How to decide what HDTV to buy?

 

Size Matters

Job one is to pick the right screen size for your needs. HD LCDs range from 19” to 65” and plasmas from 42” to 65”.  LCD screens 37” and smaller generally feature 720p resolution, though there are a few sets as small as 32” offering 1080p. There are 42” and 50” 720p plasma sets as well, with all plasma sizes available in 1080p.

Which size is right for you? Consider your budget, room size, seating positions and finally if it’s an issue for you, the size of the cabinet in which you’re placing the set. Our exclusive HD Guru viewing distance chart (link) tells you how close you need to sit to see full resolution with a given 720p or 1080p display. Sit further away and of course you will still get a great picture, but  human vision limitations will prevent you from seeing the set’s full resolution.

LCD or Plasma?

LCD is your only choice if size or budget constraints limit you to a below 42” size. While you have a choice of plasma or LCD at 42” and above, HD Guru and most other experts agree that plasma beats LCD (including those labeled “LED”) in overall picture quality.

Why? Plasma offers uniform picture quality as you move off-axis, meaning everyone in the room essentially sees the same picture. LCD does not. Off axis, all LCD displays exhibit changes in color, black level and brightness, though some that will be recommended in an upcoming article, offer better off-axis performance than others.

Plasma offers overall better black levels, with blacks always appearing deeper when viewed off-axis compared to LCDs, because plasma has the ability to shut light off at a pixel level. Because LCD is a backlit technology, the best it can do—and not all LCDs have it—is dim large blocks of pixels using a feature called “local dimming.” It’s not nearly as precise or effective as actually turning off individual pixels and adjacent high contrast images often produce a halo artifact.

CCFL Or LED Backlit LCD TV?

A relatively recent advance in LCD technology uses LEDs (light emitting diodes) to illuminate the picture in place of the more commonly used thin fluorescent tubes called CCFLs. Though some set manufacturers choose to call their LED backlit sets “LED TVs” they are still LCD TVs!  However, LED backlighting has a number of advantages, one of which is lower power consumption compared to both traditional backlit LCDs and plasma. For a given screen size, plasma and CCFL backlit LCDs have about the same energy efficiency.

Another LED advantage is the production of very bright images, which makes them preferable to both CCFL backlit LCDs and plasma if you day a lot of daytime viewing, especially in windowed rooms that lack shades or curtains.

Edge Versus Backlit LED

Manufacturers use LEDs to either edge light or back light their LCD sets. Edge lighting can produce thin profile sets that are just over an inch deep. Back lit sets are deeper but  offer the aforementioned advantage of local dimming, which can produce extremely dark black levels.

Edge lit LEDs have white and black uniformity issues at the picture perimeter while off-axis brightness of both LED formats tends to fall off somewhat more rapidly than does the same panel lit using traditional CCFLs. However, overall, LED backlit sets produce the best LCD pictures.

60Hz/120Hz/240Hz

Standard LCDs incorporate a 60 Hz refresh rate. This produces motion resolution of around 320 lines (per picture height) out of a possible1080 lines. 120 Hz refresh ups the motion resolution to around 600 lines, while 240 Hz kicks it up to 900 lines or higher.

Some sets incorporate circuits that produce even more frames per second in an attempt to further smooth motion, but the added smoothness comes at a price, which is an increase in picture artifacts (see related story here link).

For the best LCD picture, either traditional or LED backlit, choose one with either a 120Hz or 240Hz refresh rate. However, all 1080p plasma sets produce artifact free, full 1080 line motion resolution. Panasonic’s V and Z series plasmas offer a 96Hz refresh rate that produces images free of the judder found in all 60 Hz  panels (plasma and LCD) without the artifacts associated with 120/240Hz LED/LCDs.

Special Features

If you’re looking for the most accurate image reproduction, consider THX Certified designs that provide near ideal out of the box color temperature and color point accuracy when set to the THX picture option. User calibration controls included with many top of the line HDTVs allow (with proper test equipment and signals) near perfection image fine tuning.

Stantum's unlimited multitouch

The company's back with its proof-of-concept Slate PC. Based on the Dell Mini 10 platform, this bad boy features a 10.1-inch "unlimited" touchscreen and new, compact case. In order to save space, the company did away with not only the keyboard and trackpad, but the webcam, WiFi, Bluetooth, and one of the USB ports (bringing the total down to two) as well -- which just might limit the appeal for resellers.

Evoluce ONE : 47 inches of multitouch surface to play with….

 

At the end of last month, German company Evoluce announced its 47-inch multitouch display, touting Full HD (or 1920 x 1080) resolution and "Integrated-Through-Screen-Optics," which allow it to recognize an unlimited number of simultaneous inputs. The ONE also features haptic feedback and is compatible with Windows 7's multitouch features right out of the box, with support for some "other OS" also planned.

