HDTV Magazine Columns

Another Opinion - A Matter of Integrity

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:01:27 -0800

I guess it's a sign of the times. With TV shows like "Survivor" and "The Bachelor" espousing the virtues of deceitful behavior and getting big ratings, why should I be surprised that specifications from A/V manufacturers occasionally stretch the truth. I'm not, and they do......and they continue to on an ever more frequent basis. Still, one has to draw the line somewhere.

When they sold us "1080p" sets that wouldn't...

Ed's View - The Atomic Power Cell (APC): Atomic Cordless Power for HDTV Monitors

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:45:29 -0800

Much has been written about wireless component connectivity. The most recent publicity surrounds the "WirelessHD" initiative - an incipient standard for wirelessly interconnecting signal processing components to an HDTV display. This is a great concept except one big cord remains - the power cord.

Wireless power has been a much sought-after technology since Nikola Tesla first demonstrated the possibilities in the early 1900's. Inductive battery recharging technologies have recently been aggressively explored for cordless cell phone applications, but have not been seriously commercialized. However, a recent exciting innovation being developed by...

Newbie's Corner - Audio and Video Cables

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 09:58:07 -0800

So you want to buy a brand new HDTV, A/V Receiver, Blu Ray player and some of you have an old VCR that you want to incorporate into your home theater experience. There is something that you probably didn't even think about, much less budget for, and that's how you are going to tie it all together. This is the job of the cable. There are many kinds of cables out there all with different uses. Today's column will discuss the various kinds of AV cables on the market and what they are used for.

Before we get started, we want to talk a bit about cost...

Ed's View - HDTV Quality Reduction - A Time for Action

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 09:58:26 -0800

In 1969 Japan's National Broadcast Network (NHK) started research on an advanced television system to bring truly high definition television to the public. Their goal for such an endeavor was to "appeal to a higher level of psychological sensation and emotion by transmitting highly intellectual information with detailed characters and graphics." ¹

That highly eclectic goal for HDTV remained through its complex evolution to the US system commercialized in 1996. Unfortunately, that goal is being severely and continuously...

From the Industry - The Big Picture: DisplaySearch's Outlook on the HDTV Market

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 07:45:03 -0800

In 2007, the flat panel display industry reached the $101 billion mark, and it is expected to grow to $131 billion by 2012. While there are many display-centric applications on the rise such as notebooks, mobile applications, digital photo frames, home appliances and navigation systems, flat panel HDTVs continue to comprise 50% of all 10-inch and larger LCD panels shipped on an area basis-a segment that on a revenue basis, hit the $33.5 billion mark in 2007, $11 billion more than in 2006.

DisplaySearch predicts the cumulative number of HDTVs in the US will...

Newbie's Corner - A Compression Primer

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 06:20:49 -0800

If you're fairly new to the world of HDTV, one word you've probably heard a few times is 'compression.' Typically it's used in a very negative way, taking the blame for all sorts of picture quality issues. Unfortunately, compression gets a bad wrap most of the time, in fact, compression itself is really a great thing. In a nutshell, compression is exactly what it sounds like: taking something big and making it smaller, compressing it down to a smaller size. It's the thing that allows a full HDTV movie to fit on a Blu-ray disk, or for an HDTV program to be broadcast to your home for your viewing pleasure. Uncompressed high definition content is simply too large to be of any use to us consumers. Compression is the thing that allows you to store and transfer audio and video content that otherwise would be way too big.

Think of a beach ball...

Showdown: Apple TV vs. VUDU

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 09:09:14 -0800

So you've probably read that Apple is getting into the movie rental business, and with high definition even. With the recent upgrades to their Apple TV unit and addition of movie rentals, Apple is now positioned toward the top of the heap when it comes to online high definition movie rentals. Another company that is at the top of that heap is VUDU, who also has a hardware-based player that connects directly to the TV just like the Apple TV unit. I thought it would be appropriate to pit these two against each other and see which comes out on top.

Another Opinion - The High Cost of Saving Money

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 09:16:33 -0800

Look, I'll admit it. I like to find a bargain as much as the next guy. When I walk into "DVDs 'R US", I always slide by the "previously viewed" bin first. When I travel, Budget Inn is high on my list. But experience has taught me that there are times when spending MORE is the smart thing to do in the name of economy. Recently, in the quest to find material to be contrary about (that's my mission here - had you guessed?), I found a significant number of posts on various websites focused on where to find the absolute rock bottom price for this or that piece of A/V gear. It's not unusual to find a subsequent post a week or two later looking for help on how to "fix" that same item.

Here's the thing

Another Opinion - The Case for Outboard Video Processing

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 09:45:36 -0800

If you haven't already, marketing types everywhere are saying you probably will - buy a large screen TV in 2008 that is. For our purpose here, let's define large as anything north of a 50" diagonal. With the resurgence of a couple good RPTVs, precipitous price drops in both LCD and Plasma large panels and really good front projector/screen combos in the under $5,000 range, many more of you WILL opt for Big Screen nirvana this year. But will all truly be well in Megapixelville? If all you do is replace the monitor, maybe not so much.

Here's the thing. From the beginning...

Newbie's Corner - Aspect Ratio Explained

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:39:37 -0800

So you went out and bought yourself a new HDTV. Many of you bought a sound system to go with it. Now you are inundated with all kinds of terms and acronyms. In this series we will go through the jargon associated with your new system. While these articles are aimed at newbies, some experienced readers out there may learn a thing or two as well. Today we start with two topics that come up on our podcast (HDTV and Home Theater Podcast) quite frequently....

Ed's View - Free HDTV

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 12:46:20 -0800

As my DirecTV monthly contribution approaches $100 and with heating bills up 20% and auto gas prices up 30% and the economy under increasing stress, I decided to do an audit on the $100 bill. I would guess that many other families are doing the same thing, particularly as Cable and Satellite bills seem to have no ceiling.

The result of my audit was not at all surprising: 90% or our viewing is among ten channels, six of them are available over-the-air ....

Another Opinion - On the Matter of the HD DVD Petition...

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 10:29:52 -0800

So you want to petition Warner and let them know you still want HD-DVD.........and you've got 12,000 signatures..................really?

What are you guys thinking?!!

How many HD DVD...