Archive for December, 2008

One way to save big on home theater systems is to look for refurbished products. Most people think of ‘refurbished’ as meaning the product is comprised of old, used parts that have been torn down and reassembled to make the item functional, but in the world of consumer electronics this is not necessarily the case. Some of the categories of products that are considered ‘refurbished’ items in consumer electronics include customer returns (which are marked down because the box has been opened even though the product is new), shipping damage (which often is confined to the box only and does not necessarily effect the item inside), cosmetic damage (which can be very minor and nearly imperceptible, including smudges and scratches), and demonstration items (which are totally functional and new but have been used by the store to display the product out of the box).

If the discount doesn’t seem to match the situation, ask for the department manager.  In this climate, negotiation is definitely an option. You may find it is worth it to the store to discount your item more deeply just to get it out of inventory.

January is one of the best times to get a great deal on a home theater package or on home theater components at every price point. Not only are big box electronic stores marking down their Christmas overstock (sometimes as much as 60% to 75%), by late January most stores are making additional markdowns to clear out old stock and make room for new models. The Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas Nevada is held in January of each year, and every electronics store wants to be the first to offer the latest, hottest new products.

That means the old stuff has to be cleared out before the first orders start to arrive in mid-February. This year, look for even deeper discounts as big box stores struggle with a slow economy and increasing job losses and cash flow problems. The best deals can often be found on off-brands, so if this is your first home theater system don’t be put off by trying one if you get a fabulous price. Just make sure the product actually meets your needs by carefully considering the features and specs ahead of purchase.

PS Audio has proudly gifted the world with its first HRx disc player. On display, at the CES 2009, the innovative player directly plays DVDs and CDs recorded with high resolution WAV files. PS Audio’s new gadget can play Reference Recordings’ high definition HRX format DVD’s at 24 bit 176kHz.

PS Audio will exhibit the player along its other devices at the CES, January 8 – 11 at suite 29-136 at the Venetian Towers. However, there is no news about a release date or a suggested price.

Via: Engadget

LG, bringing Life’s Good, is again in news for adding YouTube and CinemaNow to its upcoming Blu-ray players. You can watch out for such Blu-ray players at the upcoming CES in 2009. All these models will be featuring Netflix streaming along with additional content from CinemaNow and YouTube.

This is considered as a smart move from LG to attract users towards its new Blu-ray players. Considered as an advanced version of DVD players, these Blu-ray players let you play Blu-ray discs along with HD content from sources like CinemaNow, YouTube and Netflix.

The new LG Blu-ray players with YouTube and CinemaNow will come with a familiar remote control eliminating any need for Media Center PC, Xbox 360 Extender and similar things. The price of these unique players will be disclosed soon in 2009.

A popular Christmas gift is a big screen TV. And although it looks complicated to make it actually isn’t. Considering that consumers do not have to necessarily be gadget geeks, manufacturers tend to create simply to use products. And they all come with decently written technical manuals. Anyone of us could hook up our TV if we paid enough attention to it.

Here’s where Best Buy Calibration Service comes into place. There’s nothing wrong with the service itself. It’s good to know you can actually call someone to hook up your TV if you wanted to. But how would you feel if you heard you are being tricked into it? Best Buy has just been caught using two sets of cables for two identical, side-by-side TV sets. One was displaying a crappy image to give you the impression it had bad reception while the other one had the best picture possible, all thanks to the “calibration” service.

And by the way, the whole calibration process is done using the settings on the on-screen menu. As I said before, you can do it for yourself at any time of day.

via Consumerist

Great news for all Alienware fans! The newly launched Alienware ALX X-58 Desktop PC boasts the power of Intel’s newest Core i7 Extreme processor, the World’s fastest CPU. The pc offers unparallel graphic performance through support for both ATI® CrossFire™ and NVIDIA® SLI™ multi-GPU technology. The power of two GPU’s combined enables faster rendering with higher frame rates and more realistic gaming environments.