Press Release:

Large-format interactive LCD-screens enable collaborative work directly on the screen surface. Evoluce developed sensing technology for the first time reveals the full potential of multi-touch applications.
"Windows 7 launched at the end of October 2009. Our Evoluce ONE is launched too. The 47 inch multi-touch LCD supports not only Windows 7, but also a variety of other innovative multi-touch applications coded in Flash, C++, WPF or Silverlight. Our developed "Integrated-Through-Screen-Optics" (ITSO) technology enables true multi-touch and multi-pen applications, that can be controlled simultaneously by pen, finger, gesture and object recognition," said Wolfgang Herfurtner, CEO of Evoluce AG.
The comfortable multi-touch operating on the surface is achieved by a scratch-resistant coating. The screen has been designed for easy horizontal and vertical integration or can be a stand-alone device.
MIM, the in-house developed multi-touch input management tracking software, recognizes an unlimited number of simultaneous inputs ("true multi-touch"). The tracking data can be accessed via universal interfaces by the multi-touch application.

ASUS G51J 3D sports NVIDIA 3D Vision with 120Hz display to bring 'real' 3D to laptops

 

ASUS G51J 3D has the technology edge in the nascent 3D laptop category. The laptop is using NVIDIA's 3D Vision tech for extensive game compatibility (around 400 games currently work with it), and a 120Hz, 15.6-inch screen paired with some active shutter glasses. The shutter method is typically a more enjoyable 3D experience than polarized solutions, with no knock on frame rate or resolution. The GeForce GTX 260M card with 1GB of DDR3 memory doesn't hurt either, but that hugegantic USB IR blaster that has to sit on the desk and sync up with the glasses could be a problem for 3D-on-the-go. The benchmark friendly Core i7-based G51J which this machine is based on (the only real difference is the screen) was never much of one for portability. The laptop will be out soon, with a starting price of $1,700

ATI Radeon 5970 – World’s fastest graphics card

 

ATI just announced its latest greatest polygon cruncher on the planet: The  Radeon HD 5970. The new card card is also one of the first to support Microsoft DirectX 11 and Eyefinity multi-display (driving up to three displays at once for a 7680x1600 maximum resolution) with ripe potential for overclocking thanks to the card's Overdrive technology. Instead of relying upon a single GPU like the  Radeon HD 5870, the 5970 brings a pair of Cypress GPUs linked on a single board by a PCI Express bridge for nearly 5 TeraFLOPS of computer power, or a mind boggling 10 TeraFLOPS when setup in CrossFireX. Naturally, the card's already been put to the test by all the usual benchmarking nerds who praise the card as the undisputed performance leader regardless of game or application. It even manages to keep power consumption in check until you start rolling on the voltage to ramp those clock speeds.

SixthSense

Remember the scene in the movie Minority Report where Tom Cruise uses hand gestures instead of a mouse to interact with a computer screen displayed on the wall? See the Video…

The idea isn't really that far-fetched and software developer Pranav Mistry has been working on making it a reality.

Mistry is the creator of SixthSense, a wearable gesture interface that uses a camera and tiny projector to display data and information onto surfaces, walls, and even your hand. Special fingertip sensors let users manipulate the data and use their hands to interact with it. The PhD student announced plans to release SixthSense under an open source license in the coming months.

"I notice that it's hard to for these kind of things to market in some sense. . . because I don't want this to comply with some of kind of corporate policy," says Mistry. "Rather than waiting for that time to come, I want people to make their own system. Why not?"

"People will be able to make their own hardware. I will give them instructions how to make it. And also provide them key software...give them basic key software layers. . . they will be able to build their own applications. They will be able to modify base level and do anything".

The device, which can be built for about $350, has fascinating implications beyond its infinite coolness. SixthSense has the ability to sense objects around you and displays content relevant to your environment. If you're in a bookstore, for instance, and hold up a copy of Learning the Vi and Vim Editors, SixthSense shows you pricing guides, information about the author, and so on. Mistry's device puts the Internet literally at your fingertips.

Windows OS Market Share

 

At this point in time, Windows continues to dominate with more than 90 percent of the market, Mac OS is above the five percent mark, and Linux is just under one percent. In October, Windows was the only operating system not to show positive growth.

Between October and September, Windows dropped 0.25 percentage points (from 92.77 percent to 92.52 percent), Mac OS climbed up a sizeable 0.15 percentage points (from 5.12 percent to 5.27 percent), and Linux edged forward 0.01 percentage points (from 0.95 percent to 0.96 percent). Windows' drop is worth noting given that it occurred in the month that Windows 7 was released, but November may show something different given that it will be a full month of sales of the operating system. Still, Windows 7 did quite well; it managed to pass Linux, Snow Leopard, and even both of their shares combined (2.13 percent versus Windows 7's 2.15 percent)

Space Elevator

wow…if not soon, may be in a decade, you will be taking an elevator to the space…the cheapest space travel..

