Big Picture Big Sound

More for Less

On the eve of the 2006 Digital Life show in New York City, the "Digital Focus" event descended on Manhattan with a variety of vendors offering products to satisfy the needs of today's technology-hungry consumers.

We got our first peek at a live PS3 (PlayStation 3) next generation gaming console from Sony, hooked up in all its 1080p full HD goodness to one of Sony's 1080p LCD HDTVs, the KDL-46XBR2. Graphics on the NBA basketball game were quite impressive with realistic details on players faces and bodies.

It will be interesting to see how well this player performs with high definition movies in the Blu-ray Disc format. It's sure to give HD-DVD a run for its money (not to mention the XBOX 360).


We also got a closer look at Pioneer's beautiful full HD 1080p 50-inch plasma monitor, the PRO-FHD1 ($8,000) which we first saw at CES but which just began shipping this Summer. Compared side by side with one of Pioneer's own HD plasmas with the more common 1366X768 resolution, the 1920X1080 PRO-FHD1 model was clearly superior with better image depth, color rendition and detail. This is certainly one of the best flat panel HDTV-capable displays on the market today.



TiVo showed off its new High Definition TiVo Series 3 recorder with dual tuners and a fairly high list price ($799) but no increase in the monthly TiVo service fee for High Definition signals.


Sling Media showcased new Slingbox models including its new "Slingbox Pro" with 3 inputs, including a high-definition capable component input (which requires an optional cable adapter). The Slingbox Pro outputs up to 640X480 resolution for higher quality media streaming than its predecessors. On display was a beta sample of a Mac slingbox client, so Mac lovers can rejoice - your slingBox is coming soon. Also, a SlingMedia rep told me that the mobile device support will soon be expanding from Windows Mobile to include Palm O/S devices as well.


If your media (photos, music, movies) is already on your PC, then you might want to check out Orb Networks' placeshifting technology which they call MyCasting™. With MyCasting, you set up your own little media server on your PC which you can actually stream out simultaneously to more than one client so you can share a home video of baby's first steps with the grandparents, while still being able to view it on your own web-connected smartphone.


And in case you need a PC from which to stream all your great content, Alienware (now a division of Dell) had on hand a working sample of their upcoming entry-level home theater PC (as yet unnamed). It features NTSC and ATSC tuners, Windows MCE O/S, dual-core AMD CPU, 160 GB Hard drive and DVD writer, and all in a home theater friendly horizontal form factor. The HTPC even features "1000 Watts" of power, with 5.1-channel speaker outputs. The most amazing part? The price point - $999!


Logitech was on-hand showing off some PC and iPod-friendly audio solutions, as well as their new Harmony 670 Universal Remote ($149). The 670 bridges the gap between their entry-level remotes and high end color-screen remotes. Like its big brothers, the 880 and 890, the new model 670 is ideally configured to operate PVRs such as digital cable boxes and TiVo recorders. It features Logitech's simple wizard-based Web programming: simply plug in the included USB cable between your remote and computer, load up the software, specify your brand and models of components, wait a few minutes for the codes to download and you're good to go. And with over 175,000 electronics devices in their remote code database, it's likely you'll be up and running quickly.


Panasonic had on display their new PT-AX100U projector - a 3-chip HD-ready 720P LCD projector. One of the cooler features on this new model is its built-in ambient light sensor that adjusts the image brightness and contrast to accomodate changes in room lighting. Want to open the shades and let in a little light? No problem, the Panasonic automatically adjusts brightness to compensate so you won't have to watch a washed out image. Feel like shutting out the world for a dark and cozy movie viewing? No need to re-adjust the picture settings, as the projector will do it for you. We have one of these in house and plan a full review in the coming weeks, so stay tuned [note: PT-AX100U Review is now online.]


ViewSonic was showing off two new displays - one a 37-inch HDTV, the other a 19-inch monitor. The N3751W is a new 37-inch flat panel LCD HDTV with 3 HDMI inputs, VGA and component inputs, 1366X768 native resolution, built-in ATSC and NTSC tuners, and built-in Dolby Digital processor for the super-low street price of $999.


The computer monitor on display was a unique widescreen LCD model with built-in iPod dock called the ViewDock™. Intended to reduce cable clutter in the office, dorm or home, the 19-inch VX1945wm ($329 street price) and 22-inch VX2245wm ($449 street price) LCD monitors include built-in iPod dock and charger as well as integrated speakers for listening to your music collection while you work. The monitor does not have a direct video input for an iPod, but since it's also hooked up to a computer, it can diplay movies stored in iTunes on your desktop or laptop computer.


There were other vendors on hand displaying their wares, but the above were the ones that caught my eye from a home theater perspective. All in all, a nice selection of interesting new products at great price points. The price of admission of digital entertainment is clearly on the decline.