CES 2010

Tiny projectors - like this one from Microvision - are big this year, although picture size and quality isn't necessarily so. I overheard one presenter say you could project an image up to 200 inches with one of these types of projectors. Technically, I suppose you could send a photon from one of these projectors to Mars, but that doesn't mean it's watchable at that size or distance.

Tivoli Audio known for their high-quality desktop radios has added networking, making it possible for them to stream from Internet radio stations around the world. It also allows access to stored media on PCs from any room in the house through a wireless or Ethernet connection. Using the front panel readout, you use the supplied remote to scroll through your media or Internet stations. The basic unit has a single speaker, and a second speaker can be purchased to listen in stereo.

A demo of Toshiba's new top-of-the-line Cell LCD HDTV, with its 500+ zones of full backlit LED local dimming side-by-side with last year's LED local dimming set with far fewer LED zones, was exceptionally effective, even if too much was made of the new set's increased brightness (and too much of it used for the darkened demo room) . Toshiba claims a peak of 1000 cd/sq meter -- that's close to 300 foot-lamberts, nearly 10 times what I'd recommend for a good picture in a darkened room. Hopefully a movie or cinema mode will produce a more sensible brightness level.

In the large-screen category, Toshiba has plenty to show. The XV645 series includes 40-, 46-, and 52-inch models that will be available in May. All are 120Hz and include Toshiba's Resolution Plus, which used to be called SRT and does a very creditable job upscaling standard-def to 1080p.

Toshiba reps had a lot to say in their press conference today, including several new features and models the company's upscale Regza line of LCD TVs. Perhaps most impressive is Resolution+, the new name for what had been known as SRT (Super Resolution Technology), which can even upconvert 1080p to 4K when displays of that resolution become available. Another LCD theme being pursued by Toshiba is 240Hz scanning, which combines 120Hz refresh rate with backlight flashing. None of the new sets is fully operational yet, and they were not showing any video images at the press conference, but the 52ZV650U pictured here diffracted the spotlights to create a cool rainbow effect.

As always, Sony has a major presence here at CES. A representative told me that this years exhibit is the largest in the history of CES, and they started working on the display before Christmas. The space is almost double from last year, because the game show Jeopardy has set up their set as part of the Sony booth to shoot a week's worth of show's for its 25th Anniversary.

It's only the second week in January and I've already found one of my top picks for 2009 – the Wisdom Audio Sage Series L150i Architectural Loudspeakers. The Wisdom L150i is a line source in-wall speaker system that stands at 76-inches tall and is large enough to be the wall. Each channel consists of 12 six-inch woofers and planar magnetic line source drivers. The woofers and planar drivers are housed in separate aluminum back box enclosures and Wisdom recommends that the drywall be replaced with plywood or MDF for greater rigidity. The system requires a Wisdom electronic crossover and must be bi-amplified.