All the scrum crunching, drop kicking action of the 2010 6 Nations Rugby tournament will be broadcast in high-def, free of charge, thanks to Freesat HD and the BBC HD channel.
This year's 6 Nations rugby tournament will be broadcast on BBC HD from February 6th until the 20th of March, with Ireland and Italy squaring up in the first match.
It's a good year for Freesat HD-owning sports fans. They can also look forward to The World Cup on the BBC HD channel and ITV1 HD, as well as Winter Olympics, Golf Masters, Wimbledon, FA Cup and UEFA Champions league matches.
For more info, check out www.freesat.co.uk.
Samsung have just announced thier latest projector, the SP-F10M LED. Boasting an impressive 1,000 ANSI lumens, it's the first LED projector to hit the 1,000 milestone.
Recognising common office file types such as Microsoft Office and PDF file types in their native formats via USB storage, this one is more suited to business types than home cinema enthusiasts.
Still, with an LED light source that trounces other lamps with a 30,000 hour battery life, I'd quite happily use the SP-F10M to turn my living room into a cinema for the odd "Star Wars" day.
Between board meetings of course.
Thinking Blu-ray discs were just starting to get affordable? Think again. It looks like Blu-ray disc prices are about to rise as the cost of polycarbonate is set to increase.
Polycarbonate is a major material in the production of not only Blu-ray discs, but everything from water bottles to CDs too. Any price increase on the material would certainly have an adverse affect on Blu-ray disc prices, just as they were starting to hit pocket-money prices.
Measures are in place to address the balance here however. Taiwanese manufacturers have begun stockpiling discs in an attempt to bolster resources before what seems to be an all but certain rise. If all goes well, consumers may not have to face the extra costs for a little while yet.
Dig out those bargains while you can.
Via: DigiTimes
Name: UE40B8000 (Samsung)
Type: 40" LCD LED Backlit TV
Specs:
- Contrast Ratio: Mega Contrast 5,000,000:1
- Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080p)
- Connectivity: 4x HDMI, Digital Audio (Optical), PC, DVI, Component, Composite, Ethernet, RF, 2x USB, Scart
- Speakers: 2x 10 watts SRS TruSurround HD & Dolby Digital Plus
- Dimensions: 677mm H (including base) x 998mm W x 29.9mm D
- Features: 200Hz Motion Plus processing, LED backlighting, DLNA home networking, web widgets with Internet@ TV
Price: Circa £1,500
Samsung's UE40B8000 is so slim that you half expect it to have just strut off of a catwalk in Milan and into your living room. Despite being only 29.9 mm thick, it manages to house all of its electronics, including a TV tuner, 200Hz Motion Plus processor and all its 4 HDMI and breakout composite/component connections, inside the panel itself, without the need for a separate media box. It's a beautiful set with black bezel edging, finished off with a svelte strip of clear plastic that gently glows thanks to a blue LED indicator light. While the TV is perfect for wall mounting due to its size and relatively low weight, its see-through stand was a real chore to attach, and was never satisfyingly stable.
Picture quality is really superb on the UE40B8000. High definition sources were uniformly excellent. 1080p playback of the "Moon" Blu-ray over HDMI through a PS3 delivered black levels as deep as you'd hope to get from the far-flung reaches of outer space, while subtlety in colour ranges and superb skin tones shone through. The LED backlighting also meant that there was excellent clarity in the image, though you may want to disable auto-dimming if you're quickly flicking through many different sources.
The 200Hz Motion Plus technology is an obvious draw here, and we flicked over to a Sky Sports HD Premiership broadcast to put it through its paces. Is it really any better than 100Hz processing? Yes it is, but not massively so. Players darting around the field were noticeably sharper, as was the text from scrolling electronic billboards. However, there was still some shimmering and an element of unnatural movement in fast paced scenes, especially when the motion processing was cranked up to the max. Also, while there is a Game Mode available here, response times for consoles could have performed a little better.
Standard definition content proved excellently processed. A screen this size that lacks attention to standard definition signals can really show off the limitations of SD, but the UE40B8000 smoothed out everything well without producing any unsightly noise. Colours too were rich and vibrant, though the benefits of the motion processing tech was less apparent here. All in, the UE40B8000 offers some of the best picture quality money can currently buy, at least in the UK anyway.