The Alienware ALX X-58 breaks all existing standards to lay new benchmarks to be followed. The Pc is capable to render high-quality HD resolutions well above 1080p which can be enjoyed best on Alienware’s 30-inch, widescreen LCD. The ALX X-58 is Windows Vista 64 bit compatible and uses low latency DDR3 memory. It offers up to 4TB of storage space and 12GB of RAM.

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Alienware ALX X-58 Desktop PC

Genius announced that it will exhibit its highly innovative speaker systems at the forthcoming CES 2009. Its CES Speaker portfolio would include SP-T1200 2.0 Touch Speaker System, SW-T2.1 1800 Touch Speaker System and 2.4 GHz Wireless Stereo Speaker System.

Let us look at the main features of these speaker systems:

SP-T1200 2.0 Touch Speaker System

As the name suggests this speaker system works on touch technology. It is great fun when you just touch the speaker and it start doing whatever you wish it to do. The intuitive touch panel screen can be used to adjust the volume, bass or treble just with the slide of your finger. Delivering 30 watts of power, this elegant looking speaker system is a perfect companion to your laptop and notebook.

SW-T2.1 1800 Touch Speaker System

The second speaker from the proposed CES exhibits is SW-T2.1 1800 Touch Speaker System. This one too is a touch model. It comprises a slender sleek three piece speaker system equipped with innovative DRD 3D sound effects delivering greater acoustic range and powerful base. This compact sized nifty gadget boats of following specs:

• 3 piece touch speaker system with clear sound
• 6 “ subwoofer driver provides deep and powerful bass
• DRD 3D sound effect
• Five equalizer effect: Flat/Rock/POP/Classic/Jazz
• Great for home studio, mp3 player, PC/Notebook or LCD TV
• LCD status display
• Total output power: 50 watts

2.4 GHz Wireless Stereo Speaker System

2.4 GHZ Wireless Stereo System is the newly designed model. It incorporates the latest innovative technologies. It comes with a three piece speaker system and works at a wireless range of up to 100 feet.

  Sony BDP-S350 Blu Ray Disc player was alleged for its slow speeds when it just popped in the markets. But the latest version of the Blu Ray Player has been stuffed with some updates. Now we can say that BDP-S350 offers faster disc-loading, enhanced compatibility with the latest BLU Ray discs and meliorated DVD Upconversion quality.

This player is counted amongst top energy efficient players. Its HDMI port supports up to 1080p24 and 1080p60 output with Blu-ray movies. You must be wondering about the price…It is affordably priced at $299.99.

The player comes accompanied with a baton-style remote control. The remote has well labelled function keys surrounding a central directional pad for menu navigation. It is comfortable to hold with its textured rounded back.

With its sturdy performance and outstanding specifications, Sony BDP-S350 has received PC Mag’s Editors’ Choice for stand-alone Blu-ray disc players.

To know more visit PC Mag

CES 2009 is round the corner. LG is very excited regarding the upcoming CES. The company unveiled the world’s first Trumotion 480Hz LCD TV panel with a remarkable 480 refresh rate per sec. Establishing a tradition of Ultra high speed images with vivid representation, the latest model boasts a response time (MPRT) of 4ms, which is quite lower.

“The world’s first Trumotion 480Hz LCD TV panel is planned to hit the market in the second half of 2009. LG Display will provide its customers with unique, high-end products while delivering crisp picture quality for fast moving images.” noted Mr. Eddie Yeo, Executive Vice President and Head of LG Display TV Business Unit.

Enjoy crystal clear image quality with darker darks and brighter whites. The scanning backlight technology employed in the LG Display lets the backlight get turned on and off repeatedly thereby reducing the motion blur. It also decreases energy consumption. The company will unveil this LCD TV at the CES 2009.