First proposed in 1895, and popularized by the Arthur C. Clarke book The Fountains of Paradise, space elevators have a rich history in the culture of space travel. Unfortunately, the history of their engineering success is far less impressive. But if the results from this week's Space Elevator Games are any indication, that might be about to change.

Funded by NASA and the Spaceward Foundation, the yearly contest offers a $2 million first prize to any group whose machine can quickly climb a kilometer-long ribbon tethered to a helicopter, while receiving power remotely from the ground. On Tuesday, LaserMotive became the first team in competition history to qualify for the $900,000 second prize.

The LaserMotive machine consists of a motor that pulls the device up the 2,953-foot-long ribbon, photovoltaic cells that power the motor, and a ground-based laser that provides the light for the cells. LaserMotive set a new record for the competition, and became the first team to ever reach the top of the ribbon. However, they had to settle for the $900,000 second prize, as securing the $2 million first prize requires not only reaching the top of the ribbon, but doing so at an average speed of 11 miles per hour. Sadly, the LaserMotive machine ran slightly slower than that mark.

Encouragingly, the laser that powered the ascent utilized half the energy of LaserMotive's previous laser, and to far better results. At this rate, next year's team might actually have a chance to bring home the gold. The competition continues today, and if another team matches LaserMotive's achievement, they might have to split the prize money. In the meanwhile, you can check out LaserMotive's award-winning trial in the rather slow-moving video below

Object-Detection Software to enable search within videos

Detection algorithms help computers find humans, or anything else, in YouTube videos or surveillance footage

Imagine running a Google search for basketball videos, and having your computer sift through actual footage of online videos rather than just the text of the descriptions. A new type of software could enable computers to run searches inside videos, and pick out humans and objects alike.

Such detection software could go beyond Internet searches. Intelligent video surveillance might automatically send out alerts if cameras spot an injured or falling person, and car computers could make vehicles stop if a human figure looms ahead on the road.

There are lots of possibilities with video-based detection, and it could come at quite a low cost compared to object and human detection using other sensors, such as thermal sensors.

Flower in the space?

This flower like thing that may start floating in the space is supposed to be first SPACE HOTEL!!

Opening in 2012, the first space hotel each guest will have to pay-up a cool $4.4mn.

Anyone with a cool $4 million and change might consider doing what 43 other people have done, and sign up for an orbital space vacation in 2012 with Galactic Suite Space Resort. The Barcelona-based company plans to open the first space hotel if all goes according to plan.

Space customers would spend three nights in their orbital pod room, where they could crawl around like Spiderman in Velcro suits. Guests would also enjoy an eight-week training course set on a tropical island.

Its all going to be 3D..

No, the 3D that Sony, Panasonic, and others are promising next year is like nothing you've seen. We've come a long way since the old anaglyph red and blue glasses that come in cereal boxes, so before you knock the new technology…here’s a lot about it !!

3D, the basics
We have two eyes for a reason and while we've enjoyed stereo sound since-like-forever, stereoscopic images haven't quite arrived. At its core, 3D is as simple as using two cameras to capture the data that our eyes would, but it's the display part that's proven tricky. Ultimately, the technology has to find a way to present each eye with a different variation of an image, at that point our eyes and brain do the rest.
Circular polarized or active LCD shutter glasses
The one thing that hasn't changed about 3D is the need for glasses -- if you're holding out for 3D on a big screen without glasses, you're going to let this generation of 3D pass you by. The technology in the glasses varies by a lot and the main two types these days are circular polarized and active LCD shutter. Both serve the same purpose, to ensure each eye sees a different image, but in much different ways

Circular polarized glasses are easily the most common used in 3D cinema today. If you've been to a 3D film and used what look like cheap sunglasses, you've probably tried the technology. Without going into too much detail, each lens is set to filter out different light, so for example in a polarized system like RealD's, there can either be two projectors with different polarizing filters in front of each (pictured below) or a special ZScreen which can alternate the clockwise and counterclockwise polarization for each frame. In either case, the right and left frame alternate at about 144 times per second so that each of 24 frames per second of a movie is displayed 3 times per eye.

LCD shutter glasses
So in comes the LCD shutter glasses -- the technology itself has actually been around for some time, in fact there were eight Sega Master Systems games that worked with shutter glasses dating back to the 80's. But the technology was limited by the display technology of that era which could only show 480i at 30 frames per second, which worked out to about 15 FPS per eye in 3D -- so yeah, the flickering could make you sick.