The only real let down here are the incredibly weak speakers. Housing everything inside a set this thin had to have its downside somewhere, and speaker performance lacks both clarity and low-end resonance. They'll serve you well enough for a quiet night in with Eastenders, but if you can splash the cash on the screen in the first place, then you should probably invest in some decent audio gear to support it.
Menus and the EPG are clear and nicely presented, giving a quick low-down of what each function does, though some may have some trouble navigating the various options on offer. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, there is quite a lot of depth in terms of image options here, which isn't necessarily a bad thing at all, but can at times make it a little confusing when browsing for something specific. Secondly, the backlit remote control, which again overall is fine, features a quirky iPod-style scrolling wheel. It's overly sensitive, which can make precise menu browsing or image tweaking a little difficult. There's also a second, pebble-shaped controller thrown in. It's pretty, but by only packing a few core buttons in means it's a little pointless. The UE40B8000 also has some pretty comprehensive web widgets and DLNA network streaming features, which are simple to set up once the provided USB Wi-Fi dongle is plugged in. There's also an Ethernet port if a Wi-Fi connection isn't convenient.
If we we're judging this TV on image quality alone the Samsung UE40B8000 would get top marks without question. It's a shame then that the thin frame has caused a real compromise in sound quality, which at around £1,500 really should have been addressed. Still, if you're looking for some of the smoothest, sharpest, most stunningly vivid colours your hard-earned cash can afford, then the UE40B8000 should be top of your shopping list.
4/5
Fancy watching Rooney's mug jumping out of the screen at you? Sky and TV manufacturers LG have teamed up to deliver the first 3D broadcasts to UK viewers. But it wont be headed straight to your living room. Nope, you're going to have to take a trip down to your local watering hole to watch Arsenal vs. Manchester United in full eye-popping 3D.
Nine select pubs will be showing the match on LG's 47 inch LD920 screens as a test run for Sky's 2010 3D roll-out.
'LG is committed to making high quality TV more accessible and thisinitiative with Sky does just that.' said Stephen Gater, head of marketing, Home Entertainment LG UK. '2010 will see the realisation of many exciting technologies in TVs - 3D is just one of them. With exciting developments like these, watching television in the home will soon be an even more exciting, immersive and powerful experience.'
3D glasses down the boozer? Not sure about that to be honest. It brings a whole new meaning to the term "Beer Goggles" though I suppose.
Samsung have today announced that they are the first company to begin mass production of panels for both LED and LCD 3D TV's.
40, 46, and 55 inch full HD 3D Tvs using "3D Active Glasses" and 240Hz technology were the first to hit the factory floor.
"Recently, 3D displays have captured the industry spotlight," said Wonkie Chang, president of the LCD Business at Samsung Electronics. "Samsung Electronics aims to lead the global 3D TV panel market in pioneering panel mass production for 3D LED and LCD TVs."
According to DisplaySearch, the 3D TV market is expected to grow from $902 million in 2008 to $22 billion in 2018, a pretty staggering figure. Specifically, the 3D TV market is expected to expand to a $17-billion market, with sales increasing from 200,000 units in 2009 to 64 million units in 2018.
Name: iViewer (Cello)
Type: 32" LCD TV
Specs:
- Contrast ratio: 3,000:1
- Resolution: Full HD (1920 x 1080p)
- Connectivity: 2x HDMI, Composite, VGA, PC Audio, S-Video, 2x Scart, RF, 2x USB, Ethernet
- Speakers: Nicam Stereo 2x 10 W
- Dimensions:
- Features: BBC iPlayer, Web TV, DLNA home networking, news widgets
- Price: £499
Brit based TV manufacturers Cello have made a bold move with their iViewer range. By being one of the earliest web-connected TVs and the first to have BBC's iPlayer as a built-in widget, they are going where none of the big name brands have gone before. But has capitalising upon this brief window of opportunity left them flailing elsewhere with the set? Certainly, but the TV does still hold it's own.
