First there was the TV, and we saw that it was good. Then came cable and satellite, and we saw that it made TV better. Some years later, the digital video recorder (DVR) was born, and those who fell under its spell knew that it was as close to an electronic gift from God as was humanly possible. But now the sun is shining on the Slingbox, a device that, as the name suggests, slings TV (or other media) from your living room to locations far and wide; and - short of having a Digital TV tuner with a high-capacity DVR hardwired directly to your brain - this could be the best thing to happen to TV since, well, TV itself came along.
Sony's $30,000 SXRD front projector, the <A href="http://www.ultimateavmag.com/videoprojectors/504sony/">Qualia 004</A>, was hailed as a breakthrough technology when it came out last year. Now comes this rear-projection SXRD model at somewhat more approachable price—$13,000. No doubt, that is still a breathtaking cost for a television set. But as high-end TVs go, this one may be worth it.
"Name a product the 'Ultimate' anything and you've opened yourself up to a world of potential hurt and ridicule. The name's a boast and it's bound to instigate a challenge. That's what I thought as I unpacked Bob Carver's latest brag, months before this publication was renamed <I>Ultimate AV</I>, and I'm not changing my lead because of that."
Designers of surround sound receivers have a tough job. In a multikilobuck flagship model they can use the best parts, the most advanced signal processing, and the most elaborate construction to deliver the features and performance specs users want.
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/headshot150.mf.jpg" WIDTH=150 HEIGHT=180 HSPACE=6 VSPACE=4 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Out-of-the-box product failure is an unfortunate fact of life for both consumers and reviewers. Failure curves for most consumer-electronics products spike early and then drop sharply to residual levels (unless they're lemons) until late in their life expectancies when they once again begin to rise, though gradually this time.
Intel Corporation announced on Wednesday that they will invest in a new venture with Revelations Entertainment, an entertainment-development company headed by actor Morgan Freeman and producer Lori McCreary. The deal is based on the formation of a new digital entertainment company called ClickStar, Inc., which will focus on distributing premium movies directly to consumers over the Internet, connecting filmmakers to film fans worldwide.
It's the next best thing to being there - or maybe even a better thing - for space buffs, ultimate gear heads, and just plain ordinary folk who want to see the United States manned space program get back on orbit. When the Space Shuttle Discovery launches with its crew of seven astronauts at 11:00 AM (EDT) on July 13th (the currently scheduled launch date), HDNet will be in Cape Canaveral, Florida to provide exclusive, complete high-definition coverage of the historic event (NASA mission STS-114).
