TV

Philips Cineos: 1080p LCD with Ambilight

Ambilight is one of those ideas that sounds like it was cooked up by a mad scientist who had a quiet week and a couple of colored LEDs lying around. The reality of it is quite different, because once you've seen Ambilight working, the scientist doesn't seem quite so mad anymore. The Philips Cineos 42PFL9632D makes him seem worthy of a Nobel prize.

If you've been living in a cave for the last couple of years, you might not know what Ambilight is--allow us to help. Simply, an Ambilight TV has a series of LEDs at the … Read more

Sanyo's GPS-TV combo for the car

As more people insist on having a TV while they drive, the following scenario is inevitable: A motorist is watching a big game or show in the car, pulls up to the driveway at a crucial point and sits inside for fear of missing anything. Sanyo has apparently anticipated that kind of conundrum with a new dashboard GPS device that doubles as a portable TV.

The "Gorilla" series--we have no idea what inspired the name either, other than maybe Godzilla--is touted as the first device of its kind with a terrestrial digital tuner, making it easy to pick … Read more

Answer the phone with a universal remote

We've long had a love-hate relationship with universal remotes (mostly hate), so we're conflicted over how to view this model being developed in Australia. On one hand, we hold the general view that most universal remotes are evil, as they rarely work as promised; on the other, a version like the "Telemax III" would come in mighty handy because it has a built-in hands-free phone--which, in fact, might be the only way we'd ever answer a call while watching TV.

The Telemax is still only in prototype stage, though designer Tiller + Tiller hopes to have … Read more

LG adds Freeview PVR to LCD

It's hard to criticize Korean companies these days. There was a time when LG and Samsung were famous only for their low-end products, but these days, nothing could be further from the truth. Indeed, it seems to be the Korean companies who are innovating and adding new features, and in LG's case, it's only gone and stuffed a Freeview PVR into its new TV, the LG 32LT75.

LG, which has done this before with previous models in the U.S. market, isn't the first company to put a PVR in a TV--Humax first did this a … Read more

Are kids getting dumber thanks to TV and video games?

As someone who had hoped that Tivo and the internet were going to raise my child, I have to say that I am disappointed by this SF Gate article that says kids today are dumber than ever and may in fact be getting dumber as we go on.

As for the rest, well, the dystopian evidence seems overwhelming indeed, to the point where it might be no stretch at all to say the biggest threat facing America is perhaps not global warming, not perpetual warmongering, not garbage food or low-level radiation or way too much Lindsay Lohan, but a populace … Read more

LG goes small with latest plasma

It's not often--if ever--that a TV maker brags about a smaller model these days, unless it's talking about some type of new technology. Yet that's just what LG is doing this week in announcing what it calls "the world's only 32-inch plasma."

There are a lot of reasons for this, one of them being that this size is the fastest-growing segment in the industry primarily for price but also for the "second TV" market, as noted by Slippery Brick. And LG and other plasma makers are responding as much to competition as … Read more

A 'diamond dust' TV stand for $142,000

Finally, a media cabinet for the world's most expensive TV. Flatlift has created a suite of media furniture that includes 50 carats of "diamond dust" sprinkled throughout its finish.

The high-gloss cabinets include automated drawers designed to accommodate everything from media components to liquor. The dust supposedly flashes when illuminated, an effect matched only by the LED stripes that can "change colors according to your mood," according to BornRich.

And of course, as its name would imply, Flatlift has built in a motorized life the TV itself in the back of the central piece of … Read more

Still a long wait for V Cast TV in S.F.

Here in the Bay Area, we've been waiting a long time for Verizon Wireless to turn on its V Cast Mobile TV network. And why wouldn't we be excited to get it? The TV quality far surpasses the streaming video on Verizon's 3G network. But, more importantly, we wouldn't have to send the V Cast Mobile TV phones to Chicago or New York to get them reviewed. We realize that Verizon doesn't have enough spectrum here but if Wichita, Kan., gets service, shouldn't we?

Well, the good news is that the Bay Area will … Read more

Google TV Ads to get Nielsen data

Google is partnering with Nielsen so that companies that buy its Google TV Ads can find out how many people actually watch the ads.

Nielsen's metering devices are installed in a large number of households across the U.S., enabling the company to keep track of which TV programs are the most popular.

Now, Google will have access to Nielsen's demographic data from aggregated set-top boxes so advertisers can see what ads are effective and get additional aggregate information about the viewers, such as age and gender, according to Nielsen.

"This is the first time that advertisers … Read more