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Projector tech explainer: All your front projection questions answered

For the biggest TV, movie, and gaming experience, you need a projector. On top of all the "normal" TV jargon, projectors have their own buzz words and marketing fluff that must be navigated. Then there's the additional complexity of wiring and screens. None of these things are difficult, especially if you're armed with a handy helpful guide.

Hey, this is a helpful handy guide! Behold, all your projector tech questions answered. … Read more

The 404 1,254: Where can you spare a Bitcoin? (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Check out the new Web site for Jill Schlesinger, CBS News senior business analyst!

- Bitcoin bubble burst? Currency suffers dramatic correction.

- Bitcoin drops another 35 percent as exchange reopens.

- Apple earnings could bring profit setback, despite record sales.… Read more

Facebook's price too high for a 'fad'?

In today's show, the postman always scans twice, a new Kindle could let you read in the dark, and catch all the Pokémon hiding in your living room:

We're keeping a close eye on Facebook as it prepares to go public on the Nasdaq this week. Values for its initial public offering are in the $34 to $38 range. At the high end, it would make Facebook worth more than $100 billion. But we will find out Thursday what the actual initial stock price will be.

But will it keep that high value for long? A poll showsRead more

Report: Front-lit Kindle coming in July

When Barnes & Noble launched a Nook e-reader with an integrated light last month, many speculated that it was only a matter of time before Amazon would release a new front-lit version of its monochrome Kindle e-ink e-reader. Well, according to an unnamed Reuter's source who's allegedly seen a prototype of the product, Amazon is aiming to have that new Kindle in stores by July.

Barnes & Noble's began shipping its $139 Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight at the end of April in time for Mother's Day. The e-reader received a CNET Editors' Choice and Barnes & Noble says that sales have been brisk. … Read more

When should I upgrade my projector?

The other day I wrote an article titled "When should I upgrade my HDTV?" The general thought was that TV performance, while not exactly hitting a plateau, had slowed enough that TVs even a few years old perform pretty close to the new models.

In the world of front projection, though, it's an entirely different story. The level of performance you can get for very little money is incredible. What were once considered "budget level" projectors now easily outperform $10,000+ models from just a few years ago.

Time to upgrade? Perhaps.… Read more

LittleBigPlanet Karting races into living rooms soon

Sackboy and friends put the pedal to the metal in a new racing adventure set to debut in 2012.

Media Molecule announced yesterday LittleBigPlanet Karting for PS3, a kart racing game made in collaboration with ModNation Racers co-creator United Front Games. The title retains the familiar "Play, Create, Share" motto used in previous LittleBigPlanet releases but offers large areas for driving instead of just side-scrolling adventures. … Read more

Projectors vs. TVs: Giant-screen pros and cons

Editors' note: This post was updated March 12, 2013.

Despite reviewing TVs for a living, I don't actually own a TV. The last TV I bought was a 27-inch CRT, in the summer of 2000.

Instead, I do all my TV and movie watching on a 102-inch screen. It's epic. And a projector doesn't have to cost a lot of money, nor is it difficult to set up.

The pros and cons of projection (and why you really, really want it), after the jump.… Read more

Leak: iPhone 5 will not have front-facing LED flash

According to a recent leak in the parts distribution chain, the iPhone 5 may not have the rumored front-facing LED flash as previously expected.

The photo shows what is purported to be the iPhone 5 camera module next to the camera module from the current iPhone 4. The two parts look extremely similar, though the iPhone 5 module seems to be lacking a front-facing LED flash unit, a feature thought to be a given for the new model.

Reports surrounding the camera for the iPhone 5 have stated that Apple will be using an 8-megapixel Sony unit, upping its current … Read more

How to install Front Row on OS X Lion

One of the features that Apple removed from OS X with the release of Lion is the Front Row feature, which allowed Macs to be used as media stations for viewing movies, photos, TV shows, and listening to music through a uniform full-screen media-browser interface. While Apple may have removed this feature from lack of use, a number of people have complained on the Apple Discussion Boards about it being missing from Lion. If you have used Front Row and are dissatisfied with it being missing in Lion, luckily there is a way to get it back.

First you will … Read more

Google wields data openness against Facebook

Google is accelerating efforts to make its new social network look like a more open and attractive alternative to Facebook.

The latest: Google will allow users to export a list of Web sites that they've recommended through the "+1" button.

While only a modest change, it highlights how Google is trying to use openness--the ability to extract your data from its servers with the click of a button--to differentiate itself from its far larger and more established rival.

"When your users can leave you you're going to work as hard as you can to keep … Read more