Source

We’ve seen some of the products Sharp and LG will be launching at CES 2009 and it looks like Samsung has also leaked its new HDTV lineup. 2009 will bring you a few new Series 3, 4, 5 and 6 HDTVs. And in case you are wondering, yes, they’re supposed to be LED-backlit. The HDTVs will be available for purchase in the first half of next year. As for sizes we are looking at 40 inches and up. The TVs will come with the Internet@TV feature which will replace InfoLive and will use some of Yahoo’s Widgets for helping you get around. CES 2009 should give us a better view of Samsung’s lineup, and maybe we’ll find some prices for you.

via audioholics

ASUS S121 pictured?
New Street Fighter IV theme on Xbox Live
Olympus FE-360
Coraline

Theres no question about it, LG makes truley beautiful displays, that is why their recent announcement about a 24-inch LED BLU display at CES is such a great one.

Apparently, the display is only 20mm thick but boasts a impressive array of features. The W2486L has a 1,000,00:1 contrast ratio, 2ms response rate, and the ability to automatically adjust it’s brightness.

Best of all this display is greener than other comparable models as LG estimates it consumes 50 percent less power.

This stand-mountable set (a suitable stand is available as an option) isn’t exactly svelte. At over two feet deep, it’s more like your grandfather’s CRT RPTV than those hang on the wall flat panel designs that are so popular today. (If a 70″ flat panel is a must, bring deep pockets- Sony’s new 70″ LCD costs $33,000!).

With its removable speakers in place, this 70-inch XBR2 set is just over six feet wide. Without them, which is how I reviewed the set, it’s a “diminutive” 67 inches. The width of the screen area itself is about 60 inches, which is smallish by front projection standards but still a good-sized screen in most rooms.

As mentioned, this set isn’t cheap. But there are some technologies that separate it from the competition. It uses Sony’s well-established SXRD technology, featuring a full three-chip design with a native 1920×1080 pixel count. The 1080p DLP RPTVs currently on the market are single-chip designs using a color wheel and some sleight of hand to use a 960×1080 chip to put 1920×1080 pixels on screen. Also, the KDS-R70XBR2 (hereafter referred to simply as the R70 to delay the onset of carpal tunnel syndrome) includes every feature known to Sony.

DRC (Digital Reality Creation)-MF V2.5 is the latest version of Sony’s video processing engine. It offers several separate modes and adjustments.

Advanced Iris is Sony’s name for its various iris settings, including two automatic and two dynamic modes. CineMotion is a film mode that applies inverse 3/2 pulldown for film-based sources. Twin View is split screen for watching two programs at the same time (though only one can come from the set’s single onboard SDTV/DTV/HDTV tuner). The set is also CableCARD-ready.

KDS-R70XBR

There are more than enough inputs for most requirements, including three HDMI jacks. They are not HDMI 1.3, however—a point we’ll probably have to start making clear since the first HDMI 1.3-ready sets are trickling into the market.

The R70 will accept HD signals up to 1080i over component and 1080p over HDMI. It will also accept both 1080p/60 and 1080p/24. But it converts incoming 24fps sources to 60fps, adding 3/2 pulldown. This is a limitation common to many displays, and it essentially eliminates any advantage that might be gained from using the 1080p/24 output of a high-definition disc player.

DAV-HDX500

The DAV-HDX500 is an HTiB built around an all-in-one receiver/DVD changer that Sony generously rates as putting out143-Watts per channel (x 5) plus an additional 285-Watts for the subwoofer – but that’s at 10% THD. The receiver/DVD changer includes an AM/FM tuner, auto speaker calibration, and an HDMI output with upconversion to 720p or 1080i. There are inputs for an additional A/V source, an audio-only source, and an optional XM satellite radio antenna. Two Digital Media Ports on the back allow you to connect Sony Digital Media Port accessories, such as a Bluetooth Interface ($80) or a Walkman cradle ($50), both of which are currently available. Future accessories will include an iPod Dock ($100) and a Wi-Fi Client ($200). That’s a pretty impressive range of features and inputs for a sub-$500 HTiB.

