hdtv

An all-in-one, 42-inch PC-HDTV (whew)

As Gateway showed recently, computer makers can still generate considerable buzz with an all-in-one machine. At the same time, more than a few TV makers are dabbling in their own Frankensteinian creations with combo PCs. Lumenlab is trying to do all of the above with an ultimate convergence product it calls simply the "Q" (we like).

The North Carolina start-up is developing a 42-inch 1080p HDTV that's also a self-contained computer with a terabyte of storage, 2GB of memory and an Intel Core Duo chip, Engadget says. That's pretty much all we know about it, other … Read more

Sony's latest Bravia ad walks like an Egyptian

First bouncy balls, then geysers, then bunnies, and now Egypt's pyramids--Sony's rainbow-colored Bravia television ads are just about as Craveable as they get. Now here's a new one, created for the company's Egyptian market, featuring colorful spools of thread unwinding their way down Pharaoh-commissioned ruins.

It's inherently not quite as cool as the San Francisco bouncy balls because the shots of zillions of spools of thread cascading down a side of the Great Pyramid were clearly computer-generated, but it's still pretty. And that's what counts, right?

$10 says Sony does a Bravia … Read more

Newsflash: HDTV is too complicated!

In an posting on Crave yesterday, Sony's SVP of Marketing Randy Waynick feels that, as an industry, high definition TV gets a barely passing grade in terms of how it communicates about its products to consumers.

Let's be blunt: HDTV and the next generation home theater it anchors is a trainwreck. What should have been the next great in-home entertainment experience has been marred by an alphabet soup of confusing standards and protocols and dubiously compatible products that consumers should never have been exposed to.

Anyone that has shopped for a TV recently knows how true this is. … Read more

Episode 579: New rule: All music on floppies

Bunnies terrorize New York in latest Sony Bravia spot

A few months ago, the likes of Gothamist and other New York-centric blogs were whispering and gossiping about the presence of Play-Doh bunnies in various city parks, and how it was the fodder for the latest Sony Bravia HDTV ad--you know, those ambitious Euro ads about "colour" that brought us bouncy balls in San Francisco to the tune of Jose Gonzales and paint geysers in an abandoned apartment complex.

And now it's here, to the tune of the Rolling Stones' "She's a Rainbow." Cue up that trippy mindset and check it out--as a New … Read more

Panasonic touts TV time, but researchers fret over it

This week, it's medicine vs. Madison Avenue.

On Monday, Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health announced study results that for children aged 2.5 to 5.5, watching more than 2 hours of TV a day can lead to behavioral problems and poor social skills. A day later, Panasonic announced its "Bring Back Family Time" advertising campaign that promotes its high-definition TV products as a way to get families to spend more quality time together.

Quotations from the respective announcements couldn't contrast more sharply. Can you match which came from Kamila Mistry, lead … Read more

TV viewing to be plagued by a rising tide of snipes and bugs

Monday's New York Times highlights one of my growing pet peeves: increasingly invasive on-screen ads and information that are invading all manner of TV programs. The article ("As the Fall Season Arrives, TV Screens Get More Cluttered") explores some of the supposed reasons behind the trend, which runs the gamut from "bugs" (channel logos) and on-screen data dumps (news and financial market tickers, scoreboards), to--in my opinion, the top annoyance--"snipes" (animated ads, for either upcoming programs or sponsored products).

On news, financial, and sports programming, I'm a lot more forgiving of … Read more

Lots of HDTV Channels, but No HD?

There is nothing wrong with the new HDTV that you just spent a fortune on.

It's not yours' or the TV's fault that the picture quality you are seeing on your brand spanking new TV looks like crap compared to what you saw in the store.

It's not your fault that you signed up for and paid extra for the HD package from your video provider, got all excited about your favorite network and shows finally being in HD and then looking worse than it did on your old TV. Its not your fault because what far … Read more

Flat-panels to kill off rear-projection TV sales by 2011

Will rear-projection TV sales plunge to near zero within the next 48 months? That's what a new study from IDC Group claims. With ever larger plasma and (especially) LCD flat-panel HDTVs becoming ever more affordable, IDC sees sales of RPTV sets--those utilizing DLP and LCoS microdisplays--dropping to under 30,000 units by 2011. That's a dramatic drop from the peak of 3.51 million sold in 2004 (according to the CEA).

None of this is shocking news, of course--the trend toward flat panels has been increasingly irreversible as large plasmas and LCD screens continue to break key price-point … Read more

Making the case for CableCard

As with any first-generation product, CableCard has received its fair share of criticism. The cards are one-way devices, which means no pay-per-view or video on demand. The cards are also single-tuner devices, which means no recording one show while watching another unless you double up. There's no option for a DIY installation, and a visit from technician doesn't guarantee you'll be left with a signal.

I've been using Comcast's CableCard for a couple weeks now, however, and I've been pleasantly surprised. So much so, that I may turn in my cable box at the … Read more