Catching up on Lost, Enjoying Mario Kart and Re-Discovering Charlie Chan

May 12, 2008

ChanthologyWhat do those three things have to do with one another? Not much as far as I can tell but we’ve been enjoying the heck out of all three lately. Sometimes you just have to step back, pop in a good movie (or game) and get back to what it’s all about, after all home theater is a means to an end not the end itself.

So if you’ll indulge me a minute or two, I’ll start with the most obvious. If you missed out on the on the Lost phenomenon the first time around (like I did…) catching up on DVD is highly recommended. If you watch nothing but the first season I think at the very least you can walk away saying; ok that was thought provoking and let’s be honest that’s a rarity on television these days.

The other thing gobbling up our time around here, as if it were some new form of Technicolor crack is Mario Kart Wii. Look I know cursing while playing Nintendo games isn’t what the designers had in mind but I can’t help it when I’m getting owned by someone driving a kart piloted by something called a Koopa Troopa. Seriously though Mario Kart Wii is an absolute blast on the big screen and a great way to get friends and family together with differing skill levels at games and still have an absolute blast.

The last diversion I’ve re-discovered is Charlie Chan, I just can’t get enough. At the risk of appearing insensitive to those who find the series offensive; I’ll just say I’m fearful of a mindset that would have us put away anything that doesn’t hold up to time as well as we’d like. Yeah there are some outdated attitudes depicted in the films, but there are also some razor sharp one-liners and no nonsense deadpan humor that make for a unique viewing experience to say the least. If you’re unfamiliar with the Charlie Chan series, the recent Chanthology DVD box-set is a great way to get your feet wet. No go enjoy that home theater!

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Movies & Television | Leave a Comment 

Panasonic’s BD-Live Capable DMP-BD50 Blu-ray Player

May 8, 2008

In my estimation every new Blu-ray player that launches with BD Live capabilities (like Panasonic’s recent DMP-BD50 ) is a good thing for the format. Blu-ray needs as many points of entry as possible, simply put consumers have heard the better picture and sound pitch before, it was called DVD and they already have it. It’s going to be the combination of much better image, noticeably better sound and advanced interactivity that finally pushes Blu-ray into the mainstream.

The field of standalone BD-Live capable players is growing but currently only consists of a few Models from Panasonic and Sony (at least those are the only ones I could think of with firm launch dates) so the more the merrier in my estimation. Panasonic’s DMP-BD50 ($699.95) sports the usual assortment of features we’ve come to expect in a high-end Blu-ray player including: Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD MA, HDMI 1.3 with Deep Color and x.v.Color, 1080p/24 playback and 5.1ch analog audio outs.

All in all the player looks like a solid performer but I’m still a bit put off by BD-Live capabilities only showing up in the upper tier products. I suppose the manufacturers assume the early adopter clock is still ticking and there’s enough time to worry about Joe public later.

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Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Blu-ray | 7 Comments 

3-D Ready or Not, Here They Come

May 3, 2008

samsung 3d

We’ve all heard of cable ready televisions and HD ready flat-panels but get ready to be assaulted err marketed with the term “3-D ready”. With Samsungs recent launch of their Series 4-450 3-D ready plasma television touted as the world’s first “3-D Ready Plasma HDTV”, you can bet this will be the first in a long line of televisions marketed as being 3-D capable.

Before anyone gets the wrong idea no you can’t un-box one of these displays, turn it on and watch standard programming in 3-D (although that can’t be that far away). 3-D capable displays require a source running application specific software paired with compatible 3-D glasses to deliver a true 3-D effect.

So in essence 3-D ready means the certified display meets the minimal requirements necessary for displaying 3-D images, but doesn’t necessarily deliver anything above and beyond an ordinary display with standard (non 3-D) media. Once again and maybe I’m missing the train (again) but I’m just not interested in 3-D at least not for movies and television.

I avoid 3-D movies and always have, however I did see Beowulf in 3-D just to be able to be keep up to date on the subject. Even with all of the improvements over traditional 3-D I saw with Beowulf, I still didn’t find the experience enjoyable. But, I do look forward to eating those words should the technology eclipse the tell-tale uncomfortable glasses and headache inducing gimmicky effects, I’m not holding my breath though.

