Audio Video News

Lack of HDTV programming and uncertainties about interface standards have caused Hitachi to hold off on introducing any new fully integrated HDTV sets. In late May, Hitachi Home Electronics America announced its new UltraVision Digital line of television products, including 9 new rear-projection HDTV monitors, but there are no fully integrated sets or set-top boxes (STBs) among them.

The company has no plans to make or market such products until unresolved issues about DTV standards are settled and HDTV programming grows more available, according to Hitachi senior marketing manager Bill Whalen. Hitachi's view is that the primary market for HDTV monitors is in home theater systems with DVD as a primary source, but the company's new CRT-based rear projectors all have a digital processing circuit ("D3VirtualHD") which upconverts NTSC and 480i sources to a user-selectable 540p or 1080i image format. D3VirtualHD also has a 3:2 pull-down processor to convert 24fps film images to the 30fps video rate for minimum flickering and distortion. UWX and SWX series monitors have screens with 16:9 aspect ratios; the FDX and UDX series have 4:3 aspect ratios.

Two sets of component video inputs allow parallel connection of STBs and DVD players. Hitachi has acknowledged that convergence misadjustments are among the most common problems with rear-projection sets and has introduced a new "Magic Focus" circuit to automatically adjust the alignment of each monitor's CRT guns, producing sharp focus and accurate color rendition. UDX monitors have a four-sensor focus system; the upscale UWX and SWX sets have an eight-sensor system that results in more accurate convergence alignment, according to Whalen. Aspect ratio display modes for 16:9 models include full 16:9, normal 4:3, "fill/zoom" 4:3, and "smooth-wide" 4:3 expanded mode. Monitors with 4:3 aspect ratio display 16:9 images by inserting gray or black bars at the top and bottom of the original aspect ratio. Hitachi has produced a training video to help salespeople educate themselves—and consumers—about the confusing issues involved in HDTV, according to marketing director Leo Delaney.