the wall (a task that generally requires the services of an electrician). Wouldn’t it be great if HDMI also carried power?
Color temperature (User Mode, Low 2 Color Temperature before/User Mode, Custom Color Temperature after calibration): 20 IRE: 6,369 / 6,800 K 30 IRE: 6,190 / 6,471 K 40 IRE: 6,257 / 6,421 K 50 IRE: 6,456 / 6,429 K 60 IRE: 6,468 / 6,515 K 70 IRE: 6,513 / 6,521 K 80 IRE: 6,521 / 6,516 K 90 IRE: 6,532 / 6,581 K 100 IRE: 6,909 / 6,864 K
Most new A/V trends are slow out of the gate. It seemed like forever before high-definition TV got off the ground, and audio formats like DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD are still struggling for recognition. By contrast, radical advances in computer technology seem to take the world by storm at least once a year. First there was the Web, which bleary-eyed users accessed via sluggish dial-up modems.
You hear plenty about Sony in the news these days. Reports usually cite the company’s latest staggering financial loss, followed by something on its most recent vow to get its house in order by cutting business interests it no longer deems profitable.
One biz that’s apparently dragging Sony down is LCD TV. In an effort to turn things around, the company recently sold its stake in a LCD panel manufacturing venture it owned jointly with Samsung. But even though Sony is no longer involved in manufacturing raw LCD panel components, it is still very much involved in selling TVs. The company also claims significant performance advantages over other LCD TV brands — and it isn’t afraid to demonstrate those advantages in a side-by-side shoot-out.