For years, one of Sony’s strong points has been the industrial design of the gear it makes, and this HTiB is no exception. Rather than incorporate a standard flat front faceplate that looks both boring and cheap, Sony chose to endow the DAV-HDX500 with a cool-looking, split-level front panel. The main display is visible on the recessed top half while the DVD drawer, transport buttons, and volume control are located on a silver strip that extends outward about half an inch. Although the buttons are small, they’re spaced well enough apart from one another, making it very easy to operate the system without the remote control.

Sharp is getting ready to for some heavy partying in Vegas. The company will roll out the new LCD HDTVs which will come with Blu-ray players built in. The 32 inch and 42 inch AQUOS DX are expected to arrive at CES 2009. After the event the new LCD HDTVs will be sent to stores rather quickly. That can only be considered a good news. Now if only the price would turn out to be good news too we couldn’t be happier.

Is Dell getting ready to launch their own LCD TV? Well not just yet! But the company did contact LG Display and Samsung Electronics to order 3.5mm super slim panels. The screens are rumored to be for the next Adamo notebooks. The new laptops are really hot in the news right now as they just might be the future competitors of Apple’s Air.

The panels will come in 16:10 format and they are said to be pretty expensive. They can be priced as high as $3,000 which is a lot more than the $1,800 which is what you have to currently pay for the Air. The panels sound pretty interesting and we’d definitely love to bring you more news about their features. But I guess we’ll have to wait for Dell to launch the new notebook already.

LG seems eager to go to CES 2009. The company has a new LCD TV ready to be launched. And it’s a special one too. The LH95 LED LCD TV is supposed to be the slimmest in the world at just 24.8mm. The LH95 will get you a gianormous 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio and the 240HZ True Motion Drive technology. This LG TV will probably be perfect for all those movies you’re waiting to watch and all those games you’re anxious to buy. We have no actual arrival dates yet and the price hasn’t been disclosed yet. But do follow us through CES for more information.

via Ubergizmo

Recently, ITOK Media Limited launched its new Hi-Fi brand Trends Audio PA-10 Tube Headphone Pre Amplifier. Incorporating new technologies with traditional wisdom and innovative ideas, this new product caters to the requirements of the music lovers and audiophiles with outstanding Hi-Fi gears in very affordable prices.

"It has been a long time coming after the release of Trends TA-10.1
Class-T Stereo Audio Amplifier and Trends UD-10.1 USB Audio Converter.
Trends Audio’s goal is continually to bring the innovative, award-winning
audio products to market with compact, quality and high performance that our customers have come to expect from Trends. ¡§says David Ho, the marketing director of Trends Audio. "After a long and extensive beta-test period, the Trends PA-10 Tube Headphone/Pre Amplifier is finally ready."

The new Trends Audio PA-10 Tube Headphone Pre Amplifier is capable of supporting both 12AU7 and 6DJ8/6922 series tubes. It comes with two sets of switching audio inputs and easy-to-adjust tube bias with screw-drive potentiometers. Enjoy pure class-A circuit for the best sound performance using this new amplifier.

$99 8GB iPhone From AT&T
Fujifilm FP-3000B Film
Manure Teaser Trailer
Final Hip Flexors Stretch
Honda Silver Wing Scooter

We have enjoyed the Simpsons for quite a while now and we were expecting the show to arrive to iTunes. It has finally happened! Apple has added the eight episodes from the current 20th season. Sure we’d like all season to be available but that should happen in the near future. For now a single episode costs $1.99 while the season pass is $37.99. When and if Apple is going to add the older seasons, we’re going to let you know.

via iTunes

When buying a new TV you are certainly checking various models up by size right? You have an idea of where to place your big screen TV in your own home and you know how big you’d want it to be. You’d also want to know exactly what you’re paying for, wouldn’t you?

Well if you happen to pick up a Best Buy or Circuit City listing and check out the TV listing make sure you read those fine prints. You’ll discover that the TV you wanted is actually smaller than you thought.
The TVs are labeled under classes. A 31.5 inch TV will be labeled as a 32 Class while an 18.9 inch TV will be labeled as a 19 Class.

