Home Cinema

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NEWS: The world's smallest 1080p projector

dominic dawes 28 June 2007 16:49

If you have the room, the (low) light conditions and the inclination, there is still no better way to reproduce those big-screen thrills in your living room than a good projector. And this 1080p-compatible little beauty is more compact and convenient than most.

Hi-tech home entertainment isn't just for homes - get your car or yacht kitted out too

Andy Clough 28 June 2007 14:42

I spent a fascinating day at the CEDIA custom install exhibition in London's Docklands yesterday, writes Andy Clough.

The world of custom installation is big business these days, and I've seen the annual CEDIA show grow from its early days by the sea in Brighton, via a short stint in Birmingham to its current home at the Excel centre opposite The 02 Dome.

NEWS: CEDIA announces 2007 Award winners

Andy Clough 28 June 2007 14:03

One of the most unusual entries for the CEDIA (Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association) Awards this year, especially in the new 'special project' category, was a £40m yacht, Lady Anne, fitted out with all the latest gizmos by Advanced New Technologies.

NEWS: An affordable projector from SIM2

Andy Clough 28 June 2007 13:40

Italian manufacturer SIM2 is well known for its high-quality DLP projectors, and we've long been fans of many models in its range. But - how can we put this delicately? - their products aren't exactly cheap.

NEWS: LG adds chunk of Chocolate Phone styling to latest home cinema system

Clare Newsome 25 June 2007 12:52

Continuing an apparent quest for people to think its initials stand for "Lacquer Gloss", LG Electronics has unveiled the latest of its products to follow the glossy design lead of its 'Chocolate' Phone.

Lgj10Hd Upright The LG J10HD home cinema system offers a lot under its slick surface, however - including upscaled DVD playback, an 80GB hard-disk drive, and 2.1 sound.

NEWS: No, wait... HD DVD is winning (says HD DVD PR campaign)!

Joe Cox 21 June 2007 12:53

HD DVD Logo

If you're after the latest on HD DVD and an overview of the 'format war' as it now stands, then who better to ask than the people in power at Toshiba, Microsoft and Universal, right? Well, sort of... Joe Cox went to find out what they had to say.

NEWS: Surround sound via a Crystal wireless set

Andrew Everard 21 June 2007 12:34

Fancy a complete THX-certified surround speaker system, only without the clutter of cables? Greek loudspeaker company Crystal Audio has developed its THX-3D12 Wireless system to cut the cables to the rear speakers without compromising on sound quality.

NEWS: SIM2 refines its HT3000 projector

Andrew Everard 21 June 2007 11:19

Sim2 Ht3000E.72Dpi

SIM2 has reworked its HT3000 projector, with internal changes bringing greatly increased brightness, definition and colour rendering. And best of all, the price of the new Grand Cinema HT3000E is 20% less than that of the old model.

NEWS: DVD player and receiver updates - but no HD - from Cambridge Audio

Clare Newsome 21 June 2007 10:36

Cambridge Audio is to roll out a new range of DVD players and surround sound receivers into Richer Sounds stores, but has no immediate plans for a high-definition disc player. "We're waiting to see whether Blu-ray or HD DVD becomes the dominant format, and also for the finished specs to appear. It's a battle we're keeping out of," said Matthew Bramble, Cambridge Audio's Technical Director.

NEWS: "Blu-ray has won" - Panasonic

Andrew Everard 20 June 2007 17:12

The HD disc format war is over - and Blu-ray has won. That's the view of Panasonic North America, given by its Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer Joseph Taylor in an interview with US consumer electronics trade magazine TWICE.

NEWS: Thiel hits the ceiling with PowerPoint home cinema speakers

Andrew Everard 18 June 2007 12:57

Thiel Powerpoint1 2

US speaker company Thiel is heading for the home cinema high-end with its compact PowerPoint 1.2 speakers, designed for mounting on ceilings or walls. Selling for £995 each, the 1.2s use a coaxial driver arrangement for optimum integration, and are designed to cover a wide area in multichannel or stereo installations.

The Best of the Week - 18/06/07

Andrew Everard 18 June 2007 12:21

From the latest news from the Blu-ray/HD DVD battlefront, to new download services and some of the dinkiest amps we've ever seen, it's all here

This week we've...