Posted by Philip Stamps | Filed Under 3D Display Technology | 2 Comments 

Pioneer Announces Kuro Projector

April 26, 2008

kuro-proj

That’s right, Pioneer announced a projector at the High End show in Munich Germany, one that will proudly wear the Kuro badge to boot but all isn’t as it would appear on the surface. The Kuro KRF-9000FD projector features LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon) display technology, a 30,000:1 contrast ratio and will no doubt do justice to the black level we’ve come to expect from Kuro products.

In addition the KRF-9000FD sports a 2x motorized zoom lens, lens shift with 80% vertical/34% horizontal motorized adjustments, and the ability to display 1920×1080 pixel progressive video at sizes up to 14.5’ by 8’. Other options include 2 HDMI ports, one each for component, composite and S-Video cables, and a RS-232C jack.

But once we delve a little deeper under the hood, wait a minute who am I kidding, anyone looking at the picture can see it’s a rebadged JVC RS2 or DLA-HD100. I guess we shouldn’t be all that surprised that Pioneer would build on JVC’s already impressive work with their projectors. On the other hand however it does come off a bit odd that a company with one of the hottest prestige labels in flat-panels would use someone else’s chassis to leverage that same brand power with a projector

Listen, there’s no real harm in Pioneer using JVC’s innards to power their new Kuro projectors. In all honesty it does make sense, why re-invent the wheel if a perfectly round and reliable wheel is laying there on the shelf beckoning you to use it. Pioneer’s new Kuro projector will be available in Europe by May, for about $12,000. No launch date for the US has been announced. Via: Lots of places.

Posted by Philip Stamps | Filed Under Home Theater Projectors | Leave a Comment 

Netflix: Pass the Grey Poupon, er Blu-ray

April 21, 2008

dvd-case

Well, this one kind of caught me off guard, apparently Netflix CEO Reed Hastings in a conference call said that since Blu-ray discs are more expensive to purchase versus standard definition DVD’s, the company will start charging more for accounts that rent Blu-ray discs.

Netflix did at one time offer both HD DVD and Blu-ray discs at no additional charge but since the format war ended, Netflix all but stopped offering the HD DVD’s back in February. Hastings seems to think that high-def users are more accustomed to paying more for their content, so charging extra is not that big of a deal.

On the other hand, I say effectively increasing the price of renting Blu-ray will do little to foster the kind of growth the format needs to become mainstream, perhaps that’s not really on Hastings to-do list. Oh well, my Netflix queue has been a barren wasteland of late anyway, maybe it’s time to take a breather and put my account on hold. Heck, I might cancel it altogether if these price increases are substantial.

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Blockbuster & Netflix, Blu-ray | 4 Comments 

Over 70 Million Connected Homes by 2012

April 19, 2008

I still get a kick out of responding “the internet” when asked what’s the next big thing in home theater? Of course I go on to say there are always several “big things” on the horizon at any given time (3D and lossless downloads come to mind) but more and more advanced interactivity and alternative content streams are the areas I see generating the most buzz with manufacturers and consumers alike.

Of course advanced interactivity and IP based content streams require internet connectivity, which is why for years now I’ve been telling anyone that would listen to pull an extra CAT5 to their home theater equipment. It looks like I’m not the only one stressing the importance of the connected living room/theater; according to research done by Parks Associates (January 08) the installed base of residential gateways (performed by third parties) could grow to well over 70 million by 2012.

The surprising part of this was the fact the 70 million number was for third party installations (Geek Squad, Fire Dog, Comcast etc.) and doesn’t account for self installs. We could be at or over the 70 million mark right now with the combination of service provider deployed and self installations. You can bet your last nickel the alternative distribution content providers are watching these numbers very, very closely.

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Media Servers | 2 Comments 

XStreamHD - Digital Content Delivery with a Twist

April 16, 2008

This is one of those posts that got shoved off to the back burner and eventually fell off the stove altogether, I’m ashamed but it’s still not too late to finish dinner.

This one goes all the way back to CES (yeah I know January was only three months ago) and a little announcement that flew under the radar of many, from a start-up called XStreamHD.

XStreamHDWhatTheHeck you say? Yeah, I have to admit the name didn’t exactly grab me by the throat the first time either. However, now that I know what it is, what it’s called makes more sense.