The good news here is that you get those fine prints which specify the actual size. Sony started to advertise the real size in 2007 while Best Buy did so about six months ago. Other big names like Samsung and Sharp did so to but didn’t explain yet what’s the real motivation. Word on the street is that customers sued or threatened to sue when they found out their Class TV was actually smaller than they thought it was. How big is your TV?

via NY Times

Mordaunt Short Speakers

The Mezzo 6 floorstanding speakers anchor the system. The system also included the Mezzo 5 center, two Mezzo 2 monitors that served as surrounds, and the petite Mezzo 9 subwoofer. Mordaunt-Short also offers a Mezzo 1 monitor.

The Mezzos are good-looking speakers with veneer finishes. Their curved enclosures minimize standing waves. Given the floorstander’s real bass response, that feature matters even more. Mordaunt-Short placed the tweeter at the top of the enclosure in an effort to manipulate diffraction off the front baffle. This gives the upper midrange and high frequencies a confident yet unhyped clarity that few high-end speakers achieve.

All of the Mezzos share a 1-inch aluminum-dome tweeter mounted in a separate housing atop the enclosure, which controls resonance. The Mezzo 6 adds two 6.5-inch aluminum-cone woofers that match the one in the Mezzo 2 monitor. The Mezzo 5 center uses a 5.25-inch aluminum-cone woofer that matches the one in the Mezzo 1 monitor.

The Mezzo 9 sub has two 8-inch drivers. All of the jacks are located on the bottom of the sub. The most significant feature is an internal equalization circuit. Subs with EQ are still distressingly rare.  This sub comes with a setup CD that’s loaded with low-frequency test tones. It also includes an SPL meter that measures bass frequencies

WD-65835

With its 65-inch (diagonal) screen, the Mitsubishi WD-65835 is the second from the largest set in Mitsubishi’s full-featured Diamond line. But it’s a lot lighter and more maneuverable than you might expect.

The set offers a full array of the usual video and audio connections. Plus, it includes the increasingly common USB port for viewing your JPEG photos. There is no RGB computer input. You can only connect a computer via a digital link to one of the HDMI jacks.

The Mitsubishi offers three picture mode options: Brilliant, Bright, and Natural. Each of these modes is individually adjustable and adjusts for each input as well. There are only two color temperature options (High and Low), a video noise control, SharpEdge (on or off), and a control called DeepField Imager (on or off). Mitsubishi says this acts as a dynamic contrast control.

A PerfectColor feature (also separately adjustable for each input) offers both saturation and tint adjustments for each of the primary and secondary colors. While a color-management system such as this should ideally include a third control (intensity) for each color, the Mitsubishi does not. When set up correctly (which means only with precision test tools), a good color-management system can produce an accurate color gamut.

The multi-component remote is backlit and well laid out but does not offer direct input selection. However, the onscreen menus are straightforward. It lacks reverse navigation—that is, you can’t jump from the top of a menu to the bottom with a single push of the Up navigation control.

Mitsubishi, the proud maker of world-class LCD televisions and other electronic products, will soon be launching its two new LCD monitors. Both the new much-awaited Mitsubishi RDT196LM and RDT1710LM LCD Monitors will be out on January 9^th, 2009. The Mitsubishi RDT196LM sports a 19-inch screen while, the other model, Mitsubishi RDT1710LM sports a 17-inch screen.

Mitsubishi RDT196LM and RDT1710LM LCD Monitors feature integrated 1W+1W stereo speakers along with DVI-D port. Both these yet to be released LCD monitors deliver a superb 1280 x 1024 pixel resolution. Apart from this, these monitors provide a sharp 800:1 contrast ratio and 250 cd/m2 brightness. As per expectations, the first model will be available at a price of $329, while the second model will be available at $262.

Via: Mitsubishi

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