NEWS: Blockbuster backs Blu-ray in the USA

Andrew Everard 18 June 2007 11:05

Movie rental chain Blockbuster has announced it's backing Blu-ray over HD DVD in 1450 of its US stores, and that 1700 of its outlets will be stocking Blu-ray discs. The move, likely to be seen as a blow for the rival HD DVD format, has been driven by customer preferences, following a trial period of renting both types of disc in 250 stores since late last year.

NEWS: Philips' new portable DVD players complete with iPod dock

Joe Cox 12 June 2007 15:52

Philips Ipod Dvd

Here's a product with a novel twist: a portable DVD player with a built-in iPod dock. It's the latest brainchild of Philips and is part of a range of six new portable movie machines.

Three widescreen DVD players and two players with the integrated docking stations will be released later this month. A portable DVD player with a built-in digital tuner is due out later this year to complete the range.

The Best of the Week - 11/06/07

Andrew Everard 12 June 2007 11:50

We're going full steam ahead to pack this site with news, comments and information to help you get the best buys in home cinema and hi-fi, and keep you up to speed with the latest developments in technology, whether it's projectors or iPods.

This week we've...

NEWS: See Spiderman 3 (and Ocean's 13) on Sony’s awesome 4K super-HD projector

Andy Clough 11 June 2007 11:59

If you think Blu-ray and HD DVD images look great, wait until you see Sony’s 4K high-definition projection system in action. We’ve just watched Spiderman 3 on the system, and believe us, it’s awesome! The picture resolution is twice that of high-definition TV.

High-definition surround sound explained

Andy Clough 11 June 2007 10:32

Universal player-2

Blu-ray and HD DVD don’t just offer awesome pictures – thay can also offer substantially better sound quality too. We’ve written a great deal about compression formats, usually when discussing the pros and cons of MP3. But it’s equally an issue in home cinema: in order to maximise disc space (especially with the rather more memory-starved traditional DVD), some form of compression of the soundtrack is usually necessary.

NEWS: Toshiba takes laptop route to deliver big push for HD DVD

dominic dawes 06 June 2007 14:49

Toshiba aims to put HD DVD disk drives on all its laptops next year. The company is in direct competition with Sony and Blu-ray, as it tries to counter Sony's advantage gained by all those Blu-ray drives sitting in every PS3 console. The move is seen as a significant gesture from Toshiba, as it attempts to gain an edge in the high-stakes next-generation DVD format battle.

HOW TO... Get the most from your projector

dominic dawes 06 June 2007 10:30

So, you've decided to eschew that large flatscreen TV in favour of an even bigger – and most likely better – movie image in your living room. You've bought some new blinds to keep the light subdued, and you've been mugging up on the difference between LCD and DLP, all the while marvelling at the resolution and colour claims made by chipset manufacturers. That's right – you've decided to buy a projector. But will you be getting the most out of it...?

NEWS: Hollywood relaxes stance on legalised copying for HD discs

dominic dawes 06 June 2007 09:33

Film Still-1

Hollywood looks set to relax its grip on how buyers of Blu-ray and HD DVD discs can store and copy movies. Consumers could soon have the opportunity to make entirely legal backup copies for use on media servers and mobile devices, according to the body administering the copy-protection systems used on the new discs.

HOW TO... Set up your subwoofer

dominic dawes 03 June 2007 15:20

Velodyne Sub-2

Set up a subwoofer correctly and it'll make a big difference to your system's sound. The only problem is, many people don't know where to start with sub setup, and as a result get it very wrong indeed. In fact, we'd say if there's one factor that most commonly lets an otherwise great system down, it's the relationship between the subwoofer and the rest of the speakers. But don't worry: we're here to take you through our tips for achieving beautiful bass.

NEWS: The Departed scores 100,000 high-definition disc sales

Andrew Everard 03 June 2007 15:03

Warner Home Video's HD release of Martin Scorsese's The Departed, available on both HD-DVD/DVD combo disc and Blu-ray, has become the first title to clock up 100,000 high-definition disc sales. The movie, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio (above) and Jack Nicholson, was released on the HD disc formats on the same day as the standard DVD version.