Gefen HD Scalers
Want an affordable upscaler for your HDTV display? Gefen introduced the Gefen Home Theater Scaler and Home Theater Scaler Plus. Both scale signals all the way up to 1080p. The Gefen Home Theater Scaler ($449) offers these inputs/outpus: - two HDMI inputs each with digital audio (optical and coax) - two component video inputs each with analog (RCA […]

Next-Gen Projector Tech

Projector Tech Moves to Next Generation The next frontier? Short throw projector models that display huge images and tiny pico projectors small enough to fit inside a cell phone. Projector Tech Moves to Next

JVC Announces First Consumer Targeted Stereoscopic Projector

3D displays aren’t high on the list of things probable to be the next major form of home entertainment, but that hasn’t bothered JVC one bit. They’ve just announced their first 3D projector designed for home theaters, the DLA-RS2.

The projector won’t require any glasses; instead it uses D-ILA projection and stereoscopic video processing to present a 1080p 3D adventure.

Details are few and far between on the projector at the moment, but it has been confirmed that SENSIO 3D technology is at the heart, and it will provide a 30,000:1 contrast ratio. While the projector will require 3D content to make 3D images, it will be also compatible with DVD and Blu-ray discs until those become more common.

No word yet on the price, but it will be ready to take home sometime in 2009.

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Digital Cinemas Soon to be Enhanced With The Awesome Power of Lasers

Your eyes are great tools. Currently they’re reading these words on this screen (hi!), and they’re used to watch everything from paint drying to glorious movies. And while the movies are more fun to watch than paint drying, the latter of the two actually provides richer color.

The reason that movies aren’t giving your eyes the rich color that they so desperately crave is because of the range of color produced by current technology. The best digital theaters can only provide 50 percent of the range of color that your eyes can perceive (technical term: the gamut). While traditional film can give 60 percent, its decay makes it less desirable.

But, your eyes are on the verge of feasting on something fresh. New digital cinema projectors based on lasers offer the possibility of providing up to 80 percent of the gamut to your eyes. This is all thanks to a group of researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and a firm named Phoebus Vision OptoElectronics Technology.

While the concept of lasers being used as a projection source dates all the way back to the 1960’s, the bulk and expense of lasers made them impractical. Laser light of yesteryear also “speckled,” meaning that it would scatter off any rough surface, creating a shimmering and sparkling pattern. Or, in laymen’s terms, it would create a dull image.

Lasers still have a pretty sizeable cost; currently one of these projectors will cost 20 times as much as a normal digital projector. But, as the cost of lasers continues to drop, so will these prices.

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CEA to Found Discussion Group on Industry Standards for Handhelds
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has announced the formation of a discussion group to weigh interest in establishing industry technical standards for portable and handheld devices, such as MP3 players, GPS devices, video displays, and cameras. The trade association will hold a Discovery Group meeting to consider the issue at its Industry Forum on October 21 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.

Circular Saws
Carpenters and building contractors have used circular saws for years because of their versatility and portability. A circular saw can rip and crosscut hardwoods, softwoods and other building materials with ease. This same versatile tool has numerous uses in the workshop. Learn the features that you should look for when choosing one of these useful handheld power woodworking tools.

AMD Expands The Ultimate Visual Experience Combining Exceptional HD Graphics, HDTV, and HD Video for PCs
AMD (NYSE: AMD) today expanded The Ultimate Visual Experience™ for North America with the ATI All-In-Wonder™ HD, combining award-winning ATI Radeon™ Premium graphics and ATI TV Wonder™ HD tuner technology card in one PCI Express® 2.0 solution. As the newest multimedia powerhouse to join the long line of All-In-Wonder offerings, ATI All-in-Wonder HD transforms the PC into a highly immersive digital video recorder for HDTV¹ and analog TV, plus expands the realm of exceptional gaming with cinematic HD graphics for mainstream PCs. Blu-ray™ disc playback can be enjoyed in full HD glory (1080p) thanks to ATI All-in-Wonder HD’s unified video decoder (UVD) technology, ensuring movies play back smoothly and with incredible detail².

Nvidia GeForce 3D stereo glasses ready for shipping this year

Teen pregnancies tied to viewing sexy TV shows

Groundbreaking research suggests that pregnancy rates are much higher among teens who watch a lot of TV with sexual dialogue  than among those who have tamer viewing tastes.

Babies and TV
Read an article about babies and watching TV. Find out what pediatricians say and what the best available choices are for baby DVDs.

LG Files Another Patent Lawsuit against Quanta Computers
LG Electronics (LG), a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, filed a lawsuit against Taiwanese computer maker Quanta Computers (Quanta), for infringement of patents related to LG’s DVD technology. LG is seeking an injunction for Quanta’s use of this technology as well as monetary compensation in the suit that was filed in U.S. District Court, the Western District of Wisconsin on July 3, 2007. LG’s claims include infringement of four patents related to DVD standar..

LG Electronics Launches its First DivX Certified Digital Television
DivX, Inc. (NASDAQ: DIVX) and LG Electronics, Inc. (LG), a leader in consumer electronics and mobile communications, announced today launch of DivX®-certified Time Machine TV Series both in Plasma and LCD models. Joining over 90 million DivX Certified devices in offering superior visual quality and support for the full range of DivX video content, LG’s DivX®-certified Time Machine TV Series is now available in Europe, China and throughout the Asia-Pacific region. LG’s DivX®-certified Time Ma..