Televisions

HDMI without the wires at CES

1080p on WHDI? If you are a normal human, you'd say spit the Chicklets out and then talk to me. But to home theater fanatics, it's a big deal.

WHDI is the wireless form of the high-speed networking HDMI standard and it's capable of delivering uncompressed high definition video streams, according to Amimon, the Israeli company that has created WHDI chips. To be exact, Amimon says WHDI can deliver the equivalent of 3 gigabits per second without wires. That's a lot of data, but no, it probably won't sterilize pets or cause hair loss.

You … Read more

The flat-screen TV sandwich

Now that plasma TVs have reached the point of no return, we've been wondering what furniture makers would do to replace the cumbersome faux armoire that had become a fixture in so many living rooms in a somewhat vain attempt to conceal the tube. It's probably too early for a definitive standard to take hold, but we're starting to see a sandwich-board design gaining popularity for TV stands.

The latest company to take this approach is Alivar, an Italian (of course) designer of contemporary furnishings that has come out with a sandwich stand made of aluminum in … Read more

Wii, Wii, Madame

Media sites are watching how we consumers spend our money this holiday season. And it looks like a double victory for the tech world.

First, online sales are up more than 25 percent from last year. Consumers are apparently comfortable now with last minute online buys.

Second, HD flat screens and Nintendo's Wii were both big sellers this season. This week tech gadgets will have to compete with even more heavly discounted general merchandise.

I'm hearing some analysts on CNBC today saying brick and mortar discounters were not even making a profit on the flat screens they sold. … Read more

Toshiba's SED TV drops out of CES

Toshiba's long awaited SED TV will not be appearing at the Consumer Electronics Show after all.

SED TV, which stands for surface conduction electron emission display, will provide a better picture than LCD or plasma TVs, say Toshiba and its partner Canon. Toshiba also claims that they have managed to cut the manufacturing costs so that the TVs won't cost much more than similarly sized LCDs or plasmas.

Toshiba was going to show off a 55-inch SED TV at CES in January, but then sent a note out on Friday saying they won't be doing that after … Read more

All-in-one 'I-TV' from Italy

Who says the PC-TV is dead? A decade ago, a lot of bets were placed (and lost) on the convergence of television and the computer as a single uber-device for the home. But the concept is alive and kicking in, of all places, Italy.

Coolest-Gadgets says a company called Mc Person has unveiled an "all-in-one" system that will offer "television, radio, Internet, high-definition video, house automation, health monitoring and more." The "I-TV" concept, as it is known, works wirelessly and is controlled through a single remote.

It sounds too good to be true, unless … Read more

Another drop: 42-inch plasma for $799

You may have already seen this if you have cable TV (and don't automatically skip over infomercials), but Big Lots is offering a 42-inch plasma TV from Sylvania for $799. That's $400 off the regular price and down $200 from the 42-inch plasma that Vizio cranked out for Black Friday.

Granted, it's always possible that you might find a better deal out there, but this one is pretty good. The store chain has 4,000 in stock, with a minimum of three per store and a limit of one per family. Look at the excitement of the … Read more

Vizio jumps into the 1080p fray

Vizio, known for low-buck LCD and plasma TVs available from places like Costco and Sam's Club, told CNET's News.com that its first 1080p product, the GV47L FHDTV (pictured, $1,999), would hit stores soon. According to the rep at Vizio we spoke with, it could arrive as early as the first week of January. The company had been avoiding butting heads with the 1080p competition because it was waiting for the right price. Apparently, 47 inches for just less than two grand is right enough for Vizio.

We reviewed a good-performing 47-inch 1080p TV in October, the … Read more

Vizio to crank down the price on 1080p TVs

If you were thinking of buying a high-end, high-definition TV, you may want to wait a few weeks. Vizio says it will come out with a 47-inch LCD TV with 1080p resolution for under $2,000, its first set with that level of definition.

TVs with the same resolution and screen size from other manufacturers now sell for around $2,500 to $3,000 at mainstream retailers, though some independent dealers advertise lower prices. (The Vizio set pictured here is a plasma TV; photos of the LCD model weren't available.)

"Before, 1080p wasn't affordable. We don't … Read more

RPTV fit club

JVC, purveyor of LCoS-based rear-projection HDTVs such as the well-performing HD-56FN97, today announced a pair of superslim models designed to "easily fit on most stands and furniture designed for flat-panel TVs" according to the press release. The 58-inch HD-58S998 (January, $3,300 selling price) and the 65-inch HD-65S998 (March, $4,200) occupy a mere 10.7 inches and 11.6 inches of depth respectively. The company is marketing a stand (pictured, right) and a wall-mount bracket that allows these TVs to hang over the fireplace, plasma-style.

Given the fact that a comparably sized plasma, such as Panasonic's … Read more

HDMI 1.3: The 1080p of 2007?

In a conference call this year with an exec at HDMI, we heard someone at the other end of the line describe HDMI 1.3, the new standard for the highest-quality digital A/V connection, as "the 1080p of 2007." In other words, he's hoping that HDMI 1.3 becomes the new buzzword in HDTV that everybody wants to know about, that high-end buyers will plunk down lots of cash to get, and that makes everything that came before it seem obsolete.

On Monday, I attended a 3-hour press event where HDMI Licensing LLC, the company behind … Read more