LATEST ADDITIONS

Integra's new NVS-7.7 Integrated Media Center is a multimedia PC that's specifically engineered for custom installed systems. The device is designed to make life easier for installers who want to include a Media Center PC in their clients' home entertainment systems. Unlike typical off-the-shelf Media Center PCs, the NVS-7.7 is said to be easier to set up, operate, and maintain. (That's a win for the customers and the installers.)

Have the big telcos brought next-generation IPTV to your household yet? They haven't? Well, don't worry. Market research firm iSuppli says IPTV will increase from 2.4 million subscribers in 2005 to 63 million in 2010. But if you can't wait till 2010, move to Monroe, Oregon, where the Monroe Telephone Co. is delivering Internet-protocol television to 50 homes in its 950-home service area. A planned marketing push may raise the total to 200. The price is about the same as a satellite subscription. "The rural areas have surpassed the cities largely because of nimbler local telecom companies that have taken matters into their own hands," says a story in The Wall Street Journal. Among other advantages, they can get loans from the Agriculture Department's Rural Utilities Division. Monroe Telephone was founded in 1912 and acquired by John Dillard in 1956 for $5000. When growing up, John Jr. dug holes for telephone poles and manually punched through calls on a patch bay. His words of consolation for you IPTV-less folks in the big cities: "It won't be too long before the bigger markets follow."

Nearly a year after Polk introduced its first THX Ultra2 certified in-wall speaker, the RTS105, the self-proclaimed genius-based speaker company has announced an in-ceiling version. According to Polk, the new RTS100 is the first in-ceiling speaker to receive THX Ultra2 certification.

Be sure to check <I>UAV's</I> <a href="http://www.ultimateavmag.com/features/060606nextgen/">Next–Gen release calendar</a> for these updates.