HDTV Information

A Day Made of Glass: the Sequel

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:24:34 +0000

Were you one of the 17 million who have watched Corning’s “A Day Made of Glass” since it was posted last year? I know that I watched it at least a half-dozen times. And I remember thinking that it was so cool that just about all the technology required to make everything in that video happen exists today; in many cases, it’s available in shipping products.

Well, they’ve done it again. Corning has posted “A Day Made of Glass 2″. It is also an amazingly cool video, and it demonstrates even more ways that display technology can make our lives easier. Check it out:

I found plenty of moments when I smiled or laughed about some of the clever applications, but it was sort of like watching any sequel, such as “Aliens” or “The Empire Strikes Back” or even “Shreck 2″. You already know about this new world/universe, so it’s more familiar than startling. Even so, there is a lot to like in this video. For me, the augmented reality segments were particularly compelling.

Which parts impressed you the most? Write me at alfred@hdtvprofessor.com.

I write about lots of different technology stuff that I find interesting; please consider following me on Twitter: @AlfredPoor.

HDTV Almanac

Stream the SuperBowl

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 06:16:57 +0000

What are you doing next Sunday evening? (I plead “no contest” to charges of East Coast bias.) Perhaps you plan on joining several tens of millions of your U.S. neighbors in watching the Patriots take on the Giants in the SuperBowl. (Perhaps we’re entitled to a little East Coast bias.) Patriot fans in Boston were relieved when the local NBC broadcaster and DirecTV reached agreement on a new retransmission deal; the dispute had threatened to blackout the game coverage for the satellite subscribers.

But even if you can’t get to a TV on Sunday, you can still watch the game if you have access to broadband. The NFL is streaming the SuperBowl this year for free. You’ll be able to watch the game on the NFL.com website, and you’ll even be able to watch it on your smartphone if you’re a Verizon customer.

If just watching the game is not enough, you also can go through your own pregame warmup online. The site has hours of clips from last Sunday’s Media Day; you can watch some of the league’s most famous players come up with new ways to say “we’ve worked hard as a team to get here” and “we have a lot of respect for the other team”. Even if you’re not a fan of football, you may be fascinated by some of the bling these guys wear to a press interview. All week, the NFL will stream live events to provide more background and insight into the upcoming championship. It’s a great resource for football fans; next August is a long way off!

HDTV Almanac

The Innkeepers Movie Review

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:55:22 +0000

While it won’t appeal to all viewers, this old fashioned haunted house story can be rewarding for genre aficionados.

Big Picture Big Sound – Home Theater, HDTV, Movie Reviews

Netflix teams with eyeIO to lower bandwidth use on movie night

admin — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 19:03:47 +0000

Kicking up a fuss about Netflix hogging all your bandwidth? Perhaps the company’s latest partnership could induce a rapid change of heart. The streaming service has paired up with eyeIO in hopes of keeping bandwidth usage during streams to a minimum, which they claim won’t affect the content’s overall quality. While the joint venture just became official, the startup’s “ultra-low-bandwidth” encoding technology — that allegedly can reduce usage on a 720p HD stream by more than 50 percent — began its testing phase on the streaming-giant’s offerings months ago. Although eyeIO’s service has already been implemented by Netflix, it’s worth mentioning this isn’t an exclusive deal, thus it’s possible for its competition to jump on the bandwidth conservation bandwagon in the future. More importantly, we’re interested to find out if you have noticed any difference in your streams lately, so drop us a line in the comments below.

Continue reading Netflix teams with eyeIO to lower bandwidth use on movie night

Netflix teams with eyeIO to lower bandwidth use on movie night originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How Low Can They Go?

admin — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:27:28 +0000

Sorry, folks, but I cannot resist this one. I really struggle to refrain from the breathless “Wow! Look at how low this price is!” type of story because it gets old and it’s inevitable that someone can come up with a deal that tops whatever you’ve found. But I have to give in to this one.

Why? It’s a set from a top tier brand. It’s a deal from a major retailer. It’s nothing fancy but it should get the job done, and it has four HDMI inputs.

It’s the 42″ Sharp LC42SV49U and it is on sale at Best Buy for 9.99. That’s well under the benchmark per diagonal inch, and a rather attractive deal.

How is it priced so low? Sharp is having trouble selling all the televisions it makes. The new (and rather expensive) Gen10 LCD fab is designed to make larger size panels, but word is that they have cut production back to just 50% of capacity. That has to hurt. So I expect that Sharp is looking to make cash any way it can, just to feed the capital costs of that monster factory. And Sharp is not alone. The television market has gone soft just when the companies have ramped up their production. So I expect to have my breath taken away soon and often by even better deals.

Oh, and before you lunge for the keyboard to write to me (at alfred@hdtvprofessor.com), I do realize that this same set was available from Best Buy on Black Friday for just 0. What makes this deal so remarkable is that you don’t need to spend the night in a sleeping back to get one.

UPDATE: 2/3/12 12:05 PM — the folks at Sharp saw this post and sent me the following statement. I’m impressed that they responded so quickly to this piece, and that they presented their case without criticism or comment, but just stated their positive view of the situation. I take their statement about their sales forecasts at face value.