But getting back to what it is, XStreamHD is a rather unique content distribution system with some nice accoutrements (picture this guy and say accoutrements again and try not to laugh). Ok seriously though, yes it’s a “digital download” service but not the kind you might be expecting. XStreamHD utilizes the internet for some of its functionality but that’s not where the content comes from.

XStreamHD is a HD media server that receives its content via satellite but we’re not just talking about any old content here, supposedly XStream has semi-formal agreements from the studios to offer HD content ahead of or directly with disc based release dates. XStream might even be able to offer some completely unique content, or content packages that can’t be seen elsewhere.
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Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under HDTV Programming | 1 Comment 

PS3 Finally Getting DTS-HD Master Audio Decoding

April 10, 2008

While it’s not available yet, next week (on tax day no less) the 15th of April to be exact; PS3 owners will finally be able to utilize the DTS-HD MA audio tracks on their Blu-ray discs:

“DTS-HD Master Audio is noted for its pure, high-quality bit-for-bit sound. DTS-HD Master Audio has the capacity to deliver audio at a variable rate of 24.5Mbps on a Blu-ray disc.

DTS-HD Master Audio also offers 7.1 audio channels at 96k sampling frequency/24 bit depths. More than 100 Blu-ray movies and concert videos featuring premium DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks are said to be currently available.”

This is great news for PS3 owners but one word of caution, while the player will indeed be able to internally decode DTS-HD Master Audio, hardware limitations preclude the PS3 from sending the master audio as a bit-stream to newer receivers capable of deciding it internally.

I know that might be a bit confusing but just think of it in terms of where the decoding is being done, in the case of the PS3 the next-generation audio codec’s are decoded internally and sent out as multi-channel PCM. Other (stand-alone) players down-the-line might be able to transmit the bit-stream intact all the way to the receiver, what if any real-world benefit that might bring is debatable however.

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Blu-ray | 6 Comments 

Mitsubishi Dates Launch for Laser TV

April 7, 2008

mits laser tvThis May will mark the month a new consumer display technology hits the market and along with it a slew of “frickin’ laser” jokes. Branded as LaserVue, (I can feel a laser joke bubbling up as we speak) the displays obviously have Mitsubishi’s executives very excited.

Max Wasinger, senior vice president of Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America stated: “We are the first in the world to debut LaserVue technology. We are just finishing up two days of dealer meetings and LaserVue TV will absolutely be the future of TV; it’s a true dimensional experience.”

Mitsubishi’s director of product development, David Naranjo expanded with: “LaserVue will offer the viewer twice the amount of color than other displays on the market today. The reds are so vivid, they have to be seen to be believed. When we did our average consumer comparison testing one of the comment’s I heard was, “Oh my god, the color is so pure.” Also with our commitment to energy savings, LaserVue displays will use half the power of other comparable displays with the same screen sizes on the market today; we really are comparing apples to apples.”

There are some big claims in those statements and not having seen one of the laser displays (well, at least I don’t remember seeing one at CEDIA last year) its hard for me to quantify them. It’s my understanding that the laser apparatus itself is in large part responsible for the purer colors and clarity. We’ll see, rather, hopefully I’ll see sometime in May.

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under Display Technology | Leave a Comment 

Battlestar Galactica Season Four – Is it Ten Yet?

April 4, 2008

Battlestar Galactica

I’m not sure about you but as far as I’m concerned the biggest home theater related story of the day, has to be tonight’s premiere of season four of Battlestar Galactica on Sci-Fi HD at 10pm Eastern. I have to admit I was late to the Battlestar Galactica party (just like Firefly…) but I couldn’t be more hooked now if I tried.

The Chicago Tribune’s Maureen Ryan has a great write up that includes some quotes from executive producer Ronald D. Moore: “There are some relationships that will be torn asunder,” said Moore, who’s directing an episode for the first time this season. “There will be some things that will be fundamentally broken over the course of the season. We’re going to lose certain characters; some things are not going to be repaired. There’s a sense of finality about it,” he said.

As many of you know this is the last season of BSG and if you haven’t started watching or gotten fully caught up yet, I recommend DVR’ing it before watching the new episodes. That’s not to say you wouldn’t enjoy it but there are some character subtleties that might be missed otherwise. Geesh, is it 10 yet?

Posted by B.Greenway | Filed Under HDTV Programming | 2 Comments 

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