cedia

CEDIA, the digital home, and WAF

On a recent coast-to-coast commute, I stopped in Indianapolis for my annual visit to the CEDIA Expo, the premier event for the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association. It's a trade show of home theater and home electronics fanatics, people who design and build home theaters, run corporate screening rooms, and build high-tech homes. At CEDIA, you can see the latest and greatest in everything from digital projectors and big-screen TVs to home theater seats and switchers, amplifiers, digital converters, and even popcorn machines.

The reason I go is to spot trends and observe the latest developments in the … Read more

Hands-on: PSB M4U 2 noise-reduction headphones

Best known as the makers of excellent-sounding, but reasonably priced, speaker systems, PSB is branching out to the wearable speaker variety, with the M4U 2 headphones.

The M4U 2's, which have active noise canceling, are comfortable to wear, and sound fantastic, are an impressive first entry into the headphone world.

Hands-on: Atlantic Technology PowerBar 235

I don't like soundbars. I'm not impressed easily. I admit to phasing out a bit during the press conference for this product. A soundbar that's "groundbreaking?" Uh-huh.

Then they turned it on. Where's all that bass coming from?

Well that's what I get for being jaded. A soundbar that actually sounds good? Interesting...

Sony puts Netflix in new ES AV receivers

Not content to leave the streaming to the new SMP-N200 box, Sony announced two new AV receivers at CEDIA with integrated support for Netflix, YouTube, and Pandora. They'll be among the first receivers we've seen with streaming-video support; most networked AV receivers stick to streaming-music services. The STR-DA3700ES and STR-DA5700ES are part of Sony's high-end ES line, which means they're likely to carry hefty price tags when they're released in November.

Whether buyers want media streaming in their AV receivers has yet to be seen. As we've argued in the past, AV receivers typically aren't great media streamers, … Read more

Hands-on: Sony HMZ-T1 head-mounted 3D OLED display

Don't let the picture fool you; it's not as awkward as it looks. Perhaps that's not the most auspicious start, but come on, it's a video visor. You're not going to look elegant. The HMZ-T1 from Sony has a pair of 720p, 0.7-inch OLED screens, integrated headphones, and a head-clamp that's equal parts necessary and weird.

Christopher MacManus wrote up the heads-up display news here, but at the CEDIA Expo yesterday, I tried it on and gave it a peek.… Read more

Sony rolls out SMP-N200 streaming box

Sony's original "Netbox," the SMP-N100, was always overshadowed by more popular competitors like the Apple TV and Roku XDS. That wasn't entirely fair, as the SMP-N100 was loaded with streaming media services (Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant) and offered DLNA compatibility, the latter being a much-requested feature on the Roku.

Sony announced its latest streaming media box at CEDIA today, the SMP-N200, which adds 3D compatibility and live content streaming to the SMP-N100's already formidable features list. Additional details are scarce at the moment, so we'll have to wait to see what streaming services … Read more

LG's best local dimming, passive 3D TV ships now

Today at the CEDIA trade show in Indianapolis, LG announced the availability of the 55LW9800, its best 2011 LED-based LCD TV and the first on the market to combine a full-array LED local dimming backlight and passive 3D.

The 55LW9800 is the successor to the well-reviewed LX9500 from 2010, a full-array model with active 3D. LG had announced high-end local dimmers for the U.S. market at CES in January under the LW7700 and LW9500 series names, but subsequently said it would scuttle those sets--which used active 3D technology--in favor of a TV with passive 3D.

The 55-inch 55LW9800, shipping … Read more

Aperion's Zona Wireless Surround Speaker System cuts the cord (almost)

The popularity of surround-sound audio has always been hampered by the amount of wiring you need to set it up, even if you're using so-called wireless rear speakers. Today at CEDIA 2010, Aperion announced its new solution to the problem, the Zona Wireless Surround Speaker System, which consists of two powered speakers and a wireless transmitter and is expected to ship on October 25 for $500.

Most wireless surround-speaker solutions use a wireless receiver placed in the back of the room, and speaker wire still needs to be connected to both of the surround speakers from the wireless receiver. … Read more

3D projector specs compared: JVC vs. LG vs. Sony

Today JVC and Sony announced new 3D-compatible front projectors at the CEDIA show in Atlanta, while LG showed its 3D model that's been available since June. Here's a quick comparison of their specs and technologies, with some of my thoughts after the break.

JVC: Its three new 3D models, ranging in price from $5,000 to $12,000, all employ active shutter glasses technology to achieve the 3D effect--the same technology used by current 3D TVs. That means they'll work with standard projection screens and require external IR emitters to send the 3D sync signal to the glasses, which are quite expensive ($179 list) and proprietary to JVC. The most-expensive version includes the glasses and the emitter for free.

LG: The CF3D ($14,999) was announced at CES in January and started shipping in June. It's the only one in our comparison to employ passive glasses technology, similar to what's found in most commercial 3D theaters in the U.S. It actually has two separate light engines--requiring six total LCoS panels and two bulbs--that are combined inside the unit to shoot through a single lens.

It requires a special silver screen to handle the polarized light correctly, but one big advantage is that the glasses are cheap. LG includes six pairs with the unit, and compatible circular polarized versions are plentiful, selling for as little as $4/pair online.

Sony: The VPLVW90ES ($10,000) was first announced at the IFA show in Berlin, and seems largely unchanged for the U.S. market. It's similar to the JVC units in many ways, chiefly in its use of active glasses technology; it requires the same $150 glasses used by Sony's 3D LCD TVs, such as the HX909 series, and includes two pairs. Unlike on those TVs or the JVC projectors, the required IR emitter is built into the unit.

JVC's ultrathin 32-inch LCD costs $3,000

We're not quite sure why HDTV manufacturers feel the need to go keep going thinner, but that hasn't stopped them yet. JVC's new 32-inch LCD, the LT-32WX50, is just a quarter of an inch thick at its slimmest point; the screen only bevels out toward the bottom because of the thickness of the inputs. Here's a quick glance at its feature set.

Key features of the JVC LT-32WX50:

Edge-lit LED backlighting 4000:1 quoted contrast ratio Wide color gamut--100% percent of sRGB and 90% of Adobe RGB Two HDMI inputs VGA-style PC input RS-232 port for … Read more