Sensibly, Cello have kept the aesthetics here rather simple. A glossy black frame about two thirds of an inch thick surrounds the screen, while a speaker bar about an inch in height lies just underneath. The screen can be wall mounted, but at 22"H (including base) x 31"W x 4" D it's rather chunky. I'd recommend using the supplied base stand, which is again glossy, black and discrete. Also, while the main manual supplied is perfectly acceptable, the visual guide thrown in is an absolute joke. It verges on Engrish and looks as though it was put together on MS Paint.
Keeping in mind this is at the budget end of the market for a full HD set (£499), the iViewer's picture quality is reasonably good. 1080p playback of the "Che: Part One" Blu-ray over HDMI through a PS3 showed an acceptably sharp image with a good range of strong colours in brighter scenes, as you would expect with an LCD as opposed to a Plasma. Night scenes were less impressive: there was a fair amount of noise, black levels were respectable but hardly deep and response times suffered in fast moving shots. As a result of the noise and sluggish response times, it doesn't score highly as a set for gaming, as proven by a quick session with "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2". For the money you're paying the image here holds up well, but don't expect it to go troubling the big guns.
Likewise, the speakers aren't the greatest. Hollow and echoey, it's a muddled sound that has little in the way of bass, and poor definition between the mids and treble. Higher volumes sometimes caused a slight rattling too.
But, if you've been following this set, you're likely already aware that this isn't exactly a technophiles television. No, the iViewer's trump card lies in its internet-connected capabilities, or more specifically its BBC iPlayer widget, where it does honestly shine.
Getting connected to the web is relatively simple, via either an optional USB Wi-Fi dongle or Ethernet cable. The input connections area on the back of the TV is far too cramped (especially as the USB Wi-Fi dongle is a bit of a sizey beast), but once you're plugged in it's just a matter of finding your network and entering your WEP key, text message style, with the remote control.
The iPlayer interface (and the TV's web UI in general) was designed by Oregon Networks. They've done a great job. It's a good looking UI across all of the web menus, with big icons simple and well defined for the casual user. There's even a dedicated button on the remote for the iPlayer for easy-access to the service. Searching through the iPlayer catalogue will be easy for anyone remotely familiar with the web service. While playback controls can be a little clunky, visually the iPlayer footage scrubs up quite well on the larger screen, providing you don't expect HD levels of clarity.
Web TV channels didn't fair so well. There are 12 in all at present, including a fully-searchable YouTube, Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food and the Sesame Street podcast. Quality of content varies across each, both visually and in terms of entertainment value, and thanks to some unexplainable file error, I couldn't access the Sesame Street one at all. Which was obviously heartbreaking. Also, the news widgets could do with a little more interactivity, and more options in terms of feed providers.
However, the DLNA home network access is strong and very accessible. Providing your PC is on and sharing allowed, you can access pictures, MP3s and a wide range of the most popular video files including AVI and WMV stored on your computer, though I couldn't get high-def formats to work. In a nice touch, MP3s continue to play in the background whilst you browse other folders for content. It's also worth noting that playback is possible from USB memory sticks, providing you can squeeze it in next to the dongle.
As is now standard, there is also an integrated TV tuner in the iViewer. Visually, broadcasts are good. There was a little noise and a few artefacts, but on the whole very watchable. The 7 day EPG however looks horrendous; from a technical standpoint it's perfectly functional and easy to navigate, but fonts are jagged and the most lurid mix of sharp blues and yellows are used.
While it's far from perfect, it's nevertheless hard to dislike the iViewer. The picture and sound quality aren't the best we've ever seen by a long shot, but it's not epically bad. Just especially average. And while some aspects of the web service don't work too well, the home networking and iPlayer are great, especially as this represents the first roll of the dice for the BBC service on TVs. As you'd expect from a product that's currently a Marks and Spencer's exclusive, it keeps it head down and gets the job done. And if you aren't happy, that M&S guarantee will have you covered.
3/5
Via: Tech Digest
All the scrum crunching, drop kicking action of the 2010 6 Nations Rugby tournament will be broadcast in high-def, free of charge, thanks to Freesat HD and the BBC HD channel.
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