Scott Wilkinson

The Sony XBR4 series of LCD TVs is very well-regarded among reviewers and consumers alike. I've had the opportunity to closely examine the 46-inch member of this line, and I found it to be a stellar performer in most respects, as did Tom Norton in his <A href="http://ultimateavmag.com/flatpaneldisplays/907sonyxbr4/">review</A>. The KDL-52XBR4 is no different, bringing excellent picture quality to a 52-inch, 1920x1080 screen.

As I'm sure most <I>UAV</I> readers know by now, analog-television broadcasting will cease on February 17, 2009, less than a year from now. On that date, all analog TVs receiving their signals via over-the-air antennas will display nothing but snow on every channel. Cable and satellite delivery to analog TVs will be unaffected&mdash;in fact, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has mandated that cable companies continue to provide analog services until at least 2012. But that still leaves some 14 million US homes in the dark on that fateful day next year.

Following an initial showing at CES in January, Dolby Laboratories and SIM2 demonstrated their latest prototype LCD flat-screen display in New York on Monday. The panel utilizes Dolby's LED backlighting with local dimming, which the company calls HDR (high dynamic range). This moniker is highly appropriate, since the LEDs behind dark portions of the image can be dimmed or even turned off completely for black areas, resulting in a literally infinite contrast ratio!

Okay, I said I wouldn't use this space for pontificating, but I really can't resist this week. I want to add my voice to Tom Norton's, who, in a <A href="http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/thomasnorton/030708Gone/">recent blog</A>, wrote about what the Blu-ray community needs to do to succeed in the packaged-media market now that HD DVD is out of the picture. I'd like to elaborate on some of the issues he raised.