Bedroom

Enough with the HD DVD, Blu-ray battle. Bring on downloads!

I don't know about you, but I'm sick and tired of people in the HD DVD camp telling the world that its format is winning the high-definition DVD battle and the people in the Blu-ray DVD camp claiming that their format is taking hold of the industry. If you ask me, both sides are just fooling themselves.

For years, we have been under the impression that the only way to get movies into our homes is to use hardware. And while that may have been true years ago, that idea is a bunch of hogwash now.

For a … Read more

Hands-on Friday: The Philips AJ300D Docking Entertainment System

Starting a new tradition here on The Digital Home, each Friday I will be telling you about my experience with some of the best home products on the market. This week you can read my impressions of the Philips AJ300D and next Friday I will be telling you about the Logitech Transporter. But until then, here is my hands-on evaluation of the Phillips AJ300D.

Ever since the iPod hit shelves, the iPod accessory market has been booming. One such section of that booming marketplace is iPod docking stations. And while the iHome has historically been my favorite in terms of … Read more

Why HDTV prices don't matter as much as you thought

According to a report from iSuppli market research, LCD prices may be rising in the coming weeks due to limited supply and increasing demand. And while this may be big news in and of itself, some are suspect of the effect higher prices will have on the marketplace. As far as I can tell, the effect will be minimal at best.

As many are well aware, plasma HDTVs tend to offer a superior picture for sets measuring over 42 inches. For most HDTVs under 42 inches, LCDs take the day. And while there are some nice 50-inch LCDs and beautiful … Read more

Reason for Sony's dominance: Mind share

The term mind share gets thrown around quite a bit these days and the essence of the term is, well, confusing. Some may say that mind share is the amount of mental time given to a specific topic, but I tend to disagree. To me, mind share is the amount of time a company dominates our minds during the buying process. Second to maybe only Apple, Sony commands such a significant mind share in this industry that corporate and device flops seem to be all but forgotten by all of those except the most techie among us.

I don't … Read more

Hands-on: The Sonos Bundle 130

For the past month, I have been playing with (and enjoying) the Sonos Digital Music System (Bundle 130). Offering a sleek design and a surprisingly useful remote, the Bundle U130 raises the bar for other systems that take your music and transmit tunes throughout your home.

What's in the box

When you first open the bundle, you are immediately presented with a host of cords and the same products that you would find in the Sonos Bundle 100 or the Bundle 80 - the ZonePlayer 100 (ZP100), the ZonePlayer 80 (ZP80) and the CR100 controller. And while the same … Read more

Laser TV: The Wave of the Future or Just Another Flop?

In a recent interview with the New York Times, Mitsubishi's vice president for marketing Frank DeMartin, revealed that his company will be showing off its very own laser TV at CES 2008.

In the interview, Mr. DeMartin explained that "[Laser TVs] will spawn a new category for the premium end of the market."

And while his words are true, does Mitsubishi (or any other company for that matter) really want to be known as the "premium end" in a market that is being dominated by companies who are trying to drop prices as quickly as … Read more

The Carpet Alarm Clock Wakes You Up -- Hopefully

When I first saw this product, I wasn't sure if it was a joke or the most irritable product I have ever seen. Why irritable you say? Well, who wants to firmly plant both of their feet on an alarm clock just to turn off that awful noise? I prefer a simple click of a button that gives me another five or ten minutes, but that's just me.

The alarm clock mat, designed by Sofie Collin & Gustav Lanberg, is not only soft on the feet, it tells you the time with the help of an embedded LCD.… Read more

Low-Cost Sony BDP-S300 Is Shipping -- Do We Really Care?

As the new Sony BDP-S300 begins shipping on Amazon and SonyStyle for $499.99 (add $10 for shipping if you purchase it from Sony), I'm left wondering if people even care.

Now before some of you jump up and down claiming I am off-base by saying that most people really don't care about the high-def wars, hear me out.

Sony's decision to drop the price of the BDP-S300 to $500 may seem like a great concession that will spur sales, but the price is still too high for the average person to even consider buying one of … Read more

Sling Media Unleashes the SlingLink TURBO

In an effort to expand its footprint in your home, Sling Media has unveiled the SlingLink TURBO.

Do you have areas in your home that make it impractical to run an Ethernet cord and wireless connectivity is impossible? If so, the SlingLink TURBO may be perfect for you. The premise is simple: connect one SlingLink TURBO to the wall outlet by your router. Once connected, plug an Ethernet cord from your router into your SlingLink. Once this is connected, bring another SlingLink TURBO to the desired area next to your devices and plug that into the wall outlet. Next, plug … Read more