As the sales leader of large screen (60-inches and larger) LED televisions in the US, Sharp Electronics Corporation continues to have strong growth and sales projections for large screen LED TVs in the US market. The company’s sales expectations in the US for the 2012 Fiscal Year are unaffected by production rates at our Sakai (Japan) plant.

HDTV Almanac

Apple TV gets into video discovery, adds movie and TV show Genius Recommendations

admin — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 07:46:55 +0000

Apple added a new wrinkle to its hobby overnight, as AppleInsider reports the Genius recommendation feature added in iTunes 8 now offers up suggestions for movies and TV shows. The new Apple TV feature appears to have been switched on from the back end servers with no firmware update, displaying the new Genius option under Movies and TV Netflix-style as shown above. We’re not sure you really needed anyone else telling you it’s definitely time to check out The Wire or Breaking Bad, but with competitors like Google already taking aim at improving content discovery and recommendations it’s a logical next step for whatever Apple’s living room ambitions ultimately become.

Apple TV gets into video discovery, adds movie and TV show Genius Recommendations originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Feb 2012 06:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Martin Scorsese’s ‘Hugo’ Blu-ray 3D set for release February 28th — 3D haters beware

admin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:58:26 +0000

Considering that Hugo was a flick capable of earning 4 out of 4 stars from noted 3D hater Roger Ebert, it will be interesting to see how it’s received upon its home release February 28th. Nominated for 11 Academy Awards and currently rocking a 94 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the fantasy tale of a boy who crosses paths with legendary filmmaker Georges Méliès in 1930s Paris may be the best example yet of how an artist can make use of the effect. The two hour six minute flick will be available in Blu-ray 3D combo pack, and 2D Blu-ray editions, with a 7.1 DTS-HD MA soundtrack and special featurettes on the making of the film and the real magician/director who inspired the story.

The release date is two days after the Academy Awards, and if this flick can snag Best Picture or Best Director it could become a turning point for 3D. New 3D movies are already on deck from other high-profile directors like Ridley Scott (Alien prequel Prometheus) and Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby), while big budget conversions like Star Wars — coming to theaters next week — and already-sold-out-for-Valentines Day Titanic test the waters for older movies. Add in sports broadcasts planned including UFC 143 tonight and the London Olympics in the summer, and 2012 is shaping up to be an especially rough year for 3D haters — you have our deepest sympathies. Those on the other side of the fence can check after the break for a press release with more details and (2D) theatrical trailer.

Continue reading Martin Scorsese’s ‘Hugo’ Blu-ray 3D set for release February 28th — 3D haters beware

Martin Scorsese’s ‘Hugo’ Blu-ray 3D set for release February 28th — 3D haters beware originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Feb 2012 10:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google TV 3.2 update enhances HLS video streaming support, Plex update takes advantage

admin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:15:21 +0000

The Google TV update that rolled out to Sony units earlier this week (no word on the Revue, yet) brought tweaks to Chrome and support for Blu-ray 3D playback on the player, but that’s not all. The bump to Android 3.2 also improved hooks for developers to access channel listings in their apps, enabled hardware acceleration and last but not least, improved support for HTTP Live Streaming. That last detail is particularly important to those streaming video from their PCs using Plex, since additional HLS tweaks were necessary to allow viewing of files transcoded from otherwise-Google TV unfriendly formats. Also supported as in the Plex update is selection of alternate audio streams, subtitles, more channels and a few other fixes. Check out a Google+ post from Les Vogel of the Google TV team for all the Honeycomb 3.2 (API Level 13) details you can stomach, the Plex blog for more info on its software, or just make sure you’re running the latest updates and take a look around yourself.

Google TV 3.2 update enhances HLS video streaming support, Plex update takes advantage originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Les Vogel (Google+), Plex | Email this | Comments

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High-End Audio/Video Show Returns to New York City

admin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 01:33:07 +0000

Is the world ready for another decadent display of the tweakiest of high-end audio and home theater gear? Let’s hope so, because the HiFi Show is returning to New York City this April.

Big Picture Big Sound – Home Theater, HDTV, Movie Reviews

Distro Issue 26: Smartwatch face-off, Ryan Block and more

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:58:26 +0000

Are you ready for a showdown? You’re in luck! In the latest edition of our fine weekly, Myriam Joire tackles wrist-top computing, comparing the inPulse and WIMM One smartwatches. Also in this issue, Zachary Lutz takes the BlackBerry Curve 9360 for a spin; Dana Wollman puts HP’s latest Envy 15 through the paces; and Joe Pollicino tries to keep Klipsch’s Mode M40 headphones in place. If that wasn’t enough to pique your interest, our former editor-in-chief, Ryan Block, returns to take on the Distro Q&A and Box Brown offers a comic look at becoming an iBooks Author. So go on and get to downloading!

Distro Issue 26 PDF
Distro on the iTunes App Store
Distro in the Android Market
Distro APK (for sideloading)
Like Distro on Facebook
Follow Distro on Twitter

Distro Issue 26: Smartwatch face-off, Ryan Block and more originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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