Here is an HDMI switchbox with remote for under 100 clams.
You generally get what you pay for, but switches can sometimes be solid even at discount prices.
I’m a bit leery of the no-name brand of this box, but it might be worth a look if you need an HDMI switch on a budget.
HDMI switch with remote
Via HD Beat
ExtremeTech has a thorough tutorial for picking the base components of your DIY home theater computer, the case and power supply.
They cover the variables you need to take into consideration for cases:
Form factor
Ventilation
Noise control
Materials and construction
Appearance
And power supplies:
Total electrical output
Cooling approach
Noise output
Power connections:
Electrical efficiency
The tutorial walks you through all the details and takes a look at a couple of case choices.
They wrap it up with a look at barebones package alternatives.
This is a great place to start if you want to build your own HTPC.
A Case and Power Supply for Your DIY Media PC
Whoever says size doesn’t matter obviously doesn’t have a Home Theater. Sharp comes along and Bang! here’s a 65-inch LCD. Man, that’s just huge for an LCD.
This is a 1080p set with 4000:1 contrast ratio. The LC65D90U has a built-in HD tuner, has a response time of 12 milliseconds, is wall mountable, and features a detachable speaker assembly.
The Jones’ just can’t keep up with this kind of bling.
Unit is shipping now:
Source
Via HDBlog.net
The new 42″ LCD from LG, the 42LP1DR, is due out.
This ain’t your Daddy’s LCD HDTV, it features a 160GB hard drive for recording HD shows and movies. It also includes a card reader for pulling photos off of your memory cards.
160gb allows for 13 hours of HD content storage, or up to 63 hours of SD content.
Via Gizmodo
For a technical look at the latest Star Wars release, we get the thumbs up from HomeTheaterMag:
Video: 5
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
The film presentation itself, created directly from the original digital source material, is stunning in its richness of colors and amazing details. Everything you saw theatrically, from helmet glare to the subtle reflection of animated characters, is present and visible on the home screen. There is simply no flaw in the 2.35:1 anamorphic picture, ranking this as one of the best DVD presentations you’ll see.
This DVD is a “must have” for any home theater enthusiast. Unless, of course, you hate Star Wars. (What is wrong with you?)
This could also be a good reference DVD choice for calibration or HDTV shopping.
Rent StarWars Ep III at netflix. Free 10 day trial - movies sent to your mailbox with a free return mailer. See if you like it before you buy it.
Star Wars Episode III
Home Theater Mag has a new article about shopping for your new HDTV set. Jed basically skips the tech featuresets of various units, and tells you how to examine the image quality of different HDTVs.
He suggests to take your own reference DVDs (your own movies that you are very familiar with) to check them out on the sets you’re interested in.
“Make sure that some of the material has scenes of fast motion, as well as scenes with large areas of flat color, such as a blue sky or mostly dark scenes. This will let you observe the processor’s noise-reduction capabilities.”
He covers watching SD and HD material, and what to look out for. Great article.
Well, while we’re covering high end projector reviews this week, here’s another one on the Marantz VP-12S4.
This high-end DLP unit uses the TI HD2+ DLP chipset with DarkChip 3. This means the pixels are closer together resulting in less SDE (screen door effect).
Other features include:
Vertical lens shift of up to 80 percent of screen height above the screen
O.R.C.A. (Optically Reproducing Color Accurately) filter
4500:1 contrast ratio
700 ANSI lumens
200-watt lamp
seven-segment color wheel
adjustable iris
sealed optical path
double-sealed cabinet
auto color temperature calibration system
black level selection
Though this machine costs quite a bit for a single-chip DLP, it is definitely worth a look.
Conclusion
“There is no doubt that the Marantz VP-12S4 is one of the best single-chip DLP projectors currently on the market. Many participants in the online video forums have expressed concerns about buying any 720p video device at this time. I understand their concerns but disagree. As I stated above, I believe it will take a couple of generations of 1080p DLP chips to get performance up to levels commensurate with the resolution. Second, mainstream 1080p sources are a rarity right now and probably will be a few years to come to market. So why not get the best possible picture you can get now and enjoy it now? That is what I did. I bought the sample projector to use for my reference system.”
Cinderella Man comes out on DVD today. A great flick with Russell Crowe and Renée Zellweger.
This film earns an 8 out of 10 stars by picky viewers like you and me at the imdb.com.
Plot Outline: The story of Depression-era fighter and folk hero Jim Braddock, who defeated heavyweight champ Max Baer in a 15-round slugfest in 1935.
Rated PG-13 for intense boxing violence and some language.
Runtime: 144 min
Country: USA
Language: English
Sound Mix: DTS / Dolby Digital / SDDS
Highly recommended.
Rent this movie at netflix online. Free 10 day trial - movies sent to your mailbox with a free return mailer include. Great service!
HDBeat give us the answers for our most pressing questions about DirecTV’s switch to MPEG-4.
MPEG4 requires new equipment for the new tech, but allows for better compression of the digital signal.
Who can get the MPEG4 signal?
Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Francisco and Atlanta.
More are coming, they’re rolling out by each market.
Why equipment do I need?
The H20 receiver coupled with the 5 LNB satellite dish.
Can I use the H20 with the older HD dish?
Yes, but you won’t receive the new MPEG4 channels.
Will the new dish work with older boxes?
No. Don’t go to this dish unless you get the receiver as well.
Just have announced a new DLP home theater projector, the MT400. It is a widescreen 16:9 unit with the Matterhorn 576p DMD chip from Texas Instruments.
“The days of high-quality DLP Home Cinema projectors being unaffordable are over, thanks to the MT400, Toshiba’s latest dedicated 16:9 DLP home cinema projector.
This affordable home cinema projector has been designed and configured specifically for the consumer market. Thanks to the acclaimed Matterhorn 576P DMD™ chip from TI, its native Wide PAL resolution (1024 x 576) perfectly matches the format of our European broadcast TV and DVD, avoiding the need to rescale and therefore delivering exact and undistorted pictures from the source.
Its 3000:1 contrast ratio and 6-segment colour wheel produce exceptional picture quality and life-like tones, while the TrueVision De-Interlacer and Scaler ensure a smooth, enhanced visual performance.
The MT400 features excellent connectivity, including component video, S-Video and composite video inputs for increased versatility. An all digital DVI (Digital Visual Interface) connector is also included that is HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) compatible via an adapter. Both HDMI and DVI have the capacity to support high definition video formats, 720p, 1080i and even 1080p.
The MT400 has the looks to match its performance with a stylish silver and pearl exterior to complement any home, while the low operating noise will ensure the projector remains unobtrusive when in use.
Weighing just 2.8kg the MT400 is highly portable and can be easily transferred between rooms. Its lightweight design is coupled with compact dimensions (298×101x275mm) so it is also easy to store when not in use.”
RSS Feed