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>> I'm John Falcone from CNET.com and we're taking an in-depth look at the Polk Audio SurroundBar 360 DVD Theater. This is a single speaker home theater system that consists of 2 parts, the surround bar speaker and the DVD console. The speaker has eight 2.5-inch drivers that utilize Polk's Stereo Dimensional Array technology to produce a reasonable effect similarly of surround sound. The 64-inch speaker can be wall mounted directly under a flat screen TV or you can use the included table stands. In addition to a built-in DVD player the console includes an AM/FM radio and most importantly several audio and video inputs for connecting other sources such as a cable box or a game system. The SurroundBar 360 emphasizes easy setup. Just connect the 15 foot umbilical cable between the speaker and the console, plug in the power cord and connect it to the TV and you're ready to go. The system includes a remote that can be programmed to control a TV and a cable or satellite box and the onscreen display makes it pretty simple to change the settings. We really like the sound quality of the Polk Audio SurroundBar 360. In addition to providing a rich full sound that will envelop small and mid-sized rooms, the systems bass was particularly impressive. On the downside we were disappointed that the system only includes DVD, not Blu-ray. Similarly the composite and S-video inputs are up converted to HDMI, but the fact that the system doesn't offer HDMI inputs means that you can't use it to directly pass HD video sources. Given the system's $1200 list price the dearth of HDMI inputs and onboard Blu-ray is a frustration. If you're looking for a simple to use single speaker home theater system and you're okay with sticking with DVD, the Polk Audio SurroundBar 360 DVD Theater offers a winning combination. I'm John Falcone for CNET and this is the Polk Audio SurroundBar 360 DVD Theater.
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