Tag: tv

Categories
iTV News

Stream Netflix From iPad To TV Using AirPlay

The latest beta version of iOS 4.2 was released this week and it introduces users to the wireless streaming service now called AirPlay. Folks at 9to5Mac have now confirmed that the AirPlay service will not only help users to stream music, video and photos from the local iPad memory to other devices like AirPort Express and Apple TV, but can also stream online content, such as those from Netflix.

This could be pretty useful since the iPad, though it is a media consumption device, is not ideal for family viewing. By wirelessly connecting the iPad to an Apple TV using AirPlay, users can stream both video and audio in order to watch movies and television shows with their family and friends.

The new Apple TV was unveiled on September 1 this year and shall be available at a pretty low price of $99.

Categories
Amazon Web

New Amazon TV Show Subscription Service In The Works

Yet another tech giant is jumping the TV bandwagon. According to reports on the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is planning to launch its own internet based TV subscription service that could be available free of cost to the subscribers of Amazon Prime. Prime at present offers subsidized shipping charges to customers who pay an annual fee of $79.

The new service is expected to take on competition from Netflix and Google TV by offering a similar catalog of older content that could be more demand based instead of a push-system as is done by the current system of cable TV. Also, this strategy is least likely to find resistance from media companies who find the new crop of internet TV streaming services as a threat to their business interests.

The Amazon TV show subscription service will extend beyond browsers and will extend to other services that are integrated with movie & video streaming capabilities like Microsoft XBox 360.

Categories
Consumer Electronics

Gefen Launches TV Volume Regulator To Control Loud Commercials

Are those loud TV commercials bothering you? Gefen Inc. is launching a new TV Volume Stabilizer that they claim will auto-regulate the volume so that you do not have go scurrying for the remote everytime a commercial or TV host goes yelling.

The device needs to be placed close to the TV source and the input source is connected to the back of the GefenTV via analog or optical cables. This is then connected to the TV input source so that the audio has to pass through the Audio stabilizer being broadcast via the speakers. Gefen claims to make use of a Dolby volume technology that will maintain a steady volume for any input source.

The GefenTV Auto Volume Stabilizer is now available for purchase from the Gefen website at a price of $179 a unit.

Categories
Consumer Electronics Google

Google TV Will Be A Set-Top Box And A NetTop

A lot has been discussed about the upcoming Google TV. Several companies including Logitech, Intel, Sony and Google are learned to be working on this new set-top box that will take Google to the television and media entertainment space.

However, it appears that Google TV is not going to work merely as a set top box for your television sets. A recent picture of the device’s interiors offers greater insights into what purposes the device will serve. And the speculation right now is that this is not just a set-top box, but also a nettop.
Google TV For Computer Nettop
As you can see from the picture above, the Google TV platform looks pretty similar to any normal Intel Atom powered nettop that supports multimedia capabilities. It has a 1.2GHz Intel Atom processor, hardware accleration for HD video, 3D graphics, heat sink, Wi-Fi module, USB ports, ethernet jack and other connections.

So in all probability, you can not only connect your Google TV to your television as a set top box, but can also connect it to your computer to serve as a media-center platform.

Categories
Consumer Electronics

LG 47LE5500 HDTV Review Of Tech Specs And Price

Korean electronics manufacturer, LG has launched its latest HDTV – the LG 47LE5500. As the name suggests, the new LG HDTV has a 47-inches screen that is protected inside some light tinted bezels. The bezel on the top and sides are 1.5 inches thick while the bezel on the bottom is 2.5 inches thick. The TV is 1.2-inches thick.

Now, let’s talk about the more important features. The bottom part of the LG 47LE5500 cabinet is connected to a 10-watt speaker. However, due to the thin profile, expect the bass to be a bit low.

The screen is coated with non-reflective anti-glare matte. The device has five touch-sensitive buttons, two USB ports, audio input, HDMI port, headphone jack, A/V ports,etc. The TV is also integrated with several web applications and widgets including Yahoo widget and others for weather, sports, news, finance,etc. Other web apps include those for Twitter and Flickr. NetCast offers connectivity to Netflix, Youtube and VUDU.

Price? It’s not exactly cheap. The LG 47LE5500 is available on stores at $2,100. However, do be on the lookout for discounts online. You should find them.

Categories
Consumer Electronics

New Sceptre LED TV Priced $269 Launching In July

Sceptre is well known for their low-cost televisions. The City of Industry, CA based consumer electronics manufacturer has announced the launch of two new LED TVs that will offer quality features at affordable prices.

Speaking of features, the two new Sceptre models are 19-inches and 24-inches in dimension and are 0.69″ at their thinnest point and 1.89″ at their thickest – enough testimony to the fact that you can have these televisions installed at any place inside your house. Both these LED TV models come with an in-built DVD player, offer 1920×1080 resolution, 2x HDMI ports, 1080p video, 16:9 widescreen display and a 5ms response time.

The 19″ and 24″ models are priced at $269 and $399 respectively and you can now check them out at one of the popular retailers like Target or NewEgg.

Also read : 3D TV Comparison : LED Vs. LCD Vs. Plasma

Categories
Consumer Electronics

3D TV Comparison : LED Vs. LCD Vs. Plasma

I do not normally write about consumer electronics on GoRumors. But a recent article on HDTVMagazine made for interesting reading. In the article, the author has studied how the viewing angle affects the 3D viewing experience on LCD and Plasma television screens from Samsung and Panasonic.

Here are some notes from the study

Samsung 55″ LED TV
The 3D viewing is perfect when your head is held straight and at the ideal angle to the screen. However, viewers may experience slight ghosting as the viewing angle changes. When the viewing angle is tilted by as much as 80 degrees, the LCD screen is cancelled out by the polarizing angle of 3D glasses and the image may be completely dark.
Samsung 3D LED TV

Panasonic 50″ Plasma Screen
Unlike the LCD screen of Samsung, the Plasma screen on a Panasonic TV appeared to be free from any appreciable cross-talk and ghosting even when when the viewing angle was tilted by as much as 90 degrees. The brightness dropped by a little, but casual viewers may not even notice.
Panasonic 3D Plasma TV

Sony 3D LCD TV
The performance deteriorates drastically with viewing angle on an LCD TV. This is because the LCD TV only makes use of one polarizer per glass lens thus causing much more crosstalk. On the contrary, the Plasma screens from Panasonic made use of dual polarizers that helped in minimizing ghost images.

The study concludes by saying that while Plasma shows marginal ghosting, the performance is significantly better than LCD or LED. You may expect even more improved performance when OLED TVs make it to the market. But that’s sometime away and so if you are going for a 3D TV now, maybe choose a Plasma.