Kris Deering

Projector Reviews
Panasonic PT-AE3000U LCD Projector
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Price: $3,499 At A Glance: Incredible array of features • Great calibration flexibility • Contrast performance could be improved

The Features You Want, the Price You Need

Panasonic’s PT-AE3000U really ups the ante when it comes to features at this price point. Panasonic has consistently pushed the envelope on the budget side, and this LCD projector easily represents the company’s best effort to date. It offers solid performance and the most expansive feature set you could hope to find at or near this price point.

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Projector Reviews
Mitsubishi HC7000 LCD Projector
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Price: $3,995 At A Glance: Outstanding video processing, including full-time anamorphic lens support • Razor-sharp images • Color accuracy needs work

Mitsubishi Delivers a Diamond

The HC7000 is Mitsubishi’s flagship video projector and one of only two Diamond Series projectors. This three-chip design uses the latest C2 Fine inorganic LCD panels. It has a native resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 and features a proprietary polarizing filter designed to squeeze a bit more contrast and better uniformity out of the panels. At $3,995, the HC7000 is the most expensive projector in our roundup, and it has some great features. It includes a dynamic iris, Silicon Optix HQV video processing, and a great warranty program for the projector and lamp. It also has full anamorphic lens support, including the ability to permanently mount the lens to the projector. Combined with the great build quality and performance, these features made the Mitsubishi my favorite projector of the group.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Milk—Universal (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 4/5
Audio: 3.25/5
Extras: 3/5
His life changed history. His courage changed lives. Academy Award(R) winner Sean Penn stars in this stirring celebration of Harvey Milk, a true man of the people. Based on the inspiring true story of the first openly gay man elected to major public office, this compelling film follows Milk's powerful journey to inspire hope for equal rights during one of the least tolerant times in our nation's history.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Pinocchio—Walt Disney Pictures (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 4.25/5
Audio: 3/5
Extras: 4.5/5
On a magical starlit night, a blue fairy brings Geppetto's beloved marionette Pinocchio to life, beginning a fantastic adventure that will test the puppet's bravery, loyalty and honesty - virtues he must learn to become a real boy. Despite the warnings of his wise friend, Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio gets entangled in one humorous predicament after another, leading to his valiant quest to save Geppetto, who's trapped inside Monstro the whale!
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
A Mighty Heart—Paramount Vantage (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 3.5/5
Audio: 4/5
Extras: 2.5/5
After her husband, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, is kidnapped by terrorists, Mariane heads a desperate search for clues in a frantic race against time to locate her missing husband.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Let The Right One In—Magnet (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 4/5
Audio: 4.25/5
Extras: 3/5
A fragile, anxious boy, 12-year-old Oskar is regularly bullied by his stronger classmates but never strikes back. The lonely boy's wish for a friend seems to come true when he meets Eli, also 12, who moves in next door to him with her father. A pale, serious young girl, she only comes out at night and doesn't seem affected by the freezing temperatures. Coinciding with Eli's arrival is a series of inexplicable disappearances and murders. Swedish filmmaker Tomas Alfredson weaves friendship, rejection and loyalty into a disturbing and darkly atmospheric, yet poetic and unexpectedly tender tableau of adolescence.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Chronicles of Riddick—Universal (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 4.75/5
Audio: 4.25/5
Extras: 4/5
After years of outrunning ruthless bounty hunters, escaped convict Riddick suddenly finds himself caught between opposing forces in a fight for the future of the human race. Now, waging incredible battles on fantastic and deadly worlds, this lone, reluctant hero will emerge as humanity's champion - and the last hope for a universe on the edge of annihilation.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Chronicles of Riddick: Pitch Black—Universal (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 4.25/5
Audio: 4.25/5
Extras: 4/5
When their ship crash-lands on a remote planet, the marooned passengers soon learn that escaped convict Riddick isn't the only thing they have to fear. Deadly creatures lurk in the shadows, waiting to attack in the dark, and the planet is rapidly plunging into the utter blackness of a total eclipse. With the body count rising, the doomed survivors are forced to turn to Riddick with his eerie eyes to guide them through the darkness to safety. With time running out, there's only one rule: Stay in the light.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Brokeback Mountain—Universal (Blu-ray)
Kris Deering  |  Mar 09, 2009
Video: 3.25/5
Audio: 4/5
Extras: 3/5
"Brokeback Mountain" is a sweeping epic that explores the lives of two young men, a ranch hand and a rodeo cowboy, who meet in the summer of 1963 and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection. The complications, joys and heartbreak they experience provide a testament to the endurance and power of love.
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Blu-ray Player Reviews
Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Player
Kris Deering  |  Mar 04, 2009
Price: $2,000 At A Glance: BD-Live, storage included • Outstanding build quality • Great DVD playback • Full advanced audio decoding • Limited HD video processing • Average load times

Elevating the Blu-ray Standard?

Sony’s Elevated Standard (ES) products have long been at the respected upper end of the company’s product line. I remember Sony’s early ES DVD players were the cat’s meow in terms of solid video performance and features. If you wanted reference-quality DVD playback early on in the format, you wanted an ES player. Now Sony has delivered two ES branded Blu-ray players. For this review, I’m going to look at its new flagship, the BDP-S5000ES.

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