 

Basically the way shutter glasses work is each lens can be blacked out very very quickly to synchronize with a frame displayed on the HDTV. This way a different 1920 x 1080 progressive image can be shown to each eye

An IR emitter connected to the TV sends signals to the glasses to keep 'em in sync. In larger demos, multiple emitters are mounted throughout the venue to ensure all the glasses get the signal. This is obviously less than ideal for a large movie theater, but shouldn't be a problem at home

The other reason shutter glasses make sense at home is because they don't limit the viewing angles of the display -- not to mention the glasses are more expensive and someone would likely steal them from a theater. But besides these advantages, proponents argue that the colors are more accurate, there's less ghosting and smearing, and it is argued that the contrast is greater between the left and right eyes. So, you add all these reasons together and the technology should provide the most realistic and reliable 3D technology ever unleashed on consumers -- at home or anywhere else.
It's not all good though, besides the cost of the glasses and the added emitter in the TV, some say that there is added flickering, and with the shutters closing in front of your eyes, the image is dimmed a bit. Both Sony and Panasonic claim these are no longer issues in thanks to the super fast refresh rates and brightness available on the latest HDTVs

Vespa Scooteerrrrr….err Chair!!

 

If different modes of transportation are to be blamed for leaving a major share of carbon footprints, their salvage is to be credited for contributing to a green lifestyle.  Furniture made from vintage Vespa scooters. This endeavor to convert classic Vespa scooters into stylish office furniture is from a Spanish design studio, Bel & Bel. The handmade leather upholstered chairs come in a whole range of colors to complement your office interiors…

Crank up battery..

Re-chargeable batteries are no good when they run out of power and you have no electric point handy to tank them up again. Here’s where the concept of the Wind Up Battery steps in; re-charge these cells via the conventional battery charger OR use the hand-crank to wind up and source-up some juice. Kinda like your hand-crank radios. A simply superb concept

A Moving Island?

With a capacity of 6000 people, this largest luxury cruiser is a city in itself…

Royal Caribbean's record-setting $1.5 billion, 1200-foot-long, 16-deck-high, 220,000-ton, Tower-of-Babel-on-sea luxury cruiser has finally set sail from Finland to Miami.

Royal Caribbean named this affront to god the "Oasis of the Seas," which, yeah, is a super cheesy name, but it's not like there's anything subtle about a god damn 1200-foot-long boat. It'll operate out of Miami and begin offering cruises in December. The Oasis of the Seas has a maximum capacity of around 6,000 people,  It's about 50% bigger than the current frontrunner in the "Titanic 2/Icarus" competition, the Queen Mary II.

More  here: http://www.oasisoftheseas.com/

RED..Digital Still & Motion Film Cameras..

* New MYSTERIUM-X 5K sensor
* 5K (2:1) at 1-100fps
* 4K (2:1) at 1-125fps
* Quad HD at 1-120fps
* 3K (2:1) at 1-160fps
* 2K (2:1) at 1-250fps
* 1080P (scaled from full frame) at 1-60fps
* Increased Dynamic Range, reduced noise
* Time Lapse, Frame Ramping
* REDCODE 250
* ISO 200-8000
* New FLUT Color Science
* Completely Modular System, each Module individually upgradeable
* Independent Stills and Motion Modes (both record full resolution REDCODE RAW)
* 5 Axis Adjustable Sensor Plate
* Multiple Recording Media Options (Compact Flash, 1.8" SSD, RED Drives, RED RAM)
* Wireless REDMOTE control
* Touchscreen LCD control option
* Bomb-EVF, RED-EVF and RED-LCD compatible
* Multiple User Control Buttons
* Interchangeable Lens mounts including focus and iris control of electronic RED, Canon and Nikon lenses (along with Zoom data)
* "Touch Focus Tracking" with electronic lens mounts and RED Touchscreen LCDs
* LDS and /i Data enabled PL Mount
* Rollover Battery Power
* Independent LUTs on Monitor Outputs
* Independent Frame Guides and Menu overlays on Monitor Outputs
* Monitor Ports support both LCD and EVF
* True Shutter Sync In/Out and Strobe Sync Out
* 720P, 1080P and 2K monitoring support
* Gigagbit Network interface and 802.11 Wireless interface
* 3 Axis internal motion sensor, built in GPS receiver
* Enhanced Metadata
* Full size connectors on Pro I/O Module. AES Digital Audio input, single and dual link HD-SDI
* Support for RED, most Arri 19mm, Studio 15mm, 15mm Lite, Panavision and NATO accessories
* Dimensions- Approx. 4"x4"x5.5"
* Weight (Brain only)- Approx. 6 lbs (2.72kg)

More here: www.reduser.net/forum

128GB USB Drive..

Corsair Flash Voyager 128GB USB Drive: As Big and Fast As a Small Fish

The day is not so far away when we may lose an 128GB flashdrive & still just chill…but today it costs about $400!!