Given the endless stream of Internet-delivered content arriving at homes everywhere, consumers not only desire to harness it for their big screen enjoyment, but also want the flexibility of controlling it with the thing they carry with them everywhere—their mobile devices. Yamaha answers the call with its notable series of A/V receivers—the 7.1-channel RX-V671, RX-V571, along with the 5.1-channel RX-V471 and the RX-V371 - that extend Yamaha’s philosophy of offering top-end features, improved Apple product integration and enhanced network content streaming, at the company’s lowest prices ever.

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Beyond HDTV, sound is an absolute partner to your TV screen. In order to complete a powerful home theater system, deep, driving bass is necessary. The entire concept of of emulating the sound of a large theater in the home is to produce the realistic effects when viewing video. Those sounds are found at frequencies that usually extend below what other speakers or speaker-systems deliver. Home Theater receivers and sound systems use 5.1 and 7.1 to refer to surround modes. That “.1” refers to the channel dedicated to super low bass frequencies and a subwoofer speaker is designed to deliver those super lows.

The Klipsch KSW-10 is one of many subwoofers designed for home theater use. The really cool thing is that many theaters use Klipsch speakers in their sound systems. So, if you’re seeking theater sound at home, a Klipsch subwoofer is worth consideration.
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Blu-ray is currently the best medium to view movies for the consumer. Anyone serious about maximizing their audio and video experience at home need not look further than blu-ray at the moment. It’s the pinnacle of home entertainment.

So that said, what should you purchase for the blu-ray addict in your life?

The first thing should be a nice, 1080p display. To get the most accurate, cinematic detail from movies, then a plasma panel is the most ideal. When it comes to displays, my philosophy is always to go big. The price of many 50 inch sets have come down dramatically. Case in point, the Panasonic TC-P54S1. This is a 54 inch television, and it is a steal at the current asking price.

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How do you improve a wonderfully designed universal remote like the Harmony One? For Logitech, it was simple, add an RF (radio frequency) module. Their latest universal remote, the Harmony 900 has RF capabilities.

In terms of functionality, the Harmony 900 is almost identical to the Harmony One. However, the Harmony One is only IR (infrared), while the Harmony 900 is both IR and RF. The main benefit to RF is that you can store equipment in a closet, or even in a different room and be able to control all your components. Unlike IR, you do not have to be in the same line of sight as your equipment to control your gear.
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Toshiba has officially accepted defeat. It’s been almost two years since the demise of their HD DVD format, the lone high definition, physical disc medium that was a viable threat to blu-ray. However, they sure took their time to release a blu-ray deck.

Toshiba has finally licked their wounds, and have gone on to release the new BDX2000. It’s the real deal. It has a sleek, modern, svelte design, with premium fit and finish.

In terms of specs, the BDX2000 does everything any modern blu-ray player is capable of. It’s Profile 2.0, so it will support BD Live content. It will bitstream and decode both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio for maximum fidelity. Video quality is fantastic with a 1080p24 signal. In short, you simply can’t go wrong with this player. Kudos to Toshiba for finally coming around. Life is good in the winners circle, isn’t it Toshiba.
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Before Plasma and LCD screens dominated the HDTV market, video projectors were perceived as the most likely to deliver a home theater environment. It made sense. A projector could deliver image sizes to 300 inches, nearly duplicating the effect of a movie theater.

The projector, however, had several drawbacks. You needed to set up a screen. Also, it was difficult to place in a living room setting. The projector needed to be set in the center of the room or in front of your sofa. Then, of course, you needed to connect your cable box and disc player to the unit. The projector wasn’t able to survive those disadvantages. Instead it gained more popularity in business and school settings. When making a presentation, you can connect your computer. Continue Reading »

Everyone has a widescreen TV and HDTV has become part of daily language. But the conversion to digital TV broadcasting also brings vast improvements in TV sound. You can’t really find it coming from those 2 speakers on your TV. You need a home theater sound system. Now there are many home-theater in a box (HTiB) sound systems available but many home owners are reluctant to place speakers front and rear within the traditional surround set-up. JVC introduced a marvelous new system, at CEDIA 2009 USA, that will change all that.
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The Internet is full of sites that stream videos and offer libraries for video downloads. Acer AspireRevo is a mini desktop computer that offers an HDMI port for convenient connection to your 1080p TV.

The Acer AspireRevo AR1600-U910H Desktop is based on the popular Acer Aspire Netbook, a portable PC that uses an Intel Atom processor, has a 10-inch screen, and weighs under 3 pounds. The AspireRevo offers the same specifications as a typical Netbook but does not include a screen and a keyboard.. So, unlike traditional desktops, this one is only about an inch thick and approximately 7-inch square and weighs only 9 pounds. This model has 1GB memory that is expandable to 2GB. Windows XP Home is preinstalled as its operating system. Other models may come with 2GB or 4GB installed.
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At CES earlier this year, LG unveiled their future flagship display, the 55LHX. It’s a 55 inch LED backlit display, and we are finally closing in on the release. LCDs with LED backlighting seems to all the rage these days. They try to address the inherent flaws in LCD technology, like poor black levels and motion problems. The LG 55LHX promises to address those problems, but it doesn’t stop there. LG is calling the 55LHX a wireless LED display.
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When it comes to blu-ray players, the philosophy of Denon must be the more the merrier. It seems that they want to cover a wider spectrum of blu-ray shoppers. Well, relatively speaking of course, since if you are shopping for Denon blu-ray players, you are far from the average Joe. For the discriminating audiophile with deep pockets, the DVD-A1UDCI has all they could want. For those who want exceptional quality at a more modest price, the DBP-1610 is more up their alley.
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