Archives For HDTV

The Masters in 3D at Sony Style

Mari Silbey —  April 9, 2010 — 7 Comments

With a Sony Style store around the corner, I headed out yesterday for a peek at the Masters Tournament in 3D. It was just me, one avid golf fan, and a Sony Style staffer. In other words, the viewing event clearly wasn’t a big draw for the store. Nonetheless, Sony sucked me in, and I have to say I came away more impressed by the demo than I expected.

Sony was showing off its prototype Bravia LX900 3D TV connected to a Comcast cable feed. (No, the set-top wasn’t one of my employer’s, but I hear tell that Motorola set-tops are supporting other demos around the country.) Sony also had several pairs of 3D glasses on hand, and I was surprised at how comfortable they were. I don’t even like wearing sunglasses, but I could see getting used to these. They felt solid, but not heavy; close-fitting, but not tight. Score one for Sony.

As for the 3D picture itself, it was almost hologram-like. Instead of pictures jumping out from the TV, I had a strong impression of depth, as if I could walk right out on to the green like Picard entering the holodeck. I also had an overwhelming urge to see if I could pluck some of the tiny people right off the golf course. They looked like little animated dolls fit for the palm of my hand.

The golf fan next to me was pleased too. While he said he couldn’t see bothering with 3D for a sitcom, he loved being able to see the texture of the course in Augusta while watching the tournament.

I did find some negatives to the 3D experience. Looking at the screen from far to the side or below was headache-inducing. And when I had to hold my phone between cheek and shoulder to take a call, the tilt of my head made the picture unbearably blurry. Still, as a first-gen commercial 3D TV showing, the quality was a lot higher than I would have guessed. The photos below won’t convey that, but take a gander anyway. I even managed to snap one pic before the video feed was integrated. Check out the side-by-side view, and the complete hardware set-up. Available soon at a Sony store near you.

Click to enlarge:

In HDTV, Industry, TV Shows
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Get Your Golf On… In 3D Of Course

Mari Silbey —  April 6, 2010 — 6 Comments

I’m still reveling in last night’s glorious NCAA tourney championship game, but for those with an interest in The Masters and Tiger’s upcoming return to golf, there are now multiple ways to get the experience in 3D. Comcast, Cox, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, and Shaw in Canada (plus two unnamed European operators) have all nabbed distribution deals with the Augusta National Golf Club. Coverage varies, however. Comcast, for instance, will offer live 3D broadcasts for a couple of hours each day during the tournament, while Time Warner is relying on VOD. Of course, who is delivering what and when is a moot point for most, unless you’re one of the very few with a 3D set today. (More details here from Comcast on gear requirements)

For the rest of us, there are some public showings of the 3D event planned. Time Warner will have viewing parties at the Time Warner Center in NYC, and at golf courses in San Diego and Charlotte. Meanwhile, Sony Style stores in the Comcast footprint will also be showing off their 3D capabilities, which means I should be able to see some action at my local mall. And Cox is also listing several retail spots in its coverage areas with demos planned.

Want to watch the 3D Masters online? It’s not coming through ESPN3 (formerly ESPN360). However, supposedly you’ll be able access a 3D stream at Masters.com. No details yet, but you’ll need a 3D-capable computer. Yeah, most of us don’t have that either.

In HDTV, Home, TV Shows
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EngadgetHD Goes Hands On With Ceton

Dave Zatz —  March 31, 2010 — 8 Comments

ZNF pal Ben Drawbaugh has taken Ceton’s pre-release InfiniTV 4 ($399) for a spin on FiOS. And comes away pleased with its performance:

The InfiniTV 4 works exactly like you’d expect; you pop open the case and drop it into a free PCI-E 1x (or higher) slot, load a simple driver, call your cable company and ask them to bring a multi-stream CableCARD and connect the coax cable. What it really comes down to is that we love the InfiniTV 4. It works as advertised and really makes Windows 7 Media Center the best DVR there is (for cable subscribers).

Many in our geeky TV demographic have been following this card for some time. The first that let’s you simultaneously tune 4 streams of digital cable via Windows Media Center. Ceton’s price of entry requires commitment, and the lack of new extenders on the market worries me. But this appears to be a solid solution. One you could probably build for not much more than a new TiVo Premiere ($300) with Lifetime service ($400).

As for me, I’m not sure what comes next… I’m really digging Moxi, especially the multi-room streaming via extenders. Yet, the sometimes cluttered, inconsistent UI and lack of VOD (Netflix or Amazon) gives me pause. The new TiVo Premiere, while packing a serious hardware punch, isn’t much different from my Series3 and HD in terms of functionality. Which remain locked down by the CCI Byte. Cox’s steampunk DVR is, of course, out of the question. So, there could very well be a Ceton solution in my future. Especially if some of the Broadband Plan suggestions come to pass, allowing SageTV to tap (legitimately, hack-free) into a CableCARD without pricey certification. After all, they’ve got the extenders.

In CableCARD, DVR, HDTV, HTPC
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March Madness in Split Screen

Mari Silbey —  March 27, 2010 — 7 Comments

Samsung LN46A530 picture-in-picture split screen

What good is a big-screen TV if you can’t watch sports on it? This was the dilemma we faced in our household this weekend when March Madness suddenly ran up against a promised showing of Snow White for our four-year-old. Picture-in-picture was an option, but not an appealing one. Until I learned that our Samsung LN46A530 provides an option for split screen viewing. Ha! The audio track is a bit disconcerting, but the basketball display is still bigger than the TV screens I watched as a kid… if a little vertically stretched.

In HDTV, Home
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Surfing The Web While Watching Telly Up 35%

Guest Blogger —  March 22, 2010 — 5 Comments

This one is from the bleeding obvious department, but noteworthy nonetheless. The Nielsen Company’s latest Three Screen Report, which tracks consumption across TV, Internet and mobile phones, says that in the last quarter of 2009, Americans’ simultaneous use of the Internet while watching TV reached three and a half hours a month, up 35% from the previous quarter. “Nearly 60% of TV viewers now use the Internet once a month while also watching TV”, notes the report.

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In HDTV, Web
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